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Tim Demeter

The Comixpedia End of 2006 Roundtable

December 16, 2006 - 23:33 | Xaviar Xerexes

Our second annual virtual round table on the year in webcomics features comments from Eric Millikin, Daku, Gilead Pellaeon, Mike Russell, Lewis Powell, Alexander Danner, Eric Burns, Michael Rouse-Deane, Johanna Draper Carlson and Gary Tyrrell.

Lighten Up!

Submitted by DAJB on December 15, 2006 - 08:50

Go Lighten Up!One of the intriguing things about the interview with me which was posted at Fleen on Tuesday is that, although I (inevitably!) mentioned several BVC titles, they chose to illustrate it with the cover of Lighten Up! - one of the comics I didn't!

Not to worry - it's a "great interview" (and that's according to Tim Demeter of Graphic Smash, so you know it's true!) so - if you haven't read it already - you might just want to visit Fleen and read it now. Well, not right now. Go to Broken Voice Comics and read the latest instalment of "Lighten Up!" first!

Frustration

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on December 13, 2006 - 11:28

Joe Dunn Cover for ComixpediaPosts like this from talented folks like Joe Dunn make me a bit depressed too. Dunn is a talented artist and a fairly funny writer too who has steadily improved in his webcomic work. There's no question the world is better off with Dunn doing comics (or some other creative work he could throw his skill set at) than a day job. But as folks get older, start families, have responsibilities, well, you need to make a living.

It's definitely a time of chaos and opportunity in webcomics comics. Right now the folks who are "making" a living seem to have a skill set that involves a minimum amount of business savvy (and patience to deal with that) and willingness to take some risks. Nothing wrong with that but I hope we get to a point where artistic talent and vision along can carve its own successful path.

In the meantime I sincerely hope Joe Dunn can find a way to keep making comics. His work has been hugely enjoyable to read and look at.

I'm Mr. Webcomic-Meister, I'm Mr. One Hundred and Two!!! (UPDATED)

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on December 11, 2006 - 10:37

MAGAZINE

Be sure to check out the first installment of a new column from Alexander Danner and Tim Tyler spotlighting completed webcomics.

INTERVIEWS

AWARDS

  • The 2007 Lulu Blooker Prize is accepting submissions until January 15, 2007. The winner of the Comics Blooker Prize receives $2,500 and if selected as the overall winner (there are two additional categories) the prize is $10,000. Last year's winner was Zack Miller for Totally Boned: A Joe and Monkey Collection. This year's judges are Paul Jones; Arianna Huffington; Julie Powell; Rohit Gupta; and Nick Cohen.

DEAD TREES

POLLS

I'm going to shut down our "Que Es Mas Offensive" poll of potentially offensive webcomics on Christmas Eve (12/24). So be sure to vote before we crown the winner on Christmas morning.

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 BLOGS

http://comicspace.com/comixpedia/

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on December 6, 2006 - 11:55

Anyone want to be my friend?

ComicSpace.com, MySpace for Comics?

Submitted by Erik Melander on December 5, 2006 - 17:27

In an email sent out today to all users of OnlineComics.net, they announced the start of a new venture named ComicSpace.

I'm mailing all comic creators in the OnlineComics.net database to let them know about a new site I've started called ComicSpace.com. As the name implied, it's a lot like MySpace, but with the added benefit of being focused entirely on comics. Within a week or two, comic creators will even be able to host their comics on ComicSpace. Even if you're happy with your current hosting situation, you can use ComicSpace as a promotional and networking tool.

While OnlineComics.net is dedicated to providing notifications of updates (as well as some community functions), the features of ComicSpace (besides hosting) are not outlined on the webpage or in the email sent out.

AUCTION AWESOMENESS!

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on December 4, 2006 - 16:47

Sorry about the all caps in the title but it's impossible to come into contact with Ryan North and not get at least a little excited. And not in that way either (not that there's anything wrong with that...).

Anyhow I'm trying out the auction-model advert service Ryan whipped up called Project Wonderful. There's three little ad boxes in the upper right hand corner that will show the ad of whomever is currently bidding the highest for it.

Find More Good Webcomics At ComixpediaI've also been trying out buying ads on it just to see how easy it is to use and then to see how well it works (I haven't done any advertising for Comixpedia in over a year at least.) The ad I'm running now is on the right - I'll probably be looking for better ideas down the road. Anyone else buying or selling on Project Wonderful want to share their experiences so far?

Webcomics: A United Front Against Wikipedia

Submitted by Sean C on December 1, 2006 - 15:52

Given all the recent fuss over Wikipedia’s history of blatant dismissal of the webcomics medium, I feel the need to express the following, and I think all webcomic creators, both superstar and little guys, should take this to heart.

"Why do we even care about this?"

We do not need Wikipedia.

Week 2 of Bomb Shelter Idol

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on November 21, 2006 - 23:46

What Birds KnowIt's the second week of Bomb Shelter Idol. Last week I sang the praises of the fast-paced, buddy-comedy/vampire flick webcomic, Zed Reckoning.

This week I want to highlight a completely different webcomic called What Birds Know. What Birds Know is also incredibly well-rendered with a lot of obvious thought given to the characters, the backgrounds, the "camera angles". It's also well laid-out on the page (each installment is about 660 by 930 pixels which provides enough space to make panel arrangement important). The story of three girls out on an adventure certainly has a much more measured pace then Zed but it doesn't drag even as you read through the fairly solid archives. In fact, Birds seems confident in its pace and its careful layering of foreshadowing and tension is enough to build to what could be a big pay-off. Could be. I have no idea what is going to happen next, but I'm definitely hooked.

So far it looks like both Zed and Birds are safe with the voters in the Bomb Shelter Idol contest. I hope we keep it that way as both of these are great comics in their own ways.

Further Thoughts On the Most Read Project

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on November 21, 2006 - 10:57

It's been two years since Comixpedia published an update to our Most Read project which tracked the audience shares of webcomics.

It was difficult to determine readership numbers then, it's just as difficult to conduct any kind of "Internet ratings" now. But it's an extremely useful process for Comixpedia as it helps to ensure that we are not overlooking significantly popular webcomics in our coverage (It is not a prerequisite that a webcomic be "popular" to merit coverage. The strength of readership of a particular webcomic, however, is a legitimate tool for deciding what we should write about). If you have suggestions for future efforts in this area feel free to post a comment here.