Elements of a webcomic mixedThis post is part 2, you can read part 1 here.

So, far we covered the first half of the 6 elements of a successful WebComic. The first three are: You, the Story & Art, and the Stage. For this article we will talk about Propaganda, the Audience, and Revenue.

Before we jump into these elements I wanted to take this opportunity to mention you can check out my webcomic at www.madmanofmagic.com. If you enjoy it, please share it with your friends and those who might also enjoy reading it.

Thanks!

Now back to the last 3 elements of a successful WebComic.

4: Propaganda

This is what brings an audience to your site. It is technically marketing, but I like the idea of not promoting your webcomic, but instead spreading propaganda. In my mind propaganda has more of a viral feel to it (technically it’s supposed to be on more of a political a political nature, but lets ignore that for this article).

Last week I asked my twitter followers to share with me the webComics they were reading and/or creating. The response was amazing and I still haven’t had a chance to visit them all, but the experience got me thinking about what makes a great webcomic.

A lot of new WebComic Creator thinks that if they make a comic and share it with a couple friends that it’ll get passed around & “TA-DA..!”, everyone will know about it and stardom ensues. Those of you that have been creating art online for a while are thinking, “I wish that’s how it went”, but we all know that there is a lot more involved.

In this article I will share with you the elements needed for you to not only create a successful WebComic, but to make an income from it as well.

Let’s get started….

There are 6 elements that make up a successful, engaging, webComic. They are (from most to least important): You (the creator/s), the story & art, the stage, propaganda, audience, & revenue. Elements of a WebComic

I’m not sure how I end up finding these random videos.

I guess this is a sign that I am spending too much time surfing the internet instead of working on my comic book like a good little WebComic creator, but I found this video.

It could be considered political but doesn’t have any real call to action or push an agenda. It is more informative than political.

Warning! This is not directly related to making webComics, so feel free to skip reading this article and come back for tomorrows article on something cool related to something cool related to webcomic creating.
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March 9, 2013 by Jason Love

Web ComicOf all the things I have covered in this blog about web comics, the one thing that seems to be asked the most is “how to start a webcomic“.

Since I have a blog about learning to be an independent comic book creator and starting a web comic is an important part of the independent comic world, I’ll go ahead give you a simple checklist to get started.

Read then ACT!

Before I jump into the list I want to give you a little heads up on most people reaction to this post.

Many of you will read this and never act on it.

I am Currently reading “Never Get a “Real” Job: How to Dump Your Boss, Build a Business and Not Go Broke” by Scott Gerber. The book itself isn’t great, but Mr. Gerber does have some great points and some easy to follow techniques to help start a business.

The reason I am not impressed with the book is most of the writing feels like filler and a lot of long drawn out rants. As I already said, there is some great stuff in the book, but if all the fluff was taken out the book would be half the size.

The One Paragraph Start-up Plan

One of the great things that is brought out in the book is the idea of the one paragraph business plan. I have taken entire courses on business plans while getting my MBA. They are long, boring, and really mean nothing.

Side Note:
Even with that said, I hope to create a series of posts in the near future that is basically a business plan for web comics that all of you can read.

So, lets get to it!

The One Paragraph Start-up Plan for my Web Comic

You just started a web comic and you’re very excited!!!

The Negative news for the new web-comic creator

Sorry to tell you, but you’re not special. Nobody knows the exact numbers of web comics that currently exist, but I have heard the number 40,000 thrown around by several of my peers. Of those 40,000 there are probably 2,000 that are good, regularly updated, and able to make any money from their efforts.

This means the slogan “if you build it, they will come” is not an option for web comics. You are not going to have bloggers, reporters, or even your friends asking to interview you or begging to put your link on their site. People don’t care that you started a web comic, but they are always interested in reading great content.

This means your web comic has to be as good as you can make it.

If you are not prepared to work your butt off you must accept the fact this comic book or web comic you want to make is going to be a hobby. Something you do once in awhile.  A Website people will check out every now and than.

It will not accidently become a full time career. You can turn your hobby site into a career if you work hard enough at it, but the myth of you making millions while having fun creating a few images is not the reality.

The Positive news for the new web-comic creator