Quackcast episode 400 is on the horizon and to help celebrate this awesome triple digit of a number, Oz and Banes want to know about your experience of being a webcomic creator and what the DD community means to you! So head on over to check it out!
I found DrunkDuck back when I was 14 years old, starry eyed and more than a little clueless. I had no idea how to make a website to host my comics (as bad as they were) and this seemed like a great way to start. DD was my first, and, since then, has been a very special part of my development into a somewhat more capable creator.
I remember the Wowio studio take over and decline, the power outages and lost archives (including my own comics) that meant we had to start over not to mention all the visual changes over the years. But it was here where I learnt how to colour comics, what screen resolution was and even had a comic that appeared on the front page at one stage (though competition was not as strong back then). I’ve had many projects fall and rise in that time but DD has alway been there.
At times, being a webcomic creator is hard. You often feel like Sisyphus, cursed to roll his boulder up a hill before it falls back down again. I’ve abandoned many a project, started a new one, let it go and hoped the next would have more follow through. DD never judged. Even during the busiest times of my life, I’ve come back to catch up on my favourite comics and I took comfort in the fact that even though my boulder was currently sitting at the bottom of the hill, others were still pushing theirs and that they were happy to tell me a story along the way.
I am a firm believer that the creators and the readers make the experience for others to enjoy and that has and always will be here. What has your experience been as a webcomic creator? What role did DrunkDuck play in your creative life? Tell us in the comment section below or join us in the forums.
And join us on Sunday evening for our Quackchat at 5:30PM(EST) where we’ll be talking about this topic!
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PSA! We have finally got our DrunkDuck link back! Now when you type in drunkduck.com you’ll be be directed to the right place! :D
The good and the bad of being a webcomic creator
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, Nov. 9, 2018
9 likes!
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PaulEberhardt at 6:36PM, Nov. 10, 2018
When I joined Drunk Duck way back, I mainly wanted to try out stuff. I had got back into drawing not very long before, and I kind of liked the idea of actually having an audience for once. Well, I got hooked, and I'm not at all sure if I had kept it up if I hadn't turned to webcomicing. Also I found that webcomicing gave me a great breathing room where I could just live out my creative side in relative peace. It still does, in fact, even if I've struggle at finding a way to start updating again for ages and am constantly vexed because I haven't managed so far. I only know that I will, eventually. I've always said I won't stop until the pencil drops from my cold dead fingers, no matter if there are two thousand or just two readers plus my Mum reading it - and that hasn't changed a bit. I'm basically doing this for myself, simply because I enjoy drawing silly critters for its own sake, only that I'm be more than happy to share the fun with anyone who happens to drop by and like them.
Dragonaur at 7:29AM, Nov. 10, 2018
It's definitely a drag when good isn't good enough. It's a lot of work to generate any kind of readership. But I would have never started if I didn't enjoy trying to bring life to a bunch of lines. I doubt I'd ever do it again. But I'm glad I made my web comic when I did. ^_^
Unka John at 6:49AM, Nov. 10, 2018
(Continued) Out there somewhere is a kid with no tablet, no software, just a piece of paper and a pencil. He's got no scanner so maybe is uploading pics from mom's smartphone. Maybe he's good. Maybe he's not. He's your little pot of forget-me-nots. Water him/her.
Unka John at 6:43AM, Nov. 10, 2018
My comic had its genesis on Drunk Duck. I hadn't drawn in years and it showed. After the lost archives incident I moved to a web site that shall not be named. The good was a happy little mutual admiration society where I met some pleasant and interesting people. Without going into detail, I chose to emigrate. Readership was never large my first time on the Duck and after my experience at the website that shall not be named, a lack of readers was preferred. I am a webcomic agnostic. I often feel time spent on my comic is time better used for the benefit of family. At this stage, Ink LaRue functions as part experimentation, part software learning process and old fashioned practice. I have been disappointed by and consequently leery of community. To it's credit, the Duck community seems non-judgmental to me. Here I was prepared to be blissfully ignored so I could finish the damned story off and you people had to ruin it all by being nice!
JaymonRising at 8:55PM, Nov. 9, 2018
With "Jands", I just wanted to make a great webcomic at the time, much like Chris Wilson or Bleedman, meaning I had dreams. Then again I was in High School, so I was also naive. Now I'm just doing something for the sake of getting it over with and admiring far superior creators in this site who...are very handsome, talented, and totally got it going on, dudes.;)
mishi_hime at 7:39PM, Nov. 9, 2018
(Continued) I will always have that ‘itch’ to make another comic.
mishi_hime at 7:38PM, Nov. 9, 2018
I joined Drunk Duck at the tail end of high school. I had a teacher who was a published comic artist who taught me a lot and inspired me. At the time, the idea of free comics anyone could read online sounded like a technical marvel. I decided it was a future I wanted to be a part of. I drew a lot of comics from the time I was 13 up until I was 20. I remember looking at advertisements for TokyoPop’s infamous “Rising Stars of Manga” contest. I was naive enough to be blissfully unaware how terrible that contest actually was (Google to find out the horror stories behind TokyoPop’s contracts) but it gave me a dream. Discovering sites like Drunk Duck allowed me to skip the middle man. I could host my own comics without a publisher like TokyoPop and for free. DD came with the added bonus of community. I found people who enjoyed drawing for the sake of drawing, who seemed to care about what I was making. I made some good friends here, and while my artistic dreams have changed, I will always ha
AmeliaP at 6:43PM, Nov. 9, 2018
"Even during the busiest times of my life, I’ve come back to catch up on my favourite comics and I took comfort..." My spiritual sis! "What role did DrunkDuck play in your creative life?" A critical role, helping me with my career decisions. Duck fo' life! "Don’t forget you can now advertise on DrunkDuck for just $2 in whichever ad spot you like!" I can't use PayPal, but Michael said I can use Payoneer with a credit card. I had another problem with Payoneer because a prepaid system. I'll try another bank account to see if it solves the problem. I'm saying that because I don't know if there are more creators from South America (say olá, ol' fellers).
rmccool at 9:40AM, Nov. 9, 2018
Duck and this community is /has been what has keep me from stepping off onto to void over the years...my little world and this site has outlasted just about everything else in my life.. it why I M still here..on duck and in life.