Starting a New Comic

[Coach]

Hello All,

I wanted to come to the CP braintrust to see if I can get some info/advice on starting a new comic. I have spent the last couple years putting together a bunch of cartoon strips, mostly for my own personal hobby, but would like to look at possibilities for making this a real thing. The industry has obviously changed significantly since Peanuts and Calvin & Hobbes, etc.. My main concern now is how to get it out there and what are the options/best ways?

My initial thoughts:

- Create a website and run it straight from there (ala Oatmeal or Cyanide and Happiness)

- Start Facebook and Twitter accounts where posting would essentially be from the main character of the comic (a dog) and update with new strips that I've made, comment on whatever events/postings as the character.

My Concerns:

- I know The Oatmeal (and most other webcomics) are made on the computer, and I've tried that and have programs and whatnot for it, but I do much prefer drawing and scanning, is this a problem?

- None of my stuff is copyrighted. I'm not even sure how to do that. Do I need to send it to a publisher for something like that? Can I just do it myself? Could I just keep my originals in dated, sealed envelopes? What are the itellectual property rules for something like this?

- I have no idea where to start with a website and building one. I could take a course or figure it out I'm sure, but I'd rather not spend time on that and look to have someone run a site for me if this was the case.

- Facebook and Twitter own whatever information you post there, including pictures, if I am not mistaken. I don't want a situation where I've posted original work and it's all of a sudden "not mine"

If anyone can answer these questions, has advice, or a completely different idea of how to go about this, it would be much appreciated. I know there are a lot of lawyers and tech people here so feel free to offer up any pro-bono advice you're willing to give. Or PM me if you actually work with stuff like this and would like to see what I have/set up any type of meeting. Thanks CP!

MattyC

[woob]

Regarding FB/Twitter, I think The Oatmeal just links to his content rather than posting it directly, doesn't he? Maybe that's the way around FB/Twitter claiming your work as their own.

Looking forward to seeing some of your work.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Hello All,

I wanted to come to the CP braintrust to see if I can get some info/advice on starting a new comic. I have spent the last couple years putting together a bunch of cartoon strips, mostly for my own personal hobby, but would like to look at possibilities for making this a real thing. The industry has obviously changed significantly since Peanuts and Calvin & Hobbes, etc.. My main concern now is how to get it out there and what are the options/best ways?

My initial thoughts:

- Create a website and run it straight from there (ala Oatmeal or Cyanide and Happiness)

- Start Facebook and Twitter accounts where posting would essentially be from the main character of the comic (a dog) and update with new strips that I've made, comment on whatever events/postings as the character.

My Concerns:

- I know The Oatmeal (and most other webcomics) are made on the computer, and I've tried that and have programs and whatnot for it, but I do much prefer drawing and scanning, is this a problem?

- None of my stuff is copyrighted. I'm not even sure how to do that. Do I need to send it to a publisher for something like that? Can I just do it myself? Could I just keep my originals in dated, sealed envelopes? What are the itellectual property rules for something like this?

- I have no idea where to start with a website and building one. I could take a course or figure it out I'm sure, but I'd rather not spend time on that and look to have someone run a site for me if this was the case.

- Facebook and Twitter own whatever information you post there, including pictures, if I am not mistaken. I don't want a situation where I've posted original work and it's all of a sudden "not mine"

If anyone can answer these questions, has advice, or a completely different idea of how to go about this, it would be much appreciated. I know there are a lot of lawyers and tech people here so feel free to offer up any pro-bono advice you're willing to give. Or PM me if you actually work with stuff like this and would like to see what I have/set up any type of meeting. Thanks CP!

MattyC

Website comics are becoming a better and cheaper way of publishing independent entertainment content.

I would probably want to leave the copy write questions to someone with a legal background. But there are way to many stories of people getting their ideas and concepts borrowed. If your planning on generating income from something like that you have to protect your primary asset.

use facebook and twitter to direct to your website, that way if you choose to lets say generate revenue from your site you can gain it.

I don't think drawing is scanning should be a problem if the quality is good. Aren't there digital drawing tools that you can do. One of the biggest issues with drawing and scanning is the clarity factor especially of the text. When you get old like me things get fuzzy.

If your going to self publish on the website you just need to protect your characters through copy write. I might recommend, that you eventually self publish a book of your clips its good for building your resume. You can also jump into merchandising with your characters likeness

http://www.ehow.com/how_8779784_cart...pyrighted.html

If you want to talk to me about websites, we created our website easily and cheaply, I can maybe pass on some information

Plus there are some tips to up your comics profile

Our website is

http://www.cflhorsemen.ca/

We put up this site in a few days.

anyways my advice would be free and worth that much, but pm me if interested.

[Coach]

Originally Posted by woob

Regarding FB/Twitter, I think The Oatmeal just links to his content rather than posting it directly, doesn't he? Maybe that's the way around FB/Twitter claiming your work as their own.

Looking forward to seeing some of your work.

Yeah I would think that's the way to do it.

But, being the artist and not a tech person in any way shape or form, designing and creating a good site is something that I just don't want to spend a tonne of time on, if I don't have too. Unfortunately I am hitting an impass with this (and other mediums of work) where I've realized that this is what I want to do and know that with that comes turning a hobby into a job, which can come with unfun things. But what I don't want is something that's crappy because I didn't want to devote proper attention to it (obviously this is a discipline problem for me more than a lack-of-ability problem).

Thanks for the links Captain, I'll check them out when I'm home from my boring job, which I hope cartooning can take me far away from!

Keep the advice rolling CP!

[cDnStealth]

I don't have a whole lot to add outside of offering my own personal experience with scanning artwork. I don't think there is much of an issue with putting up non-digital comics online. Do you plan on inking your art? That would make a world of difference when you scan it in terms of clarity. I find my pencil drawings tend to look somewhat washed out when I scan them. Either way I'd suggest you throw them into Photoshop once you've scanned them and tweak the contrast and color.

[Coach]

Originally Posted by cDnStealth

I don't have a whole lot to add outside of offering my own personal experience with scanning artwork. I don't think there is much of an issue with putting up non-digital comics online. Do you plan on inking your art? That would make a world of difference when you scan it in terms of clarity. I find my pencil drawings tend to look somewhat washed out when I scan them. Either way I'd suggest you throw them into Photoshop once you've scanned them and tweak the contrast and color.

Yeah I do ink them and the ones I've scanned in tend to look pretty sharp. But yeah I was thinking either touching them up or just scanning b/w inked work and then coloring them with the software.

[getbak]

Here's information on copyright: http://www.cipo.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/ci...h_wr02281.html

When you post the comics, make sure they're marked with the copyright symbol (©) and date. You can register the copyright, but it isn't required. The very act of creating the work creates the copyright on it.


For the website, I'd look at using a WordPress blog for it at least initially. There are many templates you can use, and you can pay a small fee for various upgrades, for everything from a custom design to your own web domain address.

[octothorp]

Originally Posted by MattyC

- None of my stuff is copyrighted. I'm not even sure how to do that. Do I need to send it to a publisher for something like that? Can I just do it myself? Could I just keep my originals in dated, sealed envelopes? What are the itellectual property rules for something like this?

MattyC

First of all good luck in this endeavour!

Now, actually your stuff is protected by copyright. The fact that you created it is enough to give your copyright over the material.

What you may not have is evidence of copyright; the most formal way of doing this is registering for copyright with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office. However, for most creative endeavours, this would be overkill, unless you start to find that you're getting so many copyright disputes that enforcing them is problematic. I also have no idea what would be involved in copyright registering an ongoing work like a comic.

The CIPO has a good primer here:
http://www.cipo.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/ci...n&wt_cxt=learn

It's not as though someone else can simply register copyright of your work because you don't (as is said to happen with patents). Someone else would need to prove that they created the work. The fact that the material first appeared on your site, plus the fact that you've got the originals (if you do hand-draw it), should be more than enough. So just make sure that every image has a copyright symbol, and date on it and either your name or your url.

The hardest part of copyright today is actually knowing when someone is infringing. Writers who publish their work online usually use a google-alert to know if their work is being republished online elsewhere. (You choose some unique phrases from the work, set up a google alert for these phrases, and you'll get notified if google picks them up in a search engine.) I don't know if there's a way to do this for images, beyond using google image search on some of your images and just checking them manually from time to time.

[CaptainCrunch]

You can also do google searches based on images.

The big concern is you create this awesome cartoon, and a week later it shows up on T-Shirts being sold by someone else, or on coffee mugs. Or in the case of one company that I've seen in Calgary on the side of a van as part of a companies logo.

[Coach]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

You can also do google searches based on images.

The big concern is you create this awesome cartoon, and a week later it shows up on T-Shirts being sold by someone else, or on coffee mugs. Or in the case of one company that I've seen in Calgary on the side of a van as part of a companies logo.

This is honestly my main concern. Reading as much as I have on the comic industry and how often original creators got totally boned out of the huge profits from their work (Seigel and Schuster, Bob Kane, etc..), it does freak me out.

I think that even if the comic itself doesn't gain much of a following, I have a feeling my character will lend itself to stuff like this (ala Calvin peeing on things, which I know is done without Watterson's permission), so I would like to be protected against things like this before I make anything publically accessible.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Or in the case of one company that I've seen in Calgary on the side of a van as part of a companies logo.

I'm still not sure how Pete the Plumber hasn't been sued into oblivion by Marvel (especially now that Disney owns them).

[photon]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Yeah I do ink them and the ones I've scanned in tend to look pretty sharp. But yeah I was thinking either touching them up or just scanning b/w inked work and then coloring them with the software.

Mike from Penny Arcade used to do something similar to this I believe (pencil, scan, ink and colour). I know I've watched a number of videos of him working. Tracking them down might be difficult, but might be worth it to see his workflow.

A lot of ones I've seen use a Cintiq with a screen to do it in. They're expensive tho.

For the website, you could start out with a webcomic host, there are sites that specialize in that sort of thing:

http://inkoutbreak.com/wiki/index.ph...Webcomic_Hosts
http://cat-nine.net/top-4-best-free-...hosting-sites/

That might be good place to start as getting it going would probably be pretty simple.

Ultimately Wordpress would be my suggestion too as there are plugins that help handle webcomic type setups:

https://wordpress.org/plugins/webcomic/
http://comicpress.org/

But the other sites might be a way to get up and running first and then you can migrate to your own website/domain as you grow and/or find someone willing to help you out.

[Coach]

BUMP!!

I've began my weekly comic and launched it on Facebook. I decided to work on the website while doing this as the website will be more than just this one strip. I figured I have enough hard copy, file dates, poor man's copyright stuff that I could deal with any IP issues that may arise short term. And honestly, I just wanted to do it finally. The first one is inked and colored with marker, just because that's how i did it a while ago. The rest I'm going to color on the comp.

Anyways. It's called Boris Got Out, and it follows the adventures of Boris the dog as he occupies himself at home during the day, and tries to escape. I will be posting new weekly comics every Friday. Feel free to share and give your comments!

https://www.facebook.com/BorisGotOut

[BlackArcher101]

I totally thought the logo said Boris Got Gout

[Slava]

Anything on Twitter?

[Coach]

Originally Posted by Slava

Anything on Twitter?

https://twitter.com/BorisGotOut

I've never been a twitter person so I'm not that great with it yet, but I'll ramp it up for sure. Probably post the odd 1-3 frame comic.

[SportsJunky]

Damn gout. Not even Boris is safe.

[DoubleF]

Lol at the others who thought it said "Boris got gout". I thought the same. I was disappointed at first, then couldn't stop giggling at how possibly funny a comic about a dog with goat would be.

[Coach]

well I guess I should be editing the wordmark a bit... lol