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As for this comic…
Pffffffffffffffffffft.
That is the sound of my willpower draining.
I now (in retrospect) realize this story arc was a bit of a mistake. It’s sound in principle but (as with many things) it doesn’t fully work in the weekly format of my comic. If this were a cartoon, this would be a fun parody episode that would come and go. But with my glacial updating pace, it’s running on a full year and it seems to be testing the patience of some readers. And I get it.
I think everyone can sense that this is a goofy, lighthearted side arc that doesn’t really advance the main story much. (Although certain things might advance in certain ways, so it’s not ALL fluff.) As it is, though, the nature of the content is seriously hurting engagement. I think I’ve lost a lot of readers who like the narrative and the ‘drama’ (or the closest approximation of drama that this comic affords). I hope they return when this arc is over, but one look at the comments lets me know that this isn’t working. Comics from previous story arcs would sometimes have HUNDREDS of comments under them. These new comics, meanwhile, regularly have fewer than twenty.
I can’t bail, of course; I need to see this nightmare out and come out the other side. But I am anxiously awaiting the end of this arc. And I think a number of you are too.
dude, apologize and look for a big box of chocolates. oh and just let that ***** fade.
also, yes the update schedule changes things. go look at the comments on Grrl Power during the steakhouse fight. yet it reads much better now. and I’m sure the complaints about the Siege of Mechanicsburg are almost as epic as the sequence. and that comic updates 3 times a week! (how!?!?!) we are getting something nominally free that otherwise we’d have to pay for. I’ll spare you the comparison to several irregularly updated comics including one that bans people for asking when the next update comes along. (naming no names) so give yourself a break you could be playing it safe or trying things and learning.
Well, I do take solace in the simple fact that the comic tends to read well when you’re binging it as a series. And that’s really the ball I’ve got my eye on. If I were aiming to make a comic that worked beautifully with the weekly release schedule, it would just be some simple pop culture gag comic with no overarching story. That would certainly be smarter on my part. But I’ve consistently proven to the world that whatever I am, I am NOT smart.
INCONCEIVABLE. You’re almost as smart as I.
Hmmm … I seem to be reading several comics from authors who don’t make comics “smartly”. Including … I think it was DMFA where Amber’s recommendation for people who would like to start making comics was “don’t do anything the way I did”.
God, everything I do is wrong. My entire strategy is the worst, from both a workflow standpoint and an audience-building standpoint. But when I started out, I knew nothing. If I were smart, I’d scrap this comic and start a new one that people would actually like.
But as stated earlier, I am not smart. I am very, VERY dumb.
yet we are all here. and we want to know if the hug will get her from anger to… well… something else.
to paraphrase a dirty old man..
methinks the gecko doth protest too much.
This is happening in every webcomic I read right. The same comments are landing on Girl Genius, Order of the Stick, and Skin Horse for certain. I think that people arent binging comics right now. They’re checking every comic every day even though it doesn’t update that frequently and they get frustrated when there nothing new to read. This is especially true if you found a new comic during the lockdown and got to binge till you caught up. All of a sudden its wait a month for 30 seconds of content. The problem isn’t with the artists, its with the expectations.
Yep, that makes sense. And honestly, that’s fine. I get it. I write the comic with the intention that people will likely read whole chapters in a binge-like fashion, and that’s awesome. I’m cool if readers want to come back once every year or something and just get caught up quickly. I totally get that.
I’m just fully honest on the glacial updating pace of the comic: I get one comic done per week, every week, no exceptions. That much I can promise. I try to keep it honest and hopefully people won’t get TOO angry.
On the pace and content of the Arc, as well as the diminishing comments, I can only speak for myself, There is no difference with the pace of this arc than with any other that you have done, and you are resolving just as many issues (as well as raising new ones) in this one that you have done in any other.
My comments have slowed because my time has become more limited. Not just here, but on all webcomics that I read regularly. If I had a specific issue, I would have brought it up with you privately, (considering I have done exactly that in the past, I’m pretty sure you see the truth in this statement!)
You’re stuck with me for the long-haul dude, deal with it, even if the comments have slowed down a little!
Well, time being limited is a good reason to reduce comics. And I think a few people hit to the heart of the matter when they said that they just don’t feel like they have anything to say.
But I appreciate the long haul trucking-style readership that you provide. You are valued, good sir.
Regarding the alt-text… Will Rogers once said: “sometimes you have to go out on a limb, because that is where the fruit is.”
Well done Tyler, well done
Well, some people spend their entire lives clinging to the base of the trunk and just chewing the bark. I know because I’m one of them.
I think Tyler understands Daphne more than she would believe, not speaking about willing to admit. And he might be harmed but it would be worth it.
Agreed.
Dude, relax. But you missed a “you” in the fourth panel. Are you getting less angry, I believe.
Yes. Thanks for catching. Corrected now.
Not sure what it is, but the ‘word bubble’ format always makes me omit words, or accidentally delete words in editing, and then my mind fills in the word when reading over it. So I greatly appreciate your eagle-eyed attention.
The mind sometimes adds the extra words as well when formatting and structuring text at times as well. I had a journalism professor who told people if they can’t set it aside before proof reading, then proof read it backwards.
Yeah, anything to throw the brain off from its usual thinking can work. It’s amazing what I can get wrong, though.
ALL formats do that. It’s how you know you’re actually writing something.
Well, good to know.
How many people stuck through the theme park? The school dance? The blonde puck? I’m guessing the people who may be taking it on the lam may also be ones who were weaned to that new invention, blu-ray.
Don’t forget ball cancer. That was also trying for the readership 😛 (But I suspect Gecko had it worse IRL, needless to say.)
Readers come and go, I wouldn’t worry too much. I’ve also put comics aside only to come back to them years later.
I stand by that arc!
Curse that Blu-ray! It’ll give me just as much trouble as that newfangled gramophone!
I had an idea for how Phoebe can get everyone out of this mess, but i doubt there’s anyone else within a 100 miles on either side of the road. but if you still wanna hear it, I’ll tell you.
I wanna hear it.
well, Phoebe can do a sexy pose and stick out her leg, to get someone to pick up her and her friends, so they can get to where their going. or at least attract a mechanic, to fix up the van.
That’s dependent on someone being within visual range, though. Unless there are leg-hungry satellites overhead, I guess.
Nowadays, we have to give the alphabet soup satellite techs something to look at.
That will work only for a moment. What he does afterwards matters the most.
Yeah, well, approach is only one part of dealing with a wild beast. Certainly what’s next is key.
I’m still reading, I’m just not commenting because I can’t think of anything to comment about…
I guess that the story arc, being lighter, doesn’t have anything really juicy to discuss.
Yeah, THAT is (I think) what’s mostly going on. And that’s totally understandable.
The next story arc will have more juicy content, though. Promise.
Re: the Alt text, you’d think Tyler would appreciate the potential danger by now, but maybe after the school dance arc he decided that he’d just go for Daphne-related stuff rather than being over-cautious.
Yes. I think he has fully decided to buy into the ‘carpe diem’ thing with Daphne. Except when he has panicked lapses into the old ways of caution and fear.
Please don’t stop it, I quite like this story arc!
Glad some people do. And I’ll definitely finish it off, because it would be a crime to end a story arc in mid-narrative.
Shaggy and Scooby were always pretty close…
Exactly.
I’d say more, but some of the stuff you see online really takes it too far.
Ruh-roh!
that is inevitable. you see, there are way too few parental types to give us the disapproving eye.
“EMOTIONS OTHER THAN ANGER AND DISDAIN AND NEW AND FRIGHTING TO ME!”
YES. THIS.
You are updating on a regular basis and I have bought in to this story arc. Granted, given Tyler’s rant, I have a feeling a “hug out” will have very limited effect without some long, slow, wet kisses that last three days to follow.
That may happen. Let’s see.
Here’s the weird thing: Some stories read much better in collections than one at a time.
I learned this with Foxtrot. I hated the daily strip. The weird-looking characters rendered in 2-D really annoyed me. But when the kids came along and we got the collections, I enjoyed them thoroughly (it helps that I saw strips I missed, like the summer camp saga).
I think the same thing happens with Girl Genius (which I have all the books, and buy them in hardcover). Now that Agatha is established and is on various treasure hunts, I’m finding I’m reading them by rote, sometimes amused, but I think I’ll enjoy this more when it’s between covers (although, c’mon 12 volumes? I can’t believe how long it’s been.)
Foxtrot! Loved that comic.
Yeah, I’m always aiming to get it to work when read from the front to back. Though I guess not in print format because my comics may never get into print again. But the thought is nice.
I have found that commenting is down on MOST webcomics – at least the ones that I read. I really only read this, LFG, and a LOT of comics on the CF site. I personally feel that so many people are accessing comics on mobile devices, and (for me) commenting on those devices is less than pleasant, that the interaction fades.
I am sure that the social-media sites get a LOT of commenting, but that is a morass of decrepitude that I wouldn’t be caught near.
Some of the long-running comics (and artists – Lirvilas, for example) I follow (DLKmusic follows a bunch that I do too, if he’s the same person) have had comments in the hundreds too, but they have slowed to a trickle, it seems.
I honestly believe that if something doesn’t exist on social media, then it simply doesn’t exist – especially with Milennials. This isn’t a knock against them, it’s the environment in which they grew up and exist.
Yeah, the webcomic ‘ecosystem’ is shifting. Independent webcomics are now struggling pretty badly. And like you noted, it’s all social media now. I hate social media. I’m doomed.
Wish I could figure this new landscape out, but from what I can tell of demographics, my comic is most appealing to men my age or older. There’s no way I’m going to get popular with that zoomer crowd anyway. So why try?
I hate social media too and I’m glad I still have some comics authors with me :-).
You started your comic in the Silhouette, didn’t you? A B&W Sharpie-drawn strip for a University student newspaper? Then this new-fangled thing called the “World Wide Web” appeared out of nowhere, and you found a different medium for your art.
So it’s no surprise that your demographic is around your age – you have been drawing strips about pop-culture of which you are most familiar. Take a look at that cartoon called something like “Richard and Mortimer” – it’s full of 90s and Oughts nerd/pop culture. Heck – the entire MCU is even OLDER nerd culture, with 80s-Oughts references to music, style, and comedy.
Yeah, certainly that’s an element. Though I think the pop culture refs in this comic are fairly secondary and don’t carry the comic. I think it goes far beyond that: it’s more the fact that the spirit of the comic is no longer ‘vibing’ with the younger generations. Remember that I’m a high school teacher. I’m very much familiar with the yoots and what they like. And the very nature of my comic is just so far from anything that the kids today like, there’s no hope.
The zoomers are honestly a generation that have fully divorced from what I would even consider comedy. The idea of crafted jokes, of subversive humour, of satire and parody, all of that is largely absent now. Their concept of ‘funny’ is fully absurdist. It’s all about them ‘memes’ now, and (hot take) memes are not humour. They are an abstract symbol that denotes humour, but they usually contain no inherent laughs.
Whatever. I don’t want to attract the eyes of the youths anyway. I’m pretty sure that’s the way you get cancelled. I’ll keep on making the comic for the people who like it: my own demographic. Like a senior citizen running a liver and onions restaurant for his fellow codgers.
I never suggested you do otherwise.
This format pretty much demands you have an attention span of longer than 5 seconds. Actual commenting takes longer to do than clicking a bunch of emojis or stickers.
The pop culture things ARE secondary to the story, but are necessary for the backdrop of what’s REALLY happening.
If you ever figure out what’s really happening in this comic, let me know. Cuz I sure as heck don’t.
Please see the previous comic for my comment on today’s comment. I refuse to retype it for reasons that will become obvious. Look now, you know you want to.
Half the web comics I was reading finished during covid, and I haven’t found any new ones to replace them. The other half have gone to reduced update schedules, this is one of few that has not done that. I thought covid would be a golden era of web comics with all the authors having more time at home to produce content, but it’s been the complete opposite. So thank you for continuing, and keeping to your previous update schedule.
As for social media, I hate it too. Don’t worry you are not alone.
Lot of comic authors were basically paid by what they sold on cons. No cons, no money.
I’ve heard this. But then I’ve heard a bunch say that cons were often a bit of a losing venture. I never knew. And I never cared to test the waters because I find the prospect of sitting for an entire weekend and having my own failure to sell made manifest too terrifying to face.
Well, webcomics are a case of diminishing returns anymore. Unless you’re crafting some youth-targeted Webtoon stuff, which gets millions and millions of views, you’re going to be making your comic for a shrinking audience. It doesn’t feel good. But I feel beholden to keep things going at the regular pace. It’s not like my update schedule was ever very fast to begin with.
I really hope it’s the second one. That would more fun.
Now, Daph, you’re not JUST that. You’re also that person I chose. I wonder if that’d work on Breanna. I don’t get as many offers as Tyler.
If they have android devices, can I interest them in an app?
Where’s Phoebe in all this cuddling?
I like this arc. Sometimes, you have to bring in the clowns. The OotS has arcs that were written just for the books. But I think he only has the one job.
You know what, I think a lot of my frequented comics have been quiet of late. They’ve also all gown down the list on TWC.
Maybe it’s not you.
The meta is shifting. The readership is shifting younger and what was in (edgy, hipster pop culture humor with a naughty edge) is now out and has been fully replaced by a genre I have no stake in or care for. It’s not bad, per se. Just different.
Phoebe will pop up next week, guaranteed. And boy, I’d love to have arcs written just for the books. I’d love to have books, even. That would be cool.
And I could have books. I’d just have them in big piles in storage cuz no one would ever buy them.
As a Hamiltonian, I have to point out Bob Young’s lulu.com for self-publishing. The best thing about it is that any orders for books get printed as-needed, so there are no “piles of books I will never sell”.
Yeah, such options do exist. But even when it’s a ‘print as needed’ scenario, that doesn’t help when the ‘need’ is officially zero. Which it is. No one wants to buy the books. At all. So I gave up on them.
Maybe it is working because Daphne knows she is trash, and her anger is mostly pro-forma?
Not a bad theory. At all.
Ah man! now I wanna give you hug. But, you know: it’s the internet. Also manliness.
They say Emily Dickinson was completely unknown until after her death. Wait, that’s not as cheering-up as I had intended.
I have always liked this comic’s combination of character development and humor – but I like a lot of other webcomics too. Maybe what distinguishes “Puck” is the variety of story arcs: Funderland’s A and B stories; Testicular cancer; Evil sister meets evil stepmom; the whole pregnancy arc. This comic is ABOUT very different story arcs. The only toon I can think of that compares in variety is Questionable Content.
Right now I’m reading John Cleese’s autobiography, in the course of which he has a lot to say about humor, especially zany humor and the constant fear of failing. I wonder if connecting with the audience is hard when your connection is mediated through a format like this. I much prefer talking with a live audience; even if they are too polite to talk back you can see their eyebrows move and hear them thinking about laughing.
I like this storyline but then again the titty-bippy-punchline style that seems so dominant on Webtoons is just boring to me – when that’s what I’m looking for, I’d much rather read a book and use my imagination.
Just theorizing here – because what else are comments for? – but maybe for some readers the issue is we don’t know who the antagonist is so we can’t speculate on who’s going to smack whom how and when?
Or maybe it’s that by its nature, this storyline has fewer costume changes than usual?
Or maybe it’s just the ebb and flow of the internet tide. I’m just grateful that you’re continuing to produce.
I appreciate the thought about maybe giving a hug but then backing out of it. That’s the only kind of hug I give.
And yeah, I think your theories are accurate. No antagonist, it seems. No costume changes to comment on. Comments come and go, I guess.
I at least feel somewhat buoyed by the fact that I haven’t fully lost most of my longtime readers like you. This might not be the comic at its very best, but it’s at least not bad enough to chase people off. So there’s that.
And yeah, your thoughts on live performance are valid. As an artist, though, I can say that webcomics at least provide some feedback in the form of comments. I know my readers, and I can get a readout on their reactions. And because I work with no real buffer, feedback I get one week can definitely affect what occurs the following week. It’s a bit more of an ‘audience participation’ dynamic than, say, writing a novel. And for me, that’s a good thing.
Wait, I thought Daphne’s the antagonist. Isn’t she?
She’s always antagonistic.
But sometimes she’s the protagonist – in the prom arc for example, she was the unheroic hero whose journey we were watching, even while we were hoping she would fail, because she was being a jerk.
Now she’s a teenager in a relationship, so she gets to be antagonist and protagonist at the same time! Basically, teenagers are agonyists.
Well said.
Aw. Their class clash relationship is just so adorable.
It’s a unique flavour!
It’s aliteriffic!
Hmm . . . affection shown Daphne . . . she’s all tense, not sure what to do about it . . . . how she feels . . . methinks there’s a little cat in her DNA . . .
Perhaps. She’s certainly not very dog-like.
I mean, I’m still reading, I just have less to say in the comments. Which is also true for a few other webcomics I follow so maybe it’s at least as much my current mood as it is the current story. Also, this comment section seems plenty healthy without my input, does it not?
As for how the story moves along… don’t ask me, really. My brain is in an unreliable state, especially with regards to time and pacing. I thought this story had been on for a couple months 😛
Well, if it feels like this story has only been going for a couple months (instead of over a year), that’s a good thing, I think!
Gecko,
I read a LOT of web comics (down to 26 from 34).
Yours is one of maybe a half-dozen I have on the “alert when updated” list, which should tell you my opinion of your comic.
Though some of the comics have reached their end gracefully and well (“dangerously Chloe” comes to mind), others simply folded in mid-story (three minute max).
Your comic is keeping some pretty good company (Order of The Stick, Looking for Group, Quantum Vibe to name some).
The fact that I don’t comment as often as I used to only means I prefer to wait to see what you have up your sleeve.
I definitely enjoy your efforts, here.
Your vote of confidence is worth a lot, friend. Thanks for that.
All my aws are belong to this.
You can always make some more. They’re a renewable resource.
I’m enjoying the arc. Sorry to hear others aren’t. I feel the characters do advance. A road trip can bring out the family in family, if you know what I mean.
Honestly, I haven’t heard anyone say they didn’t like the arc. No one has been expressly negative. I have had a few readers who are older who said that Scooby-Doo is after their time so they don’t get it (and seeing as Scoob started in the late 60’s, we’re talking MUCH older readers), but mostly the feedback I have gotten has been positive. It’s just that ‘engagement’ (that magic Internet buzz word) is way down and it makes me worry that people are jumping ship.
But if you’re happy, then that’s a good sign.
Phoebe should just wear bikinis from now on.
Many would agree.
Does Phoebe’s tail go through the bikini or above it?
Depends. If it’s a g-string, she’s worn it below the tail, but more recently she’s worn custom bikinis that have a hole in the center of the back panel for her tail. A little more modest. Though not modest enough to avoid getting flagged and taken down from Webtoons for inappropriate content, which did happen.
You know, while I get that you feel that you must ride this ride to the bitter end, you should know a couple of things.
1. You could always pull a Dallas, have Puck wake up (maybe screaming) from an awful dream, find Colin in the shower, explain what was happening, and then have her realize the dream wasn’t so bad when she remembers her real life. Instant reboot.
2. Just do your thing. This arc will eventually end, one way or another. Not every story is A material (though honestly, Daphne in the scooby doo costume is a moment I will remember fondly as I confess my final sins on my death bed). That with the string bikini comic. I have to get out more.
I can’t pull a Dallas, unfortunately, because I’ve already done a bonkers “it was all a dream” story arc, and I firmly believe every property is only afforded one of those. Can’t do another.
But yeah, I think this story sucked me in mainly based on the visuals. I had some funny images that I wanted realized. Maybe that’s not the best reason for starting a narrative. But that’s what happened. And it WILL eventually end. We’re on the home(ish) stretch now.
@EG, a picture is worth a thousand words, right? So I personally am happy with a funny picture oriented narrative.
That’s often my thought. Glad to hear great minds agree.
It seems as if putting Colin-hair on Tyler’s head is infectious. The teens are beginning to mirror the relationship, moods, and dialogue of the older couple, as if they were role-playing Colin and Puck rather than the silly cartoon characters.
So in truth, Tyler has dressed up like Colin, and Daphne has dressed up like a bi—
Nope. I won’t do it. 😛
You almost did it.