Non-pages

Why do webcomic artists create them? It is understandable they exist in "complete" mediums such as comics, as they are used to set the mood or elevate tension; but why do webcomics do them? If they are committing to a weekly schedule, doesn't it make sense that every issue advances the plot in some way? It's even worse when comics which update twice a week spends up to a month with useless strips that don't build the world in any meaningful way.

Also, [un]Divined thread. Any thoughts of what is the overall narrative? What are Esther's ulterior motives? What did Daniel wish for? Will we ever get Esther nudes?

You may think its bullshit because of the schedule, but if you set aside the thought, the reading of the webcomic will gain the same effect as comics in the long run.

Where's the joke?

While some people use it inappropriately, there's nothing wrong with beat panels and giving your comic room to breathe. Your average non-gag webcomic is a bi-monthly/seasonal comic book that puts up one page at a time to keep interest.

To put it another way, look at the original Dragon Ball comics. Toriyama took his time and often put out fewer pages than normal for a week (11 or 14 page chapters rather than 18-22). There were points where a fight would take two months to finish even before the pacing went downhill. But it worked because he drew chapters according to the big picture and his personal limitations. People may not immediately like an entire week spent on the warm-up for Goku vs Jr, but in the final release it reads beautifully.

The key is to know your limitations and not stretch yourself too thin. Keep coming up with reasons to engage the audience despite some slow moments.

There was this comic many years ago. It only got one page every month so the author had to make sure to use that one page to its fullest. It was pretty neat.

webcomics are srs

Won't that risk a loss of interest on the part of their readers? Whether it's in bursts or single pages, if nothing is happening, surely people will eventually lose interest. They might even go so far as come to think they are being swindled out of their cash with all the padding being presented.

Read Understanding Comics, specifically the section on manga. Beat panels and pages are essential for good pacing.

I think this is one of them there "Sirius" funny books 'bout them flying Tojo shootin' beams outta they hands and such that all them edgy teens'r readin'.

>Won't that risk a loss of interest on the part of their readers?
See
>While some people use it inappropriately
>it worked because he drew chapters according to the big picture and his personal limitations.
>The key is to know your limitations and not stretch yourself too thin. Keep coming up with reasons to engage the audience despite some slow moments.

If you know what you're doing, slowing down occasionally won't scare off your audience. If anything the constant need for all plot all the time is what kills a lot of webcomics.

They set the mood and elevate tension. You answered your own question. Some webcomics aim to do a complete visual novel, of which they just publish a page per week. They're thinking of the end result, the full story and its narrative, and not about whether or not every weekly page is exciting.

If that's how they feel, they'll voice their concerns to the author and they'll have no choice but to change it.

As a creator they have to ask themselves what they're making: a comic to be collected in a book later down the line or for someone to read from the beginning in their archive, or a weekly strip. Not every one is going to have the same answer.

You shouldn't let the update schedule deform your composition. The people who see it as it comes out shouldn't be ignored, but that's one moment in time as opposed to what the final product is forever. Even that first audience might re-read it.

That said, if you want to do a total-negative-space page, maybe you should make an exception with the update schedule and post two pages that day.

Pic related; it's from my favorite webcomic lol jk I actually hate it

>If they are committing to a weekly schedule, doesn't it make sense that every issue advances the plot in some way?
If you only focus on getting through the plot of a story without setting up appropriate tone and pacing, the story is less enjoyable to read in the long run. It might give the audience who reads it update by update more immediate satisfaction, but everyone who reads the comic in a larger chunk will be able to be impacted by the plot more with the more careful pacing.
Also they give artists some breathing room and a chance to catch up on their page buffers.

Couldn't an artist just release the plot-important pages while the comic is being actively updated and then retroactively add pacing pages after the comic is done? Or does that create too much opportunity for retconning?

I feel only Ava's Demon has a satisfying update method that manages to maintain good pacing.

The better webcomic creators usually give several pages on an update day if the update includes a "non-page(s)".

It's a lot better than getting just a scenery page when the webcomic only updates once a week.

Hey, you know what? Why don't they just post the ENDING first?! Or better yet, post a sparknotes summary of the whole comic in advance! Then I can get closure and bai-I MEAN, then we don't have to wait so long to have deep, meaningful discussions about plot points instead of the execution or subtext!

Who says a webcomic has to update every week anyway?

Your pitiful snark aside, that could be a nice frame for a webcomic. Or any story, as a matter of fact. I enjoy stories of the "record scratch, freeze frame, yup that's me" trope. We could throw in your idea of giving the viewers the highlights before we start the story proper and bam! Webcomic.

I love that the snark is considered pitiful simply because it's antagonizing you.

Regardless of your inability to deal with mockery, there's already comics that do every method under the sun. Endings first, backwards chronology, random order, multiple sides, summary then extrapolation, EVERYTHING. So assuming you're not incredibly ignorant, you're asking more "Why doesn't method X replace method Y" than "Why not use method Y?" You know, because people already do that.

And the answer to that has been provided multiple times throughout the thread: it's better for overall investment, it gives the creator breathing room, and frankly some people just like doing it that way. If you dislike it that's fine, but there's a reason linear serial storytelling persists to this day; people like it and like making it

It is pitiful because of the mischaracterization. If your first answer to someone's genuine question is mocking them, you should expect a less-than-kind response.

But you are correct. People have provided lots of good reasons as to why comics should and do pace themselves as they do. The "everyone's always been doing this since forever" should not be accepted as a default answer; things can always be improved, and it is questioning and trying next things that allow us to discover new better paths. And I suppose that it is better than the alternative. Thinking about it, one of the reasons I stopped following Two Guys and Guy is because the comic became too derivative. The strips started having the same jokes over and over again.

Also, [u]D is a relatively new comic. Hopefully it'll grow into something great, in a couple of years.

The smart way to read a webcomic with a continuous storyline is to wait an entire year before checking for updates. You do this with numerous webcomics and divide it in different months.

You should know it at this point t kiddo.