Dear Lord he drew a Human...

[Tum0spoo]

Dude, don't fear drawing a cartoon strip.

Look at mine for flip's sake! It's hardly as good as most of the strips I read, but I care not. It's about the words and the story, not the art.

I like the sentiment there, but I don't think it's really fair to say that. I mean, you can't just say it's not about the art. The art and writing really go hand in hand. I don't care how well written a comic is: if it looks like crap, it's really going to take away from the strip (not that anybody's work here looks like crap, I'm just saying for the sake of example). Comics are a visual medium for a reason after all.

"The art and writing really go hand in hand."
-In some cases, the writting and artwork are symbolic of eachother. The art style and quality often reflect the mood of the story. Such is the case of comics like Rooster's and BobandGeorge and BadlyDrawnKitties.

[Gizensha]

Dude, don't fear drawing a cartoon strip.

Look at mine for flip's sake! It's hardly as good as most of the strips I read, but I care not. It's about the words and the story, not the art.

I like the sentiment there, but I don't think it's really fair to say that. I mean, you can't just say it's not about the art. The art and writing really go hand in hand. I don't care how well written a comic is: if it looks like crap, it's really going to take away from the strip (not that anybody's work here looks like crap, I'm just saying for the sake of example). Comics are a visual medium for a reason after all.

"The art and writing really go hand in hand."
-In some cases, the writting and artwork are symbolic of eachother. The art style and quality often reflect the mood of the story. Such is the case of comics like Rooster's and BobandGeorge and BadlyDrawnKitties.

Mmm. Or to use a more commercial example, Johnny The Homicidal Maniac.

Though, Rooster's right. While in the best comic strips the art and the words and the tone and the story and all that other stuff go together to make an experience, good art is in no way, shape or form a requirement. Especially for cartoon comics (as opposed to graphic novel comics) [and no, 'cartoon' there is not a degrading or childish term, unless suddenly I thought that I Read This, Ozy and Millie, Peanuts, etc were childish. Suitable reading for children, sure, but not childish themselves. It's simply being used to distinguish cartoon comics from such comics as Sandman, Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, etc.

Saying that, of course, I would genuinely be incapable of drawing a comic strip. Because my drawing is laughably bad, to the point that I often can't recognise what I've just drawn.

Additionally, frequent drawing is one of the best ways of improving your artistic ability, I believe. So since your humans are recognisable as humans (and presumably individuals) even if you don't consider them to be very good, you should be fine drawing a comic strip which would require drawing them since in doing so you'll naturally improve your technique and ability to draw humans.

[Tom Flapwell]

DCS, in a pre-LJ essay, complained about "talking heads" in webcomics. But I suppose that was less about bad drawing and more about laziness with the visuals. "Red Meat" and "Dinosaur Comics" may be funny enough to make up (to many readers) for the fact that they use the same old images soullessly copied and pasted, but all too often, they come across as just being in the wrong medium.

I can tell you that the reason it took me a long, long time to develop an interest in "Newshounds," and still only slightly, is that I didn't like the art.

[Dr. Doog]

Dinosaur is more of a pseudo-comic, it's humour lies in the fact that it's so crappily done. At least...that's the reason I hope people like it. It's kind of a zen comic

[Niko123000]

Dude, don't fear drawing a cartoon strip.

Look at mine for flip's sake! It's hardly as good as most of the strips I read, but I care not. It's about the words and the story, not the art.

I like the sentiment there, but I don't think it's really fair to say that. I mean, you can't just say it's not about the art. The art and writing really go hand in hand. I don't care how well written a comic is: if it looks like crap, it's really going to take away from the strip (not that anybody's work here looks like crap, I'm just saying for the sake of example). Comics are a visual medium for a reason after all.

"The art and writing really go hand in hand."
-In some cases, the writting and artwork are symbolic of eachother. The art style and quality often reflect the mood of the story. Such is the case of comics like Rooster's and BobandGeorge and BadlyDrawnKitties.

Mmm. Or to use a more commercial example, Johnny The Homicidal Maniac.

Though, Rooster's right. While in the best comic strips the art and the words and the tone and the story and all that other stuff go together to make an experience, good art is in no way, shape or form a requirement. Especially for cartoon comics (as opposed to graphic novel comics) [and no, 'cartoon' there is not a degrading or childish term, unless suddenly I thought that I Read This, Ozy and Millie, Peanuts, etc were childish. Suitable reading for children, sure, but not childish themselves. It's simply being used to distinguish cartoon comics from such comics as Sandman, Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, etc.

And here's where my point comes acroos of why I thouhgt my art was to bad to do a comic. My comic would be more a Graphic Novel Like Black Tapestries and FoxFire Chronicles. I am not a funny person. I can't constantly think or have some funny Idea that'd make a great cartoon comic (unless you wanted a Biographic cartoon comic on my Life, as my whole life is a joke.) My comic would be a story comic, something that tells the story including tragedies, battles, wars, victories, and deaths.

Additionally, frequent drawing is one of the best ways of improving your artistic ability, I believe. So since your humans are recognisable as humans (and presumably individuals) even if you don't consider them to be very good, you should be fine drawing a comic strip which would require drawing them since in doing so you'll naturally improve your technique and ability to draw humans.

One of those love hate situations for me, "practice makes perfect" I always knew it to be true, yet I always hatted it cause I used to be increadibly impatient. (still am a Little). I have seen comics where the art improves DRASTCALLY down the line. There was such a huge change in the way FoxFire Chronicles was drawn I had to look back about ten times cause it looked so diffrent. In every comic I've read (except Roosters so far, but they may just be subtle improvements there) I have seen the comic get better, and I know chances are, mine will too.

[Tabris_The_17th]

Dude, don't fear drawing a cartoon strip.

Look at mine for flip's sake! It's hardly as good as most of the strips I read, but I care not. It's about the words and the story, not the art.

I like the sentiment there, but I don't think it's really fair to say that. I mean, you can't just say it's not about the art. The art and writing really go hand in hand. I don't care how well written a comic is: if it looks like crap, it's really going to take away from the strip (not that anybody's work here looks like crap, I'm just saying for the sake of example). Comics are a visual medium for a reason after all.

"The art and writing really go hand in hand."
-In some cases, the writting and artwork are symbolic of eachother. The art style and quality often reflect the mood of the story. Such is the case of comics like Rooster's and BobandGeorge and BadlyDrawnKitties.

Oh yes, that's very true. But that's a concious decision of the artist, which makes it something more than just lower quality artwork than other comics. You also can't ignore personal taste when thinking about this topic. Even if by textbook standards a comic's art isn't as advanced as others, some people amy still prefer it because it touches them in a certain way. (Not to keep picking on Rooster, lol, but) For example, I can think of some popular webcomics out there that the public opinion may say are better drawn than Woods for the Trees, yet personally I would still prefer Rooster's art. Sometimes it's more about charm than technical quality (BTW Rooster, all this praise is free of charge )