darkicon
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![[*]](./images/darkicon/default_icon.gif) posted on 6-17-2006 at 19:10 |
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Changing things around
I'm seriously considering a change in the format of BoDP. Since I probably have all of three readers, I'm not expecting a big uproar, but I
figured I'll tell you about it now so you'd have the chance to weigh in on it.
Here's what's happening:
I write long stories. I'm long-winded, and I like to take my time setting things up. Sometimes I just like the bask in the fun of it all...
whatever. The point is, my tendency is to come up with plots that are more suited to novellas than short stories. And that's just too damn long
for a webcomic. Hell, most regular short-story length tales are too damn long for a webcomic... especially one that's only updated once every two
weeks. I think the admittedly long time between updates is holding me back as far as gaining an audience. The fact that I've only told ONE
complete story in over half a year is also holding me back creatively. It isn't that I don't like Damnation Denied or Saint Noir... they're just
taking too long.
So...
The first thing I'm going to do is come up with some shorter stories. I already had ideas for next three or four stories, but I'm going to
re-evaluate, shorten, or just throw them out and come up with new ones. That won't make any difference to you since you didn't know what they were
anyway. What I want to do is have stories that, if I told them in the same format as Saint Noir, would take only four or five episodes rather than
ten or eleven.
But I'm not going to tell them in the same format.
I'm thinking of switching to a daily update on the weekdays. One update each day, Monday through Friday. But before you get excited, listen to
the rest:
The updates will be short. Very short. EXTREMELY short. Currently, a "chapter" consists of 20 to 30 pictures, some of which are used more than
once. In the new format, each update may be two or three pictures. Sometimes just one. This means that instead of getting an entire scene in
one update like you do now, you'll have the scenes stretched out over days and weeks. The stories will probably progress more slowly, but the
stories themselves will be shorter, so hopefully it will achieve some kind of balance that's better than what I've got now.
Anyway, that's what I'm considering. I'm sure I won't get any complaints about the daily updates, but getting only the tiniest fragment of a
scene every day might be a bit odd. It already seems odd to me and I haven't done it yet. We'll see how it turns out with the next story...
whatever it is.
This change will occur AFTER Saint Noir is complete. That should be in about four or five chapters.
Questions? Comments?
I am not a Character.
I am Real.
And I know where you Dream. |
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WeREwOLf
Shrieking Phantasm
Posts: 139
Registered: 5-4-2004
Location: Land of the northern rednecks
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Mood: ...
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| posted on 6-18-2006 at 01:41 |
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Well...
...I know I was among those who were whining about the long wait between updates, so I'll (at least partially) accept some of the blame for this.
Having said that, I'm kinda torn here. On one hand: Daily updates?? Oh HELL yeah! On the OTHER hand: Um, "partial scenes"? I do think that'd be
rather odd to keep up with when reading a story one piece at a time, even if it's in the form of daily updates. Having only one image per update, or
even per scene, doesn't bother me in the slightest. Honestly dude, we're in it for the story, not the visuals (though those HAVE improved
considerably since BoDP began).
I guess what I'm trying to say is this: If having only one or two images per scene makes your job easier, and allows us to get more frequent updates,
than hell yeah I'm all for it. But to have only a "fragment" of a scene each day... I dunno. Maybe it can be done, maybe not. I guess there's only
one way to find out?
Possibility: What about having, say, two updates per week, each with only perhaps 1-3 images to show the scene in its entirety? I can't speak for
everyone here, but I'd gladly sacrifice some visuals if the story would progress more steadily (ie. less wait between cliffhangers!). In other words,
some 'middle ground' between what we've got now, and what you're proposing? Just my two cents dude. Follow your instincts, it'll work itself out.
The act of censorship is always more dangerous than whatever is being censored.
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darkicon
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| posted on 6-18-2006 at 08:33 |
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While the actual physical work of creating and rendering the scenes may be less with a daily schedule, the creative side of coming up with ten natural
'breaking points' where I used to have only one will be a hell of an adjustment. But people do it all the time, and there's no reason I can't.
I did consider a "Monday-Wednesday-Friday" and a "Once a Week" schedule as well, which would certainly be easier on both fronts. What may
happen is I'll play around with the schedules for the next few stories until I come up with something that works. I might do every weekday for the
next tale, and every other weekday for the following one. That would be confusing as hell, but there's no real way of knowing what works best
until I've tried everything. I've tried the "every two weeks" schedule for a while and its time to experiment with something else.
I am not a Character.
I am Real.
And I know where you Dream. |
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Gorgon Naylor
Shrieking Phantasm
Posts: 327
Registered: 12-28-2002
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Mood: ...
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| posted on 6-18-2006 at 23:24 |
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Personally, I like the new proposal. With the archive, you can still read things through if you'd rather and daily updates will keep DI's creative
juices flowing. ... okay, that's a bad visual, but still.
My recommendation DI is to try it the way you propose, then check on the reaction. If it isn't that good, then look at what 'wolf said as an
alternative. Worst comes to worst, you'll figure something else out.
Just my 2 cents.
"If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth the reading, or do things worth the writing."
- Benjamin Franklin, (Poor Richard's Almanac 1738)
"The first time with Ellington is, like the first time with sex or Charlie Chaplin or really good asparagus, epic."
- Gary Giddins (Weather Bird: Jazz at the Dawn of Its Second Century, 2004)
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darkicon
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Mood: I wasn't born with enough middle fingers.
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| posted on 8-27-2006 at 16:08 |
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IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!
Today (technically, tomorrow) begins the new BoDP story. But, more importantly, it begins the new BoDP update schedule.
I've deciced on a Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule. That gives you three updates per week, but each update will be too small to be rightly called a
"chapter" or even an "episode".
This will stretch the stories out so that they may take longer to develop, BUT the updates will be faster (and easier for me to produce!) and the
stories themselves will be shorter. Hopefully it will all balance out so that I can tell a story in three or four months as opposed to six. Time
will tell.
HOWEVER:
The above paragraphs assume a perfect world. Believe it or not, a "perfect world" is one in which I am unemployed but still have just enough
money to pay the bills.
Well... the world ain't perfect no more. Thank God.
I have a job, and my job will involve a great deal of travel. According to the job interview, I can expect to be away from my
production equipment about 50% of the time. According to what I've seen since I've started working, I can expect to be away about 60 to 75% of
the time.
What does this mean for BoDP?
I'm not sure. I have no intention of stopping BoDP. I wouldn't be starting a new story if I thought I couldn't finish it. But it does mean
that the nice new "perfect world" update schedule is pretty much shot to hell. I will keep to the "Monday Wednesday Friday" schedule as long
as my work schedule allows, but you may have to deal with interruptions in the schedule. There may not be an update for a week or two if I'm out
of town. OR I may be out of town and the schedule will continue as if I'm still at home... it all depends on how much work I get done when I'm at
home.
For instance: I've finished the updates for this week. I started Friday, and I'm done now except for proofreading and sound effects. If I were
to leave town right now, I could STILL update the site Wednesday and Friday, assuming I have internet access. But when I got home NEXT weekend, I
may be too tired to complete a week's worth of rendering, so you might get an update Monday of next week, but not Wednesday or Friday. Or maybe
you'll get all three... or nothing... depending on what the weekend is like.
I know that's confusing, but that's what I have to deal with. I know when I'll be travelling, but I don't know how much time and/or energy
I'll have when I'm at home, so there's really no way to forcast when the schedule will get interrupted. The best I can do is let you know when
I'm out of town, and you can expect something screwy to happen during those times. And those times will be often.
Before you ask:
When does the traveling start? In about two weeks.
Can't you work on the road? I don't know. I do my rendering on a laptop, so IN THEORY I could carry it with me and work in a hotel. I'm not
going to try that right now, but once I get a few trips under my belt, I'll consider it. Carrying TWO expensive laptops (one for work, one for
rendering) on an airplane isn't something I'm in a hurry to do.
You render on a laptop!? Yes. It kicks ass.
What about the OTHER stories!? Believe it or not, travelling for weeks at a time actually means I'll have more time to write. I'll start
with Crusade in a few weeks. After that, I don't know.
That is all. For now.
I am not a Character.
I am Real.
And I know where you Dream. |
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WeREwOLf
Shrieking Phantasm
Posts: 139
Registered: 5-4-2004
Location: Land of the northern rednecks
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Mood: ...
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| posted on 8-28-2006 at 03:06 |
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| Quote: | | I'll start with Crusade in a few weeks. |
Oh you did NOT just say that! Dude, don't toy with us... we're vulnurable. We haven't had our... fix... in a while.
In the mean time, can't wait to see whatcha got cookin' up at BoDP. In fact, I'd just clicked on my BoDP bookmark to test my Internet connection
(slightly wiggy), and would ya loogidat, something new! Hence, I ended up HERE before even viewing it, cuz that wasn't there when I left for work.
Now if y'all will excuse me, I'm off to enjoy the badassitude...
The act of censorship is always more dangerous than whatever is being censored.
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nate
Wandering Fiend
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Registered: 9-28-2005
Location: Maryland
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Mood: No Mood
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| posted on 8-28-2006 at 05:48 |
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Wow, great start. If it's not too much trouble, can you give us an indication of the last frame in these shorter updates? Some of your past stories
went to a black screen, then slowly faded into something else.
Good luck with the job, travel, and keeping the family happy.
Really glad to hear that you'll be getting back to writing. Crusade is probably the easiest one for you to get back to, and it'll be enjoyed.
Hopefully you'll find time before next year to start finishing up the other open stories out there too.
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darkicon
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| posted on 8-28-2006 at 08:28 |
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The last-frame confusion has already been brought to my attention. As it is now, when the white border around the comic disappears, the episode
is done. I didn't feel the need to put a "To Be continued" at the end, since you usually don't see those in other webcomics that update
frequently. But since It is causing confusion, I will indicate the end in some other manner. I will probably do something with the controls to
make the ending obvious. Thanks.
I am not a Character.
I am Real.
And I know where you Dream. |
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