Everstreets

[negitoro]

Originally posted by dog$
- The panel layout is just trying to balance frames of different size (since I really am trying to have something break out of three-square-panel hell) on a symmetric axis of some sort. Every page you see is symmetircal along either axis, and I figured that with the timestamp appearing on the corner of every panel it wouldn't be difficult to get lost. I also figured the timestamp would give the impression of what time is elapsed with every interval.

I do appreciate your efforts on trying to break out of a typical comic layout mold. But, my impression is that there are methods to accomplish a unique visual layout style without becoming bogged down and confusing the reader.

The timestamp itself is a good idea, but it seems like if you rely on the time convention too much, then it starts to get 'choppy'. I look at a panel, I look around for the next time stamp, I look at that panel, look for the next time stamp etc. It ruins the flow of events, especially when there's things happening in quick succession. The problem is further exasperated by the small time frame per page making a lot of the time stamps very similar.

What my suggestion is, is don't get trapped in the rectangular format. With webcomics you have a lot of potential to float panels and space panels into non-regular layouts to great effect.

You wanted people to have to re-read the story over and find new details also... but my point is that with the format of the comic, people will be inclined to come back again and again to check the new episodes and how they relate to the episodes they read already anyway. They'll start to notice the small details and nuances they couldn't pick up the first time because they know more how everything relates in the storyline. To make people to re-read it continuously, the story should be compelling, not difficult.

- The update style was enabled so that I can write wherever I deem fit. Negitoro, your first paragraph is pretty much exactly what I'm going for. Again to cite Jerkcity, when you get there all you see is a few links, a comic, and that's it. Everything else you have to figure out by yourself, and that's what I wanted to create with ES here. I wanted to create a looooooooooong timeline list so that people can view it as they see fit and draw their own inferences from the way the story unfolds.

Again, I love this idea. I really hope you have a great plan for laying it down. It would be great if there's cliffhangers between updates e.g. someone getting killed without the episode detailing who's attacking the victim.

However, if you have a firm plan for the release of the episodes, I think it would be valuable to sort the list of pages both in chronological order of both in-story time and the order which you released them. That way readers have an easy point to access the order you intended. If you list the episodes chronologically, when they accumulate, new readers merely start at the beginning and work to the end, which defeats the whole purpose of your updating method.

[Drewbacca]

Damn scarfs! DAMN THEM ALL!!!!

Also. Lose some panels. I know you fear the 3 panelled conformation, but in all honesty simplicity is better. A lot of your frames can be taken out to improve overall reading. Also, 'she' can spend more time detailing the pictures you do have, instead of creating more.

For example instead of the 3 - 5 you have at the side to the right in the one where the hand gets chopped off. Simplify it into 1 or two.

[dog$]

Oh I'm all for simplicity; these things take a while for her to draw so believe me I'm trying to make every panel have a point. Besides, if everything is so difficult to follow wouldn't reducing panels make it more difficult to follow?

But more to the point I'm not clear what panels you're specifying should be eliminated in that example.

Going from the timestamps -

02:16:22 - Panel 1
02:16:27 - Panel 2
02:16:31 - Panel 3
02:16:32 - Panel 4
02:16:33 - Panel 5
02:16:34 - Panel 6
02:16:35 - Panel 7
02:16:36 - Panel 8
02:16:37 - Panel 9
02:16:40 - Panel 10
02:16:41 - Panel 11
02:16:43 - Panel 12

Now, which do you mean?