Page 214

Shorts

Is it just me, or is the barrel of his sniper rifle out of line with the rest of his gun? (*cough*it’s crooked*cough*)

http://hamstap85-studios.webs.com/ hamstap85

not just you.. unless its just us

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

I fixed it, but then someone liked that post after I altered the image, so I guess it’s still wrong to some people?

Though to be honest, I would appreciate constructive criticism to be helpful, not snarky. It’s not like I won’t try to fix something that looks off if enough people have a problem with it, I’ve been doing that from the start.

This is just making me realize even more that I probably need a break to sort my shit out, or to decide if the webcomic world is really the right avenue for this story.

Drew

Who would have thought one minor detail being off would kill the entire page. Like Holly mentioned we do want constructive criticism and will fix any errors, we however do not appreciate snarky comments with no advice added on how to improve issues that some readers might find.

http://www.e-orbits.com Jande

Hey Holly and Drew, just want you to know that I’m following your comic now. I know what you mean about the constructive criticism and it’s too bad that a minor error can put people off. That’s the Webcomic biz for you. Most people don’t know why a thing “looks crooked”, it just takes them out of the cool story.

Perspective errors are hard to describe a fix for, unfortunately, But I’ll give it a go: In order to make sure I could describe it accurately I copied the area in question and spent an hour “fixing” it myself. At first I thought it was just that the hole in the end of the weapon in Panel 5 needed to be made more oval, but once I had that done, I realised that the end of the barrel tube needed to be rotated a few degrees counter clockwise too, which meant I had to adjust the hole again.

Also, I think the placement of the word balloon right next to the gun-barrel is creating a slight optical illusion making it look more curved than it is, so once I rotated the barrel I pruned off a tiny bit of the balloon as well. I think I ended up with the hole a little bigger than you have it, but it no longer jumps out taking one out of the story.

Let me know if you want to see the version I did if I haven’t got it across here.

I think you have the makings of a really good story here and I want to follow it to the end you have in store. Don’t let it get you down.

I don’t know much about firearms, but I have a fairly good grasp of perspective (and no, I’m not perfect. Some of my early stuff is way off)

I hope this is constructive enough for you. I mean it most sincerely. Your stuff is so good that minor slips like this really stand out.

Sleel

I held a straight edge on my monitor along the rectangle of the gun body, extending over the barrel. The bottom part stays straight, while the top part seems to flare open a little, which give a kind of curling effect. Slightly up and to the left, as it were, from the perspective of if you were holding the gun. Fairly slight, actually, and it does seem less obvious when I had the word balloon covered by the straight edge, so maybe a dual effect there.

Wouldn’t dwell on the dingleberries, they’re just an itch in the asscrack of the world anyway. It’s all they have.

Gillsing

I didn’t pay enough attention to notice anything wrong with that rifle until it was pointed out, and now I do see it when I look closely at it. I don’t really see the snark though, just a lack of praise for the rest of the page. Which looks great. No big surprise there. This comic always looks great. You’ve spoiled us, so the only thing notable is when something isn’t ‘perfect’. Ironical, I know.

Even the rifle looks great. In fact, it’s probably the thing that looks best in the entire page. It’s just that the part above his right hand doesn’t seem to line up perfectly with the rest of the rifle. Maybe it’s got something to do with that dark rectangle that the round barrel is coming out of? Or maybe it’s mostly an optical illusion? The longer I look at it, the less ’tilted’ it looks. So maybe I’ve just fallen victim to a mind game! 😯

Meh. Just leave it like it is. Maybe moving the speech bubble further away from the rifle would help? 😕

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

I’m sorry if I came off defensive.

I just wish I could articulate how I feel right now, but it’s incredibly difficult, I guess it just feels like I’ve spent so many years justifying why I do this to everyone in my life (most of which still don’t understand) that I’m beginning to question it myself. I am my worst critic and could point out a ton of other issues with this page (besides the gun barrel), but I’ve always kind of hoped that I would eventually get to a point where I could produce consistent, quality work. However, now I’m 25, and I’m no where near where I thought I’d be success wise at this age, and it’s at this point that I start to question whether or not this is all building to something, or whether I should move on with my life.

My point is, something needs to change. At the very least I think the release date schedule of the comic needs to be altered (ex: 6-8 pages a month vs 1 page a week). A more drastic approach would be to leave webcomics and reboot this story in digital comic form (30 page issues at a time). If any of you have ideas for a new update schedule / changes to the comic that you would like to see, please let me know. This is a big decision and I want the input of the readers.

I don’t want this comic to end, but at the same time, I have to be realistic about this.

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

Thanks for your input! 😀

I do agree that the balloon might be throwing off the shape of the barrel, I could try moving it later and seeing if it helps. Also, thank you for attempting to fix it, I’d like to see your image if you still want to post it. :).

Quitting this story isn’t really part of the plan, but something does need to change, the once a week update schedule is terrible for everyone involved.

http://snipergirl0907.deviantart.com/ SniperGirl0907

I think I could look forward to a monthly comic update That way you don’t feel constricted by the weekly deadline & you can take your time on attenion to details; that, & it would allow you to be more flixible with whatever else is going on in your life 😉 Or, if your really want to be flixible with your time, don’t have regular scheduled updates and just upload new pages when you can & try to give a rough estimate of when the next update might be; a lot of other webpage comics do this & there’s not really much complaint to be honest. I don’t want the comic to end any more than you do, going cold-turkey while your wrist was healing was agony enough! 😯 but I think slowing down a little might be the way to go? 😉 Esspecially if you’ve got a lot going on.

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

Monthly does seem like the best way to go, as you said that way I can focus on the work without constantly worrying about a weekly deadline. Honestly, I just work way better that way, I always have. I think it would be more satisfying to the reader too, because they could read a bunch of pages at once, instead of one page a week which I would think takes you out of the story.

It would be around 6-8 pages a month (that’s just an estimation of course), I know technically it sounds like more work, but having a month to work with would allow me to schedule my time accordingly as there are some weeks where I have tons of time, others where I have absolutely none.

I think maybe we could try it out and see how it goes, though I am still open to other suggestions if anyone has them.

http://www.e-orbits.com Jande

I know how frustrating it can be fighting deadlines. Moving to one update a month might help you get a nice buffer ahead. I can’t tell you what a relief it has been for me since I moved to a more reasonable update schedule.

I’ve uploaded that image HERE: Gun Barrel. It’s a side-by side comparison. I hope it helps.

http://www.e-orbits.com Jande

Lots of people are doing only one page a month. When the quality of the work is this high then readers don’t mind waiting for it. In a way it builds the anticipation more and gives them time to think more about the story, too.

Personally I think you could do well to get a good sized buffer ahead while publishing one page a month.

Don’t worry about being 25 and unsuccessful (whatever that means these days). In the decades I’ve been on this planet I’ve learned that there is only one kind of real success: doing what you love to do and continuing to learn how to do it better and better. You are far ahead on that road than many people. Now you need to manage it so you don’t stress yourself out.
And now I’ll stop being “grandma”. lol

Jamming

@Holly and Drew: Perfection is never required, it is aspired to.

@Jande: at 25 the only way to be unsuccessful is to give up. You seem to be a kind person and that is a measure of success in my book.

anglophony

Just a reader here
A general observation is that the better the quality the more noticeable a ( perceived ) flaw becomes .
A ( very ) japanese meme is that perfection itself is a flaw so a imperfection ( however slight ) is introduced.

That said , I’m here for the story , and I really doubt that you could update fast enough to please anyone ( especially me ) , but yourself.

And I think that someone who took the time to EXAMINE a page to find something minor , is in itself a measure of success….

Kalenath

Idiots are going to be idiotic.

Haters are going to hate.

Its not like ANY of them could do this kind of quality on their best days. Keep up the good work, and if you want to go to a monthly update, ‘I’ for one would not mind one bit.

People who assume they are entitled to having art of this quality just given to them are in for one HECK of a wake up call.

FYI, I am ‘unsuccessful’ myself. YOUR art helps me cope. Ignore the idiots, and keep it up please. You are doing great.

From a drafting/design engineering background, I DO think it is the text bubble more than anything that seems to make the end of the barrel crooked, but that is just my perspective.

Miss Mith

Hi,

Just wanted to tell you that the page (And the entire archives) looks great!

Yes there are minor errors in things, but this happens, it is life and it is ART. If people want to get nasty and only say that something looks wrong, then they can go jump.

The only problem i can find with the gun is that the elipse of the end of the barrel is ltightly to round, and that is simply coming from an art/design/army point of view.. But hey, thats -my- point of view on it.. and that is only after looking at is for 5 minutes to try and figure out what people were on about.

Also remember, many people are still only just starting their lives at 25, some haven’t even finished school/uni, so do try not to stress about it, just take a slightly longer view of your game plan and alow it to adjust accordingly. You will be fine however, and watever happens, so long as YOU are happy with yourself and your choices, that is all that matters, no one has the right to tell you how to live your life, no one has the right to tell you how you should feel, and no one has the right to make you feel guilty, especially for doing that which ultimately makes you happy.

Even if you just post the same amount of pages at the end of each month as you would on the weekly basis, and build yourself a nice little buffer, so that if you want/need to, you can take a bit of a break from it all and no one will be the wiser!

I hope you continue with the comic, it sounds like it is something that you enjoy and take great pleasure from. And while I may be out of the area to do so, you could look into publishing each chapter online in an ebook format through somewhere like WOWIO.com for a small cost (include the credit card fee) which can reduce your overheads as you don’t need to deal with printers and their screw-ups, and can allow people to show their support for the comic while ensuring that the profit goes to you and not to somewhere between 2 and 5 middle men.

Aaanyway.. Thats enough of my babeling.. I hope that you will be feeling better about yourself and your work in general soon!

~Miss Mith

http://www.e-orbits.com Jande

You are so right! And that goes for any age. <3

Kindness is something that also improves with practice. I do my best. Thanks for the appreciation.

http://slamlander.caselle-vpn.net Slamlander

I have only one statement to make here: public constructive criticsim usually isn’t. It exists for the self-agrandizement of the critic. For this reason I always withold such until specifically asked and in private only. Besides, most critics are dead wrong and cannot themselves achieve the level of competency demonstrated by the artist.

That said, I am a writer and am strictly here for the story. I almost feel that the art is getting in the way sometimes. It would move faster without the pix 😉

As far as update schedules are concerned. I wouldn’t mind X number of updates per month, which is what you are actually doing anyway. 😉

You have to find your own balance and no one can do it for you.

Dirk Tiede of (http://www.paradigmshiftmanga.com/) had a similar problem and he worked some excersizes that made him appreciably faster. Working without color is also an option as is hiring a colorist.

Korbel

Agreed with Slamlander. I read it more for the story than the art. I mean, if I was in it for the art, I probably wouldn’t be reading Sluggy Freelance. You draw it how you want it, at the pace YOU want.

If there’s a small detail that seems off (like the barrel, which I think is just a case of optical illusions), say screw it and leave it for sometime when you want to come back and retouch the whole chapter or something.

If its a case of “Wait, I don’t get it. Where’s he shooting from?” Or “Which panel goes first?” Or some thing like that, then go ahead and redo it or add some visual cue that makes it clear. But for minor details? Don’t feel you have to hop to for something so minor that most people don’t even notice.

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

Thank you so much for the support, everyone. I’m really fortunate to have such awesome readers 😀

I’ve noticed these sort of slumps are inevitable when you’re trying to become a success at something “unconventional.” I’ve had so many negative or incredulous reactions when I tell people what I do, I’m kind of used to tuning it out, but there are always those times where I wonder why I’m even bothering at all. That’s when criticism hurts the most, but I know it’s part of the biz (especially on the internet), and I have to suck it up.

Also, It wasn’t that I thought everything was over for me at 25, it was more that I needed to take a more serious look at what I was trying to do with my life, and if working on a webcomic was really in my best interests. Though, after a lot of thought, I’m certain I won’t stop now that we’ve come this far, it’s something both Drew and I believe in, and we need to see it through.

That said, I am going to switch to one update a month with 4-6 pages. I know that it will work so much better as my schedule fluctuates too much to balance time for a consistent weekly update. Also, I think it’s much better to read a bunch of pages at a time, much better for the flow of the story. The first monthly update will likely be on June 15th, and then on the 15th of every month thereafter. I will post more info soon.

Thanks again. 😀

anglophony

np

Sleel

Oh….. doop. Got no prop with the multipost once a month. *twitch, twitch* what time is it? *looks at wrist, even tho doesn’t wear a watch* damn, still not june 15. *rocks back and forth* time! why you go so slooowwww. Oh well, I still be back in durint the wait to maka da vote-pokes

spas

Holly, a few things. One, I don’t mind how you change your update schedule – I will keep reading and voting on TWC and maybe even buy a print version. Two, your artwork is so pretty and there is not something similar online – I LOVE what you are doing and really hope you can see this story through to the end. You are very talented, and it is good to complete things – in life. It will not be forever. Three, I have been amazed at how technically inclined your readership is (and I suspect you draw the geeks precisely because your work is so well done, and even well researched, but also because you are filling a niche that is under-represented online. particularly with the end of Crimson Dark). Commenting on martial arts moves and angles and all kinds of things that I and the average reader don’t notice or care. Yet I admire how you’ve responded to all these people’s truly petty (total accuracy or die!) criticisms, even though I think most of them were truly trying to help you get it right, to further satisfy all geekdom. You’ve listened, you’ve made changes, and had you ignored them I’d have been just as happy. But I admire your attitude, willing to grow and improve, even though your work is already so amazing. Keep on rocking it, girl.

Jamming

Now I got to install a countdown clock on my taskbar… 😉

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

I plan on posting artwork and status updates during the month to keep things slightly active during the pause in updates.

I also want to revamp the site one last time and bring the CSS / WordPress sites together. Does anyone mind having the latest page on the main site?

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

Wow, thanks so much! I really love that I’ve had readers continue to stick with this comic all these years, it means a lot. 😀

Drew and I have a TON of ideas for the future, and it would really suck if we quit now, so I’m deciding that it’s really not an option anymore. 😛

Korbel

I wouldn’t mind that at all. And my I recommend posting little snippets from the upcoming pages without the text throughout the month? Say a panel from the first page, a panel from the third? That sort of thing. Just enough to give us an idea and whet our apetites without giving away the plot.

http://snipergirl0907.deviantart.com/ SniperGirl0907

Ah yes! Artwork is always good for keeping the apetite sharp! & honetsly, the gallery could do with some fresh stuff 😉

Gillsing

But the colours are the strongest point! 😮

At least in my opinion. I’m not an artist. Mainly I just really like the choice of colours. If there are any flaws in the execution I wouldn’t know about them. Though if the goal is overall improvement I guess that it might make sense to skip a stronger aspect to get more time to practise weaker aspects.

Mystaia

Still lovin’ the webcomic, will continue reading it as always, regardless of update schedule. The only downside of going to a monthly update is that people don’t visit as regularly so it’s harder to get money through advertising.

As for haters… Holly, your artwork is beautiful and unique. Barrel or whatever doesn’t matter. I didn’t see it until it was pointed out and I think it’s the bubble more than anything. But even if it was off, don’t worry. Everyone makes mistakes. And honestly, the silent majority just reads the comic and enjoys it. I know I probably don’t post comments half as often as I should, but I love every page you do.

I understand your frustration though… having to justify what you do to people IRL. I make content for IMVU and I often get incredulous responses along the lines of “why would people pay for that”, you know the sort of thing. Well… they can go back to their boring predictable jobs that they tell me they hate. No one knows what’s best for you but you, and your readers will go with you all the way! ^_^

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

Thank you! 😀

The monthly update schedule is just a test at first (and a chance to fix website issues/build buffer). I want to have a lot of content before I switch back to a weekly schedule. Though, if numbers stay decent enough for my liking, I may just stick with the update on the 15th of every month, try to put out extra pages and more substantial website content. As others have said, the Gallery is starting to collect dust, lol.

Miss Mith

Holly,

Have you considered asking people to send in any fan art they may have created and possibly have some of that posted? or doing a fan art competition to try and get some more content for the site without actually having to do the work yourself and take time away from the comic?

It could also increase peoples check back times which may help with the advertising point made by mystaia.

Just a thought, and I’m glad to hear that you are feeling better about yourself and the comic, always good to know that people are happy doing the things they love.

~Miss Mith

barker

Picky people wow, looks wonderful as always Holly.

Mark

Never commented, but I enjoy your comic. Hope you find a way to enjoy doing it and keep it going.

In regards to constructive criticism, I am afraid that I have not read all the comments, but I know that a number touch on these issues. I played around with the image in the amazing image editing program called paint, and have these suggestions for you. ( I hope you have not received too many or that this is just restating someone else’s)

1. I feel it is primarily just illusion that the gun barrel bends upwards.

2. The text bubble may effect it, but more may just draw attention to it. (removing it did not make too much difference to my eyes)

3. I feel that part of the problem may be the barrel is slightly off centre, (too much black to the right of the grey. I fiddled this in paint and it looks a bit better.)

4. You seem to have a long sighting pin on top of the barrel, making a visible contour on the barrel. I think this is merging in with the texture on the barrel make it look like the barrel tip has a greater diameter then lower down (which many guns have), however because the bottom side of the barrel tip is a continuation and has no such contour, it throws the perspective of the barrel, adding to the “bend” that was complained about.

5. Finally I think the remainder of the issue may come in from perspective. The gun line from his fingertips up to the black rectangle at the barrel is not parallel the top line ( I assume to give the perspective that the gun is coming towards the viewer which I get), However, the barrel is parallel the top line for both the top and bottom lines to my eyes (or close enough). As the barrel is does not seem to have the same perspective as much it might be causing it to seem to “bend” up.

Hope this might be helpful.

Mark

Vos

Just want to say that I have enjoyed this comic thoroughly start through current page, it is fruitless in the respect it is not on store shelves the world around but a little thing like TMNT grew to what it is now based on a fan following and that true fan following is where the justification lies. I come back every week to see not only how the story unfolds but to see how both Holly and Drew increase in storytelling prowess – unlike some other previous comments I believe the writing and the art are TERRA’s story, please continue however the update schedule changes and keep it up as you never know who you are inspiring or entertaining!

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

I always love to receive fanart, I just never thought I could ask for it. If anyone has any, please send it to my email, and I’ll be happy to post it on the site and credit/link you. 😀

There’s details on how to submit it on the fanart page: http://www.terra-comic.com/fan.php

As for a competition, I would be down for that, but what kind of rewards would people be interested in? Like a cameo or something in the background of the comic? Or maybe a copy of Vol 1 in print?

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

Thank for all the helpful comments everyone, I’ll definitely try to pay more attention to perspective and catch any issues before I start the coloring process. Sometimes when I’ve been looking at the same image for several hours I start to gloss over any problems, but now, I’m trying to look at everything more objectively.

I agree that the comic kind of works as a whole, lines, colors and all, I wouldn’t really feel comfortable giving up the reigns to another colorist, even though I know it’s a ton more work for me.

Also, sorry about being so quiet on the update front lately, I’m busy working on the upcoming pages (which are going really well, btw :D). I do have a few side pieces of artwork on the go, and I want to post them along with a gallery update soon. I know I could use these images for vote incentives, but I have to admit that I kind of hate that system. I think it’s mainly because I feel like the time it takes to make those images, or find ones to use, could be spent working on the actual comic, or ancillary content for the website. If I have a bonus image, or a preview to use for an incentive, then that would be fine, but going out of my way to make them just seems like a futile exercise. I want to put the focus where it belongs, on the actual comic and building a web database where you can read about the characters, worlds, species, etc.

I’ll try to get some content on the site asap. If anyone has any fan work they’d like to contribute (fan art, fan fiction, anything you want) I’d be happy to post it on the fan page along with a link crediting you.

Thanks again! 😀

Miss Mith

Holly,

-I- think that asking for fan art is fine, its a great way for people to be able to show that they appreciate you without it costing them anything other than a little time, which can often make all the difference.

As for rewards, I know that several other artists have various approaches to this, some examples of what is offered as rewards are;

A signed copy of a volume, a small piece of merchandise (book mark, tank top, coffee mug, etc), a signed illustration of the character of their choice, or a signed copy of their favourite page with/without dialogue.

And, if you have any of the other web comic artists you know/read you could consider approching them about doing filler sketches for you when you need to take some time off, and maybe offer to do something simillar for them if/when they need it.

Also, maybe look at adding some advertising space (the your add here for $xx.xx type of thing) to help bring in some extra revinue.

Anyway, I hope that helps give you some good ideas, and with any luck they arent too time consuming for you to be able to put into practice.

~Miss Mith

http://none Evan

Hey,
A word (well, more than a word) of encouragement: If ratings don’t rank TERRA in the top 3 webcomics in existence, it’s because people are morons who can’t appreciate great artwork. It was your artwork that first attracted me to the comic, and I got absorbed in the story, which is also great, as I read.

xcares

Congrats to start with. The comic is fun to read and the art looks more than adequate.
Must take a lot of time but i hope you will keep it up. http://www.terra-comic.com/wordpress/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif http://www.terra-comic.com/wordpress/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif http://www.terra-comic.com/wordpress/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif

BTW the sneak attack is really nice.Waiting to see if the bad guys get caught with their pants down or not. It doesn’t really seem Grey is counting on the element of surprise with all that shooting.

Got any space opera series to recommend? Can’t remember any world setup close to this one in any of the books i know of.

John

This comic is excellent, both the writing and the artwork. I work in IT, and I am very familiar with the situation where nobody complements when everything is working beautifully, but everyone notices when there is a hiccup.

You could take an extended break and build up a HUGE buffer, that would take the pressure off. When the buffer gets low again take another break. During the break, hold a donation round. As an incentive, if you reach XXX in donations then the break ends earlier.

Convince yourself that you are doing this for yourself, for the joy of creative output, and not for the readers. I’ve noticed that when I don’t have some form of creative output that I get antsy and depressed. I think if you quit cold turkey you may find the same emotions building up.

You have a great thing going here, there has to be a way to keep your sanity but avoid the burnout!

Tzaki

For perspective edits try turnig the image upside down, the different frame of reference makes for a more objective review, my mother was a landscape artist (paint & canvas) and used this all the time for compsotion and perspective checks.

Unfortunately she gave it up due to feeling too pressured and that turning what she loved into a chore.

The moral of my story is : schedule how makes YOU feel comfortable. (Although I feel a twitch comming on… … is it June 15 yet???) ;-).

A buffer is always a good thing toi have , that way if.. no when.. you get a creative block you have a fallback.

I agree with the others in that the quality of the artwork is fantastic and the storyline really hooks you in!!

Looking forward to the next intallment with eager anticipation!

space pirate

the barrel looks fine if you cover the speech baloon – i guess it is a perception error (the “hering failure”: http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/ang_hering/index-de.html ) . we humans are prone to that

loki

One of, if not the best comic I have ever seen.
Artwork so good, I think I’m in love with one of your characters.

Korbel

If you want space opera, and don’t mind reading an actual book as opposed to a comic or graphic novel, go with Honor Harrington series by David Weber, published by Baen. OUTSTANDING series. First book is On Basilisk Station.

Korbel

Do you have like a newsletter thing that automatically sends emails when you post updates or something? I know some other sites do them, so I thought I’d ask.

xcares

Same here. I check this (really great webcomic i might add) pretty much every day.

Nicthalon

Held a straightedge up to the screen… it’s not crooked, but the thought bubble placement causes an optical illusion making it seem that way.

http://www.terra-comic.com Holly

I know this post is over 6 months old, but I just noticed it (sorry).

There are a few ways to be notified of updates, there’s the facebook page, RSS feed, and my twitter feed. I guess I should add this to the FAQ, just in case others might not know.