Have you felt the slump?

[CorruptDictatorNumber2]

As I near my 60th page, I find myself sliding into a deep slump... Even though I've been working on my comic for about three years now, it's suddenly lost its shine for me. I don't get excited about upcoming characters or plot twists, often I don't enjoy working on it, and as I read through the archives, I can no longer find any redeeming values in it.

At the same time, I don't want to quit...mostly because I've invested so much of my life into my comic, and also because I've never actually managed to finish a story. Ever. In my life. My big plan was for this to be the first thing I ever finished.

Ordinarily I'm not one to make my emotions so public, but I want to know if anyone else--especially you more experienced 'spacers (I still consider myself a n00b)--experienced a slump like this around this time. Anyone at all? ... *whimper*

hehe, okay, enough with the sad face... you can all make fun of me now for being such a wimp...

[Noemz]

I'm just about to hit three years, and I think I know how you feel. I'm about 160 strips in (although they're only strips, not pages ) and it was a few months ago that I was starting to feel like I just wanted to wrap the whole thing up and move onto something new. But I want to finish the cartoon properly, and I have all the storylines lined up, so I don't want to just cut it off. It would be nice to have something complete to wave around, even when it's not updating anymore.

It's a feeling that goes up and down, though. I've recently started working full-time, so my spare time is really limited, and sometimes I resent keeping the comic updating as it takes so long. But one thing I've found is that when I draw a lot, I like it better and better. When I haven't drawn for a little while, I start hating it. Weird.

Is this thing a passing phase for you? Or something that just won't go away? It could be that you're bored and just want to try something different. Draw something else. A bonus cartoon or something. Or maybe you just need a little break from it.

Great artwork, by the way! *envy*

Oh, as for reading through your archives and "finding no redeeming value"... This sounds like a writer thing. One day you hate your work, the next day you love it. Don't put too much value on those kinds of judgements. They go up and down. Maybe you're just having a miserable time right now and that could change.

If you find you absolutely can't stand to work on it any more, maybe you can wrap up the story earlier. I think if you have invested so much time in it, it's worth finishing it off to some degree. It's nice to have a kind of package that feels 'complete'.

Do you already know how the story is going to end? Do you know how far away that is? I think it's different if you can see the end in sight.

[Joel Fagin]

With stories in my case, but yes. It helps to have an end point, something to aim for. Short stories are easy since the end point is at most thirty pages away. Novels are harder. Trilogys harder still. After that... well there are many good serieses of books ruined by the last one because the writer just got fed up and wanted the damned thing done already.

If I did a comic, it would be a story with a clearly defined end point and I'd probably let it go for five years, max. After that, I'm pretty sure it'd get tiresome.

- Joel Fagin

[Phalanx]

Don't worry, you're not the only one. I think we all get into the depressive state from time to time. I know I do.

Sometimes you've reached the end of the road and outgrown your comic before you've finished it. It's a natural thing, and sometimes it's a message telling you it's time to stop.

Sometimes you might have reached what I call a plateau. You're stuck in a rut because you haven't done anything new in your comic in a while. You've had no improvement, everyone seems to have forgotten about you, and basically nothing feels profitable. The only comfort I have about plateaus is that I know they come before peaks, that's when you get that big breakthrough in your comic.

And sometimes you just need a break and a change of secenery.

Go outside. Lie on the grass and listen to the birds. Watch the sky. Do nothing but find shapes in the clouds for half an hour or so. Go play some sports.

Stop worrying about your comic.

Life is too short and far too precious for that.

[Underbelly]

I really felt the slump when Keenspace had a few glitches that prevented me from updating a while back. In the downtime I found myself writing a completely different story that was in no way paranormal or sci-fi. I'm really enthusiastic about starting this story, but I know that Hard Underbelly's end is still several years off, and I'm fully aware that doing both comics at ounce would kill me.

So I keep myself involved by looking back at all the projects that I never finished, and promising myself that I'll be damned if I'm going to let Hard Underbelly be another notch on that belt of failure. In fact, it inspired me to increase my publishing rate from three days a week to five. That way I can get on to other projects sooner.

[Terotrous]

Whenever I hit that point, I change the way I draw the strip. Keeps it fresh. Or inconsistant. I can't remember which.

[Ghastly]

If by slump you mean under a girl's bra then the answer is "yes".

[Christwriter]

This is exactly where I am now...especially because I feel like I've blown the beginning of the story completely.

Now I'm just pushing on because I want to get it out there, because it's too good to let it rot in my brain...

I guess I need that break in senery. Maybe a week off or something.

CW

[Evil Jamie!]

Eh, you know. Kinda.

[YarpsDat]

Eh.

And I was approaching the end of the 3rd year too.. but it's just a coincidence. The whole thing was just a coincidence.

[Derenge]

"Slumps" I think are just part of the natural creative cycle that some folks have. I can't number the amount of times I've felt like doing something else than a comic, but that's the thing, nobody's forcing me to do it. Lord knows there are worse things in life than a hiatus.

It's funny though, those times at which I'm down on myself and my work are also good times for self-evaluation in some sort of masochistic way. Other people can be hard on you, that's true, but nobody will ever be as rough as a person can be on themselves when in a slump. That always comes to an end though, there is always something for me to look forward to. I agree with the platuae thing, after these periods I find that I have improved artisticly and am ready to make another attempt at things. I think these slumps may just be a sign of actual progression.

The importaint thing is to get past it, which is always harder that it sounds. Sometimes it's something I find can simply be broken by just pluggin away at it and not giving up. Other times willpower alone isn't going to be enough, then people have their friends, peers, and family to turn to for support. I look more to the things that inspire me, reading a good book or comic, watching a good movie, or cartoon. Whatever the case is, it's not the end of the world.

[JPSloan]

I get a slump about every three months. Two of them blossomed into fan-slaughtering hiati. Oh, to have stuck with it instead of having to reconstruct my old readership... definitely an uphill battle.

[Dutch!]

Again, it seems as though I'm going about this whole webcomic thing backwards...everyone seems to be starting their projects because they are still in school or university or whatever and then getting grumpy because they can't do it now they are working.

I've been teaching three and a half years now and only started the School Spirit for a laugh last November. Now it's a good release from work, even if the story's based in the same kind of setting.

Mind you, I did have a slump early one, but I think that was before I realised 'hey, this is fun, I can look forward to watching these little bugger's that I like grow and develop when I get home'.

Now I find myself writing and drawing just to see what's going to happen.

In short (cos I seem to be typing far too much tonight), perhaps if you see it as a hobby or some kind of relief from a job or whatever you'll rediscover that interest that clearly made you feel devoted enough to last three years...

[McDuffies]

As I near my 60th page, I find myself sliding into a deep slump... Even though I've been working on my comic for about three years now, it's suddenly lost its shine for me. I don't get excited about upcoming characters or plot twists, often I don't enjoy working on it, and as I read through the archives, I can no longer find any redeeming values in it.

At the same time, I don't want to quit...mostly because I've invested so much of my life into my comic, and also because I've never actually managed to finish a story. Ever. In my life. My big plan was for this to be the first thing I ever finished.

Ordinarily I'm not one to make my emotions so public, but I want to know if anyone else--especially you more experienced 'spacers (I still consider myself a n00b)--experienced a slump like this around this time. Anyone at all? ... *whimper*

hehe, okay, enough with the sad face... you can all make fun of me now for being such a wimp...

Grin your teeth, do it because you have to, and eventually slump will go away. That's what I do.
Other than that, you can (Yarps will reckognize this advice) put it away for a while, start some other thing, something less ambicious, do it for some time until you feel that you're ready to go back to your original comic. That way you'd get rest but wouldn't miss updates.

Oh, and Teretrous's advice was really good. You can try to turn your comic into other direction, something that you feel like doing more.

[CorruptDictatorNumber2]

Wow, thank you all so much. I hadn't expected NEARLY this many responses! Knowing that I'm not the only one to have felt this way makes me feel a LOT better, and I'll definitely try out some of the advice.

Yay! I love Keenspace! *elated, hugs everyone*

Ah... er... nevermind that last bit... Hehe.

[Liriel]

I've felt and been through many a great slump... and not just webcomic related either... And yet I just power through them with gritted teeth and all reserves of detirmination, because I will not give up.

So you have to ask your self, do you want to give up? Not that it's a bad thing to go and give up, you just have to figure out if there's something else you should be doing instead, and if there is -- you have every right and excuse for giving up on something that just may not be going right.

Not like I'm trying to confuse you or anything...

~Liriel

[Vorticus]

I have a tendency to write myself into corners, and then I get into slumps. Currently I'm in a bit of a slump. I'm at point A in my story and I have point B. It's just there doesn't even appear to be a squiggly line from here to there.

[Jim North]

Yes, I felt the slump yesterday. It's your turn to feel it today.

Honestly, if you can't take care of your slump adequately, we're going to have to take it back to the pound where we found it.

[Ti-Phil]

I think everyone have felt the slump at one time or another. I did too but I'm not giving up cause I already know what the ending of the story is and I've been working on it for years now so no giving up for me!

[Dutch!]

Knowing that I'm not the only one to have felt this way makes me feel a LOT better, and I'll definitely try out some of the advice.

Yay! I love Keenspace! *elated, hugs everyone*

Ah... er... nevermind that last bit... Hehe.

Seems like every second beginner webcomic artist arrives here and pouts 'ooh, I'm tired, I'm too stressed cos now I have school, and a REAL job, I have to walk my dog, etc etc and give the same tired excuses...

We probably responded to your cries for help because you were one of the few who did so with a bit of respect for yourself still!

Oh...and don't hug everyone...McDuffies is still contagious...