Hi.. I'm L.Hall of May I Help You . Since last year, I've asked for critiques here twice and both times I've taken the advice into consideration. I've tried to open myself to different layouts of the actual comic so it doesn't get boring and I've tried to bring in running storylines amidst the original daily planned gags. Now granted, the story lines are a bit silly.. but so were the gags. And I like silly.
I guess I'm just asking if some people wouldn't mind perusing through the comic and letting me know if, in their opinion, the comic is improving, growing or am I going in the wrong direction?
Thanks for your time,
L.Hall[/url]
Is it getting better?
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Mayihelpyou
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Is it getting better?
"My secret to happiness is that I have the heart of a 12 year old child.. I keep it in a jar over there..wanna see it?" -Old Vaudeville.. really old vaudeville..
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Tarts
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OMG!!! YOU WROTE MAY I HELP YOU!!!!
*dies*
*ahem* *ahem* *coughcough*
Hi there. I'm an avid reader of MIHY. In fact your comic led me to CG, so I have you to thank for me being here. Anyway, from my observations, I notice subtle, gradual, upward-moving changes in the art style, the style of the layouts. I'll go into them individually.
The Art Style:
Well, all I can say is that any major, sudden change will be unbecoming of the comic. You've tackled the compressing problem most people have quite well, and I guess you now have a grasp on the character designs. I must say a way to improve is to slowly adding more flair such as subtle details, like on clothing, the background etc. However, this is best done under the scientific method. Assess the area in question, make a hypothesis, experiment, and make a conclusion if the change should be made. But as far as I can tell, that's what you've been doing so not much should really be said here.
Technical stuff:
The art is fine and all but the readers expect a nice, decorated porcelain casing to go along with it. If I can suggest anything, make border lines around speech bubbles and any images you put in the comic a bit neater, since sometimes, less curves and squiggles will hug your comic much more nicely than a bunch of noodle-bubbles. Your coloring techniques are top-notch however. May I just suggest you work a bit on objects with plain color like doodads and some of the characters' clothing by adding a little shading. It'll only add a few seconds to your comicking so I don't think it should be much of a problem.
Writing:
It has its share of queerness, and I should know... my comic is so full of the weird stuff as well. Anyway, you shouldn't worry about how much of the surreality is in the comic since I've made a shocking discovery. People like that. Wow. I bet your head is gonna explode now, huh? Heheh. LOL. Anyway, the writing may have a few problems with consistency and.... gender confusion? Anyway, keep it up. Half the work is in Comic Sans... or whatever font people use...
Update Schedule:
Once a week is fine. You're pretty dedicated, I can see that. Unlike some people. *stares at Kikoman*
Competition:
Don't worry. Your comic is armed and dangerous.
Overall Direction (finally, something you asked about):
Your comic is going WAY WAY up! It's that kind of going-up where it shows a straight edge-free line on the graph. It would be nice to have even just a tiny jerk upwards, but we wouldn't want the readers to adjust, right? Your comic really shines because of consistency, especially in the art. Even with subtle improvements people wouldn't notice anyway, it would seem like you don't even blink when working on it.
Advice in a Doggie Bag:
-Momma always said, silly's what silly does. Just don't make it stupid.
-Consistency is key.
-A clean-up would be nice. It would take a little effort though.
-Don't get caught up with competition. Your three biggest rivals are lack of inspiration, laziness, and television. You're fine right now, don't worry.
-Keep it cute and sugary-sweet. Enough to give snails diabetes.
-A good stir will keep a comic from being boring.
-Ask for help/criticism/tips/anecdotes if you feel lost or uncertain as to what you're really doing.
-Keep it up!!
*dies*
*ahem* *ahem* *coughcough*
Hi there. I'm an avid reader of MIHY. In fact your comic led me to CG, so I have you to thank for me being here. Anyway, from my observations, I notice subtle, gradual, upward-moving changes in the art style, the style of the layouts. I'll go into them individually.
The Art Style:
Well, all I can say is that any major, sudden change will be unbecoming of the comic. You've tackled the compressing problem most people have quite well, and I guess you now have a grasp on the character designs. I must say a way to improve is to slowly adding more flair such as subtle details, like on clothing, the background etc. However, this is best done under the scientific method. Assess the area in question, make a hypothesis, experiment, and make a conclusion if the change should be made. But as far as I can tell, that's what you've been doing so not much should really be said here.
Technical stuff:
The art is fine and all but the readers expect a nice, decorated porcelain casing to go along with it. If I can suggest anything, make border lines around speech bubbles and any images you put in the comic a bit neater, since sometimes, less curves and squiggles will hug your comic much more nicely than a bunch of noodle-bubbles. Your coloring techniques are top-notch however. May I just suggest you work a bit on objects with plain color like doodads and some of the characters' clothing by adding a little shading. It'll only add a few seconds to your comicking so I don't think it should be much of a problem.
Writing:
It has its share of queerness, and I should know... my comic is so full of the weird stuff as well. Anyway, you shouldn't worry about how much of the surreality is in the comic since I've made a shocking discovery. People like that. Wow. I bet your head is gonna explode now, huh? Heheh. LOL. Anyway, the writing may have a few problems with consistency and.... gender confusion? Anyway, keep it up. Half the work is in Comic Sans... or whatever font people use...
Update Schedule:
Once a week is fine. You're pretty dedicated, I can see that. Unlike some people. *stares at Kikoman*
Competition:
Don't worry. Your comic is armed and dangerous.
Overall Direction (finally, something you asked about):
Your comic is going WAY WAY up! It's that kind of going-up where it shows a straight edge-free line on the graph. It would be nice to have even just a tiny jerk upwards, but we wouldn't want the readers to adjust, right? Your comic really shines because of consistency, especially in the art. Even with subtle improvements people wouldn't notice anyway, it would seem like you don't even blink when working on it.
Advice in a Doggie Bag:
-Momma always said, silly's what silly does. Just don't make it stupid.
-Consistency is key.
-A clean-up would be nice. It would take a little effort though.
-Don't get caught up with competition. Your three biggest rivals are lack of inspiration, laziness, and television. You're fine right now, don't worry.
-Keep it cute and sugary-sweet. Enough to give snails diabetes.
-A good stir will keep a comic from being boring.
-Ask for help/criticism/tips/anecdotes if you feel lost or uncertain as to what you're really doing.
-Keep it up!!
"You're a guy! Why do you need to poo?" -Me
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Mayihelpyou
- Regular Poster
- Posts: 59
- Joined: Mon Jul 24, 2006 6:34 pm
- Location: USA
- Contact:
thank you very much. All helpful, and well.. gushy. 
I don't mind that. My head needed to get a bit bigger.. ppl say it's too small anyway. 
Seriously, I understand everything with the exception of the borders on the text boxes and the last bit in the advice.. to Clean it up. Are you saying A) that I should use more of the strict bubble dialogue boxes? and B) I should go back and make improvements on the past comics? I'm not sure I quite understand.
I'm glad you like the comic and have since moved to CG.. that's cool. And really really thank you for the helpful critique.
I don't mind that. My head needed to get a bit bigger.. ppl say it's too small anyway. Seriously, I understand everything with the exception of the borders on the text boxes and the last bit in the advice.. to Clean it up. Are you saying A) that I should use more of the strict bubble dialogue boxes? and B) I should go back and make improvements on the past comics? I'm not sure I quite understand.
I'm glad you like the comic and have since moved to CG.. that's cool. And really really thank you for the helpful critique.
"My secret to happiness is that I have the heart of a 12 year old child.. I keep it in a jar over there..wanna see it?" -Old Vaudeville.. really old vaudeville..
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Tarts
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- Joined: Sun Apr 08, 2007 9:17 pm
- Location: Manila, Philippines
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Going back to improve older comics isn't really a good idea since it's really taxing and all. Just try to improve on future comics.
And what I meant by cleaning up the speech bubbles I meant making the lines crisp, like maybe, as crisp as the lines which make up the characters. And also, maybe if you're gonna connect speech bubbles, take the shortest possible route to the next speech bubble, taking less curves and turns, and also, when wrapping the bubble around text, it's nice to leave some white space. Don't make it cramped inside the speech bubble. It doesn't look very professional that way.
As for cleaning it up, you could maybe remove some unnecessary details/lines/jagged edges/you know what I mean... and as I said, it WILL add some time to your comic-drawing process, but it'll be worth it.
Anyway, sorry for not being clear on that.
Hope this helps.
And what I meant by cleaning up the speech bubbles I meant making the lines crisp, like maybe, as crisp as the lines which make up the characters. And also, maybe if you're gonna connect speech bubbles, take the shortest possible route to the next speech bubble, taking less curves and turns, and also, when wrapping the bubble around text, it's nice to leave some white space. Don't make it cramped inside the speech bubble. It doesn't look very professional that way.
As for cleaning it up, you could maybe remove some unnecessary details/lines/jagged edges/you know what I mean... and as I said, it WILL add some time to your comic-drawing process, but it'll be worth it.
Anyway, sorry for not being clear on that.
Hope this helps.
"You're a guy! Why do you need to poo?" -Me
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Mayihelpyou
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That actually does help a whole lot.. It's just real confusing on how to do speech bubbles from the get go. I did them initially within each individual panel before I crunched them and placed them all on the page. Now, I place all the images on the page before I dialogue.. That allows the bubbles to come outside of the linear box on the page, but since I'm working with 700 pixel wide pages, even the 2 px line leaves a bit of a messy edge. 1 px is even worse and 3 px is just too big and heavy. I didn't want to use the standard full circular dialogue bubble because it takes up too much room on those panels that have a lot of speech.
I do my speech bubbles from a technique I got from RH Junior at goblin hollow.. selecting the speech, inversing the selection, expanding it, smoothing it and then creating a work path. But on the full page, it does leave a lot of messy angles, jaggies and just doesn't look "professional" as you say.
Something to work on.. something to work..
thanks again!
I do my speech bubbles from a technique I got from RH Junior at goblin hollow.. selecting the speech, inversing the selection, expanding it, smoothing it and then creating a work path. But on the full page, it does leave a lot of messy angles, jaggies and just doesn't look "professional" as you say.
Something to work on.. something to work..
thanks again!
"My secret to happiness is that I have the heart of a 12 year old child.. I keep it in a jar over there..wanna see it?" -Old Vaudeville.. really old vaudeville..