For all those of you wanting to know how to make a webcomic, there’s a discussion on this very topic going on now; two of them, in fact. Sparked by the very sexy R Stevens at Diesel Sweeties yesterday, the dialogue has now been crossposted to his LiveJournal and discussion board. From Stevens, the rules are (quoting here):

1. Set a schedule. Give yourself a month to figure out your characters in your head, then start to PRODUCE on a set schedule. It will build your muscles. If you don’t like the first comics you make, throw them away and keep going.
2. Know your characters. There’s nothing worse than a strip that starts out as “Hey! We are characters! Are we in a comic strip? Where is my script? Wow it is the last panel. LOL! GOTTA GO!”

I like these two rules because they make no judgements on content, art style or quality.

Good points all around, especially since they echo something Frank said once about the nature of artistic creation; going from memory here:

You want to be an artist? Okay, first announce your intention to create something. It doesn’t matter what. It helps if you put a frame around it, so people know where the art ends and the real world begins, and then fill that frame with your art. It helps if you finish it at some point (or just declare it a work in progress). Congratulations, you are now a bona-fide artist.

I’m pretty sure I mangled that quote pretty badly, but you get the idea. Other cartoonists (by my calculation, the discussion group creates thousands of webcomics panels per month) have added such helpful hints as Mind the fourth wall, Don’t introduce yourself (the creator) as a godlike figure in the comic, and No sprite comics. Naturally, people have come up with counter-examples for just about every rule, but it’s been a pair of remarkably informative discussions, and given the sometimes prickly nature of creative types, entirely collegial and respectful times two. There have even been respectful digressions on do we need another webcomics that isn’t very good?, with the consensus being love of creation is reason enough (but don’t expect the world to read it).

In other news, the NewsCorp/Rowland Death Watch continues apace, with others chiming in on the Myspace TOS. Could Jeff Rowland have sparked another revolution on the internet? He does seem to average one about every six or seven months. There ought to be a Nobel Prize for things like that.

In no particular order (and with fewer links than yesterday, I promise):

You may have seen that Jon Rosenberg and Phillip Karlsson have divided the Goats business between them. This means that Phillip now buys my beer, not Jon; it also means that there will be less reluctance to discuss Goats on these pages, as Jon is no longer the publisher. What drove these manly paragons of webcomickry to shameful divorce is yet to be fully disclosed, but our own Tuesday Crimson is on the story and we will hopefully soon learn if there’s a boning angle.

It’s been a bit more than 24 hours since Jeff Rowland moved his public challenge to Myspace from his LiveJournal to the front page of Overcompensating. As of this writing, no comment from Rupert Murdoch has been made about this attack on his empire. We urge all lovers of things that are fun to keep an eye on Mr Rowland, and to do all you can to ensure his personal safety.

As was noted in yesterday’s comments section, Dayfree Press has some new members in Dr McNinja and Stuff Sucks. I think that Lore said it best when he commented that he wasn’t familiar with Stuff Sucks but would check it out, since that’s the purpose of collectives.

There’s more webcomicker thesis animated short film on the horizon! In fact, I’ve seen a finished product that I’ve promised not to name yet, since there’s an effort to line up some festival entries. Be assured that once the story can be broken, we at Fleen will be the ones with the hammer and tongs. And shortly, the “we” part of that sentence will be literally true again — new writers have been chosen, and will start showing up on these pages shortly.

Finally, Andrew Bell has a new shirt that I particularly wanted to bring to your attention — it’s based on the very lovely Vindictive Viruses painting from his recent show, which carries a special resonance for me. Last Thursday, the show having concluded and Mr Bell being all caught up on life, that painting was handed to me in fulfillment of its purchase. It’s beautiful thing, and I’m having a tough time figuring out where to hang it. My wife, who is usually mildly disinterested in my webcomics mania, loves it (but then, she’s always been partial to chromosome #12).

Which brings me to my point: why should we keep such wonderful things to ourselves in this exceedingly tiny webcomics community? When an opportunity arises to reach out to a specific constituency, we should take it. If you know a microbiological researcher, virologist, epidemiologist, or professor of the life sciences, point them towards the shirt and the show. Let’s get the word out that there’s cool stuff here, and all are welcome to partake. Also, somebody should send a Bears Will Eat You shirt to Stephen Colbert. Just sayin’.

People on the internet: What business brought you here? I stayed up all night working on a draft of a new book based on the Structured Query Language for databases! That’s because, some days, I take an envelope out of the box and I PUSH IT. I notice you are leaving! Could my conversational stylings be partially to blame?? Hah hah, I guess I was being kind of silly! any event in which I was embarrassed is now non-canon. I’ve also retroconned my name to be “Mister Awesome”, by the way!

It occurs to me… Today is a good day I think to talk about DINOSAUR COMICS Your whole family is made out of meat, an allegorical comic and comic allegory Dude! It’s SO GOOD. Holy crap yes! I was like, “Aaaaaahhhh!” “HELLO T-REX” What is the attraction to this structure of humour? I think this is very symbolic for… something! Is it a metaphor? My friend, I am simply asking the questions that need to be asked!

Here is a hypothetical situation: T-REX AS CULTURAL CRITIC: maybe he’s got this weird fetishistic cultural interest in inefficient, repressive institutions. You were raised on fairy tales, where there were no moral grey areas, where good and bad were clear, where there was never any real doubt over which side would win in the end! That’s a pretty crazy theory! Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof! Imagine my dismay at coming to such a realization!

What are you saying that’s original? The thought DID cross my mind! I have surprised even myself! Argh! So frustrated! Well, this has been quite the anagnorisis (a moment of recognition or discovery)! To summarize: Fuuuuck I’m screwed! I’m pooched, man! I’m pooched! Being pooched is akin to being screwed! C’est vraiment incroyable, ça! I must guard against such self-absorption in the future! I GUESS THERE IS A LESSON HERE FOR US ALL!

Why are you so interested in this, anyway? Seriously everyone! How come? However, that will be more than enough excitement for me! Any final comments, T-Rex? T-REX AND HIS WACKY DINOSAUR FRIENDS Five stars! Are you jealous of my mutant dinosaur powers? T-REX WINS! Wooo! I declare: high fives all around! FINALLY: HUGS AND KISSES! Aww! Come’ere you!

Fleen masthead designer/once-upon-a-time webcomicker/real-life GynoStryker Meredith Gran has just posted her thesis animation in support of graduation from the School of Visual Arts. Like, just now, in the past 45 minutes or so.

Go and feast in the brilliance that is … Polar-oid.

Okay, so that’s the submissions. The Fleen Editorial Board will be meeting in high-level secret meetings throughout the weekend and issuing invites to new writers ’roundabouts Monday.

To the eventual winners, congratulations.

To those who have given their all and don’t get chosen, thanks very much for playing, and don’t forget your lovely parting gifts (provided by the fine folks at Sue-Bee Honey™, Rice-a-Roni™, and RC Cola™; also please enjoy a complementary copy of our home game).

And to all our audience, thank you and drive safely.

Seriously, though, nice job from all of the applicants, and watch for daily posts from our new writers in the coming weeks.

Lord, I loves me some Little Dee. Chris Baldwin does a sweet (but not treacly), sharply funny (but not mean-spirited) (except for Vachel) strip that my youngest nieces and nephews can enjoy right along with evil-hearted ol’ me. And now his first collection of Little Dee comics is out (temporarily sold out, in fact). It covers the full run of the strip from inception to the 3 month hiatus that Baldwin took at the end of last year. It’s just as good in dead-tree form as day-by-day (maybe better, because your mouse finger won’t cramp up clicking “next” all the time). The printing is crisp and beautiful (really deep ink saturation on the beautifully-colored front and back covers, too). So if we all just accept that the book is wonderful, isn’t this review superfluous? No, because two things about LDv1 raise interesting questions:

1. Baldwin has included the guest strips that ran in May last year; kudos for taking the time to make the necessary arrangements with his fellow creators. One of the unique things about webcomics — maybe the most unique thing — is the tradition of Guest Week. With the exception of Rhymes With Orange and Funky Winkerbean , I’m not aware that any newspaper comic has ever tried this (and RWO doesn’t really have characters or storylines). Webcomic guest strips lead to hilarious and memorable takes on familiar characters as highly creative people get to play in each others sandboxes. So why aren’t more of them included in reprint collections? Oftentimes, you don’t even get both halves of a crossover printed when a collection goes to press. Am I the only one that wishes this was different?
2. Like most authors, Baldwin has asked what he hopes is an impressive person to provide a blurb for the back cover. This one gets quoted verbatim:
   

   Christopher is dedicated, knowledgeable and talented in both the business and art of the daily comic strip, and Little Dee is a solid example of his expertise.

   That was written by one John Glynn, who is listed as Acquisitions Editor for Universal Press Syndicate. Pardon my bluntness, but this is a prime example of corporatespeak; it’s superficially laudatory, but ultimately noncommital. It places the business of comics before the art, and the best compliment it can render is that Little Dee is a solid example. Where I come from, that’s called “faint praise”.

   Regular readers of this space will know that we at Fleen (okay, “I at Fleen”, happy?) have a bug up our (my) butts (butt) about the state of syndicated comics. The fact that the guy who’s presumably in charge of deciding what gets syndicated by UPS (such as Ann Coulter, Dear Abby’s idiot daughter, and James Dobson) is using such mild language instead of I want to see Little Dee in every paper in the country and any of my competitors that thinks different is a moron is pretty indicative of the state of smarts at the syndicates. But I promised you questions, so here you go:

   Why a quote from a syndicate suit? You got an annoucement for us, Chris? Do I have to start writing to the features editor of my paper? Is there actually a syndicate with an eye for talent out there, and Johnny’s just playing his cards close to his vest? Enquiring minds want to know.

Ah, Moleskine, king of notebooks. You form my convention sketchbook, keep track of my expenses, acted as my diary on that trek through Australia and Japan. You hold up under all circumstances and never crap out, and ink never looks blobby on your pages. I love you as man should not love inanimate objects. And now, you’re the inspiration/namesake for a journal webcomic.

“Moruskine” (since Japanese doesn’t have an “L” sound) is the project of Dirk Schwieger, launched at the beginning of the year. People send him suggestions of things to do in Tokyo, he does them, and then draws a comic about it. And here’s the best part: I will DO it, no questions asked and whether I like it or not.

Schwieger’s art is presented as if photographed from his Moleskine (and if not, it’s a darn good facsimilie thereof); it’s clean, expressive, heavy on the blacks, is insanely detailed at times, and often has a feel like a mutant cross between American Splendor and This American Life.

The only real drawback is that Schwieger publishes in a LiveJournal, which doesn’t offer the tools for a proper webcomic archive. But screw that — this is quality, insightful work about a guy and a very different culture. Plus: okonomiyaki! My favorite! Go read it, then drop Schwieger a line and see what you can get him to do.

Presidential heads and book depositories? I like where Paul Southworth is going with Ugly Hill‘s current storyline, which has only just reached the midpoint. Regardless of how you may feel about President Tripp‘s real-world counterpart (and boy, is that likeness spooky), the humor over Maulington way is so broad and ridiculous that you can’t really get mad. Seriously, doesn’t every group have a member that’s just so strident that you kinda wish he didn’t belong?

Ursula Vernon gets the Best Use of Mucous In a Metaphor Award for today’s Digger; image duplicted here for those without Graphic Smash subscriptions. If there’s one thing that webcomics need more of, it’s measures of snot viscosity! Note to self: remember to ask Mister T when Graphic Smash is going to take subscriptions by means other than Paypal. Alternately, send Vernon a check to make up for the enjoyment I’ve been getting out of her work for free.

Finally, not a webcomic, but Bill Amend gets in a general-audience gag while at the same time preserving nerd cred in today’s Foxtrot (or here, for archival purposes). Oh Duke, someday you shall return in our darkest hour, just like King Arthur.

Nah.

So let’s see: bizarre machines, monsters, battles of wits, mad science, fencing, absurd situations, hilariously quotable dialogue, and even a little kissing? Gotta be The Princess Bride, right? Or maybe Young Frohnk-en-steen? Or possibly the sum total of classic Warner Brothers cartoons?

Or maybe it’s Phil and Kaja Foglio’s Girl Genius, represented in the fourth reprint volume, Agatha Heterodyne and the Circus of Dreams. Agatha, for those who came in late, is the long-lost heir of the Heterodyne Boys, brothers Bill and Barry who travelled the globe doing good deeds and righting wrongs in a world where the Industrial Revolution was dominated by mad scientists (or “Sparks”, to be polite). Alas, the world mostly likes being chaotic, and every power in Europe will try to kill or control Agatha as she makes her way around with a talking cat, a hide-in-plain sight circus of Sparks, and a couple of Jagermonsters.

Oh, right, Jagermonsters … um, it’s a long story, just suffice it to say that they sound like Bela Lugosi, they’re loyal to the Heterodynes on a genetic level, they really like to fight, and they love their hats.

AHATCOD includes material from both the Girl Genius comics (discontinued due to the economics of dead-tree single-issue printing) and the thrice-weekly online installments that started about a year ago. Every page is laid out gorgeously, with incidental details clearly visible instead of jumbling together. The Foglios continue their tradition of being able to put in a punchline nearly every day (often in those incidental details: check out the brick) while still progressing the larger story forward. Sometimes it’s mere moments between pages , sometimes more. And sometimes, it’s a bit of luxury, like this page, which is so reminiscent of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind that it’s scary.

Some of us grew up on Phil Foglio’s work and will never look at a bowler hat the same way again. Some came later and saw that the same goofball wit that skewered fantasy genres could be applied to sci-fi as well. Some just know that no matter what happens in the world, Winslow is the path to truth (all hail). And some haven’t discovered the Foglio genius yet; if you fall into that latter group, Girl Genius is a good place to start. Grab all four volumes now so you can be ready when volume 5 hits in about two months.

The first round of finding new Fleen writers is complete. Starting sometime tomorrow, I’ll be posting (under my account) pieces written by those invited to Round Two. Tomorrow is the Current Events challenge, and Wednesday will be the Unknown Strip Review challenge.

You, the loyal Fleen reader, will be part of the selection process. If you see something that you think is particularly well-written, please add a comment. If you find something that’s inane or done poorly, do the same. Think of it as being like a reality show, only you’re basing your votes on skill instead of personality. Your opinions will be weighed along with other factors to figure out who achieves the long-sought goal of every writer: a pittance of a salary and booze bought by the publisher.