Selkie 629
May14
on May 14, 2015
at 11:36 pm
I am currently out at Anime Central’s Artist Alley (Table G05!) Come say hello if you’re in the area!
As to the dress vote, the winner is Yellow! Selkie will be wearing her sunshines to the aquarium next week.
Pohl's plan is solid until Suko learns hydroplanes are a thing.
Yay! I was hoping you would bring them in on this plot line.
I can’t wait to see Suko’s reaction to all the fishies!
Will he be as excited as Selkie? Will Selkie egg him on or try to rein in her own excitement to be a good role model? I can’t wait to see.
Ooh even better would be if Amanda and Andi run into them there. I can just picture Amanda’s face when confronted with more people like Selkie.
Ooh…I like the way you think!
Mmm. There’s Amanda with her Real Mom – and there, on the other side of the battle lines, is her Real Dad, *with the fish people*.
Yeah, this ain’t gonna end badly.
On the contrary, for Selkie to be with other fish people when she has the revelation that her Dad is Amanda’s father (and Todd realizes he has TWO daughters) might make for complete and other bedlam.
And I don’t think the octopi willl survive.
Oh, for Selkie this is shaping up to be all sorts of awesome (and I mean that in its most chaotic sense). But it looks like Amanda’s not finished being put through the wringer yet (as if there was any doubt).
Was hoping we’d see these folks again too! ^_^
A whole family of Sarnothi at the aquarium? muahahahaha… I hearts choas >:)
I love how relaxed he is in the last panel
As one small business owner to another;
You get to work any hours a week you want. Be it 20, 40, or 80 hours a week. Any of those hours, you work them. It’s great, no?
What you put into it is what you get out… if you someday dream of Selkie paying your bills, you need to try harder to put finished pages out whatever schedule you have decided.
Do you want fans who will love having 3 finished colored strips a week? Who will help pay your bills..? Who spread the word..? Work towards that <3
Because if you're inconsistent,it won't help you. If it is too hard–and while it has bigger risks–to keep up your current three day a week pages, lower your efforts and increase your consistency. It will help you in the end.
Also I hope that if you ever make more than 30k a year you start a S-Corp 😉 trust me, I wish I had this info sooner. It pays for itself, and hire a true CPA for it.
I’m gonna agree with this, with the caveat that I actually like seeing the unfinished pages, and I’m always sad if later they go away and I can’t click a link to the original posted ones somehow (at least they could go in a gallery or something).
That, and there are many reasons a creator might not be as punctual as Howard Tayler of Schlock Mercenary. Life happens. People go through things — Tarol Hunt of Goblins dealing with mental/emotional issues, Pam of HarvestCraft dealing with depression — and we, the fandom, or at least most of us, support them through it and learn to be patient about and grateful for the stuff we get even if it’s late and buggy.
But if you don’t have any specific pressures that are making it too hard to keep up — if it’s more a matter of procrastination and poor time management and finding funny cat videos — then figure out how much this comic matters to you, and give it the priority that is appropriate. If that means you need to change the schedule, change it — we’ll adjust.
You’re still fighting procrastination better than I am. I haven’t even gotten started on my comic yet :\
I’ll take the unfinished strips over some of the other webcomic artists who let their pages sit for indeterminate times without any progression. Life happens, and as of now, I pay exactly 0 out of pocket for this content. I’m content with the way Dave handles his business. If this were a pay site, I might be a little grumpy about it, but as is, I’m easily getting value from this site, and I’m happy to be able to read the story. The art’s fun, but it’s the story I really am interested in.
Yeah, but what “eh no” is pointing out is that if Dave is interested in making a profit (via Patreon), he might have to change his priorities a little.
I’m happy with the many strips that I read for free; I love this model that the internet developed (after spurning the pay-per-page model). But I love it even more when I see dozens of my favorite strips going to Patreon and getting enough funding to quit their normal jobs and work on the art they love full-time. You know how long it took Lackadaisy to go from $0 to $QuitMyJob? Like three days. As of now Track is bringing in over $6,200 per month.
Selkie doesn’t have the fanbase necessary to raise that kind of funding, and it’s still fairly new as webcomics go, the graphics obviously nowhere near as polished as Lackadaisy’s are. But Lackadaisy’s funding represents the high end (of the ones I’m aware of). El Goonish Shive is making about half that ($3000/month). Schlock Mercenary is making $2500/month from almost a thousand patrons, so roughly $2.50 apiece. Goblins has $1600/month from some 450 patrons, or a bit under $4 apiece. Leftover Soup is bringing in $600/month from just about 200 patrons, or about $3 apiece.
It doesn’t take a lot of money from individual supporters but it does take a bit of a fanbase to pull it off, and I don’t know how many people currently follow Selkie but I do know that it takes good, consistent content to pull in readers.
Dave’s got the story. It’s fantastic. It’s not only powerful enough to touch the heart and deal with mature topics but also broad enough to be the one comic I never need to hold back on recommending (this is one reason I adore the censorship style). He’s got the characters, fleshed out and endearing even when they’re antagonists. He’s got the art, which has come a long way and will keep developing over time.
What else is left to do? Develop a schedule you can stick to, and be self-aware enough to figure out when you’re shouldering too much content too fast. Because the last thing I want to see is for Dave to end up like the creator of Yet Another Fantasy Gamer Comic, or like Doug Walker of The Nostalgia Critic, both of whom ended up burning out and having to go on long-term hiatus just to pull themselves back together to be able to create more content. Stuff like that is bad for the fans and even worse for the creator. And those are two of the creators I know who *recovered* — there are others, like the creator of Elf Only Inn, who left and never came back.
*Tracy, not Track. I have no idea how my fingers managed to type that.
Dave updates about as often as Dan Shive, and as far as I know, Dave updates far more often than Tracy.
Tracy’s a special case because for one, she puts out pages with exponentially more detail than any other webcomic I know — that’s probably why her Patreon jumped to several thousand dollars in the first couple of days it was up — and because she has a job that she cannot reduce time at, only drop entirely (dunno if she’s done that yet, but it was one of the Patreon levels). She gained followers because of the research and the sheer gorgeousness of her artwork and her postures and gestures, which, again, I haven’t seen elsewhere.
Dan’s gotten to where he posts three updates a week, but I can’t even recall the last time he posted a partially finished update. It’s more that he occasionally has to go back and fix up errors. Of course, he’s had several years on Dave here, much more time to get everything straight, and more than once he’s shifted schedules to cope.
Dave, I realize that they may not be the norm (yet), but of the comics I regularly return to (as a binge reader), something like (at a guess) 75% of them have gotten a Patreon by now, and only a couple are at the low end of funding (you being one of them). If you’re good, you attract followers (mostly by word-of-mouth advertising, which I think is great as it attracts the best new readers, because their friends sort through who’d be interested in the tale). You are good and have attracted followers and will attract more.
But the schedule thing is something to get straight for your own sake, as well as for the readers. You don’t want to do more than you’re capable of, or get to the point where unfinished updates are more common than finished ones. If you have to drop to two days a week instead of three, or the like, make that decision and go with it. Or if you’re going to stick with three days per week, figure out what part of the day is eating up your free time and doesn’t have to be, and figure out how to redeem that time. Move some things around and see if there’s a better fit.
I think the illustration given was a barrel full of rocks of different sizes, from big ones down through gravel to sand. If you fill it up with sand first, then gravel, the big rocks won’t fit. But if you fill it with big rocks first, then gravel, then sand, most of it will fit because the sand fills in the holes around the bigger rocks. It’s an illustration of priorities, from big to little.
The thing to consider is, those are the success stories, not the norm. There’s a lot of smaller webcomics trying Patreons who never make it to that level.
Yeeeeeah, as one human being to another, I’d advise you to go with whatever life balance works for you and makes you happy – ‘cuz as the years go by, success fades, fame fades, money fades, but happiness? That’s what sticks around. Happiness, and memories of happiness, and a life well-lived.
And I love your sketch updates. Doesn’t keep me hanging waiting for the storyline to continue, gives a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes, as it were. Good stuff.
I’m so scared if doing anything more complex than the 1040. :/
I think that, today notwithstanding, I have a good update consistency track record. My biggest flaw for the most part is having it done a couple hours past midnight. I could be better, but I also could do much worse.
I don’t have a lot to say regarding ‘should you or shouldn’t you’ etc, but on the subject of taxes and paperwork, I can (and will!) offer a couple of comments.
I have a farm and without going into details, between state and federal regulations on what I do with it, I have to file three types of paperwork a month separate from the whole end-of-year April 15th shenanigans. I am also paperwork-phobic, so this, as you can imagine, is a bit stressful.
I deal with it by keeping a spreadsheet of expenses plus receipts, and when tax time comes around each year, I toddle over and let a professional deal with it. It costs a chunk of change to do, but the preparation fee is itself tax-deductible, and if you go to a reputable place, they will go with you if you are ever audited. Guaranteed.
TL;DR: Pay a professional to handle the taxes if you do the small business thing. It’s worth it.
I agree completely with eh no.
The fact that I don’t expect a consistent product is what keeps me from becoming a patreon, sad to say.
As one “small business owner” to another (one who is actually has steady, well-paid contracts in the media/art profession), I am completely satisfied with Dave’s output. He almost always has the story up on time—unless unforeseen circumstances have happened (ex – family death, illness, etc…) or he informs us way ahead we will be missing a day and usually puts in filler. Also, he doesn’t expect his audience to pay to read his work. This makes him about 200 times more reliable than 90% of the web comic artists who exist (and most of them are asking for $$$). I also enjoy seeing the pre-inked/pre-colored drawings. I am happy to continue contributing money and praise to an excellent comic and a wonderful artist who has a strong vision for his character, but also respect for his audience.
What sort of webcomics are you reading if most of them are asking for money? I read tons of webcomics and they’re all free (I don’t ever pay for webcomic services, it’s just not the best model with today’s internet). I could name a couple dozen off the top of my head (PS238, xkcd, and see if you can get the rest from initials: GG, GC, Ff, OotS, K&K, SM, SF, EW, EGS, LFG, DD, NNfB, LdC, G:LtTE, V, LS, DMD, SatW, D&D, YAFGC, DC, dc…).
But the webcomic artists who actually want to make some money off of their property make use of ads, merchandise, printed copies, patron-only sections of their website, and Patreon accounts, and that means that the public can continue to read for free while those who have money can use it to support the creator.
And if by “they are asking for money” you mean that they have Patreons… you do realize Dave has one too, right? Patreon accounts are a good thing, since it leaves the comic free to the public yet gives an easy way for fans who feel like doing it to drop a few bucks here and there at the creators they want to support. I’m thrilled that Patreon has taken off like this. It’s nothing but good for both fans and creators.
What other business is there where the product is expect by midnight the day of, instead of before midnight the day after?
He promises it up by the end of Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. To my knowledge, he has never missed that deadline. He usually has something up by midnight the day of, which is a hell of a lot better than most places. But when I see that something updates daily, I expect the updates by 5pm that day. I don’t expect them to be up at 7am, let alone 12:01am.
“Monday” means he has until 11:59pm on Mondays to get it up and still be within deadline. I don’t know what timezone he’s working with, so we can be lenient and go with California time, or strict and go with GMT. Which means he needs it up by 7pm US Eastern on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Which is why I said he hasn’t ever been late without warning.
It’s not really a business though, he’s doing this for free, and if people chose to support or donate to him they should consider their contribution just that – a donation, no strings attached.
He still has to account for the money he receives. Complying with the law can get complicated. Those that advise him to seek outside professional help are correct.
There’s a better way of avoiding all these unfinished strips that lets him keep working as is. Dave needs to work smarter not harder. Put Selkie on a one week break, but draw 3 strips during the hiatus.
From then on keep a 3 strip buffer between creation and release and draw each comic 1 week in advance. If you’re a little late on one comic it won’t be such a big deal because you have that 3 comic buffer, and you can catch up on your own time instead of keeping us waiting.
You’ll could still have 3 comics a week with the same schedule you currently have. You might have to play catchup from time to time just as you do now, but it won’t affect the comic when you do. It’s the best option.
I would hate to just call off strips for a week though. And if I was going to do that I would have just posted Convention Filler like everyone else does and skipped putting an update out for Friday at all.
While I have no real problem with how you currently do things, I do appreciate when the strips I follow have a buffer in place, especially because it makes timing slightly more predictable.
Yeah that’s why I usually post the WIP version if I am running right up on Midnight, but this time I was so close to being done I just went right to finishing in instead of doing a WIP. Sorry.
Oh, and the writer of No Rest for the Wicked, the area she lived in got hit by one of those tsunamis a couple years ago. That was legitimate reason to stop making the comic for a while. I was just glad to hear she was all right.
Awww that’s a great idea Tod! So many trans-racial adoptive parents forget to let their kids bond with peers and have positive examples of their own race, it’s good to see that Selkie will have regular contact with her people. It will be very valuable in her keeping her heritage and building a good self image that’s not “weird fish girl” but “proud Sarnothi woman”.
Bear in mind, Todd is himself a trans-racial adoptive child. He is seeing this from both ends.
I think it’s impolite of Todd not to mention they will be going as part of a class outing. All those people might be more exposure than the Pohl’s are ready for.
And of course Agent Brown is not going to like this either.
It’s presumably a public aquarium. Y’know, open to the public. And it’s the weekend, no less. Pretty sure that the possible presence of other kids who, unlike the average member of the public, have already met one Sarnothi, is not so much a concern.
Going as part of a class outing probably should have been mentioned, although most aquariums are big enough to contain both class outings and other people. And if everyone is bringing their parents, it would not surprise me if the children are mostly allowed to head off with their parents, with instructions such as “meet at this place at this time.”
You may be right that Agent Brown won’t like it. However, Pohl is already a doctor. He sees a lot of humans, not just Sarnothi (as indicated by the fact that he wears bunny ears when seeing patients). Agent Brown must have okayed that.
It’s not a class outing. The kids may get extra credit for visiting the aquarium, but they still do it on their own, not as a group.
I swear if your half the parent you write you win so, so much.
Sorry to be the squeaky wheel here, but are we EVER going to get something even close to an explanation of how aliens (effectively) are able to walk around in broad daylight without thousands of reporters and the general public at large calling massive amounts of attention to it?
If someone that looked anything like a sarnothi walked down the street in any major municipality, it’d be international news faster than you could say “Selkie.”
Cosplay. Furries. Dress up in period clothing and explain that you’re H.P. Lovecraft Recreationists.
I just laughed so hard at the words “H.P. Lovecraft Recreationists”
“Pardon me a moment, I am currently an airplane.” Pohl’s lines never fail to delight me.
I’ve got to say, as much as I like Pohl’s family, it’s so WEIRD seeing a “looks about 6 or 7” year old kid talking like a stilted 2 year old o.0
He’s just over 2, as stated in episode 395. I suppose he’s just big for his age.
Huh… yea I did think he’s weird, if he’s supposed to be 2 it makes much more sense. Sarnothi might age/develop differently than humans and that’s why he looks older.
Well, most fish grow quickly relative to their complete life cycles, but it often varies widely dependent upon enivronment. It’s possible Suko will reach physical milestones more quickly than he will mature mentally, given the presumable lack of environmental stressors in his life(They appear to be a middle class family) and the relative lack of socialization I’m assuming he has.
I highly suspect a “there’s MORE of them?!” moment from Amanda, who may still believe Selkie just has some sort of bizzare genetic condition…
Since it has been stated that they have more or less drained the gene pool, Selkie now has a rare genetic condition.