Do You Need a Comic Buffer? 9 Steps to Help You Decide
Is a buffer necessary for you? The answer depends on nine things specific to you. For my webcomics, I ended up deciding to use buffers. However, I can see why a using buffer may not be the the right choice for everyone. Continue reading to find out whether is a buffer is needed for your comic.
1. Take a Look at Your Schedule
If you have a constantly changing schedule you probably need a comic buffer. You won’t have to worry about missing a comic page update even if you get busy. I created a buffer for my comic so that I would be able to take time off in case of vacation, sickness, change in schedule, technical issues, holidays, etc.
On the contrary, if your week-to-week doesn’t experience much change, then you may not need a buffer. If you have a fixed amount of days/times available to work on your comic, then you know you will have enough time to create new comic pages. Thus, you may not need a buffer.
2. Consider How You Handle Stress
If you constantly feel overwhelmed that you are running out of comic updates, then a comic buffer is for you. If you don’t work well under pressure, a will buffer help you not feel stressed or in a time-crunch.
However, if running out of comic updates doesn’t make you anxious, then a comic buffer probably isn’t necessary. If you are just making comics as a hobby in your free time, you probably aren’t concerned about missing updates. You may not even want a regular posting schedule, and that’s totally okay.
3. Determine Your Working Pace
If you find yourself completing pages at the pace of a tortoise, then a buffer may help ensure you have enough time to create each page. I end up making an average of one page per week. However, if something comes up, I can rely on my buffer so I don’t fall behind on posting a new page online each week.
Contrarily, if you work at the speed of a hare, you can make new comic pages anytime and don’t need to worry about a buffer. If you update once per week, but it only takes an hour to make a page, you can make a month’s worth of pages in a couple of hours. Thus, you don’t you need to worry about making a buffer.
4. Decide if You Have Concerns of Professionalism
If you want to avoid seeming flaky, unreliable, or upsetting your fans, then a comic buffer is likely necessary. Additionally, if you don’t want your pages to look sloppy, then you’ll want to make a buffer to avoid rushing to get a page up before its deadline.
Contrarily, if you are just making your comic for fun, then timely updates aren’t much of a big deal. I don’t recommend it, but if you don’t establish yourself as a reliable poster, you can always rebrand yourself in the future.
5. Take a Look at Your Other Commitments
If you are working on multiple comics at a time, you may need a buffer to help you not fall behind. Similarly, if you are often busy with work, school, family, sports, etc., then a buffer can help you not fall behind when you are too busy to make a new comic page.
However, if your other commitments do not take a lot of time or energy, then you probably won’t be lacking time to work on your comic. If you only make one comic at a time, and can put all your energy into that project, then a buffer may not be necessary.
6. Determine Your Dedication
Some people are very self-motivated and passionate about working on their comics. If that’s you, you’ll probably find yourself working so fast that you naturally create a buffer. Or, if you feel a buffer will be beneficial to your comic, then you may force yourself to make one.
Contrarily, if you need the pressure of running out of pages to start working on your comic again. Some people work better when they are crunched for time. Similarly, some people love to procrastinate and put things off until the last minute. If this how you like to work, then a buffer isn’t for you.
7. Consider Pacing
If there are particular details you don’t want people to forget about your comic, you’ll need to make a buffer. A buffer will allow you to not miss updates, meaning people will not forget important details about your comic. A buffer will also ensure the story progresses at a timely pace and readers maintain interest.
However, your comic may not rely on stable pacing. If you post comic pages with unrelated storylines, then you don’t need to worry about pacing, nor posting frequently. Thus, you don’t really need a buffer.
8. Decide on a Release Campaign
Some people like to release the first several pages of their comic all at once so that readers can get deep enough into the story to get hooked. It’s hard to hook a reader by just showing them one page, so if you want to get your audience’s interest, you’ll need to make a buffer of pages to put out all at once for the comic’s first release.
However, if you are only going to post one page when you release your comic, then you don’t need a buffer. Readers won’t get very deep into the story, but at least they won’t binge read several pages all at once–pages that may have taken you a long time to make.
9. Figure Out if You Like to Work in Bulk
If you want to save time by working in bulk, then you should make a comic buffer. Creating, backing up, scaling, uploading, creating comments, and scheduling comic pages is time consuming. But if you have a comic buffer, you can do all those steps for multiple pages at a time. This will save you time, work, and frustration in the long run.
It can be tiresome and boring to work on the same type of task for too long. It can also be difficult to work several pages ahead. If you like to switch between thumb-nailing, sketching, drawing, coloring, etc. then you don’t need a buffer. If you like the the satisfaction of finishing and publishing a new page often, a buffer may not be for you.
Quick Recap
Consider your schedule, how you handle stress, your working pace, your concerns of professionalism, your other commitments, your dedication, your pacing concerns, if you’re making a release campaign, and if you like working bulk.
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