TWCL

MindChimera · Joined: 03 Feb 2013 Posts: 306

I had been planning on creating an "Extras" page that could have some freebie goodies on it; wallpapers and such. I've always been terrible at wallpaper designs though, so I decided to look around and see if I could get some other ideas.

And I'm not sure why I hadn't realized it before, but a lot of the bigger webcomics I read don't even have Extras pages. The smaller ones I follow sometimes do, but they usually just have a few wallpapers or "Comic soon!" on them.

So I'm starting to wonder if I should even bother. My time may be better spent coming up with ideas for things to put in a shop. I really like the idea of an Extras page, so I'm a little sad to just toss that aside, but it doesn't look like it's worth doing (especially with limited daylight to burn).

So what do you guys think? Do you have Extras pages? If you don't, have you considered them? And if you do, what do you put on yours?

mcmasters · Joined: 28 Jun 2012 Posts: 432

I can't comment on the full range of whatever "extras" are, but wallpapers...not something that draws my attention.

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www.mcmasterscomics.com

MindChimera · Joined: 03 Feb 2013 Posts: 306

Yeah, which is why I was hoping to come up with more ideas. I think wallpapers are a good start but it's a bit disappointing if that's all there is.

I've seen some people with big fantasy comics put maps of the world, beastiaries, or explainations of how the magic works in their world. But I'm planning on explaining all the important stuff right in the comic and I don't think I need any of that.

Metruis · Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 5:21 am Post subject:

I was specifically asked by a reader to have a reference page for the magic system, world building, etc. I enjoy having a bit of reading material to reference back to if the comic is longform, in case I forget things, so that's generally what I want on an extras page. Wallpapers don't really lure me in.
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JohnK · Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 6:02 pm Post subject:

I never really thought of having an extras page. Good idea though. How about avatars for message boards? Facebook covers? It all obviously has to be visual. What else can we come up with?
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Coffee Time Comics

ttallan · Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 6:29 pm Post subject:

Huh. My first thought when I saw this topic was, "Geez, an Extras Page would be a lot of work for not a lot of reward." And then I looked at my site again and saw that I already had one. Embarassed

So, it appears I use my Extras Page as a catch-all for anything I've posted over the years that isn't an actual comic page. This includes Fan Art, holiday-themed posts, sketches, and a series of "the History of Galaxion" type posts. I don't really plan stuff to put there. I just slot things in to an appropriate category when I have new art to add.

Does it provide much value to readers? Good question. I figure it's just there if anyone wants it.
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MindChimera · Joined: 03 Feb 2013 Posts: 306

JohnK wrote:

I never really thought of having an extras page. Good idea though. How about avatars for message boards? Facebook covers? It all obviously has to be visual. What else can we come up with?

Ooh, Facebook covers are a good idea. Very Happy

ttallan wrote:

Huh. My first thought when I saw this topic was, "Geez, an Extras Page would be a lot of work for not a lot of reward." And then I looked at my site again and saw that I already had one. Embarassed

Haha! Yeah, obviously I'm not expecting much return out of it. I've always just liked freebies so I'd like to be able to give a little more if I can.

Plus, if someone sees their friend using an avatar from my comic, they may ask where it came from. Wink

But yeah, I guess one of my questions is how much value do the readers get out of extras pages.

iaviv · Joined: 03 Sep 2011 Posts: 279

I had one but then the whole site got wiped or something due to a comicpress or wordpress update... so now I don't have it anymore. Not worth the work that I need to put into it, and nobody really cared to begin with (I think).
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hipopotamo · Joined: 27 Nov 2011 Posts: 192

I do have an Extras page, which is actually a menu for fan art, banners and gifts.

Fan art is pretty self explanatory; banners is my exchange banners collection in case someone ever wants to actually use one, and gifts include all the multimedia, right now I have postcards and extended versions of the characters, but I intend to put FB covers, avatars and the such.

Cheers
Hippo

smbhax.com · Posted: Wed May 15, 2013 9:02 pm Post subject:

I wouldn't worry about an Extras page unless you already have some stuff people might want (or just stuff you want to post : P), and nowhere else to put it.

Also, if you're gonna do one make sure it's something you're prepared to update now and then, because obviously neglected and far out of date Extras pages are sad little things.
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MindChimera · Joined: 03 Feb 2013 Posts: 306

Hmm, that's a good point. Something like an Extras page would be easy to neglect if I decide to make specific content for it.

Thanks for the input guys, I have a lot to think about now. Smile

Varethane · Joined: 18 Apr 2008 Posts: 559

Personally I use my Extras page the same way as Ttallan-- to collect things related to the comic that aren't actually pages. I don't see its upkeep as being extra work for me (aside I guess from the couple of minutes it takes me to add new content to it every couple of weeks), more as having a public page on which to collect all the comic-related stuff I or other people are making anyway. My creative process for the comic tends to result in all sorts of extraneous illustrations and doodles that might be of interest to people reading the comic, and sharing them seems like a natural next step-- but for someone whose creative process doesn't involve the generation of so much extra stuff, I suppose forcing yourself to make that content might not work out so well. In the end, the Extras page isn't a necessary part of the site the way the comic archives and navigation are; you shouldn't feel obligated to put work into it if you don't feel rewarded by the outcome.
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Justinfh · Joined: 30 Sep 2012 Posts: 87

Having an "Extras" page is a fun way to promote your Webcomic. I just may put one up myself. For now, I just have a "ramblings" category.

Lo (Aquapunk) · Joined: 09 Oct 2009 Posts: 45

They're handy if your comic is a worldbuild-y type. It's gotten to the point where I'm only putting barebones stuff there, though. I've got a lot of supplemental material, but I'm going to be turning those into art books and ebooks.

But yeah, wallpapers never did anything for me.
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SamuraiTaiga · Joined: 03 Jun 2013 Posts: 52

Extras pages are useful for some kinds of webcomics, but most probably can go without them. For TM&TG, there's a huge amount of background material that I created and rely upon to keep it coherent. I won't be putting more than a tiny fraction of that online for readers until the appropriate time because it could ruin the mystery of "What's Going To Happen Next?". I don't want to scare readers with an encyclopaedia about the whole universe either because it would give the impression that it's too complicated.