Real smooth, since my grandmother fell down the stairs over the weekend, and I spent the weekend (and the Easter holiday) in the hospital with her and some members of my family.

Now really, do you think I was worried about updating my cartoon?

In life, you pick your priorities. For me, cartooning obviously isn’t currently top priority. If you feel like turning up your nose because of that, so be it.

“I’ve got nothing against hobbies, but hobbies are something you share with friends and family.”

This is true. Sadly, if an artist doesn’t think their readers are an extension of their friends/family, they might as well quit. Hobby or otherwise.

I consider readers friends (if not family), and I probably wouldn’t know how many potential friends are out there if I limited cartoon access to a select few.

Yeah, I’ll hold it against you. You said it yourself — It’s just a hobby with you and you don’t have a real commitment to it.

I’ve got nothing against hobbies, but hobbies are something you share with friends and family. My dad drew the family card each Christmas and did a cartoon for the local Lions Club newsletter. I love his cards and the Lions were thrilled to have his cartoons each month. I’m proud of his talent, proud to be his son. But I don’t mistake the fun things he did for the hard work turned in by my friends who are professional cartoonists.

“You might just be missing some good cartoons out there on the web.”

I’m sure I am. There are a lot of good cartoons out there, and it’s impossible to keep up with them all. As it is, I start each morning opening 48 tabs in Firefox, about 2/3 of them cartoon sites. Not all of those comic sites update daily; some update two or three times a week. On Sunday, I have a dozen more tabs set up for sites that only update once a week.

I haven’t yet set up a series of tabs for cartoonists whose inexhaustible supply of grandmothers die on a regular basis, preventing their web sites from updating on same.

Even some cartoons in syndication don’t get updated on a regular basis for whatever reasons. I don’t know the situation(s) when it happens (for all I know it could be due to a death in the family), so I try not to judge and hold that against them.

Me, I don’t provide a daily webtoon. Even a weekly webtoon can be a stretch at times. With a day job that requires well over forty hours a week (particularly now with the current economy), a wife that I enjoy spending time with, a family I’d rather not miss out on, a house that demands constant maintenance, plus other interests outside of cartooning (reading, painting, etc), I just don’t seem to be able to find the time to sustain a cartoon on a regular basis. To me, it’s a hobby that I enjoy whenever I do find the time.

But the way you put it, you’ll never want to visit sites like mine (sites where the artist might not be updating regularly) because in your eyes we “lack the commitment”. Really, you’ll hold the fact that I value other aspects of my life against me like that?

You might just be missing some good cartoons out there on the web.

Some artists use feeds (RSS, Twitter) to alert their readers whenever new content is available on their site. I keep up with several artists that way. It’s just more convenient. Instead of having to go to their site every day to see if it’s updated, I just read it in the feeds. if they miss a day, no harm, no foul.

Sure, one artist may not update their cartoon for whatever reasons, but if they generally produce a product I find entertaining, why would I instantly shun them just because their site didn’t get updated when I felt it should’ve?

I think web artists need to realize that they are in a constant state of audition.

I hated freelancing because I was tired of constantly applying for the job. A straight 9-to-5 job is a nice thing. That’s part of the joy of having a boss rather than hanging out there on your own.

But, like Jason, I’m not willing to revisit a site if the artist isn’t updating regularly. Hell, if he doesn’t have a commitment to it, why should I?

And, attracting me as one of thousands of viewers aside, I’ve hired an artist for a project from time to time. You’re damn right I start by figuring out if he takes his work seriously. If he can’t be bothered — if he doesn’t have the discipline — to keep up on his own stuff, I won’t risk my reputation by signing him up.

Here’s the biggest difference between syndication and the web world: It’s the difference between freelancing and punching a time card. (I punch a time card. I know my limitations.)

When you put up a web comic, you are auditioning to the world. A syndicate contract will force you to hit deadlines, but any damn fool can respond to that kind of obvious, direct pressure.

Bottom Line: If you want to be your own boss, you’d better not work for someone you like very much.

I think we actually agree without realizing it. See, i’m saying that if you have the skill set to make your own site and do a better job than the syndicate and you want to, you shouldn’t have to pay someone else to display your own content there that you created. but, if you don’t want to or know how to do that, there should also be tools for that (as in a company that does it for you.) but, the two should not be inherently mutually exclusive or inclusive.

Really, you may as well ask a talented sales guy to just pick up a pen and start cartooning… How would that play out, hmmm?

after all, how many of us after writing what we think is like the funniest thing in the universe is kinda disappointed to never hear anyone comment on it?

likewise, how many of us hate it when we screwed up and everyone pointed it out?

now, @#71, Darrin Bell, I didn’t mean to come off hostile to anyone. sorry if i did. i guess more of my point is i think it’s silly for a creator to have to pay someone else to display their own work on their own site.

universal, as a large company is doing what large companies do. that is true. and, that’s what i don’t like. i wish they would move faster. i think they’re behind the curve. and if there are comments, why aren’t there design and blogging options? i think that’s a good concern that universal needs to address. and i think they probably will at some point, but i’m impatient! ;-)

but the big point here, again, i think, is really this is work-for-hire (or whatever you want to call it) vs self-publishing. and i think people on both sides can agree that each side has both its pros and cons, but neither is inherently better. if you work for a syndicate, yeah, a lot of the responsibility of running your own merch and getting paid is off your shoulders. if you self-publish (or webcomic), then yes you do have 100% control of every aspect of your comic and merchandise and etc, but you are also 100% responsible for securing every bit of money you can.

different strokes for different folks.

I will be tuning in. Or downloading.

Twitter and Facebook have been okay, but I’ve heavily filtered my feeds so I’m not seeing what my followers are posting.

Congrats on the interview! Tom is good to talk to. He and I ‘casted last Thursday, and I really enjoyed it.