Webcomics, Steemit, Cryptocurrency, Blockchain, & Cats!
A Look at the Past Vision of Comic Artist Scott McCloud, and the Future for Webcomics & Steem
by @bryan-imhoff
Scott McCloud is a comic creator and artist who began his professional career in 1984. Perhaps one of his best known and most significant works was the "trilogy" of non fiction books he created; Understanding Comics(1993), Reinventing Comics(2000), and Making Comics(2006), which are all comics themselves.
Here are some of his books from my own collection, being given loving attention by Kirby. (Named after Jack "King" Kirby... comics legend of course!)
Each book is a serious essay that conveys incredible information in an entertaining and understandable way.
- Understanding Comics is a great read for anyone who enjoys comics. It gives a history of the art form and approaches it with critical analysis, exploring the medium and it's incredible storytelling potential.
- Making Comics is required reading for anyone interested in... well, making comics! It goes further in depth with study of comics from the perspective of a creator who wants to create memorable stories populated with living, breathing characters.
- Reinventing Comics is perhaps dated when compared to the other two, it's information may be a little less timeless... however it definitely came to mind when I first started exploring Steemit.
In Reinventing Comics, McCloud explores the changes revolutionizing the field from new and emerging technology. He brims with excitement for all the new ways to make, view, display, and do business in the world of comics... especially from the perspective of empowering independent creators.
I recalled this sequence and finally went back to track it down and reminisce. Hopefully it strikes a chord with others here on Steemit.
(image from page 185 of Reinventing Comics by Scott McCloud, also available on his website at scottmccloud.com)
This was published in 2000, 8 years before Bitcoin was announced and 16 years before Steemit! On previous pages McCloud was discussing the limitations of micropayment systems that caused them to fizzle in the late 90's and here he ably describes the challenges ahead.
One of the first hurdles, verification, was solved by blockchain technologies and Bitcoin... and the second hurdle, ease of use, is well on it's way to being solved with Steem. In our world today, there is nothing easier for the consumer than clicking a simple like button. Steemit places a value on user attention and interaction, and then allows that value to be directed by the users in the form of post rewards.
"Whoever invented gambling was smart, whoever invented chips was a genius."
That's a great old saying, alluding to the fact that chips mentally blur the line between the reality of money and an abstract concept. Steem takes it one step further by the fact that consumers of entertainment can reward the creators without actually reaching into their own (digital) wallet. An upvote costs nothing for a user in the moment. It's the most micro of micro transactions, each vote shifting a small share of all the work, investment, and participation of everyone on the platform.
Ideally, further tools will be developed for those wishing to do more. That could be purchase of physical and digital goods and services, and direct transfer of funds. These are already feasible, but not easy or secure. Imagine Steem forming the backbone of services that rivalled Patreon and Kickstarter. Add a dash of Fiverr for freelance collaboration and the obvious social network for promotion and distribution. These sites and services are at the core of the independent comics community today and could all be combined seamlessly.
I can imagine the future, and I'm as excited by new technologies today as McCloud was 17 years ago.
Hello @bryan-imhoff,
Your post has been chosen by the communities of SteemTrail as one of our top picks today.
What do you love to write about? Join us on SteemTrail today and find others who share your interest!
The SteemTrail Community looks forward to more great stuff from you. So, please keep up the great work!
Keep on Steemin!
Thanks SteemTrail, I appreciate your support and commitment to growing new categories!
Hey these comics are awesome bryan! I am searching for talent like yours for someone else that wants to pay people to help them create a steemit video or other secret projects. I will add your name to the list.
Thank you! I appreciate the vote of confidence and I'd certainly consider chipping in an illustration or two to a good cause.
Really great post. I was almost born into reading comic books, so I remember when I first seen Scott McCloud's books and always felt that they are just not made for me, I know comic books already. I now wish I had the spare time to read one because "Understanding Comics" is such a respected book for the subject. What a great catch about the micropayments, so cool to see him talking about it back then.
Thank you. I do highly recommend reading Understanding Comics someday. Like you, I'd already been reading comics for years when the book came out. It's far more than just a primer on navigating the comics page and comprehending the format. You'll find that you've inherently understood many of the ways that the comics form "works its magic," but McCloud verbalizes it so well it adds a new clarity and an idea how to explain these concepts to non comic readers.
I think I'm on my third copy of the book from all the times I've lent it out and just let a couple people keep the copy!
This is awesome stuff! Are there more comic heads on Steemit? I'm getting sucked back to my child hood. Very nice :D
Glad you liked it! There's definitely a small comic community developing that will grow with some more nurturing!
You'll certainly want to follow @cryplectibles, check out the Comic Book Art Traffic posts by @kidsysco, the comic art from @katharsisdrill & @kommienezuspadt and I'm sure I'm forgetting others at the moment. There are numerous great illustrators around. I'm looking to get the comics tag used a lot more so that I can have plenty of content to enjoy!
Great work, And thnx for the other suggestions. Followed :)
Couple of things that would be great for future content:
Keep it up!!
Thanks for the input and suggestions. I'm a comic artist myself, so I have a few articles in the pipeline that may be more appealing to other artists, but I'll definitely look to add in some of these suggestions. I enjoy writing reviews and articles because it forces me to think more deeply about the subject at hand, learn, and be less passive in my content consumption.
I unfortunately don't read many current comics, but presenting some timeless, must read graphic novels and compilations would certainly be doable, as well as coverage of any conventions I attend, either as a fan or exhibitor.
Whew, I gotta get to work...
Personally I'd be most interested in the graphic novels!
Very clever, Kirby =･ω･=
Thank you :) Great design for blockchaincat! I definitely missed your first posts, followed and looking forward to more.