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All Episodes

Comic Lab — 439 episodes

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Title
1

Keeping it Short — Making a Living 40 Pages at a Time

2

Writing Funny Words Funnily

3

Nobody Has Ever Made a Living in Comics

4

I've got an audience... now what do I DO with them??

5

Reclaiming Our Power

6

Making a Splash (Page) in Comics

7

I've been framed! (...in a gallery)

8

Work-Life Balance

9

How to Start a Webring

10

How to Make Friends and Influence People. And Cartoonists.

11

Concept vs. Conceit — Why Some Comic Ideas Take Off (and Others Stall)

12

Special Guest Dylan Meconis — How to Color Comics with Physical Media

13

Comics Will Break Your Heart (And So Will Dating)

14

Nothing to Fear but Fear Itself. And Kickstarter Scams

15

The Readership of Theseus

16

Five Lessons from a Publisher in Crisis

17

Should you judge a book by its cover?

18

How to Start a Webcomic in 2026

19

Why don't you do MORE?!?

20

Predictions and Goals for 2026

21

2025 in Review — Predictions and Goals

22

Print on Demand... When There's No Demand

23

Special Guest Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott from "Baby Blues"

24

What's the Best Platform for Audience Building?

25

Color Commentary — Can You Succeed with a Black-and-White Comic?

26

Love it... Hate it... Reddit

27

Wobbly Legs

28

Kickstarter: What's Working and What's Not

29

Special Guest Cathy Guisewite

30

Lost in Translation

31

How to Get Your Comic Started

32

Special Guest Chuck Dillon

33

Our List of "Must-Read" Comics

34

Becoming a Comics Publisher

35

Dave and Brad review the NCS Conference and Reuben Awards in Boston

36

ComicLab LIVE at the National Cartoonists Society

37

Shouts and whispers

38

Dave Kellett's Comic-Con Report

39

Special Guests Greg and Karen Evans Celebrate 40 Years of Luann

40

ComicLab Celebrates 400 Episodes

41

What if You Won the Lottery?

42

I Need an Art Style — Quick!

43

Perfecting Your Perfectionism

44

Whose House Are You In?

45

I Met My Hero and They're a Zero

46

Special Guests Ryan North and Gillian Goerz

47

Special Guest Lucy Knisley

48

Special Guest: Jarad Greene

49

Alaska Comics Camp

50

How to fight loneliness all by yourself

51

How to improve SEO for webcomics

52

The Eyes Have It

53

Who are you? What do you do? Why should I care?

54

Special Guest Scott C

55

Pixels aren't permanent

56

Narration or Dialogue?

57

Paint the Wall Red: Conjuring Creativity

58

Autobiohazard: Drawing the Line Between Fact and Fiction

59

"I have a useless degree... and I love it!"

60

Running gag ... or running out of steam?

61

Big Number Thinking

62

Verbal vs. Visual

63

Happily Writing Tragedy

64

Webcomics Revenue Streams Ranked Best to Worst

65

The Information We Share — And Why We Shouldn't

66

"F*** me! That actually worked!"

67

Business Advice: Embrace Discomfort

68

How to start a webcomic in 2025

69

Introducing: The Wrong Way!

70

Social Media: Business or Pleasure?

71

Predictions and goals for 2025

72

2024 in Review

73

How can comics reach kids?

74

Maybe You're Not Funny

75

In over my head

76

A minor problem with a comics major

77

Nobody believes I'm a cartoonist

78

Your content is not your community

79

Let's talk about your bits and pieces

80

New ways to make an old mistake

81

Should your readers be your writers?

82

"Help! I'm not funny anymore!"

83

Innovation fascination

84

Dave's New Bucket List

85

Our Review of the National Cartoonists Society conference and Reuben Awards

86

ComicLab LIVE at the National Cartoonists Society conference and Reuben Awards, Part Two

87

ComicLab LIVE at the National Cartoonists Society conference and Reuben Awards, Part One

88

Make it work, make it right, make it fast

89

Patreon and the iOS app

90

Kickstarter mistake — confusing rewards with add-ons

91

Special Guest Co-Host Kevin McShane

92

Special Guest Co-Host Scott Kurtz — How to make a graphic novel

93

How to use a sketchbook

94

How to get better faster and faster better

95

How to get subscribers on Substack

96

When to throw in the towel

97

How to raise your rates on Patreon

98

Special guest Asia Simone

99

How to build an audience on Substack

100

Are dad jokes ~bad~ jokes?

101

It's Friday — am I famous yet?

102

They can't all be winners

103

Survivorship Bias

104

Are we 'there' yet?

105

How much story is too much story?

106

Social media is dead... now what?

107

Building traffic vs building audience

108

Special guest Dave Blazek

109

Special Guest Jason Chatfield

110

How to maximize creativity

111

Rebranding

112

How to find the perfect pen name

113

Stretching yourself thin

114

Special Guest Scott Kurtz and "Tables Titans Club"

115

Are you using the wrong tool for the job?

116

Using animation to promote

117

Can you make a living in comics?

118

Shopping for Success

119

Fifty is nifty

120

How to Write a Short Story

121

Rethinking Outreach in 2024

122

How to get started in comics, 2024 edition

123

Predictions and goals for 2024

124

Brad learns to share

125

2023 — The Year in Review

126

Where do you get ideas? Recorded live at the NCS Rueben Weekend

127

We hate Patreon's Free Membership Tier

128

Declaring organizational bankrupcy

129

Does your comic have an expiration date?

130

"Critique my work for only a dollar!"

131

Parasocial parables

132

The New Patreon: The Good, The Bad, and That Logo

133

A sexy, sexy defense of the Ninth Art

134

Is syndication dead?

135

Special guest Jamar Nicholas

136

The NCS Reuben Awards Week

137

LIVE from the Reuben Awards — with special guests Sarah Andersen and Jason Chatfield

138

Are you too old to start in comics?

139

How do I decide between writing and drawing?

140

The Thanos Snap

141

THe Wisdom of Small Mistakes

142

Did manga win comics?

143

San Diego Comic-Con recap

144

"You talked me out of a mistake, and I'd like to get back to making it as soon as possible"

145

Too may SHOULDs!

146

Pulling at Threads

147

A Comic-Con about... comics?!?

148

Special Guest Phil Foglio

149

Using the Patreon plug-in on your website

150

How to learn storytelling

151

"I have a website... now what do I DO with it??"

152

When readers attack... each other!

153

Surviving the churn

154

How to Build an Audience

155

Could OnlyFans be a Patreon alternative?

156

Crushing a kid's dreams

157

Publishing two versions of the same book?

158

Let's talk "comics" — literally

159

The novelty of Artificial Intelligence

160

Losing confidence ... and leveling up

161

Special guests Elizabeth Pich & Jonathan Kunz ("War and Peas")

162

Practicing to be a pro... or a pro practicing?

163

Special guest Karl Kerschl ("The Abominable Charles Christopher")

164

Special guest Lar deSouza ("Least I Could Do" and "Looking for Group")

165

Special guest Caitlin McGurk (The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum)

166

Nobody does thumbnails

167

Should I be embarrassed about my floppy?

168

Special Guest Scott Kurtz ("PvP")

169

Enshittification

170

Special Guest Kevin McShane ("Kevin Comics")

171

Special guest David Betancourt, comics-culture reporter with The Washington Post

172

Special Guest Ellen Woodbury of "Pizza Cake Comics"

173

How to turn OFF creativity

174

Special Guest: Dr. Joe Sutliff Sanders

175

LIVE at the Charles M. Schulz Museum

176

Predictions for 2023

177

2022 - Nailed it or Failed it?

178

What if I succeed...?

179

Webcomics nostalgia

180

Special Guest Bill Barnes talks about A.I. comics

181

Does this joke have the legs to become a running gag?

182

Print on Demand

183

The Social Contract between Comics Creators and Readers

184

Twitter comes Tumblr-ing Down

185

Stop me before I post again!

186

Battling Impostor Syndrome

187

BeReal... will it change social media?

188

Everything old is new again

189

Looking forward to flashbacks

190

Feeling a little Ziggy

191

Has Publishing Become Vanity Press?

192

The Butso Method of writing

193

Marketing with feeling

194

Have we become the people we fought?

195

When a Passive Revenue Stream is "Set it and regret it"

196

"I made a plagiarism — but I LIKE it... can I KEEP it??"

197

San Diego Comic Con review

198

"My friends won't buy my comics!"

199

The Decoy Effect

200

What if practice DOESN'T make progress?

201

We need to talk about Webtoons

202

Word balloon aesthetics

203

"Why won't the world let me be awesome?"

204

NFTs ... They keep stepping on the same landmine!

205

Hostage-holding for fun and profit

206

Ending a comic after 25 years

207

"Help! I used a digital brush and now I'm not an artist anymore!"

208

Haunted by Impostor Syndrome

209

"I can't make time for Patreon rewards!"

210

"Do I really need fans?"

211

Our Biggest Mistakes

212

Balancing storytelling and personal taste

213

Livestreaming

214

Nine Patreon Mistakes that are Costing You Money

215

"I've tried nothing, and it isn't working!"

216

Exclusive is not forever

217

How to Build Narrative Tension

218

How to write a good book title

219

These flipping comics are making me crazy!

220

Long term success with short comic stories?

221

The Bad Tweets Game

222

Gumroad's NFT problem

223

Social Media is Making Me Crazy

224

Is fanart legal?

225

Predictions for 2022

226

Kickstarter's blockchain announcement

227

Making NSFW Comics with Special Guest Erika Moen

228

Planning Out 2022

229

Drawing naked

230

Happy holidays!

231

A Nice Gesture

232

Composing scenes

233

Book-signing blues

234

Drawing challenges

235

Writing Character Motivations: Wants vs Needs

236

Is Netflix the goal?

237

Rekindling an old flame

238

Start with a website

239

20 Comics Commandments

240

How to find an audience for a longform comic

241

Death and Comics

242

How to Beat Writer's Block

243

Will Substack change comics?

244

Kickstarter — What's working and what's not

245

Beginnings and Endings

246

Email newsletter management

247

The ideal career path for comics

248

Juggling multiple projects

249

Exhibiting at your first comic con

250

Finding your voice as a writer

251

Pride and Joy

252

The Pulitzer No-Prize for Editorial Cartooning

253

What's your elevator pitch?

254

Delaying gratification

255

Accepting Criticism

256

2014 - the most important year in webcomics

257

Impostor Syndrome

258

Brad Guigar is a TikTok star

259

Don't get distracted!

260

Seeing your comics in other media

261

Dividing a graphic novel into story beats

262

Many Legs Under the Table

263

Special Guest Nick Seluk

264

Launching a new comic... how to get started

265

Who were the cartoonists who wrote you a map for your career?

266

Special Guest Tauhid Bondia

267

Patreon Power Hour

268

NFTs for comics?

269

Craptastic to Fantastic

270

Mirror Research vs Market Research

271

Comics history

272

An Artist's Job vs their Goal

273

How To Get Lucky

274

Creative Motivation

275

The Best Advice we Never Wanted

276

Self-Publishing a Book

277

Planning Out 2021

278

Paying it Forward

279

Slice of Life Comics

280

The Best of ComicLab 2020

281

Making 2021 a Success

282

What's in a name?

283

Beginner's Guide: How to Start Your Own Webcomic

284

And That's Why I Self-Publish

285

Blessings in disguise

286

Writing Comedy: Do You Choose the Dark Side or the Light Side?

287

What does it mean to be a "cartoonist" in today's world?

288

How to build an audience on social media

289

Is it OK to use photo reference?

290

How to be a good mentor

291

Special Guest Keith Knight

292

What's in a (domain) name?

293

Nobody wants to hear "Support Me on Patreon"

294

Artisting hurdles

295

Special Guest Erika Moen discusses mental health

296

Setting an emotional hook

297

Plagiarism

298

Patreon Annual Membership

299

Is a black-and-white comic still viable?

300

Finding other cartoonists in your region

301

Running a Virtual Comic Convention

302

How do you do an empathy?

303

The 8-Pages Rule

304

Creating your own Writers' Room

305

Special Guest Terry Blas

306

What's in a name? Cartoonist, creator, comics artist...?

307

Special Guest Gloria Calderón Kellett

308

2020 Goals Revisited

309

Special Guest Scott Kurtz

310

Special Guest Karla Pacheco

311

Is Art School Worth It?

312

Special Guest Cat Farris

313

Supportive Life Partners

314

Lore Olympus vs Webtoons

315

The Best Software for Publishing Webcomics

316

What's the word on word balloons?

317

Special Guest Gale Galligan

318

Comics Under Quarantine

319

Special Guest Karl Kerschl

320

Special Guest Lar deSouza

321

Managing a long-distance collaboration

322

Kickstarter workers vote to unionize

323

Coronavirus, conventions and cartoonists in crisis

324

Patreon Capital — is it predatory lending?

325

Have you ever wanted to quit?

326

What are the top three strips of all time?

327

Changing gears on Patreon

328

Submitting work to the Eisners

329

Finding a mentor

330

Should you build your audience on Webtoons?

331

Live by the platform, die by the platform

332

Buying advertising

333

The Best Of 2019

334

Hand lettering

335

Autobiographical comics

336

Hiring an editor

337

Special Guest Beth Reidmiller

338

Patreon Assembly

339

Pro Tips Sample!

340

Who Can Save a Stumbling Kickstarter?

341

Special Guest Tom Richmond

342

Commission accomplished!

343

Pandering ...or Positioning?

344

Social media has evolved... have you?

345

New to ComicLab?

346

Kickstarter's anti-union policies

347

ComicLab enamel pins!

348

Analysis Paralysis

349

One-, Three-, and Five-Year Plans

350

Ensure killed my pappy

351

Branding happiness

352

Finding the Funny

353

Tell us your First Time Story (printing books, that is)

354

What do you want to be remembered for?

355

A typical day in the studio

356

Launching a webcomic for the very first time

357

Dave's Comic Con International recap

358

If social media delivers only 1% engagement, what's the point?

359

Getting better engagement on social media

360

Special Guest Dylan Meconis

361

Father's Day thoughts

362

The menace of Arrival Fallacy

363

Choosing a title for your comic

364

LIVE! from NCSFest

365

Live from Dave's living room

366

Special guest David Malki shares his writing process

367

Would you still do a comic — even if nobody ever read it?

368

Dave Kellett's review of Alaska Robotics' Comics Camp

369

Special guest Chris Hallbeck talks Instagram

370

Special guest Jake Parker talks publishing contracts and comic cons

371

Designing an effective cover

372

Working with a Collaborator

373

Writing yourself into a corner

374

Special Guest Tony Cliff

375

Dave's Emerald City Comicon Recap

376

The Joys of Artisanal success

377

Crowdfunding - Diversifying vs Duplicating

378

What's your creative process?

379

The perils of Magic Number Thinking

380

You can't teach a new dog old tricks

381

The danger of "at all costs" success

382

Kryptonite razors, hypnotic glasses and ennui

383

When longtime readers stop reading

384

Guigar's Law of merchandise

385

Pro No Tip

386

Planning Out 2019

387

Special Guest Kevin McShane

388

2018: What worked and what didn't

389

Why you should be planning a Patreon Special Offer NOW

390

Drilling deep on Patreon — and more

391

Under the blanket with Brad

392

PatreCon

393

Special Guest Alex Heberling

394

Are you a webcomics hustler?

395

What level of Patreon support denotes success?

396

Special guest Ngozi Ukazu

397

“Muaauughhh, the French… champagne…”

398

Special Guest Jake Parker discusses Inktober

399

Special guest Lex Fajardo, Senior Editor, Charles Schulz Studio

400

Special guest Kazu Kibuishi

401

Generating Buzz on Twitter

402

Should you reboot?

403

Why do we hate thought balloons?

404

Live, on tape, from Huntsville, Alabama

405

Special guest Dylan Meconis discusses longform comics and developing a critical eye

406

Special guest Katie Lane gives legal advice to comics artists

407

Comic Con International

408

You're not talented. And that's good news

409

NSFW comics... any regrets?

410

How to negotiate a contract

411

Allowing your drawing style to mature

412

Comics lettering — The invisible art

413

Special guest Zach Weinersmith

414

How to get more Patreon pledges

415

Unfulfilled goals (feat. Scott Kurtz)

416

Starting comics later in life

417

Special Guest Gloria Calderón Kellett on writing

418

Cartooning advice for beginners, DRM-free PDF strategy, and storyline-driven comic strips

419

Bonjoro, narrative clarity and the quest for an original idea

420

Special guest Erika Moen talks about photo reference, character design, diversity and inclusion

421

Motivation, underperforming Patreon tiers, and trying something new

422

Comics awards, pen names and warm-up sketches

423

Handling negative comments and clingy fans

424

Hashing out hashtags, online gag comics and update schedules

425

Listener Questions — I can't finish a comic once it's started!

426

Ryan North talks about writing, ideas, creativity, and zinc

427

Danielle Corsetto talks about Patreon, quitting Facebook, and ending a comic

428

Kickstarter advice that really worked! Plus Backerkit, social media repetitiveness and more

429

Patreon rewards that work, writer's block and comics awards

430

Comic Con Strategy: Commissions, Merchandise, and Publishing

431

Rethinking longform comics

432

How to Handle Patreon-Exclusive Content

433

Growing your Readership (feat. Dylan Meconis)

434

Better Writing Through Editing, and Collaborator Contracts

435

Darkest Career Fears (feat. Jake parker)

436

Best Cartooning Advice Ever

437

Why Transparency Matters (feat. Lucy Bellwood)

438

Why Comics?

439

Resolutions for 2018