Notice of Resignation From The Blogosphere

Yes, I'm getting out.

Mostly out. I expect that something will occasionally move me to post on Webcomics.com.

But I've always felt that if you're gonna call yourself a blogger, you should post something every day, every weekday, or at least several times a week. I know that's not everyone's standard, but it's mine. I've had trouble living up to that standard before, and really can't do so now. And I don't want to imply a promise I can't keep. So the official line is "T Campbell-- Blogger No More."

What does that mean for the regular Webcomics.com blog? It means that I'll be doing my best to pass it on to other hands. According to this plan, I'll continue to be involved in a sort of editor-publisher capacity, and some of my general thoughts will be reflected in what we cover. And I'll make the occasional post that no one else is stupid enough to take on, like the "Unreliable Surveys." But that's all.

Also, the plan assumes that we'll be able to find enough writers to keep that blog going properly. We've got a few good leads, but we're still looking for more. If you're a good writer and you want to write about webcomics on a moderately well-trafficked site, now is an excellent time to let me know.

What it means for this blog is pretty obvious.

I have blogged on this site for five reasons. A look at those reasons and what's changed about them will tell you why I'm stopping now.

1) To keep my most devoted readers up-to-date on my latest projects, so they can see and support them. Thing is, most of my most devoted readers are reading Penny and Aggie. An announcement over there is going to get a lot more eyeballs than anything over here. So if you like my work, visit Penny and Aggie on the off days for the occasional announcement. (Or just hook yourself up with the RSS feed.)

2) To collect my thoughts about the webcomics field and share them with you. But that's what Webcomics.com is for now. And I find my thoughts are turning away from "what is happening in this field, and what does it mean for us all" toward "what can I make happen in this field, and what does that mean for me?" Which involves the kinds of plans that I have to keep secret for months on end. Secret plans != blogging.

3) To chart my own life and thoughts. This is something I'll miss, I admit. It's great to go back to my own entries from a couple months ago and see how they inform my thoughts now. But the kinds of things I'm thinking about right now involve how I can entertain and serve you better, and those are all rough drafts and sketches to bounce off close friends, not for public consumption.

4) To build traffic for this site. I have totally failed in this goal. The site's month-to-month numbers were in slight decline from a low starting point, even when I was posting entries here five times a week. I'm grateful to every one of you who stop by, really! But I can't help but think you'll be happier if I spend less time on posts and more time on plans and scripts.

Webcomics.com at least has an implied mission statement. This blog is just too diffuse to get a loyal fan base of its own, independent from the people who just check out everything I do.

(Incidentally, there were three major spikes in the blog's traffic over the last six months-- my thoughts on my Sluggy Freelance story, the For Better or For Worse parody, and the snapshot regarding a scam artist trying to exploit Megatokyo fans. The last spike was the biggest by far. Getting a link straight from Megatokyo will do that. But in all cases, the spikes melted quickly. My guess? Users failed to find any more parodies, Sluggy thoughts or scuttlebutt about popular strips, and lost interest.)

The management of online "brands" is evolving in curious ways. I think we went through a "cult of personality" phase where the best way to promote your work was to promote yourself and your views on life, but I think that phase is pretty much behind us. And since I have never, ever liked my essays as much as I've liked my comics scripts, the decision to do more of the latter is a pretty easy one to make.

5) My Protestant work ethic told me to. Hey, don't knock that Protestant work ethic, it's how I got into comics to begin with, one page at a time. I'm a firm believer in finishing what you start. But some projects, like Fans, Cool Cat Studio and Penny and Aggie, can move to planned endings. Other projects are conceived as ongoing responses to current events, like Search Engine Funnies, the Science Fiction Blog, and this blog. And those projects tend to go out without a bang. They end when I recognize that they no longer have the resources to keep going the way they should.

Of course, that was how Cool Cat Studio ended in 2002, and now Gisele and I are having the time of our lives, taking that one to the climax I'd hoped for earlier. So you never know, right? Could be that I'll be back here in three years with something good enough to re-energize this whole project.

Until then, if you enjoy my stuff (and why else would you have read this far?), check out Fans (currently updating hourly), Cool Cat Studio, Rip and Teri and Penny and Aggie.

If you want the successors to the essays I've done over here, take a gander at Webcomics.com.

And watch P&A on Tuesdays and Thursdays for the occasional announcement. We've got something coming up soon called The Versus Verses, something called Sketchies, and-- welllllll that would be telling.

Secret plans!

Thanks for reading.