massmanic
patreon
New Poll for the Future of Hivemind(ed)
🕑 Added 2025-12-12 16:06:17 +0000 UTCOkay, so I've gotten feedback and, from what I understand, in my attempts to create a mystery I've made it too exposition heavy, stalling the smut and TF content beyond reason whilst making it too confusing. It seems to have been a consequence of multiple compounding issues; front-loading the smut and TFs at the beginning while making the plot too enigmatic/complex and then trying to unravel what has been happening afterwards to the reader. Even with the exposition we've had there is more to explain in the story, but this was going to be withheld until character interactions at college.
To be honest with everyone, the feedback has been a bit disheartening, but I needed to hear it to develop further. I'm at a place where I have to make works that people really truly enjoy and wouldn't mind paying for. I have to do this as myself and my Dad are on the poverty line in a big way at the moment, barely keeping the proverbial wolves from the door so I need to create a killer product. Commissions don't really cut it either- too much work for too little pay now that cost of living is increasing. That is why I appreciate how candid people have been in the prior poll, it gets me a step closer to identifying the 'X-factor' that we all are searching for.
So, after rambling (a common theme in my comics it seems, haha) there are a few options to pick from:
- Kill Hivemind(ed), start on a new comic with the pacing of the beginning of Hivemind(ed). A simpler core concept shall be used as a backbone for the narrative to create a faster flowing comic, sans any misguided notions of adding in-depth mystery. Shorts shall fill the interim until the plans for a longer running series are completed.
Once I've decided on a few stories I'll put them to the vote to see what sounds more intriguing to all of you.
- Keep going with Hivemind(ed) to see what I have planned.
- Keep going with Hivemind(ed) but have a literal summary screen instead of more in-depth panel work after the next page or two to summarize what has occurred, reveal more plot and continue at the college.
Thanks again for your feedback, please let me know your thoughts!
Comments
shineypooface
Keep going with your vision :D ! truly believe the X-factor to your work is you (you have a unique subtle self awareness and humour with creative concepts to your work that is more than just smut its genuinely entertaining [my perspective at least :D]). Some of us got confused a little with the pacing of Hivemind(ed) but I and I believe more like me are intrigued and enjoy the story, just when you use time skips and have heavy dialogue based exposition it can confuse people. I feel like a lot of the past pages could (in theory) been thought bubbles of our main character thinking on what was told to them as the info becomes relevant while the plot progresses. I've got my own take/theory on what was said/ been happening in the past few pages but I'm not 100% just cause I overthink things alot, so when giving lots of info I double question my thoughts. Plus your definitely doing something right and the X-factor is still here cause so am I and I was originally here for smut from a TG game about kitsunes with preg content (at its core this is how i found you) XD but stayed cause I found someone who kept me entertained be it in game or comic format. Who comes across as a nice person that cares alot about fan perspective, just remember sometimes stuff fans don't like at the beginning become things they could love by the time it ends [Great example a movie called "the Straight Story" everyone who watched and describe the movie talk about how weird and boring the movie is but after getting to the end people call it a master piece of film making] wow i wrote more than i expected when i started, i guess i was making up for being a quiet observer for a while :D Still love your work MassManic.
Urgil Bougie
1. Consider that you have asked specifically for "scruples", both in the last poll and previously, so of course those to speak up will be people who have scruples. You get what you ask for, and even in general, people who are happy with direction are not likely to say anything. 2. Audiences are a shifting thing. Some members of the audience may be more static, but others, there will be some who leave because of a new direction, but it may attract other people. I personally really trust your judgment and I think if you create the thing that you have your heart set on, you'll get your best audience who will resonate with that content. 3. I never considered the disadvantages of releasing one page at a time, because there are many advantages, but perhaps this is one: the pace feels slower, each page is disconnected from one another, and details may be forgotten. Consider, beyond just a synopsis, to group the story so far into chapters, and publish those chapters. And include a link in your "oeuvre" post. And remind people from time to time, when they seem confused, to go back. Patreon is really tedious to travel back in time, but full pdfs are easier to consume. 4. Long running works do tend to deplete audiences over time, because people don't like to tune into thinks starting from the middle. A couple of things you can do: a) share earlier pages with the public, bringing in new readers who are impatient for newer stuff, and b) share occasional mini-comics (1-2 pages) with the public, with a subtle reminder of your ongoing work over here. There's pixiv, there's e-hentai, and other such places. An advanced strategy could be an 8-pager or something from the fresh perspective of a secondary character that you share with the public and generates intrigue for the main story, but I think there are many lower hanging fruit you can tackle before doing this. Overall my judgment is stay the course. Your storytelling is great. If you think you're caught in over-exposition, you can compress it, but no need to overdo it, or do it at all if it feels like you're compromising something. And if people are leaving faster than they're joining, think "marketing". Out there are people who would enjoy your story, but don't know it exists. You'll never find them all, but you can always find more. That's all your call to make.
