The Importance of Balancing Your Comic and Your Mental Health:
One topic Iâve been thinking of lately and didnât start paying attention to until about a year ago is balancing your work and your mental health. You probably hear it all the time, but MAN is it important. Hereâs a few notes Iâd like to make from what Iâve learned.
1. Stress
Stress can be a pretty hard thing to deal with. I used to work so much and overwhelm myself that it would make me physically sick. Itâs also SO important to make sure youâre not comparing yourself to your success. If your comic or your work isnât getting the attention you wanted, that doesnât mean you as an individual are doing bad or a bad person! It likely means you havenât met your audience yet, and the more you push towards your goal, the closer youâll get to reaching it.
That being said, stress in comic work is hard to avoid. If you find yourself being overwhelmed, take a break. Get a coffee, take a walk, go hang out with friends and family, and ground yourself and surround yourself with what you have and other things you enjoy! You might also find help in writing down a list of everything youâre working on and putting aside the ones that cause too much stress and/or wonât get you any gain.
2. Dealing with Constructive Criticism
This is a topic that can be so hard to deal with. Ever publish a chapter of your comic youâre so proud of, only for someone to bash it? It can feel like someoneâs hurting your baby. A lot of times, the criticism isnât even helping in any way and is just rude. Next time you come across a criticism, make sure not to immediately act off of adrenaline and ask yourself, âIs this helping me or hurting me?â Sometimes criticism can help us grow, and itâs important to see where theyâre coming from. But after analyzing it, if it doesnât help in any way or is completely irrelevant, the best thing is to just ignore it.
3. Comparing Yourself to Others/Numbers
I and a lot of other comic artists struggle with this. Everyone goes through it at some point. Itâs hard not to look at someone elseâs work and think, âwhy donât I get the success theyâre getting?â And itâs the same way with numbers. If a new chapter isnât getting your normal amount of views or likes, it can make you feel disheartened and worthless.
The most important thing to help with this is to understand that everything starts small. Yes, there are some cases where creators gain huge success overnight - but those cases are VERY SLIM and a lot of times have some sort of payment or deals behind the scenes. Otherwise, everything starts from 0. If you often find yourself comparing your work to others, itâs very important to understand that those same creators were once where you are, and the more you work towards your audience and your goal, the more youâll grow. Your work is yours and yours only - thatâs what makes it special. And it may not feel like it now, but thereâs an audience out there waiting for you. You just havenât found it yet.
When it comes to numbers, the same concept applies - everything starts from 0. You must remember that your audience has their own schedules and lives too - while they are invested in your comic, they might have work, school, or other events going on and donât always have the time to read. Like aforementioned in the previous paragraph, your audience - and the numbers - will come eventually. The more you work, grow, and push towards your goal and releasing your content, the more youâll see your audience and this success grow.
Whatâs the Takeaway?
In comic making, there are so many different things hurt your mental health, from overworking yourself to comparing yourself in unhealthy ways. All in all, if you find yourself struggling, take a step breath. Ground yourself and take a much needed break. Sometimes these breaks need to last a long time in a hiatus - but thatâs perfectly fine! Your audience will understand. And who knows?
Maybe, after taking a much needed break, youâll come back to find that your audience has found you.
Like most of you reading this, I make comics, too! You can read âYour Future Pastâ on Webtoon and GlobalComix.
The Five Worlds lived peacefully together for centuries under the rule of powerful beings known as Erdens. But after the Erden of Timeflow,
