Bulletin Board Revamp

[penciljack]

I don't think an amalgam would work. The one benefit of having to take a lot of time away from the place was having fresher eyes to look at it. I don't think the current scheme is very clear at all. When I originally started Penciljack.com, it was primarily going to be a site for comic book pencillers. The other stuff (inking, writing, colors, letters) were added just for the sake of increasing the base, and we went down the "finished work" route to maybe accommodate more concept art and fine art sort of things.

I don't want to discourage fine art and concept art, but by the same token, I want to bring the focus squarely back to comic book production. I think doing so will clarify a lot of things, and make the site easier to navigate as well.

In terms of the Tags and Thread Ratings - we can probably create some tags for [Penciller (or inker, or writer, etc.) Looking for Work], for example. Thread Ratings are a good way to see what people are interested in. If, for example, someone posts a hot piece of artwork, and we develop a habit - as an aggregate - of rating threads, it should be easy to see things 'float to the top,' as it were.

That last bit is really just thinking out loud.

[amadarwin]

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Seems to me everything made more sense when it was blocked out in terms of the 'stage' of the artwork (i.e. Writing, Pencilling, Inking, Coloring, etc.). I gave in because a lot of folks argued they wanted to post something they had pencilled AND inked AND colored, etc. But now I'm seriously reconsidering.

Perhaps an amalgam of both? Have the stages as well as the 'completed' work sections?

Also, we can probably make better use of the existing tools that are already available. Tags, for instance, and Thread Ratings.

How so, in the scheme of the bb?

[penciljack]

Also, we can probably make better use of the existing tools that are already available. Tags, for instance, and Thread Ratings.

[penciljack]

the artist showcase used to be split up into pencils, inks, colors, and writers, exactly as you envisioned. I liked it better the way you suggest (the old way)

I too have had problems finding inkers and colorists, because most of the stuff is pencillers, or out and out illustrators in the artist showcase.

Some way to identify inkers and colorists would be useful. Finding pencillers on PJ is a breeze.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Seems to me everything made more sense when it was blocked out in terms of the 'stage' of the artwork (i.e. Writing, Pencilling, Inking, Coloring, etc.). I gave in because a lot of folks argued they wanted to post something they had pencilled AND inked AND colored, etc. But now I'm seriously reconsidering.

[dfbovey]

Ive never received commision requests from being a PJ member. not that I've looked much as a PJ member but no one has ever been like " hey, I liked your PUMMEL piece draw me a dead Harry potter". It would be nice to hear that once in a while so I'm down for exploring things further.

I've had a few but I think the fact that this site is mainly for artists and mostly artists post here, keeps it to a minimum. I get a lot more commission requests via deviantart than from here by a pretty large margin, and I'm not nearly as active as far as being a part of that community.

And I end up ignoring a lot of, "hey wanna draw my story for free (or backend profits that will never happen)"... requests everywhere I post.

[amadarwin]

That, ultimately, is up to Penciljack. He's made aware of the thread here, and I'm sure he's keeping an eye on it. I think what he wants is a good way to implement it without it being a mess. I'm just playing devil's advocate in the meantime.

[Fallenangel]

Is it gonna happen in the end?

[Hangman]

Ive never received commision requests from being a PJ member. not that I've looked much as a PJ member but no one has ever been like " hey, I liked your PUMMEL piece draw me a dead Harry potter". It would be nice to hear that once in a while so I'm down for exploring things further.

[Fallenangel]

That's true, but it would benefit those of us who read and post fairly regularly on the board I'd think.

We can have it both don't we, we can still have our own portfolio link in the signature (like me) and have our own "portfolio" threads to showcase our work and etc. because these two have really different purposes:
The link in the signature is to spread the word about your work as much as possible. (in hope that someone would stumble upon it)
And the "portfolio" thread would be meant for employers who seek artists for a specific job.

[amadarwin]

Also if I'm starting a company and do a google search for artists and happen upon this site I doubt I'm gonna scan through every discussion thread looking for signature links to potentially hire. Maybe the comics biz is just drastically different but that sounds kinda silly imo.

That's true, but it would benefit those of us who read and post fairly regularly on the board I'd think.

[weirdozhead]

Many artists overlap. I'm both a penciller and an inker (this really just means I ink my own work). I don't think you need sub-categories - only what you do in the thread title. For example: hadesillustrations (Alex Williamson): penciler, inker

This way a search for pencilers and/or inkers in the category will have my name pop up. Remember, there's several guys that do it ALL (I'm a sucky colorist and letterer), so would these guys have to have make four different threads?

Why not? If you're looking for work you want to make it as easy as possible for the potential employer, even if it means taking what, 15 minutes out of your day to create 4 threads?

Also if I'm starting a company and do a google search for artists and happen upon this site I doubt I'm gonna scan through every discussion thread looking for signature links to potentially hire. Maybe the comics biz is just drastically different but that sounds kinda silly imo.

[amadarwin]

I think, for the regular members of this forum, the best way to advertise yourself is in your signature. A simple blurb that says what you do and if you're available for work would suffice. Since most also have their websites in their sig, it would be a simple matter of clicking on the link after seeing your skill set and availability. In that aspect, you'd be advertising in every thread you're involved in instead of one specific place someone may never see.

[hadesillustrations]

Many artists overlap. I'm both a penciller and an inker (this really just means I ink my own work). I don't think you need sub-categories - only what you do in the thread title. For example: hadesillustrations (Alex Williamson): penciler, inker

This way a search for pencilers and/or inkers in the category will have my name pop up. Remember, there's several guys that do it ALL (I'm a sucky colorist and letterer), so would these guys have to have make four different threads?

[Ugga Bugga]

the artist showcase used to be split up into pencils, inks, colors, and writers, exactly as you envisioned. I liked it better the way you suggest (the old way)

I too have had problems finding inkers and colorists, because most of the stuff is pencillers, or out and out illustrators in the artist showcase.

Some way to identify inkers and colorists would be useful. Finding pencillers on PJ is a breeze.

[Toddoss]

true but Penciljack is jam-packed with talent and we just need to make it more accessible. Which I believe PJ can do.