In the days of cold, hard newsprint, only those who could draw succeeded as comic strip authors. Sometimes, this led to beautifully illustrated strips that lacked humor (cough, Blondie). Fortunately, the internet has shown us that comic artistry can be flexible.
Comic strip enthusiasts who prefer humor over artistry can find their strips. Those who appreciate artistry have their options, and individuals with specific tastes can discover something tailor-made.
The best part is that these developments allow anyone, regardless of artistic or comedic talents, to create their comic strip. Depending on your goal, you can use one of these four sites to help you do it.
Image: Screenshot / Make Beliefs Comix
MakeBeliefsComix.com is a comic strip creator easy enough for children to use, but it offers enough options for adults to convey their message. Users can choose from 25 characters to populate two, three, or four-paneled comic strips.
While the pre-set options make the site user-friendly, they may be somewhat limiting. Your custom comic strips may look fairly generic, with only about four different expressions for each character. However, this means you can create a respectable online comic in about 10 minutes.
The creator, Bill Zimmerman, has authored numerous books, including Make Beliefs: A Gift For Your Imagination. He writes on the site, "My hope is that by offering you a choice of characters with different moods and the opportunity to write words and thoughts for them, you'll tap into your creativity and explore new possibilities."
Image: Screenshot / Pixton
Pixton is the go-to comic strip creation website for artists.
This site allows maximum customization without the need to start from scratch. Instead of merely selecting a character's shirt color, users can adjust the collar, shape, sleeves, and shirt size. In addition to preset poses and emotions, you can click and drag character limbs into new postures and customize eyes, ears, noses, and hairstyles.
It's also easy to add images from Flickr or Google Images.
Successful comics vie daily for a spot in the prestigious Pixton top 10.
Image: Screenshot / Toondoo
ToonDoo strikes a fine balance between creative versatility and user-friendliness, ensuring that the final results look sharp. While there's an extensive library of characters and objects for your comic strip, the platform also provides tools for your creative touches. The TraitR tool lets you create custom characters, while DoodleR allows freehand drawing. You can manipulate your images or other images for your comic strip using the ImagineR photo tool.
Unlike other comic strip creation sites, ToonDoo offers an option to save your project mid-creation, so you can return to it later. Once you've completed a handful of ToonDoos, you can even compile them into a book. It's straightforward to embed individual cartoons on a website or share them on social networks, and you can purchase high-quality images of your favorites.
Image: Screenshot / Strip Generator
The stoic characters on Strip Generator lend themselves to sarcastic commentary. There isn't much room to establish a personal style, as you need to work with what the site offers. However, that doesn't mean you can't be creative. The community galleries are a testament to this.
One unique feature is adjustable frames. If you need a specific cell to be a bit wider or longer, you can simply drag the borders. Another standout trait is the personal library. When you tweak an image to perfection, you can save it for future use.
Additional reporting by Jack Morse. Original story published in 2010 and updated in 2018.