I don't understand all these hiatus announcements because I thought the entire season is written before it starts releasing. Otherwise, why is there a multi-year hiatus between seasons if the author is still drawing chapters weekly?
Obviously, health comes first, but it feels kinda shitty to string fans along like this. If authors keep doing this, fewer and fewer fans will be inclined to start unfinished manhwas.
Think you should look into the behind-the-scenes of a lot of these. Oftentimes, in order to prep for a release, it takes a very long time to even get a whole chapter done, and especially with the amount of detail put into these, it takes a long time. Most modern day webcomics only get a few panels at a time because it takes literally so much time.
You say health comes first, but you clearly don't mean it. Mind you, someone's entire income may be based on making these works, so they have to work to make something people will read, but they could have plenty of stuff in their actual life that leads to hiatuses. It's not that hard to actually think about.
melting point did not take a multi-year hiatus. last season hiatus was 6 months. a bunch of things happen in between- manuscript writing and editing (with an editor), collabs/merch releases which the artist also draws for, etc. its crazy to think that authors would be drawing every day on hiatus cause thats totally not healthy at all. and an episode doesnt just take a day to make? wouldnt you want something with time and effort put in it? world drop series have a minimum amount of chapters they have to prepare in advance, and pibi said they ran out of the ones she had "in stock" because shes sick and couldnt draw.
if you actually took your time to read the announcement you would realize that the hiatus is not a problem of not “writing the season beforehand” but actually because of the health of the artist. taking a well deserved break, especially taking into account of how much manwha artists are overworked, is well deserved. have some grace … youll survive without ur yaoi for a few weeks
I did read the announcement, and Pibi says the hiatus is because they ran out of completed chapters and need more time to draw more. What I was questioning is this system of drawing chapters as the story progresses vs having a completed season before releasing. If anything, this way is much harder on artists because they face a weekly time crunch and added pressure.
It's not sustainable, and the proof of that is how many authors end up in burnout or on prolonged hiatus due to health issues. It's obviously more profitable for platforms like Lezhin to pressure them into doing weekly releases instead of only putting out a story once it's complete, because it brings them more money to string fans along for years and keep them coming back. It's an unhealthy, exploitative system, and it's not a lack of empathy to question it, quite the opposite.
I have looked at the bts actually, which is why I was questioning this system of drawing chapters as the story progresses vs having a completed entire season before starting releases. This way is much harder on artists because they face a weekly time crunch and added pressure and fan expectations.
It's clearly not sustainable, and that's why we have so many authors who end up in burnout or on prolonged hiatus due to health issues. It's more profitable for platforms like Lezhin to pressure them into doing weekly releases instead of only putting out a story once it's complete, because it brings them more money to string fans along for years and keep them coming back, but it's an unhealthy, exploitative system for authors.
I think I see what you are trying to say but you come off very pointed at the artists themselves by saying they're stringing along their audiences. You really should have worded it in the way you did here, because what you originally say reads as "Authors are lazy and take so many hiatuses that they make readers wait forever, so I'm gonna ignore how they may have a real life and actual health issues and how there is a set schedule for these stories they have to stay on, and instead frame it as though it's all on them, rather than the corporations they work under."
I see how my comment could be interpreted that way, but that's not what I meant. I don't think authors are lazy; I think they are often exploited by platforms/ publishers. They end up overcommitting for things they can't possibly deliver because they are human and can't realistically maintain the frenetic work rhythm that weekly releases require.
Like I said, I think the main issue is the weekly release model we currently have. It's unsustainable and detrimental for both fans and authors. It puts so much pressure on authors because if anything goes wrong in their personal lives, like it's the case with Pibi, then the story will be on hold indefinitely.
In nearly every other medium, whether it's serialized TV shows or books, the writers first complete a season/ book before it starts releasing. I don't understand why Manhwas don't do the same.
Personally, I'd much rather have a 1 or 2 year hiatus (which most manhwas do anyway) if that means the weekly episodes will be consistently posted. It also reduces issues like quality drops in between seasons because authors are not dealing with a time crunch and fan pressure.
Tried reading this because it's so heavily recommended, but I gave up after 10 chapters. The MC is insufferable and borderline psychotic. (▰˘◡˘▰)