This initially appears to be the situation with Runewood Abbey; if there is a larger story to the comic, it isn’t revealed in the comic’s first chapter. But rather than some epic storyline, Runewoold Abbey appears to be a character-driven comic that has focused on the six young women we are initially introduced to in the first chapter (along with three others who’ve yet to appear). Each woman is… for want of a better term, unique; one is as ethereal as smoke, another composed of solid living shadows, a third of flame, and so on. Even the more ordinary-looking of the young women possess talents that set them apart from normal people, and would undoubtedly have them persecuted as witches or worse in the comic’s preindustrial setting.

It is these young woman that have brought Runewood Abbey to life. The interaction between these characters feels natural and helps the reader relate to them. Given the dearth of a greater plot, this connection with the characters gains greater importance; little has been shown concerning who these women are, why they are at the Abbey, and what has made them the way they are. The Abbey itself is another mystery which was expanded upon slightly at the end of the first chapter, but the few details given have only led to added questions.

Even with the dearth of plot details, the comic stands out with some beautiful artwork and excellently-rendered greyscale. Artist Michael Brewster has taken considerable care and effort in creating characters who are as distinct and interesting artistically as writer Rachel Spitler has done with characterization and dialogue. Nor is this artistic effort left only for the characters; background details are not always added (especially when the cast is found inside a building lit only by firelight), but when the story moves outside the walls of the Abbey, Brewster’s skills at drawing detailed backgrounds is revealed.

While the story is yet young, a couple hints of a greater story can be observed. At least one of the young women, Nansa, was apparently once a normal human instead of a Naga (half-woman, half serpent), and had a fairly normal life before she was transformed into her current state. While we’ve not caught any real glimpses of the stories of the other women at the abbey, it is more than likely that they too were once “normal” (or at least, not inhuman). No doubt in time more of the greater story will be revealed, even as the cast are further fleshed out. In the meantime, Runewood Abbey is at the perfect stage for new readers to jump in without needing days to peruse the archives, and the comic has enough promise to keep them returning weekly for more.

I’m making an exception for the graphic novel reMIND as cartoonist Jason Brubaker (who is a professional storyboard artist and compositor who has worked on over a dozen major films and in print comics) is documenting the process of creating this graphic novel and giving some excellent advice that both print and web cartoonists will find helpful. While the comic aspect of reMIND has only had fifteen updates, each update is a double-page spread that tells a story that is graphically pleasing and quickly catches your interest even as it gradually builds the story and setting.

The comic is about Sonja, a young lady inventor whose cat Victuals goes missing one day… and turns up a week later with the ability to talk, manipulate objects with his paws, and comprehend things. As there have been only fifteen updates, it’s difficult to determine the gist of the story, but it appears to involve stories of lizard men (in what is either a contemporary fantasy or science fiction setting), missing animals, odd bubbling waters, and the uplift of at least one feline. From what Brubaker has said in his blog, I half-suspect that Victuals is the real protagonist of the story, and that Sonja will be playing more of a narrative role in telling Victual’s tale.

While the comic itself promises to be a fascinating tale well worth reading (both in a virtual format and when Brubaker eventually has it published), it is the research Brubaker has compiled and documented that I suspect many web cartoonists will find of use, both for online venues and for possible print compilations. Brubaker has done a considerable amount of research on creating graphic novels, including coloring processes, outsourcing segments of the art to reduce time spent (such as flatting colors, which can save cartoonists a couple of hours), lettering and font creation, and on internet resources that web cartoonists will find useful.

This research also includes information on promoting graphic novels (and by extension, webcomics), the use of advertising, and on active forum communities that may be of use for artists. What’s more, Brubaker also talked about a problem common with many internet resources; the majority of internet resources are out-of-date and in some cases obsolete. While the majority of this information was gathered with an eye toward getting a graphic novel into print, much of it can be adapted to web cartoonists who have no intent on print publication, either due to the animated aspects of their work or the limitations found in print venues.

What makes reMIND so effective is the marriage of comic and resources. There are a number of webcomic resources out there; some of them are even updated regularly. Likewise there is a growing number of webcomics that use blogging formats to allow the cartoonists to talk about their work and what went into each update. The marriage of these two helps show how this information can be used by creators, and allow readers to learn a little of what goes into creating a webcomic. Add in the fact that reMIND is an artistically skilled work that shows considerable storytelling promise, and you have a comic that is worth reading to both creators and fans alike.

In many ways Abel’s Story is a more mature story than DMFA; Amber has rated it NC-14 for swearing and violence (no nudity, because everyone knows that unclothed fur-covered characters are much more offensive to society’s sensibilities than blood and gore). That’s not to say that the comic is dour and depressing; the early strips showing Abel’s childhood are rather sweet, and while Abel’s first 24 years might not have been idyllic, much of Abel’s childhood was a happy one. Naturally, it is the fall from this Eden that makes Abel’s Story so intriguing… and also gave us a glimpse at aspects of Amber William’s world that is not often seen in the main comic.

While the comic can get wordy at times (with several exposition-filled comics that fortunately do show glimpses of what’s being dictated to both Abel and the readers), there are a number of tidbits in Abel’s Story that are quite interesting. Amber William has managed to flesh out the world that DMFA takes place in, both with the Cubi Academy (which DMFA only briefly touched upon) and the greater world of DMFA. What’s more, this side story also manages to touch upon the greater conflict between beings (ordinary sentients) and creatures (the uber-powered “monsters” that includes the fae, dragons, cubi, and others), which has only recently been coming into focus in DMFA as a whole. Abel’s Story is self-contained and there’s no need to read the expansive archives of DMFA in order to understand what’s going on. What’s more, it’s a well-written and -drawn story, and definitely worth reading.