The most fascinating thing about reformatting comics for Webtoons is the site’s vertical “infinite canvas” format. Chapters are designed for scrolling down through the story on a cell phone, making it necessary to set aside the original 5″ X 8″ page format. There is a risk that reformatting will cause qualities to be lost; but there is also an opportunity that new qualities will be gained. For example, an infinite canvas provides the opportunity of a great expansion of space.
For example, in my latest chapter S. E. T. I., the original comic was a challenge, because the story has a lot of dense, verbose text. For example, this panel is quite a mashup of text and picture:
The infinite canvas provides the opportunity to spread this text out, and frame it with psychedelic effects:
Reformatting horizontal panels for infinite canvas presents a problem, because the panels may appear too small. But sometimes, the panels can simply be turned, so they display larger, and produce a disorienting effect:
Make sure you don’t hit your head when you reach the top of the stairs!
