Chinese comics artists create comic strips with colorful topics, from Taoism, to fox-demon fantasy. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Better experience

The development of the internet has also fueled greater interaction between comics artists and their readers.

Although magazines in the past could receive more than 100 letters from readers, mostly serious fans, many editors were not able to reply to all of them. At that time, the artists were not able to adapt their stories to reflect feedback from their readers.

But social media platforms such as micro blogs now allow both sides to communicate regularly.

"Most of the interaction is enjoyable. It lets you know that there are plenty of readers paying attention to your work," says Bai.

"But sometimes it can be hard to handle."

Bai cites one case when he came up with a plot ending to "surprise" his readers, but some of them guessed it and spread it online, putting him in a fix.

"It took me several days to come up with another reasonable and beautiful ending," says Bai. "Still, it's interesting to have these 'games' with the readers. It gives me a sense of achievement and the confidence to come up with better stories."

The internet is not just a platform for artists to showcase their work, it also acts as an engine to power the development of the industry, he says.