Sparklecare Official FAQ

LAST UPDATED: 6/14/2023

UPDATED SECTIONS:

• Volume related questions

DISCLAIMER

This page may potentially contain spoilers for new readers (but only for currently public information). However, if you'd like to get some background into the story/world before reading, feel free to proceed anyways.

General

What will the comic schedule be?

Updates will be posted Mondays and Thursdays unless there is a specified hiatus. You can check the main page for information + notices of hiatuses.

Is this comic 18+?

No, but it contains adult themes and humor, so kids shouldn’t be reading it. You might have notice that I have warnings plastered everywhere. The recommended reader age is 16+. This comic does NOT contain pornographic material despite its often crude jokes. It will never have explicit literal NSFW anywhere (like showing "parts" or anything like that).

What inspired this comic?

I had a bad hospital experience and am basing this comic off of that to vent and feel better. In fact, it is actually based on multiple traumas I have personally experienced. I also am referencing personal opinions and trying to highlight realities.

What happened to you? Were you actually–

I’m not comfortable talking about my hospital trauma in detail with strangers on the internet, and would prefer to not be asked or have people theorize about “what happened” (which people have actually done). Sorry.

How do I join the ZCP?

As of right now (2023) the ZCP is not accepting new members and will probably not be any time soon.

What kind of fanart is allowed?

I can't stop anyone from drawing, creating, or writing anything (obviously) but it'd be nice if you didn't draw anything problematic or immoral and horrible. Thanks so much for asking! It means a lot when people actually care about what I am comfortable with.

Is the ask blog canon?

The ask blog has content that reflects some parts of canon, and some of it mirrors canon events, but reading the ask blog is not necessary to understand the story, it's just an additional source of content for readers!

Is it OK to dub or translate the comic?

Anyone is free to make dubs or translations of the comic or the ask blog!

Is it OK to make AUs and fan comics of Sparklecare?

YES! And I would love to see them, please share!

Volume related questions

When will the next volume release?

Volume 3 is officially complete, so the comic is on hiatus. The release date for volume 4 is coming very soon!

Is there going to be a physical release of the volume(s)?

That's the plan! Volume 1 is currently going through page edits to clean stuff up for a physical release! We'll keep you posted.

How much time passes between each volume?

SO FAR: The time between volume 1 and 2 is two weeks, and the time between 2 and 3 is ~one month, and the time between volume 3 and 4 is ~two months.

• Volume 1 - Noctober 5th, 6016
• Volume 2 - Noctober 20th, 6016
• Volume 3 - Ovember 19th, 6016
• Volume 4 - ...? (sometime in Danuary 6017)

How many volumes will there be total?

Sparklecare has 3 "series." We are currently in series 1, which is titled Everything Sucks. ES is 15 volumes long with an epilogue. The next 2 series are not developed enough to have set lengths.

How long will the volumes be?

The volumes vary in length depending on what happens in them, and some will be longer than others. The shortest volume in ES will be volume 16 (also known as the epilogue).

Can we know the titles of upcoming volumes?

Generally, I only reveal a volume's title in advance before it debuts/during the hiatus period between volumes (for example, volume 3's title was revealed before its release in March 2022 during the hiatus period between volume 2 and volume 3). So yes, I do reveal volume titles in advance, but not until they're about to come out/after the current volume has ended.

What are minivolumes?

Minivolumes are shorter, self-contained volumes that generally don't have major connections to current events of the main series. They can focus on mini plots or backstories, or even time periods between volumes. There aren't any minivolumes out yet, but they will exist in the future!

Why do the volume titles rhyme?

Everything Sucks has a name scheme that makes up a poem. I can't reveal the full poem yet, but as volumes come out, the poem will unravel itself.

Common character related questions

Are there any trans characters?

Barry is a trans man. Mood and Rem are trans women. Caroline and Jay are non-binary. Uni is non-binary and transfeminine. Doom is agender. Funfetti is genderqueer and Puppy is lovegender. There will be more as the comic goes on, this is just everyone who's appeared so far.

What about character's orientations?

Barry, Jay, and Doom are bisexual. Caroline, Mood, Rem, and Puppy are lesbians. Uni is aegosexual asexual. Hemera is aroace. Funfetti is pansexual.

Are there any mentally ill characters?

A lot of the characters struggle with mental illness of different kinds, but all of them have varying forms of PTSD from the hospital. However, for main characters, Barry has schizophrenia and OCD, Uni has major depression, and Hemera has PNOS. Caroline, Doom, and Mood also have eating disorders (Caroline has pica while Doom and Mood both have an unidentified eating disorder that relates to Mood only eating insects-- this will be mentioned and explained at some point in the comic).

Are any of the characters autistic?

Out of the main characters, Barry and Uni are both autistic.

Are you ok with people being “kin” with your characters?

Yes! I am, but please be kind and respectful to other fans. I know some fictionkin can be kind of aggressive and mean to others, and I don’t want that :c But it honors me that you relate to my characters that much!

Who is your favorite character that you've made?

Uni is my favorite character.

Where did the nickname "Knee" for Uni come from?

During the preboot, before Uni appeared in the actual comic, one of the crew members (my partner, Willow) was making a meme video with the characters, and in that video Barry was referring to Uni with misspellings of his name- and one of those misspellings was "You Knee." This led to a joke I pulled on the readers where, before Uni's formal introduction in the comic, I tricked everyone into actually believing his name was You Knee (and everyone actually believed it)! When he actually appeared his name was confirmed to be Uni Cornelius! Ever since then I've been referring to Uni as You Knee jokingly, and over time it dissolved into just the word "Knee". So that's why you'll probably see me or others calling him that in various places!

Who are the "side patients"?

The "side patients" are side characters that debut in volume 3, you can see all of them here. You will see more about them in that volume!

Where do each of the characters come from on Spinch?

Here are the home cities/regions of each main character:

• Barry - Littletinytown, Midalonoware
• Uni - Littletinytown, Midalonoware
• Caroline - Almosthell, Ovspace
• Hemera - Bigtalltown, Disa Point
• Jay - Frostburg, Freezi
• Mood and Doom - Gnimaercs, Aah

Some information shown on the Tumblr about the characters doesn't seem to match how things are in the comic or site, why is that?

Some information on the blog and some stuff in the actual comic get retconned with time. Some characters who have been introduced on the Tumblr often have different designs than they do when they appear in-comic because this story is a constant work-in-progress and things change a lot at times. Some scenes in the comic that don't match current lore will probably be updated with new information in the process of printing the physical releases (which are undergoing changes and updates).

Why aren't we allowed to like Cuddles?

Cuddles is based on real life bad people who have abused me. Seeing people lovepost or talk about liking him or defending him or his actions makes me extremely uncomfortable and upset because of what he represents for me. Besides, there isn't really much to like about him anyways, you aren't supposed to like him. You can like how he's written as a villain, but please don't call him your favorite character or anything like that.

What's the situation with Uni's gender identity?

I felt a need to add this to the official comic FAQ. Despite currently presenting as a cis man (using he/him exclusively) Uni is non-binary (she/he/they/any pronouns) and this has been a thing since before the reboot began. In February 2023, however, I ended up revealing this to the audience outside of the main comic on my AU ask blog for the Cometcare AU (you can learn more about the AU here.) As of the current point of the comic, Uni is closeted. There is a common misconception amongst the fandom that Uni is "currently cis" which is not accurate. Uni is not and has never been cis (since the beginning of the reboot in June 2018), they are just closeted.

I ended up revealing this to the audience despite the fact she hasn't come out in the main comic because of complicated reasons -- the main reason just comes down to the fact I didn't want to lie about Uni's identity in the future in my ask blog AU, and I figured that revealing it in advance wouldn't really be detrimental to Uni's development as a character but would rather create interesting plot when the readers are aware of his gender situation and can pick up on things implying it at different points of the comic (whereas the rest of the cast besides Caroline is not aware of it.)

A few details that I feel are necessary to know about Uni's gender situation include the fact despite identifying as gay at the current point of the comic, later on, Uni's identity will not be considered a gay man. Yes, she is still MLNB/NBLNB -- and while it's true that non-binary people can have this identity label and call themselves gay, because of the fact their gender identity is more feminine-leaning and closer to being a girl, Uni would not be considered gay. I should also clarify that shipping Carruni (Caroline X Uni) does not count as shipping a gay man with a lesbian (which is something a lot of people are interpreting it to be with the also recent reveal that Carruni is technically canon, and it's simply not accurate.)

Shipping related questions

Is Barruni canon?

Not yet, but it will be. Is this a spoiler? Technically yes-- but I will confirm it anyways because I can't lie about them. They're too important.

What other ships are currently canon?

The other canon ships at the current point (ES: Volume 3) are Moodies (Mood X Rem), Pinfetti (Pinata X Funfetti), Shortkills (Kills X Shortnick), Melcyn (Mel X Cyn), Jorange (Jean X Orange), Carruni (Caroline X Uni), Jarrie (Jay X Caroline), and Careki (Caroline X Kiki). These are not the only ships that will be canon, there will be more over time.

Is Pollarrydoomi canon?

No, it is not. Review the FAQ on the info page for my AU for information about the canonicity of this ship.

Can you trigger tag [ship] when/if it comes up in the comic?

I will not put content warnings on pages with references to ships in the official comic. This is because it would be virtually impossible to read the comic when a lot of the ships are important to the story. However, if you want me to tag posts/art for a ship on the Tumblr, just let me know and I will do so.

Are you ok with OC x canon?

Absolutely!

Are you ok with self-shipping?

Yes, I am! Go ahead!

What are we allowed to ship?

As long as a ship isn't inherently problematic in one way or another (whether it's abusive or something else bad), you are free to ship anything you like.

Is there anyone you aren't comfortable being shipped?

I'm not comfortable with people shipping Cuddles with anyone.

OC questions

Can my OC be in the comic?

As much as I’d love to include every fan character, there are literally hundreds now and it would be unfair to include one and not all others. I’d love to see them if you want to submit them or @ me! Thanks for understanding!

What do the wristband colors mean?

Here is a diagram of the hospital bracelets and their meanings.

Where is the blank for the character sheet?

Here is a link to the blank character sheet.

Can we have a download of the fonts in the comic?

I'm afraid that because it's my handwriting, I don't want to publicly release the font used for the comic, even for character sheets. It's just a personal comfort thing. However, the font we use on here (the site) is Comic Neue which is free to download here or on Google fonts.

Do you have a visual example of how saturation works?

Here's a visual guide for saturation coloring, you can also see more specific in-depth details about it under the "Saturation" section below.

Do you have any guidelines for making OCs?

A quick little rundown:

• There is no-one under 18 inside the hospital. No staff, no patients, nothing. Minors being in the hospital makes me REALLY uncomfortable. If you're going to make an OC that's a minor, make them outside of the hospital.
• Character's names are usually puns based on their illness, personality, or some other trait they have. (Ex. Barry's name is a pun on "Very Ill" because he has a poor immune system, and Uni's name is a pun on "unicorn" because he is half unicorn.)
• The "sex" label on character sheets is an indicator of whether or not a patient is sexually active/wants to be, not an indicator of gender or pronouns. It comes from doctors asking that to patients when hospitalized in real life.
• The comic takes place in 6016, which is the equivalent of 2016 (which is also when I first started the comic!) so all dates run with the consistency of 6000 = 2000. (As of 2019) you are 24 years old, born in 1995, you would be 21 inside the comic universe (because it is 2016 there.)

Comic/Spinch lore related

These are some questions focusing on the comic's story and universe.

🌍 Official Spinch lore guide, for more information about the planet 🌍
(basic questions still listed below)

What happened to Uni's eyes?

This is answered in update 49 of Volume 3. WARNING for triggering subject matter.

How can Uni see without eyes?

This is answered on volume 2, update 37, page 109! Uni has light projections in his sockets that are made of an enchantment on the remains of his optic nerves, which creates two yellow light orbs as his pupils. However, the spell is not strong enough to give him complete vision and this makes what little sight he has blurry. He has a pair of orange magic goggles that give him clear vision, but everything is yellowish orange.

What is "Spinch"?

Spinch is the planet that Sparklecare takes place on. Here's some maps: (Region map, City map). And here's some information about some countries and regions. Also yes, I have seen the spinach with the "spinch" label meme, you don't have to keep sending me it!

What are anthries and ferries?

Anthries are the inhabitants or "people" of Spinch! They're the animals that walk on two legs and talk. Ferries are wild animals that walk on four legs.

Does pregnancy exist on Spinch?

(You would be shocked at how much I am asked this) No, babies come from eggs that are created by a mythical bird named Emem. Here's some more information about him and eggs. There is no pregnancy because it makes me uncomfortable, AND because I have a lot of trans characters, and that may cause dysphoria for people.

What is the purpose of sex if there's no pregnancy?

Even though it's not really important to the story or will ever have any plot relevance, here's some information on the purpose/history behind sex existing in anthry life for anyone curious.

Who is Tears?

Here is Tears and information about Virtuism.

Do you have a list of all the illnesses on Spinch?

This is not all of them, but a handful that we see present in characters in the comic:

• Coughs-a-lot - Extremely bad cough
• Bleeds-a-lot - Internal and external bleeding
• Teeths-a-lot - Excessive teeth growth
• Thinks-a-lot - Extreme overanalyzing
• Sleeps-a-not - Intense difficulty sleeping
• Breathes-a-not - Intense difficulty breathing
• Sicks-a-lot - Poor immune system
• The Uncommon Cold - Causes body to be freezing and literally icy
• Beaver Fever - Extreme fever
• Malblaise - Extreme pyromania
• Goopy Guts - Guts... are goopy
• Snooty-snoop - Excessive nosiness
• Achey-breaky-bones - Joint inflammation
• Supermegaveryitchyism - Extreme itchiness and fur shedding
• Super-duper-short - Small height
• Glows-a-lot - Causes insides of the body and snot to glow pink

What is the backwards language Mood and Doom speak?

That language is known as Countrountrish and it is a language spoken in several places throughout Spinch, but it originates from Countrycountryland. It is read and written by spelling each word in a sentence backwards while still keeping the word order the same (ex: "I love you" is "I evol uoy").

Who is the old cat at the beginning?

The tailless cat at the beginning and end of volume 1 is a man named Charles Wells. He is an escaped Sparklecare patient— after the operation scene in v1 there is a wanted poster with him on it calling him mentally ill for his accusations. You will find out more about him later.

How does Jay's luck work? Why can't they be hurt by the doctors?

Jay's luck is a protection spell that prevents them from being physically harmed. The origin of their luck will be revealed in the story, but we can say that Jay did not always have this luck protection and that it came post-arrival to the hospital (hence why they would be sent to such a dangerous establishment and not be protected from being trapped there in the first place). Another thing to note is that Jay's luck can also protect others around them, sometimes in mysterious ways that aren't obvious at first (and their luck can determine and bend the future, even way in advance).

Hospital related

Is Sparklecare a general or psychiatric hospital?

The Sparklecare hospital is a general hospital, but it takes in patients who have mental health issues. However, there is no specific ward for any of the ailments, so patients with mental health issues are roomed with physically ill patients. (Example: Barry and Uni). HOWEVER, with this in mind, it is BASED on a psychiatric hospital.

What is the role of the doctors?

WARNING: graphic text

The doctors are instructed to harm, torture, and kill patients. That's their entire job. They are told to perform what Sparklecare calls "treatments" by using sharp objects like knives and saws and other torture devices to harm them. Sometimes these treatments can be fatal.

What is the role of the nurses?

The nurses are meant to do the opposite-- the job of the nurses is to look after and take care of the patients, giving them medication to make their treatments more tolerable and feeding them. The nurses also organize social programs (like Sparkle Caring Club) and provide the patients with entertainment so they won't lose their minds.

Doom is not a normal nurse, because he takes on the role of a doctor by harming people alongside regular nurse duties.

Why does the hospital do this?

You have to read to find out!

Can doctors become patients or vice versa?

If a staff member becomes ill, they can be converted to a patient. Patients can also become staff members, but it's rare that any would want to.

Are the patients' families suspcious of why they cannot see them? What do they do about it?

Not everyone is fooled by Sparklecare's unusual denial to let their patients see their families...

What is an ITP? Who qualifies for them?

ITP is short for "individualized treatment program" and all it means is that a patient does not receive the normal treatment procedures performed by the doctors. Regular treatment wristbands indicate that they are tortured in the same ways, but a patient with an ITP either doesn't receive treatment at all or they have a specialized form of treatment that they get instead (for example, just being given pain medication through their IVs). Compliant patients are usually the receivers of ITPs. A compliant patient is a patient that consistently follows the hospital rules and does not act out. Other patients who might have ITPs are ones that simply cannot receive treatment or be affected by them for whatever reason (ex. Jay cannot be harmed physically by the doctors, so they have an ITP).

What are the hospital rules?

The hospital rules are the following:

1. NO VIOLENCE. It is a hospital rule for patients to not be violent or aggressive with each other or staff members, which includes being verbally mean or name-calling.
2. RELATIONSHIPS ARE FORBIDDEN. Patients are not allowed to be in romantic or sexual relationships with other patients or even staff members. Patients are allowed to hug and be affectionate, but kissing or anything explicitly sexual is forbidden. Patients also are not allowed to sleep in the beds of other patients unless there is a good reason (for example, a patient is not safe to be by themselves or is actively at risk of harming themselves if left alone). Sexual or romantic advances onto staff members are also forbidden, even jokes suggesting them. However, staff members are allowed to be in relationships with other staff members.
3. NO LEAVING ROOMS WITHOUT STAFF SUPERVISION. If a patient wishes to leave their room, they are to call for a nurse to escort them to where they want to go. Loitering in the halls or visiting others without explicit staff permission isn't allowed. Attempts to escape the hospital are also a very dangerous action and can result in treatment or even death as punishment.
4. PATIENTS ARE TO FOLLOW ORDERS. If a staff member tells a patient to do something, they must do it without question, regardless of what it is.

Patients who break the hospital rules are subject to punishment (which can include treatments or forced isolation or anything the Doc sees fit. It's up to him what happens to a patient for rulebreaking.)

Saturation

NOTE: This section contains spoilers for volumes 1 and 2

What is the significance of the color saturation/eye strain?

When an anthry is traumatized, they become brightly colored. This is to emphasize the intense effects trauma has on people and how it changes them forever. The use of bright color is to represent intense emotions, and isn't just an aesthetic choice. Anthries who aren't traumatized are usually pastel or natural colors.

Do only people in the hospital get saturated?

No. On Spinch, anyone who experiences trauma can become brightly colored.

What happens when people heal from the trauma?

Anthries who heal from their trauma turn bright pastel colors. They do not go back to their original color, but instead a brighter one- but it's still not as eye-straining. It might be more of a pastel neon.

What about black-and-white and desaturated colored anthries?

Black-and-white anthries who experience trauma will turn to colors instead of being grayscale. Desaturated color (like the Chunklings in volume 2) represents people who are coping from their trauma in an unhealthy way and aren't recovering.

Can you explain what the black-and-white scene at the end of Volume 1 means? Why did everyone turn black-and-white except the patients (and why was the beginning all in monochrome?)

The significance of monochrome and pure black-and-white represents a lack of awareness to what's happening in the hospital, or ignorance to it. After the operation scene there was a page showing newspapers and a wanted poster of Charles, calling him mentally ill. This was black-and-white because it was showing the ignorance towards him.

Why are some of the staff saturated if they're the ones causing trauma?

A majority of the staff does not want to be doing what they do. They simply are following orders, often to avoid harm to themselves or the people they care about (Ex. Doom does his job to protect his sister from harm, not for his own safety). However, there are some staff who are saturated as a result of exposure to the environment (basically second-hand trauma) if they don't directly hurt people (like most nurses don't have to hurt anyone). Some staff who seem to like their job are brainwashed. Though, there ARE some staff members who do not complain and like what they do... just not most.

Reboot VS preboot questions

Please note that questions about the preboot generally make me uncomfortable, so I'm only keeping this here and mentioning it at all so people don't ask me more about it.

What is the “preboot”?

This comic had a first run from 2016-2017, but was remade, as I wasn’t satisfied with my work and wanted to develop the story further. I refer to the ‘original’ comic as the preboot, or pre-reboot.

Where can I read the original comic?

I am no longer sharing links to the original comic. Sorry. I had it up for a while but I've decided to take it down.

Who all is going to be returning in the reboot?

Barry, Uni, Caroline, Hemera, Jay, Doom, Cuddles, Nurse Kills, Nurse Shortnick, Peepbeep, Dr Sunshine, Dr Nya, Ribbon Pop, Doi1 and Doi2, Kitter Catter, Nurse Snare, Dr Party, Dr Handerson, everyone in the circus, President Meat, Miley Smiley, and new characters. They do not all appear at first and, in fact, most probably won’t be seen for a while.

Why is [any character] not returning?

Mostly due to character ownership and personal reasons. We are not disclosing specific details. If they aren't on the list above, they aren't returning.

Can we know details about the preboot plot?

No, because it is not canon anymore and no longer relevant to the story.

Why was preboot Doom split into two characters?

A lot of people misinterpreted preboot Doom’s character because I didn’t write him very well. He came off as more of a good person than he actually was when my intention was to make him bad but misleading. I feel like I could have done a better job of writing him.

As for why Doom and Mood came into existence, I split them because I wanted to keep the things people liked about him separate from what people didn’t. It’s weird, because reboot Doom was originally going to be completely unredeemable when I first made him; that ended up being passed to Cuddles, as it made more sense for him to be the main villain.

Why is Cuddles bad now?

He was always bad. I just made it more defined, because in the reboot I started projecting more personal traumas onto him. He was never meant to be a good character.

I have concerns about the contents of the preboot/Do you still think [thing from the preboot] is okay?

I have had people bring up and talk to me many times about the kind of stuff that is in the original comic. I want people to be aware that the preboot was created when I was 15, and not in the best mindset. I was a misguided kid that did not know any better and made distasteful jokes. The contents of the preboot are a big reason I rebooted in the first place, and the things in it do not represent who I am or my beliefs and opinions as an adult. I understand if you don't want to read this comic because of that stuff but please don't act like or claim I still think it's okay currently, because it's not, I've apologized a lot for it and I now know it was bad.

I liked the original comic more...

That's okay! I personally don't like it anymore at all and seeing it kinda bothers me but it's fine if you like it. There are still some parts of it that are nostalgic to me (like Uni's dialogue) that I don't totally hate, and even though it was weird, I understand what people liked about it/why everyone got into it. The biggest reason I don't like it anymore is because of what I said in the previous question. If you do like it, please don't ignore the issues with it/act like it was fine and that there was nothing wrong with it, thanks!

Misc

The comic page is not loading

Clear your browser cache or, alternatively, hit CTRL+F5. This is a common issue that I’m working on resolving! Thanks for understanding!

I want to make a webcomic but I don’t know where to start.

Here’s a post I made with my experience and advice with webcomics!

How did you make your site, and how did you get your domain?

My site is coded 100% from scratch with HTML, CSS, JS, and PHP. If you are interested in building your own website, you can read online and experiment with basic web design. It isn't easy and takes a lot of knowledge of coding. As for my domain and hosting, it is paid for- it costs money. If you can't afford web hosting or a domain, there are lots of free comic hosting sites online you can find on Google.

Why was my ask on the Tumblr not answered?

I have over 5,000 asks in my inbox and I get a lot more every single day, it's impossible for me to answer every single message I get. I also get repeat questions a lot, and some of them are already answered on here. Please review the entire FAQ before sending an ask!

[some weird personal thing]

I get bizarre and sensitive questions sometimes, so please leave me alone.