Archive for August, 2007
[Online Marketing] - Building a Better Website For Your Small Publishing Company
Friday, August 10th, 2007I’ve been a regular Internet user for over a decade now, though I had the fortune of using other online services like AOL, Compuserve, Prodigy and local BBS networks before that. In my senior year of high school, I took over a video game review website called eXscape and helped it to become a good [...]
Marketing 101: On Advertising, Part 2
Wednesday, August 8th, 2007My previous post on the perils of advertising was lacking, it seems. After all, I only talked about expensive television and print advertising; I didn’t cover the area of advertising that is, presumably, working — web-based ads…
Creating Comics, Part 5: Creativity vs. Marketability
Tuesday, August 7th, 2007I’m a marketing guy, but I’m also a creative guy, as anyone who’s had to sit and listen to one of my “no, really, this is my greatest idea ever!” outpourings can attest. I’m great at coming up with new ideas, but I also have a sensibility about whether those ideas are actually worth developing. [...]
Creating Comics, Part 4: Comic Books vs. Graphic Novels
Monday, August 6th, 2007In recent years, there have been several major shifts in the comic book as a product. Traditionally, comic books were produced inexpensively on newsprint with a limited color range. They were also supported by advertising. Since the 1990s, however, comic books have become increasingly more sophisticated, with high quality glossy pages, a broad range of [...]
Creating Comics, Part 3: Comic Book Marketing
Sunday, August 5th, 2007Read for some in-depth reading? I’ve spent all afternoon prepping this beauty, which will take you on a roundabout tour of how to market a comic book… and how not to. I’ve even got examples of companies who’ve failed, and an explanation as to why they failed.
Hey, don’t let this description hold you up…
Thinking Forward: When Publishing Shifts Gears
Friday, August 3rd, 200720 years ago, the recording industry operated under a fairly simple model: recording artists would sign up for an album and enjoy all of the benefits of working with a major label, and they would forfeit almost all of their profits to increase their exposure. The artists would then ride the wave of their newfound [...]
Creating Comics, Part 2: Turning Your Script Into a Full-Fledged Comic Book
Friday, August 3rd, 2007If you’re like many comic book creators out there, you’ve got a great idea for a book, but no idea how to turn it into a comic book! Today, I’m going to tell you how to do it. But be prepared for hard work and financial setback — it’s not cheap or easy to put [...]
Creating Comics, Part 1: Understanding the Market
Thursday, August 2nd, 2007When meeting new people, I don’t generally advertise the fact that I’ve worked in comics, because when I do, I’m often approach with the following request:
“I have an idea — could you help me turn it into a comic?”
I hate this question, and it’s not because I don’t like helping people…
The Comic Book Publishing Process
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007How does comic book publishing work? How are comics created? Does a publisher simply buy up ideas and produce them, or do publishers only work in-house? How do comic books reach the 2,000+ independent stores scattered around the world? And who prints these books?
If you’re never been through the process, some of these questions can [...]