Hi, Folks:
Well, Book 12 Episode 47 ends another issue of “Johnny Saturn.” This one has been an odd experience for me, because I spent most of the time doing other work, such as formatting the next trade paperback. As a result, this issue seemingly came and went quietly.
That’s appropriate, in a way. Issue 11 ended with the fiercest battle I’ve ever drawn, and issue 12 was intended as the long aftermath, or the eye of the storm, before things got crazy again. The rest of this storyarc, beginning with Issue 12 on Thursday, is going to be a hell of a ride.
Benita and I have discussed it, and we will probably not be publishing any more single issues. We’ll still format the book that way, because it works well, but not print any. If you want singles, they will still all be available through Indyplanet.
This is a question of economics, really. Because of the nature of print-on-demand, single issues cost almost as much to print as they are priced, leaving a minuscule margin for us. Trade paperbacks, on the other hand, are money-makers for us, and the reader gets far more content at a lower cost.
Your comments on this are welcome.
Scott.
Graphic Engagement seeks to explore the ways in which comics and film animation engage us politically and profoundly influence the way we define gender, race, religion, class, and nationhood. “Political” can be defined broadly, relating not only to affairs of state, but also the praxis of visual narrative and ways it affects individual identity and community dynamics.
This news story caught my attention for obvious reasons, discussing the future of comics, print vs. digital.
I live in both worlds. I grew up on print comics, and drew dozens of comics that were printed in the 90′s. Plus, Benita and I make the lion’s share of our money from selling trade paperbacks.
Beginning in 2004, I wasn’t what one would call an early adopter in web comics, but I brought “Johnny Saturn” to the web with enthusiasm. More people read the comic per week than the total number of people who bought the hard-copy comics I drew in the 90′s.
I don’t buy single-issue comics anymore. The cost grew too much, and the storage space in my home was shrinking. I love comics in a very real way, but I now prefer trade-paperbacks. That’s the future of print comics, the collected edition. Collectors love to have something nice, be it the library edition “Hellboy” books, or the oversized “Watchmen,” or the huge “Invincible” collections, to whatever really.
As far as webcomics go, I believe the future is already here.
I am tremendously impressed with this man and his message. Really, it’s nothing short of visionary. As one of the creators of Spire City, where gender, religion, and nationality are never an issue, i wholly approve.
Hi, Folks!
New Appearance: I just added the Cincinnati Comic Expo on September 18, 2010, to my appearance list, as you can see in the right-hand column. I’m getting more active with comic shows than I’ve been in years!
Website: As some of you know, I had a website breakdown on Sunday. With the excellent advice of Phil Hofer, I have gotten the site back to about 95% functionality. I’ve got some more augmentations to work into the design, and those will be happening over the next week. Thanks, Phil!
Digital Comics: There’s been a short hiccup in my plans to get “Johnny Saturn” onto Graphic.ly, but we’re back on track. We still sell digital comics through a number of other venues (Wowio, Drivethru Comics, Panelfly), and quite soon I’ll be selling them off this site as well! Sadly, one of our vendors, Comicsxp, appears to have gone on hiatus–here’s hoping they are back online soon!
Store: I’ve been working on the “Johnny Saturn” store, and we are replacing its cart system, and adding a bunch of new products. When the new store is up, some of the items will resume their full prices, so if you are interested please buy these comics now when the price is still down.
Comic Collectives: The Webcomic Collective is no more, sadly. I’m sorry to see it go, because it included a great many friends and people I respected. We’ve been through this before, such as when Graphic Smash went it’s own way. We are still members of the Indy Webcomic Group, and Palace In The Sky. I’d like to ad a few more such collectives to my list, but there is little movement on that front. If anyone knows of good collectives who are accepting new members, please contact me.
