Okay. So let's address the Mammoth in the room. "But, Terry -the expression is 'elephant in the room'!"
Mammoths were bigger, that is much larger, than elephants. Look, don't panic but here is some science -in pictures:
You see mammoth bigger than an elephant...oh come on now -it is even in colour for you!! Ladybird Books are available if you need to do more research (I was going to say "go to the library" but I bet you only go there "cus they lets you load graphic novels fer nuffink").
Anyway, the mammoth in the room (yes, I do know a mammoth will not fit into a room and no, mammoths were not blue nor were they red -the red one above is a stegadon. Look, this is a size comparison chart ...look for yourself:
http://www.palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/Palaeofiles/Pictures/megafauna/external_appearance.html
See? Gods this is like trying to explain the whole Kree-Skrull War event of the 1970s to someone who just watched the video looking back at the event but still comments "But you never said why the Kree and Skrull wanted to invade Earth!"
WTF was I? Mammoth...elephants...Kree-Skrull War....Oh. Right.
Comic buyers. You see, the big companies, the Big 5 -DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, Image Comics and IDW, are like the distributors. They are in business to make money but there aren't that many ethics. Money =Greed and Greed =Wanting More and so they will screw you at every twist and turn. It's business.
There are a dwindling number of comic store owners who do well these days with a mindset of "Buy books. Sell books at reasonable prices. Make small profit to pay the bills and live on". I heard from someone who purchased two Avengers comics (1960s -#s 35 and 36?) for less than a store owner was charging for Action Comics #1000 out that week. Greed. You can still buy that issue at a reasonable price if you avoid Ebay or Amazon (why would you pay triple or 8x the cover price for a copy from those dealers when you could walk to a comic store -iz oo scared of hurting youz likkle feeties by walking? awww).
But there are good store owners out there.
All the big fish eat and gorge first and until they are fit to burst (can I just sincerely apologise to any animal I mention here. Unfair I know). The "tiddlers" go hungry or grab a morsel if they can.
The Big 5 either get concessions on what they pay for tables/stands (tables -as if!) at events or they are not too worried because they make enough money. See, even convention organisers have the greed-lust: they WANT a big company at their event so they cut a deal and attendees make up the cash 'loss' with their getting even higher entrance fees. Oh, of course, the Independent publishers don't get any deals. They are the "minnows" hoping the pike does not see them.
This is getting very zoological, isn't it?
The thing is that no one really wants to talk or write about this or any of the negativity in comics. I post what I want and what I write and post is easily backed up and no one is really listening to those "comic book 'nice' guys" as much as they used to if they are interested in the comics industry.
Perhaps 99% of people who buy comics do not give a crap that this or that pioneer of the comics medium has fallen on hard times, is homeless or seriously ill and now REALLY need help from the fans they entertained and gave years of fun reading to. Their fellow pros will Tweet and mention how said creator was "a great stand up guy" or "I looked up to him when I got started" and so on. Bull shit. Are they helping their hero out in any way? Selling art to raise money to help? Doing sweet FA to help? Hey, those creators are still in dire straights -but....if they die think of the value of the books they worked on!!
Think I am joking with that last bit? If you do then you are deaf, dumb and blind. Gene Colan, John Buscema, Don Heck -the list goes on and on. "Aww" when they were ill or in financial need and that was it. They die -books they worked on start hitting the roof price-wise. Same as singers and music.
Big Elvis fan. Always have been. Each Thursday after I got paid I used to pop down to the local record store and look what was available. One day in August, 1977, I walked into the store and there was one Elvis LP left. It had been bursting with LPs the day before. I asked why they had removed them? "Didn't you hear? Elvis is dead and lunchtime we had people grabbing anything with his name on". That was a depressing day.
December, 1980. John Lennon was murdered and....yep. Suddenly everyone was a John Lennon fan. One fella I talked to in a record shop (we had them back then) complained all the Lennon records were gone. "But no one touched the Beatles singles?" I said pointing at the boxes. "Why?" he asked. "Well, John Lennon was one of the Beatles -wrote a lot of their songs and---" I never even finished because he was grabbing as much as he could from the Beatles before I finished.
It's a bit like Toys R Us and 95% of the toy
Wankers
Now, when it comes to comics it's the same thing. Just do your own research and don't take my word for it. You should never ever believe facts from comics media (who are just industry mouthpieces as has been proven repeatedly) nor from me -if you are really interested check for yourself.
But comics. There are many Independent creators out there as well as Independent publishers (me included) who produce good quality books -mostly in colour but black and white, too (Black Tower is Europe's largest publisher of b&w comics and graphic novels).
few years some new "comics alliance" will appear that announces how it is "going to change the comics industry" and make people understand there "is more than DC and Marvel out there". I can think of...five of these alliances in the UK since the 1990s. Lots of windy blow-hards who like to be the celebrity of the moment and see themselves as the "Russell Brand of comics" (yeah, remember how Brand was telling it like it is and was going to finally change the face of British politics forever? How'd that work out...well, quite well for the established Conservatives and Labour!). These alliance blow hards achieved just as much as Brand. Zero.
When it comes down to the gritty side of things it is not what these alliances can do for the struggling Independent publishers but what Independent publishers can do for them. Free books, fund-raisers, promoting them and then some realise...."we're promoting the people who are supposed to promote us...and we are not even getting mentioned!" Wait a year or so for the next alliance!
Here is the problem. Every Independent publisher can only rely on one person: his/herself. You produce a great series or book then okay. You pay a huge amount for an event table, you open an online store and use social media...you are not getting the sales. You need to try every and any possible outlet to get publicity and though publicity does not guarantee you will sell a lot or any books it shows people you are there. You build on that. You fight, kick, scream,spit, piss and shit -anything to let people know you are there and you have good books and -hopefully- one day (before you die) you might start getting sales.
I started Zine Zone, which became Zine Zone International, in 1984 to promote the Small Press and Independent comics. I wrote columns for Comics FX, I got mentioned several times in Amazing Heroes and on and on it goes. I published Comic Bits with the same aim. Back in 1997/98 I set up the first version of Comic Bits Online -moving from one blog provider to another as necessary -Yahoo 360 just closed and FreeServers experienced "traffic problems" when too many clicked on CBO and even WordPress had problems with the number of views each day for CBO. Blogger (with all its problems) has been CBOs home since late 2011 and almost 4 million views (just counting direct views of CBO) since then aint bad. I've weathered the internet crashes and little international internet wars (like the one since February this year) and 2000+ views a day -40,000 last month- is good, right?
Here is the whole joke to online stores and being Europe's largest publisher of Independent comics and using all social media to promote the store and books. Thousands see each posting. How many of those readers buy a book -even the cheapest? About four since 2017. Now if I experience that problem -and I have posted on a high number of others who have the same problem (some quitting comics)- what does that say?
Firstly, some publishers just do not try to use resources available. Not even 1% of Indie publishers try to get books reviewed on CBO. Titan Books, Cinebook the 9th art and other larger companies do and they do so for a reason. "I'd have to put a book in an envelope and pay to post it to you" is a whine I hear. That is 100% up to the publisher. Makes them a dumb-ass but it is their decision. If you have not even thought of sending out review copies to sites that do reviews (the number doing this is getting smaller by the year!) you should. I have often heard "Uh, if you buy a review copy I can send it to you post free". The words "fuck off" involuntarily burst from me in those circumstances.
I remember asking Chris Staros from Top Shelf Comix about review books -I still have the emails if he wants to dispute this- and a Bristol Comic Expo was coming up and he told me he would be there and to come and say "Hi" and he'd sort some books out for me. I did as he suggested and...I'd need to pay for the review books. "Fuck off that is not happening" I said as I turned and walked off. Top shelf press releases stopped appearing on CBO from that point (I think I even posted about this incident on the day). "Buy my comics and give me your money then you can promote me!" FRO.
The reviews posted on CBO are not just read by someone on the day and that is it. Titan Books "The Secret Service: Kinsman" was posted 24th March, 2014 -look to the right on this page: it is still in the top 10 reviews on CBO in 2018 -and people ARE buying the book because of it. Kult Creations Reverend Cross comics that were reviewed (past and 2018) are still being checked out and in the top 10-12 posts. Cinebook reviews going back to 2011 are still being read. Creator and publisher reviews are still being read -David Gordon's interview was first published in 2011 and is still in the top 3 items posted on CBO. Established big book publishing houses in the UK and USA who have branched out into graphic novels send their books to be reviewed -why?
If you do not see the benefit, potential benefit or any reasons why you should send books to CBO for review then there is your problem. Bill Black, publisher of AC Comics, in a letter I still have, from years ago (1999?) explained that there were so many comic publishers there was no point in taking free opportunities to get books reviewed and promoted. I think AC Comics is still going but ask most people and they have no idea what you are talking about.
As a publisher, if you take advantage of every opportunity to promote your books and no one buys -what is going on? Indie publishers doing their bit should get sales but they don't. They go out of business and some great comics and comic art is gone forever. Apparently "comic burning parties" are now a thing amongst Independent publishers who have given up. My first reaction was "WTF??" but they point out that they have "a ton of books" -literally- taking up room in the house or garage and no one wants to buy and "You can't really use comics as toilet paper" so why not party and have a burning. I get to that point I'm hanging myself.
The problem is not the genuine comic fan -and they are out there. They may not have heard of a company or its books. I assume some of the thousands per week viewing CBO are comic fans. Some 95% of those buying comics are the problem. The stupidity of still falling for the "comics are an investment" crap in 2018 is breath-taking. I see You Tubers talk comics and then "My advice on comics to invest in..." followed by their picks of recent books....I leave the channel. There is a reason why American Golden Age books are rare (in some cases not as rare as some claim) -Google it. Even Action Comics #1000 is not an investment. There are UK weekly comics that ran up to #1500 and beyond by the early 1960s. Multiple covers and print runs -Action Comics #1000 will be valuable. In 100 years time and when/if 96% of all copies in existence have been destroyed.
How is that investment looking now?
Really..."I have never read a Superman comic" and "I am not a Superman fan" with the added words "but this is #1000 and ought to be worth a bit in the future" added. Or buying up every copy and every alternate cover version in a store to "help support the comic community and industry"...I don't eat shit sandwiches. Greed.
Where was that mammoth? The mammoth was in this room when I started....
Look, if you are serious -serious- about being a comic fan. Of supporting Independent creators while they are alive...
Buy Independent Comics
And Gods help you if I stumble onto your video or blog and you announce proudly how you support Independent comics by "purchasing some Image and Dark Horse books"...I will put my hand down your throat, grab your lower intestine and pull it out while telling you I support Independent medical care.
Don't klack your mouth with a bunch of garbage.
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