I gave up promoting books online at around 0230 hrs this morning.
As I did not sleep I took a serious look at things.
I put a lot of work into this Face Book pageI checked. 500 views in a week and out of those only 3 bothered to click "Like" -the best way of showing support and getting BTC&B noticed more. Seriously, THAT difficult to click "Like".
Also, I ran through the latest blog figures -not including social media etc but just the blogs.
Total views: 4, 254,510
And three sales since 2018.
I check the online story daily as part of the routine. For the last few years this has been constant zeros with the occasional sale.
John Spencer comics in the 1960s was partly killed off because comic fans did not buy and wanted the full colour US comics. Decades later the exploitationists are trying to sell thpse comics for extortionate prices.
In the 1980s the same thing happened to Alan Class but then the exploitationists jumped in to claim him and hoist prices on books beyond anything justifiable.
In my case, the 'comic community' has been purely negative and offered no support -whilst taking as much free publicity as it can. Comic fans do not really exist any more and the ones whop claim to support Independent comics rarely do.
If you read online how so-and-so has put their money where their mouths are and have bought or are going to buy my books: they are liars. I see any sales and they have not happened.
Unlike Class or Spencer no exploitationists will make any money from me when I croak and claim "rare" or "extremely rare". I have the copies of all my books that I need and I know for a fact that those, like my comic collection, are either going to be burnt or dumped in a bin -my family have told me so. My books will be beyond very rare...if copies exist.,
What I decided early this morning is that Black Tower Comics & Books will continue until my next birthday in 2020 (IF I live that long!). If the situation remains the same as the last few years there is no point going on.
The online store will close. All my comic blogs will close. This FB page will go.
I doubt that my love of comics will ever go but working 19-22 hours a day (insomnia since I was a nipper) to promote and try to sell books that no one wants is time consuming. I'd like to do more in my later years than go through daily misery.
So 6th June 2020 will be the cut off date but I'm not promising that it won't happen before. No one has interest in my books while I am alive so screw them when I'm gone !
End of announcement
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