For those who speculate in brand new comics...

[RockMyAmadeus]

....here's something to think about.

 

http://www.jimzub.com/the-reality-of-mainstream-creator-owned-comics/

 

 

I’m absolutely thrilled to be working in comics. I’m even happier that one of my major projects right now is a creator-owned comic series I have control of. Writing/Creating Skullkickers and being published by Image Comics is a thrill and an honor. They give me complete ownership and stewardship of my creation and that’s a rare thing in this industry. I want to make sure that’s all up front and very clear.

 

(UPDATE: I posted an update in February 2015 about how the comic market has changed over the past two and a half years and the expanded potential for creator-owned comics. A lot of the information in this article is still relatively accurate for low print run books, but I recommend checking out the new article as well to get a sense of the whole picture.)

 

A recent discussion I had about money making in comics took a weird turn and I realized that a lot of people make assumptions about how the financials break down in the comic business. Being published isn’t an instant key to fame and fortune.

 

Consider this…

 

 

 

…on a $2.99 cover-priced comic ($3, for simplicity’s sake):

 

-$1.40: 40-50% of that cover price goes to retailers, the people selling the comics to customers. This amount varies quite a bit based on the publisher and the number of copies ordered by the retailer, but is a base approximation. Retailers deserve their share for selling comics to their local customer base. They buy non-returnable product and take great risk each and every week. In many ways, they’re the distributor’s actual “customer”.

 

-$0.80: Printing is substantial (and it varies wildly based on the amount printed, paper availability, and press availability so this is NOT an exact figure). 80 cents is a pretty good benchmark for small print runs. On very low print runs (sub 3000), printing can cost more than $1.00 per copy, which really eats into the budget.

 

-$0.50: 1/6 of that cover price goes to Diamond, the distributor who solicits orders and ships comics to retailers. This varies based on shipping, gas prices, amount ordered and who the publisher is but it’s a good approximation. Diamond deserves their share for soliciting, storing and shipping comics to retail outlets. They’re an international distributor with lots of expenses to keep the system running.

 

Printing varies wildly, but let’s say 80 cents per issue holds true. With the remaining 30 cents per issue, the following has to be paid:

• Advertising/promotion.

• Publisher operation/office expenses.

• Money left over for the creative team to actually get paid anything.

• Profit?

 

On a print run of 5000 comics (and many, many creator-owned titles sell less than that in the current market), it means $1500 remains for those 4 important categories. Guess how that breaks down?

 

If the advertising cost was ZERO and publisher expenses were ZERO, then the writer and artist of a 20 page comic would each get $37.50 PER PAGE. Oops, no money in there for the cover art, sorry. Add in more people (inker, colorist, letterer, etc) and the amount gets split even further, but this is a BOGUS number. The publisher has expenses/staff to pay for.

 

The reality is that once the publisher takes their share of what’s left (and they absolutely deserve it), there may be no money left for the creative team, let alone advertising.

 

Even if the cover price was $3.99 for that same indy comic, the distribution and retailer amounts are percentages, not flat rates. An extra dollar for the comic doesn’t suddenly put an extra dollar in the creative payment pool. It gives about 40 cents more per issue for those 4 categories listed above. It’s quite helpful and can keep a book afloat, but doesn’t magically solve the equation.

 

Lastly, none of the above considers copies lost or damaged in transit that cost money to print but make ZERO dollars. A small percentage of books don’t make any money for anyone in this chain (except printers) when they’re wrecked or lost. Accidents happen.

 

The above is simplified. Percentages vary depending on the publisher, special discounts and order volume. Please don’t use these figures to make an exact budget for your future comic project.

 

Believe it or not, I’m not bitter about all of this. It’s the price of doing business in the mainstream comic industry via retail outlets and international distribution. That’s how it works. I just want to make it very clear so people understand what I mean when I say I’m not getting rich making my own comic. Skullkickers is the most expensive hobby I’ve ever had. ?

 

That’s why you should

• Support indy titles.

• Support creator-owned comics.

• Pre-order books you’re interested in from your local retailer.

• Tell your friends about books and help build support.

• Support Kickstarter campaigns for great independent comic projects.

• Buy direct from creators at conventions so that more of the cover price goes into their pocket.

 

Now you know.

 

There are other outlets and, when I get a bit more time, I’m going to talk about trade paperback collection/graphic novel sales, digital sales and convention sales. The above is the reality of small print run indy comics competing in the same sales space as mainstream pop culture icons like Spider-Man, X-Men or Batman. Mainstream retail production/sales relies on large volumes sold at deep discount. For every breakout Walking Dead there are thousands of titles that will never make a profit in the same space against that competition.

 

 

Keep in mind: because of the very tiny print runs of many independent comics, that the copy or copies you buy off the shelf may mean that someone who wanted the book to read, to enjoy, may not get the chance.

 

And that hurts creators, greatly, because while many books...like Skullkickers...enjoy great first issue sales, sales of subsequent issues fall off rapidly, because of the lack of availability at the stores (or being forced to pay a higher than cover price on the "after" market.)

 

And believe it or not, most creators aren't in this business to sell one issue of their work.

 

To be sure: I'm not at all talking about pre-orders. That's a great thing. And, because of the advances in technology we enjoy, what used to be two months is now as little as two weeks, whereby something can be ordered, and it won't affect the number of copies available to others.

 

Pre-orders are awesome, so if you believe in the speculative potential of a new book, by all means, pre-order the hell out of it.

 

But before grabbing those last 5 copies off the shelf at your local store, remember: that's 4 copies that aren't available to anyone else, and that hurts creators in the long run. I know the lure...believe me, I know the lure...but if you really care about the health of the market, and supporting creators, and creating (perhaps most importantly) NEW collectors...refrain from buying all the copies of that small press indy book until everyone has had a chance.

 

Something to think about.

 

[kimik]

This is exactly why Image does well even if so many of their new #1s do not. The safe money is in the publishing, not in being the creative team.

[porcupine48]

[Martin Sinescu]

Rock is on a roll this week.

 

The point about scarfing up low-print #1's is an excellent one and so very true. It also creates the false impression that there are several hundred or even thousand individuals out there that are into your project, when, in actuality, its inflated several times over because of speculation that won't be there when you print the second issue. Must make it hard for publishers to anticipate upcoming print runs.

[drotto]

Again we may also be looking at the problem of creating false demand with very low print runs. Companies are not in the business of losing money. They are not going to allow a large print run for an unproven title. So they allow these low runs to asses demand, and get some investment back. If a title hits, they can always print more. They will make the same amount even if it is a second run. The speculator on the other hand snatches up these low runs in the hope that it hits big. Speculators are not readers. The company then prints more based on this speculation, they are doing it on that and not a found audience. In the end you create a short lived title based on speculation and not establishing a base that wants to read a book every month. In the end there were no readers only speculators.

[fastballspecial]

They wont care. People speculating on new issues don't care a lick about our industry for the most part.

[Gunnz]

They wont care. People speculating on new issues don't care a lick about our industry for the most part.

 

Nope. They care about money. No one wants #17 of any new series even if the story is great, unless its got a limited cover and a low print run. If enjoying books is your goal then CGC or any grading company forum is probably not where you are for the most part. I haven't read a book in forever, and my friends that do read the online stuff. I'm surprised print is still even a thing to be honest.

[Mercury Man]

And even more discouraging is that they get encased in a sealed time capsule, and you can't even read the goodness, or oodle the artwork inside.

 

Ironic.

[fastballspecial]

They wont care. People speculating on new issues don't care a lick about our industry for the most part.

 

Nope. They care about money. No one wants #17 of any new series even if the story is great, unless its got a limited cover and a low print run. If enjoying books is your goal then CGC or any grading company forum is probably not where you are for the most part. I haven't read a book in forever, and my friends that do read the online stuff. I'm surprised print is still even a thing to be honest.

 

Actually print in comics is on the rise for once. Its one of the few mediums that has resisted digital.

 

[N/A]

[Santos208]

They wont care. People speculating on new issues don't care a lick about our industry for the most part.

 

This! Many of them don't read comics and are just in it for $$

[ParamagicFF]

There are also LCS that create this problem. Its all too common that once a book generates heat it comes off the shelf and gets a markup. I've seen this within the first week of release at times.

[Owsler]

I bought my comics through the 90s and funnily enough while every issue tried to draw you in like it was selling to a magpie there was plenty of stock available. Not sure what's going on these days. So many publishers pushing the limited runs/variants to the point where I've not seen a single copy of Animosity, for example, outside of issue 1.

[fastballspecial]

There are also LCS that create this problem. Its all too common that once a book generates heat it comes off the shelf and gets a markup. I've seen this within the first week of release at times.

 

If the buyers have a few days to buy the book and then the LCS marks them up I am okay with that.

 

LCS has a right to make money too. Now if they mark up the 1st few days then that's shady, but after buyers have had a few days to buy I am fine with that. They gotta eat too.

 

[SquareChaos]

This is exactly why Image does well even if so many of their new #1s do not. The safe money is in the publishing, not in being the creative team.

 

All other things being equal, it's certainly safer than being the creator... but we shouldn't act like they're rolling in cash. This is the print industry after all, and while the rumors of it's death have been ... moderately... exaggerated, I don't know if I'd still call the field a going concern.

[krighton]

how can i stop the next greedy guy who sees them from grabbing them all...i'm just keeping them out of the hands of evil investors .

[Pinky Lee Zepplin]

how can i stop the next greedy guy who sees them from grabbing them all...i'm just keeping them out of the hands of evil investors .

 

It's really up to the store to institute a 1 or 2 copy per customer rule. My local shop limits each person to 1 copy. Which is uber-stringent, but it also prevents people from buying all the copies. I'd be happy with a 2 issue limit, one for storage/grading, one for reading, but if more stores did this, it would help eliminate this issue you speak of.

 

I pre-order titles I'm interested in sitting on and/or grading lots of. I have no problem with in store limits and ultimately it's good for the industry. We need new fans, we need new readers, no current books on the shelves makes attracting new fans harder to accomplish.

[ParamagicFF]

There are also LCS that create this problem. Its all too common that once a book generates heat it comes off the shelf and gets a markup. I've seen this within the first week of release at times.

 

If the buyers have a few days to buy the book and then the LCS marks them up I am okay with that.

 

LCS has a right to make money too. Now if they mark up the 1st few days then that's shady, but after buyers have had a few days to buy I am fine with that. They gotta eat too.

 

I understand they need to profit, it's just short sighted. Instituting a 1-2 issue limit ensures you will have them for a longer period. You will still profit like you expected to from selling what you ordered, and when more people come to check it out because of the buzz, you will have them. You will also be known as a comic shop that has books.

 

Readers seeing a first issue of a series is on sale for $10 within the first few weeks wont have a chance to investigate the series, and potentially buy future issues.

 

This has personally kept me off a few books. Not everyone scouts previews and comic news sites to know exactly what to buy before it comes out for preorders. And if I have to do all that, then the LCS actually provides no service, and im better off saving money with mail order.

[kimik]

If you are speculating on new books then you should be using a discount service to buy them in bulk, or just ask your LCS if they will match the discount service prices. While I believe that stores can't sell at their Diamond rate, they may be willing to give you a better than file discount on a large enough bulk order.

 

From the feel good perspective, this can help your LCS achieve a variant level from the publisher, and by bulk ordering in advance you support the indie creators while also leaving copies on the shelf for people to buy to read.

[the authority]

how can i stop the next greedy guy who sees them from grabbing them all...i'm just keeping them out of the hands of evil investors .

 

It's really up to the store to institute a 1 or 2 copy per customer rule. My local shop limits each person to 1 copy. Which is uber-stringent, but it also prevents people from buying all the copies. I'd be happy with a 2 issue limit, one for storage/grading, one for reading, but if more stores did this, it would help eliminate this issue you speak of.

 

I pre-order titles I'm interested in sitting on and/or grading lots of. I have no problem with in store limits and ultimately it's good for the industry. We need new fans, we need new readers, no current books on the shelves makes attracting new fans harder to accomplish.

 

Our largest LCS instituted this policy and I haven't stepped foot in the store for the 2 years since they did. The owner explained to me that only 8% of his total sales were back issues. This is ironic since back issues also represented the majority of his total inventory. MTG and other games were providing the majority of his income but he was using approximately 80% of his space for comics and TPB . Units sitting as inventory are a cost to a business. If you save a copy for everyone, you do away with demand and urgency. You make a certain group of buyers happy. On the other hand, another group of buyers spends considerably less or even no money on your books. Having successfully worked in a goods based business for the last 25+ years, this philosophy is baffling to me. Pure readers will do what I do when they miss a book and read it digitally or chase it down on ebay.

 

This is not meant to be a knock on all shops. If a shop supports their customers, then customers should certainly support their LCS. If however that shop makes sure that no one wins, then everybody loses and I certainly wouldn't support that shop.