ComixStreet Recap #4
Item 1- The iPad Cometh
So…The iPad.
On the off chance you’ve been living under a rock and haven’t heard, Apple has finally unveiled its long rumored new tablet/e-book reader/ portable digital media device. It’s been both lauded as the next must have device and a Kindle killer, and dismissed as a let down…nothing more than an oversized iPod touch.
Regardless of your take, members of the comics creating (and consuming) community are paying major attention to the device. Is the iPad the future delivery platform of comics?
Why I’m going to get one (eventually)
- I’ve been in the market for a new laptap. However, when I think about it, I really only want a laptop for portable play- music, internet, that sort of thing. I’d still do the real work (writing, coloring and lettering comics, etc.) tethered to my desktop. This device looks like it could satisfy my laptop needs and save me from buying one.
- I want an e-book reader- for comics, for PDFs, etc. I had no interest in the Kindle with its black and white screen, but this…I could get very into.
Why I’m waiting for iPad Rev 2 (at least)
- The price tag- While Apple made a point to price the iPad aggressively, given their history of dropping price points relatively quickly, I’m willing to see if I can get more bang for my buck later.
- No front facing camera- This seemed like a no-brainer. Given the explosion of live streaming sites like…er, LiveStream and UStream, an integrated front facing camera would allow easy real-time broadcasting and simple video conferencing. I’m sure this will be coming to the device…and I’m gonna wait for it.
- No multitasking? This was a major bummer. Can you really not listen to music and read a book at the same time? That just seems like a bizarre design decision, given the way people operate these days. I’ve got to think they’ll fix that immediately.
What I’m worried about
Many comic creators are excited about the iPad as a distribution vehicle for comics, and over the next several months, both indy and mainstream publishers will be rolling out plans to get their stuff on the iPad. But this Twitter exchange between creator Stephen Lindsay and ComiXology gave me pause:
@comiXology – how come the link to Jesus Hates Zombies on this page no longer works?!? http://tinyurl.com/ygd4dqx
@StephenRL Apple deemed it inappropriate according to their SDK guidelines, unfortunately. We signed on to those guidelines, so… =(
Note, ComiXology was publishing JHZ on it’s iPhone app, but recently removed it, which is what Stephen was asking them about. What scares me here is that Apple already is censoring comics material that is being released for the iPhone and will likely extend that to the iPad. And if the iPad becomes the new newstand for comics, I’m worried many great comics will be banned. Apple reserves the right to reject any comic it determines to be “obscene, pornographic, offensive, or defamatory.” Jesus Hates Zombies, in their opinion, falls in under that broad umbrella. Apple could quickly become the defacto arbiter of what makes it on the virtual shelves of its device, and could potentially be more powerful than the comics code authority ever was. I’ll be keeping my eye on this as it plays out.
BTW, worth a listen is this great podcast featuring some major players in digital comics from Iverse, IDW, and ComiXology.
Item 2- Comic Book Scripts
There is no one way or standard format to write a comic script. However, some approaches are clearly better than others. Still, I always encourage writers to not get hung up on issues of formatting at the expense of working on their story. Find a basic format or approach to scripting that works for you, and roll with it.
The best book I’ve come across as a resource for comic book scripts is Panel One: Comic Book Scripts by Top Writers. It’s a great book with excerpts from actual comic scripts along with interviews from the authors, including the likes of Kurt Busiek, Neil Gaiman, Greg Rucka, Kevin Smith, Marv Wolfman and more.
Another great online resource is the Comic Book Script Archive, a blog that’s been posting actual scripts from top talent. There’s some quality content over there, including scripts from Ron Marz, Brian Bendis, B. Clay Moore, and (er) more. Check it out.
And while you’re looking at scripts, to get a sense of how I do it, check out my script to ICE: Interrogation Control Element, a comic that was featured last summer at Zuda comics.
Item 3- Indy Comic Adverts
Indy Comic Adverts is an idea that seemed to spring on the heels of Independent Comic Book Day. In their words:
“Indy Comic Adverts is an organization for independent comic book creators. We give free samples of our comics to comic book stores to give out to their customers once a month every month. This gets indie comic book creators into stores and out to the public. By giving stores 1 copy of our comics each month, they can see which comics are doing the best. At that point they can request to purchase your comic directly from you cutting out the distributor!
Joining ICA is easy. There is very small monthly fee of $2 USD. The fee is mainly to help with shipping cost. After that you just send us at least 1 to 5 comics each month to be shipped to the comic shops and fill out a sign up form and you’re done!”
My take: First, I do love the spirit of ICBW, and I admire any creators in the comics space willing to try new things and think outside the box. However, I don’t quite see the value premise here. Paying a middleman a monthly fee to ship your books to a comic shop willing to give your comic away for free doesn’t seem like a great use of your marketing budget. I really don’t understand the line about stores being able to see which comics are doing the best, because they’re giving them away. Am I missing something?
Item 4- Public Domain Hero’s
Kid Tyrant by Greg Giordano
Greg Giordano‘s been doing a cool project on his blog. Check out his Public Domain Character of the the Day sketches.
Greg’s been drawing guys like Kid Tyrant, Black Satan, Miss Masque, Atoman, and a host of other characters you and I have probably never heard of.
Who knew all of these characters were free to use and abuse?
Item 5- Great Marketing/Annoying Comic Reading Experience
Great piece recently on Comic Vine.
A rule of good marketing is that it’s something that is “remarkable” or worth talking about. Clearly, Mass Effect‘s campaign in recent DC books did just that. But boy does it hurt the comics reading experience.
You know, sometimes I belabor price points and such, not wanting to charge more than the cheapest books put out by the Big Two for my comics. But hey, my books at least offer an uninterrupted reading experience. And you just can’t get that from Marvel and DC these days.
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The ComixStreet Recap posts every other Thursday at TylerJamesComics.com. Pass it along if you know someone who might enjoy it. And If you’ve got a story or a link you think might interest me and the readers of ComixStreet, feel free to email me at tylerjamescomics@gmail.com, send me a Tweet @tylerjamescomic, or leave a comment below.
Previous Columns
ComixStreet Recap #1: Welcome to ComixStreet…Lee Nordling’s ComicsProPrep…DC’s Earth One…JAVILAND Podcast…Indy Comic Book Week
ComixStreet Special Comment: Webcomics.com Becomes a Subscription Service
Filed Under: ComixTribe
hey Tyler,
Do you know of any good public domain character databases online? I know of the UK site, but I can’t help to think there is more. Thank you for the awesome articles.
- henry
Hey Henry.
Try this one: http://www.publicdomainworks.net/work/
Also, like for so many other things, Wikipedia is a great source for uncovering stuff in the public domain.
For the iPad, if it’s like the touch or iPhone, you can play music (or talk on the phone) while running most apps. Obviously if the app involves sound it will shut down your music. You can’t run two apps simultaneously. So you could listen to music and read a book, but you’d have to completely exit the app for the book to surf the web, and your music would be playing the whole time.
I think the iPad could be good for web comics and other indie comics, but I’ve heard a lot of people talking about mainstream comics on the iPad, and that’s not going to happen. They’ve been talking about paper comics going online or on the computer for what, 20 years? The comics market has gone online and onto computers, but they’re playing video games, not buying comics.
Thanks for the the perspective about what can and can’t be done with multi-tasking, Ben.
I disagree with your assessment on mainstream comics, though Ben. I think mainstream comics will have a big presence on the iPad, same as major book publishers and textbook companies. The walkman did not shake up the recording industry. But the iPod most certainly did. DC and Marvel will not be ignoring this.
I didn’t mean to say that it wouldn’t happen at all, I just don’t see it taking off with consumers. I think we’ll definitely see something major from Marvel on the iPad (Steve Jobs owns Marvel, so that’s a no-brainer), and probably DC too, and I’m interested to see how it goes, but I’m highly skeptical.
I don’t think the problem has ever been the lack of effort as far as new media from the publishing end, I just don’t think the average consumer wants it. I think video games ARE digital comic books. They aren’t the same thing in a lot of ways, but if you look at the market, that’s where that age group goes now, and the comic market is getting older and older. Thirty years ago, a 27 year-old such as myself would have been an old guy at a comic convention. Today, I’m one of the youngest dealers, but I’m too old to play video games online without getting demolished by some 14 year-old.
That’s my assessment of the situation. I’m not cheering against comics, I just don’t see it happening. Comics are still a niche medium and I don’t see a change in platform taking hold. I probably also wouldn’t have predicted that web comics would have had the success that they have had, even though looking back it makes complete sense why so many of them have worked, so you can take my opinion for what it’s worth.
Thanks allot for the mention and using my Steel Fist art in the banner! I’ve just posted my treatment on crimefighters, 13 & Jinx- http://flameape.org/2010/02/22/public-domain-hero-day-13-jinx/ Next one will be Nightmare and Sleepy!
If you’re looking for Public Domain Superheroes- go directly to The Public Domain Superheroes Wikia- http://pdsh.wikia.com This is by far the best place to start for researching this part of our Golden-Age heritage.
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