So i’m working away on issue one. Apologies for neglecting the regular news updates here. My plan is indeed to lay out the process, so i’ll post more often.
At right is a 72 pixel square sample from page 12. I thought it’d be aw-shucks-sweet to post a small sample from the latest work with every news update. Keep in mind that i’m drawing at 300 dpi, so it’s sometimes hard to find 72 little pixels to be uber proud of. … but there they are. (kyle’s face. i just dug how a few simple lines captured his mood and likeness.)
Currently the plan is to have all my art (21 pages, plus cover. plus 3 inside filler pages i guess) done by friday, so i can put it all together over the weekend and send off for printing on monday. Not sure if jonason will have his 10 page bonus story ready in time, because i can’t get a straight answer about his progress (and i probably should have been moreserious about pestering him for the past couple weeks. oop?)
I should maybe risk making this post over long to ask: how much would you pay for a 32 page comic? It’ll cost around 3.25 to print. so my plan is to set the top price at 4.99 (which is what you’ll see on the physical comic, and what you’ll find if you stumble across it through comiXpress’s online store). This is just gambling that some fat cats might have the money to burn on random shit at comiXpress, and not a price i expect anyone to pay. So i’ll print a “special!” sticker for any comic shop i can get to carry it, for just $3.99, and ask them to pay me 2 or 3 bucks each. Figure i’ll give them a free one up front to see if it grabs their attention. Don’t really expect many shops to bother. So i’ll offer each issue for 2.99 at any tradeshows or appearances (along with notable discounts on everything else i’ll be selling). Hopefully creating an incentive/relationship with people to come to the damned shows! And then i’ll make an 8 page mini comic and sell it for a buck, just to gauge interest (and the mini comic is planned as a mystery which drives you to the website). It’s all an experiment in figuring out what people will pay. One thing i learned at stumptown was that you have to treat a self published comic like a loss leading marketing material, because people don’t like to spend more than a buck. Not sure anyone else has learned this lesson yet.
well. i mention the pricing because it’s still forming, and i’d appreciate feedback. More later!