FFF Results Post #141—Hard Times



On Friday, CR Readers were asked to "Finish At Least Five Of The Following Sentences About Comics And The Economy." Here are the results.

*****

Oliver Townshend

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... no more Nexus.

2. I think you guys are entirely too worried about this stuff. What you're forgetting is...
... Australia isn't having a recession, and when I first bought comics they were Tintin and Asterix graphic novels.

3. It's already here. Case in point...
... eBay prices are down.

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that I...
... give up on some comics that come out in compiled form.

5. I figure I might cut my comics buying as much as...
... half, except there is always something new to buy whenever I give something up (e.g., Top 10 Season 2).

6. The first thing about comics I would give up if money got tight is...
... all of them. one can always buy again later, and cold turkey is the only way.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... Albedo #2.

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... waiting for Captain America, Daredevil and Invincible to come out in Graphic Novel. Although I often can't be bothered when they do.

9. I'm worried about my local retailer because...
... he might be hurt by the collapsing exchange rate

10. My local retailer will be fine because...
... he's got a good shop and has diversified into graphic novels in a big way

11. Comics should cost...
... what they cost.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... have a good range for kids - I tried to give my 7 year nephew comics for his birthday and I realised I didn't know what to give him.

13. The worst thing that comics could do right now is...
... publish more Mark Millar comics

14. The one thing I remember about comics the last time we had economic hard times is...
... not buying them for about 5 years. Since that was the the 90s and the comics were (generally) crap, I missed not much.

15. The Internet will save us all because...
... webcomics are fun if done right.

16. Forget about the Internet as a safe haven. What people don't realize is...
... my dog has fleas

17. A little downturn would be fine, actually. Comics has some fat it could stand to lose. Why, there's...
... always been bad crappy comics, and always will be

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... my 7 year old nephew was more excited to get a batman comic than a batman doll

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... Non Sequiter

20. The number of days before I'd realize the comics and/or the newspaper that carries them is gone is...
... 1

21. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012...
... 60

22. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year...
... umm, I rarely go.

23. Marvel and DC will have aggressive on-line comics programs in place by...
... Well marvel by the mid next year. DC no idea and don't care.

24. What you should have had on this list -- and I'll give you an answer, too, so you can see how good it would have been -- is...
... Name a good Comic you spent a lot of money on this week -- I read Chris Ware for the first time yesterday, and it wasn't as good as the latest Love & Rockets which I also bought, and my eyes hurt. Is #19 typical?

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... graphic novels, webcomics and a handful of pamphlets.

*****

Mark Ashworth

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that...
... I have already changed my habits from comic books to graphic novels (with only a very few exceptions). If another shift or change happens and the novels are no longer financially viable, then something else will be produced.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... my collection. I have saved every comic I have bought since 1984, expecting that someday, something might happen and I either couldn't or wouldn't buy new comics. I'll just go back and re-read them.

10. My local retailer will be fine because...
... he has diversified -- he owns other stores which have nothing to do with comics. His store may go down, but he won't.

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... as an art form, there will always be people who like to express themselves. The business of comics, however, will have as much trouble as any other business.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... different. How? Couldn't tell you. No one expected the independent comics that the Direct Market made possible, or the ease of distribution the Internet has created. You shouldn't trust anyone who knows where the next surprise is coming from.

*****



Kiel Phegley

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... honestly the idea that rough times for comics means rough times for comics-covering media outlets and that recently-minted fulltime freelancer me will be unable to find work. The longer I stick with this career (which I really love), the fewer other job options I have in front of me. And I really don't want to have to go back to school for a teaching certificate.

11. Comics should cost...
... less than mainstream magazines in their pamphlet form and less than or equal to prose books in their trade/graphic novel form. I don't think $2.99 or even $3.99 is too much to pay for 25 or so pages of story (I know the typical mainstream book is less, but cost benefit-wise, the format could maybe use a content boost) considering that the average magazine costs between $6 and $12. Plus, I think it's pretty much been proven that people in bookstores won't pay more than $25 for anything, and things that cost less are even easier buys. Comics can conform to that standard easily.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... diversify their delivery methods across the board. Right now comics can be sold by subscription, newsstands, comic shops, big box book stores, varied forms of digital delivery, book clubs, conventions and a few other methods that I'm not thinking of. Any publisher with a lick of business sense should be exploring as many of these as makes sense considering their available capital and preferred format, but everyone should be bracing their personal business plan up just in case of a collapse of either of the big two: the direct market or one or more big chain books stores.

17. A little downturn would be fine, actually. Comics has some fat it could stand to lose. Why, there's...
... the uselessly large amount of terrible comics printed and sold via the direct market with hopes of landing/promoting some brain dead film. The sooner we can thin the herd down to publishing professionals whose primary interest is comics as an art form rather than as a means to an end, the better we'll all be.

23. Marvel and DC will have aggressive on-line comics programs in place by...
... the time they figure out how to sell their most recent and most relevant comics online within days of their initial print release. If the goal of expanded online content is to draw in new (or more likely lapsed) readers, then untested web strips and traditional serials featuring characters too obscure to justify a print release are not sufficiently compelling released. Both companies have done pretty well over the last few years landing the news of their most buzz-worthy projects and properties in major media outlets, but if they really want non-fanboys to follow up on this stuff, then every "Captain America is dead" or "The Flash is back alive" type of story should end with the words "and you can read the story now by clicking here." If they can't figure out how to bring retailers along, then they'll eventually have to break from retailers. Sure, that's probably next to impossible, but that doesn't mean it isn't true. Given all the factors currently in play for the companies in today's market, I'd say the earliest such a system is figured out is 2025. If both are still publishing comics by then, of course.

*****

Grant Goggans

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that I...
... am going to have to reconsider many of the reprints I end up buying multiple times. I would love to have Fanta's big new Luba collection, but didn't I already buy all those stories at least twice already?

6. The first thing about comics I would give up if money got tight is...
... Marvel Essentials. I'm not sure they have anything essential left to repackage anyway, do they?

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... 2000 AD.

9. I'm worried about my local retailer because...
... the fellow nearest to me invested heavily in stocking Japanese comics, but didn't seem to do anything to let potential new customers know that his store is a place where you can buy them. Consequently, he's been scaling back, dumping manga in aggressive sales, and giving the space back over to superhero trades.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... put a stop to the continuity-wide crossovers.

17. A little downturn would be fine, actually. Comics has some fat it could stand to lose. Why, there's...
... this feature on the Sunday page of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution called Night Lights and Fairy Flights by Guy Gilchrist which can go first.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... having my son ask "Dad, do you want to read Doonesbury? on Sundays. This then prompts me to read it online so I can see the first two panels, which the AJC omits.

21. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012...
... Mike Luckovich will be syndicated.

22. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year...
... I think I'll just stick with Anime Weekend Atlanta. Thanks!

*****



Philip Eckert

6. The first thing about comics I would give up if money got tight is...
... monthly pamphlets. They're expensive, difficult to store, difficult to get out and re-read, and I've dropped them before back in the '90s.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... the next volume of Yotsuba&!.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... develop new methods of cheap serialization, either on the Web or in a newsprint phone book like Shonen Jump or Yen Plus. DC and Marvel need an economical way of hooking new readers on the serial comics form, and the current deluxe, all-colour, glossy-paper pamphlet format ain't it. (It's frequently ignored that virtually all of the manga we have access to here was originally serialized. Those manga volumes aren't graphic novels, they're trade paperbacks collecting material that has already proven popular with the public over months of serialization.)

13. The worst thing that comics could do right now is...
... continue to narrowcast to the same shrinking audience while hoping that the audience of the peripherally-related, highly-popular movies will somehow find them. Why would they? Why would someone who enjoyed spending a couple of hours watching Iron Man suddenly pick up the habit of traveling to a specialty store once a month to read five minutes worth of Iron Man's adventures?

21. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012 there will be...
30. Most will be in markets where there are two or more seriously competitive papers -- having a cartoonist who can reflect the local perspective in a pithy cartoon will offer a competitive advantage.

*****

Bill Williams

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... waiting for trades.

13. The worst thing that superhero comics could do right now is...
... another Summer of tedious crossovers.

15. The Internet will save us all because...
... we can buy comics in bulk on ebay.

21. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012...
... they will have started a breeding program to create a race of unfireable SUPER cartoonists.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... Didio-free (after he declares victory and returns to TV).

*****

Chris Randle

1. I've already changed my comics-buying habits by...
... pausing any attempts to fill out my library with older, non-canonized books. I'd bought up about half of Peter Milligan's Shade, for example, but the rest will have to wait until I can spare more cash.

2. My local retailer will be fine because...
... I'm lucky enough that it's The Beguiling.

3. Forget about the Internet as a safe haven. What people don't realize is...
... there's a chance that DC and Marvel, at least, are crippling themselves by declining to pursue a serious online strategy while successful webcomics are typically offering the basic strips for free. If or when they decide to bring in same-day downloads, they might discover that the audience is used to getting them for free.

4. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012...
... well, let me put it this way. If I was the editorial cartoonist at a mid-sized daily, I'd probably accept severance now.

5. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year...
... I'll still go, albeit only to local ones. I was hoping to visit MoCCA or SPX next year, and that looks unlikely at the moment.

*****



Charles Brownstein

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... a setback for more archival and experimental content coming out in graphic novel and non-traditional formats. Whether its one of IDW's beautiful strip collections or the Kramers Ergot the size of the CBLDF office, I could see a serious and prolonged recession diminishing both the audience and the capitol required to produce that sort of work.

11. Comics should cost...
... exactly what they do right now. While the periodical or pamphlet format may suffer in an environment where there's less money for their audience to buy them, I think that graphic novels are the dominant format for comics at this moment, and are priced in alignment with other media that provides comparable entertainment value for dollar. That is, Watchmen and Ghost World Special Edition clock in at about the same as the SRP for the Dark Knight DVD or a Criterion Collection art flick DVD, respectively. Both offer the reader a few hours of entertainment that can be revisited multiple times. The issue will be whether we can hold the $9.95 to $49.95 price range in the long run as global energy and supply trends remain volatile, and whether anyone gets paid if we hold that range.

14. The one thing I remember about comics the last time we had economic hard times is...
... much more widespread and substantive discussion of business practices in the trade media. Sure, some of it involved dippy, uninformed message board commentary, but there was also more investigative and advocacy journalism and opinion columns examining how the business functioned, how the business can change, and how we fit into the larger entertainment economy. I think some of that reporting informed the current generation of creators who are reaping the rewards of the graphic novel and adapted media booms we're currently enjoying. Also, I really miss seeing several news stories a month that weren't just about Spider-Man changing his pants.

17. A little downturn would be fine, actually. Comics has some fat it could stand to lose. Why, there's...
... probably more content coming out in any given month than our retailers in the book and direct market channels can possibly digest. Reducing our offerings overall may mitigate the effects of outgrowing the shelf space we are allotted. Likewise it may reduce some of the unrealistic expectations for large advances that seems to have developed in recent years. More competition for less shelf space could conceivably create better work, and a more healthy economy.

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... our formats, subject matters, and creativity align with 21st Century American audience desires. Comics now appear to enjoy a permanent position in the entertainment pantheon as both adapted media and trade fiction in its own right. Audiences have access to 70 years of work that ranges from bubble gum to filet mignon presented in affordable formats. I think the die-hard audiences reading sites like this will continue to support more adventurous and less commercial work, and I think that mainstream audiences of casual readers will continue to pick up the most recent media tie-in or notable graphic novel. I think we now have a generation of readers who are growing up with comics in all of the entertainment environments they inhabit, and I think we will retain a lot of those readers as casual customers, and a few of them as the next generation of die hards. I don't think that's going to go away just because people may need to discriminate more with their purchasing decisions for a few months or years.

*****

Tim O'Shea

10. My local retailer will be fine because...
... comics is just one of the things it sells, it also sells used CDs, Books, DVDs. The bookstore that serves as my retailer (and has since 1977) has never been solely a comic book store, so its not like the typical retailer, I realize.

13. The worst thing that comics could do right now is...
... panic. I don't have a great deal of economic intelligence, but I think it's fair to say the economy is fairly manic at present. To panic or take drastic measures in response could be a waste of time.

17. A little downturn would be fine, actually. Comics has some fat it could stand to lose...
... but only with the Big Two, in my opinion. Honestly, if DC came out with a book called Final Crisis: Constipation Chaos, I would not be shocked. We don't need a cancellation cavalcade, but a bit of rightsizing would not be a bad thing. (And DC is not alone, Marvel would sell Secret Invasion Versus Secret Invasion if they could come up for a plot for it). With less books to produce, hopefully editors will have more time to get creators to do a thing they don't do enough: revise. The slices of pie will be smaller, I know. And there will be less folks on staff to make the pie. But with any luck the pie will taste better.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... that a child and parent would miss out on the opportunity to reveal the child knew how to read. Back in the early 1970s, my family first realized I could read when I told my sister that Basil had returned to Brenda Starr. That revelation led to me being promoted to a more advanced kindergarten and was the first time I realized being able to read was an asset.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... changed to a great degree, but still going strong. It's an industry full of people that are as business-savvy and ambitious as they are creative. The comic book publisher that mixes a conservative business approach tinged with a willingness to take the right chances with the best product will succeed. But I really hope the creators who currently commit to projects and fail to deliver in a timely manner (you know who you are) are busy missing deadlines in another industry in five years.

*****



Mark Coale

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... Usagi Yojimbo. I've been reading it since the Fantagraphics days and there is probably no more reliable book, in terms of quality and punctuality, in the indsutry.

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... thinning out my monthly pre-order. I'm less likely to take a flier on new books that "might" be entertaining and sticking mostly to things I regularly purchase.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... have the Big Two finally develop an affordable and legal on-line delivery system.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... rolling my eyes over the absurdity of strips like Cathy and Family Circus.

22. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year...
... I will probably go to the same number, depending on if we publish any new issues or not. There are enough 'local' shows on the East Coast that travel costs would not be that much of an issue.

*****

Dimetri Walker

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... that publishers might get the pea-brained idea that it just isn't worth it to print comics anymore and try and deliver all of their content online. But, see 18.

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that I...
... might stop buying back issues on eBay, that just ain't doing anybody any favors.

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... I firmly believe that people will always prefer to read a comic that they can hold in their hands and that comes out monthly(ish) and that is pamphlet shaped and that smells like a comic smells and etc. At least I hope so.

22. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year...
... I'm going to try and go to three or more.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... where I spend the greatest percentage of my entertainment budget

*****

Grab Bag

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... the ability of smaller publishers both to complete their reprint projects of various well-known comics ouevres and to publish new comics (floppies or books) by newcomers. It's thrilling to go to any of those publishers' websites and see a range of publications that reflects the diverse history of comics but also a vision for the future of comics. I expect a recession would force such publishers to make tough decisions about whether to maintain a commitment to publish the complete Dennis the Menace or to publish books by the next R. Kikuo Johnsons.

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that I...
... will continue to buy those books that I know that I want, but I will be less likely to buy an unfamiliar book that is highly recommended. Or I will buy it much later, used, from a seller on Amazon.

6. The first thing about comics I would give up if money got tight is...
... The Comics Journal. The interviews are often indispensible, and the comics reprints are fun, but the price is just creeping up too much.

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... not buying those luxury items I would otherwise love to have. Kramers Ergot #7. The Sunday Press edition of Gasoline Alley. Maybe the Humbug books.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... to find a profitable way to market comics in serial fashion on the internet such that compensation provides enough incentive to creators to keep going until there's enough material to produce a physical book. There should be good webcomics for all ages available on the internet so that kids who spend most of their disposable time staring at their computer screens and iPhones will find the content in the places they're already looking.

*****

Mike McGhee

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... they would shrink far enough to lose their power as under/ground-level root culture.

3. It's already here. Case in point...
... very few serious social upstarts buy heavily.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
...making them.

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... quitting purchasing.

11. Comics should cost...
... $4-$8 for 300-page monthly magazines, with current trade pricing adjusted downward 10-15% where possible.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... use some investment capital and try something even more radical than Minx, like a proper newsstand assault. See #11, and think about something like Trinity, 52, or the current Spider-Man, format as the front end of a '...Presents' title with cool reprints for the back one-half to two-thirds. A title like House of Mystery would be even more aptly suited for this, as it would allow for original material to be cycled through in short story and arcing formats.

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... they're a medium, and those never die.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... gone, along with rest of the planet post-2012.

*****

Buzz Dixon

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is
... downloading 'em for free off the Internet.

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... not buying any (I get the trade paperbacks and original GNs instead)

10. My local retailer will be fine because...
... they know how to diversify their stock.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... stop publishing as much crap in the same genre.

13. The worst thing that comics could do right now is...
... keep publishing more crap in the same genre.

*****



Chris Duffy

1. My local retailer will be fine because...
... they also sell paintball supplies, video games, board games, role playing games, and are at a dirt-cheap strip mall.

2. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that I...
... live in an area with a very manga/graphic novel-friendly library system.

3. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... Mutts collections.

4. Marvel and DC will have aggressive on-line comics programs in place by...
... the time nobody cares anymore.

5. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... the form can fit into people's lives nicely.

*****

Dimitris Sakaridis

11. Comics should cost...
... two dollars! TOPS!

16. Forget about the Internet as a safe haven. What people don't realize is...
... that the average user logs on to the web for FREE stuff and s/he won't pay (not 'serious' money, anyway) for online access to whatever stuff comic companies can provide. Unless we're talking about porn, which is a whole other discussion!

21. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012...
... there'll only be half of them left. If even that!

23. Marvel and DC will have aggressive on-line comics programs in place by...
... the day before Hell freezes over. Maybe a couple of days later.

25. In five years, the comics industry will...
... still be here, but not in a very good shape. Kinda like now, I suppose.

*****

Josh Fitzpatrick

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that...
... I already had to cancel my Kramers Ergot pre-order from Amazon.

6. The first thing about comics I would give up if money got tight is
... all non Marvel and DC books.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... anything by D&Q, Fanta, Top Shelf, Oni Press and all the other small publishers putting out quality books.

13. The worst thing that comics could do right now is...
... big event books, and the fact that most Marvel/DC books take five minutes to read and not a darn thing happens.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... hopefully still around.

*****

Shannon Smith

9. I'm worried about my local retailer because...
... they are not diverse enough. They depend on Marvel and DC way too much. They are only now getting into graphic novels and they apparently have no interest in manga or alternative comics. They are about twenty years behind where they should be.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... simplify, simplify, simplify. Simplify the production of the comics themselves. Look to Shonen Jump as an example. Maybe even abandon color. Use cheap paper. Maybe even use cheap paper for the covers. It's about the quantity of the product and quality of the content not the quality of the cover or the paper. Also simplify how they make them. Cut the art team in half. Hire artists or studios that will take care of the pencils, inks, colors, letters etc. all at once. The title page should only be crediting two or three people. Making comics is not that freaking hard. Comics by committee are not working out that well these days. Every artist these days can ink and color and letter. Yeah, this might slow down the individual artist but this leads to my next point... Comics need multiple stories. Shorter stories, not longer. Again, look to Shonen Jump. Instead of five Superman comics, you have one Superman comic with three or four creative teams on it. Each doing shorter stories, or at least multiple stories each having a shorter page count per issue. Maybe one ongoing serial story per comic with a set team then a rotating cast of back-up creators. I think the ongoing serial story should be no more than one third of the comic. That way, each self contained artist or team can knock out 8 to 24 quality pages every month and you pack the multiple stories/teams together in an awesome mag with lots of variety. Imagine a Superman with a 20-page story by a strong team like Morrison and Quitely with an eight pager by a fan favorite like Paul Pope, throw in some one pagers by indie guys that are used to pulling that kind of thing off, a couple of 8 to 12 page short stories featuring some fan favorite back up characters... I'd buy it!

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... comics themselves are addictive. The medium or art form is addictive. If you put a comic in front of a person, they can't not read it. The internet will help in putting them in front of people. We just need to figure out how to get high traffic sites that pay for ads to realize they can drive repeat readers if they have regularly updated comics. I'm not talking comics web sites. I'm talking having a three or four panel comic on the side bar of Cnn.com or Google. Beyond that, embedded comics areas on all your social networking sites. This is how YouTube took off but comics can be more profitable than YouTube because you can have a paper product to sell that people will want to hold in their hands. Hopefully you build enough of a fan base that some of them will buy the paper collection.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... I'm lucky. The papers here still run about as many comics as they ever have. National news ignores this area so the regional papers are still important and apparently sell well enough to keep the comics going.

15. The Internet will save us all because...
16. Forget about the Internet as a safe haven. What people don't realize is...
... I think it is both of these. It can save us but it won't as is. The idea of building comics communities like Zuda and ComicSpace or comics subscriptions like what Marvel and DC are investing in won't save anything. It's just moving an audience from one format to another format. What has to happen is to build a new audience and the internet can do that but it won't be on comics only sites. It will be getting comics on existing sites and social networking tools. It has to be Internet 2.0 and beyond. It has to be people in their office going, Hey did you see that comic on CNN? No? Here, I'll forward it to your Facebook. Oh, you are offline? I'll send it to your cell. You can't expect the audience to come to you. You have to go to the audience.

*****



Lee Leslie

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... talented creators leaving the field for more lucrative work.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... comics drawn by Mike Mignola

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... giving up on cross-over events.

11. Comics should cost...
$1.99

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... produce a quality product.

*****

Marc Arsenault

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... my own potential income as an artist.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... them existing at all. The thing I miss now is the physical size, the massive presence of a newspaper.

14. The one thing I remember about comics the last time we had economic hard times is...
... selling them off by the boxload

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... worry about issues other than money, like artists' rights

23. Marvel will have aggressive on-line multi-platform digital delivery of their comics by...
... 2010. Kindle, iPhone and Skyvann users will have instant access to the entire history of four-color excitement from the house of ideas available to purchase with a single click. DC will almost certainly continue to get it wrong for several more years. Other companies are already way ahead of them both.

*****

Sean Kleefeld

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... switching to reading online comics (legally) instead of pamphlets. There were some other economic factors in play besides just the economy, but the upshot is the same: I wanted to continue reading comics but couldn't afford to buy as much as I wanted to read. Initially, it was a difficult transition, not unlike trying to switch between Marvel and DC books to independent ones. What's out there? Who's work is worth looking at? Whose recommendations can I trust? But, ultimately, as a fan of the medium of comics, it's proven to be satisfying in nearly all the same ways that reading pamphlets books were.

9. I'm worried about my local retailer because...
... it's a relatively new store (five years old) and I saw more people cut back or drop their regular books altogether before I left than I saw new people come in. They have other revenue streams besides superhero comics, and there's a gaming crowd distinct from the Wednesday set. But I have to imagine that the same economic hardships facing comic fans is also touching the gaming industry. With a few exceptions, I believe most comic shops run relatively thin margins, and I don't think it'll take much to push any given shop from black to red. While they've managed to be successful enough to make it past the estimate of 50% of all businesses failing within the first four years, they're still young enough that I'm not certain that they'll be able to weather a significant recession just yet.

15. The Internet will save us all because...
... there are minimal entry barriers for creators, publishers and customers. Publishers have been seeking an elusive increased audience for years -- it's one of the reasons the direct market exists. Because the entry barriers for customers is so low online (any computer with an internet connection, neither of which need to actually be paid for by the customer) there are a number of people reading online comics who wouldn't otherwise be reading them. I understand xkcd gets 60-70 million page views per day. Even if most of those are casual viewers, that's still an impressive number of eyeballs who see that comic, compared to the 100,000 or so who read Uncanny X-Men once a month.

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... the combination of words and pictures is an almost universal form of expression. We could go through some kind of worldwide cataclysm that makes the planet look like something from Thundarr the Barbarian, and people will still uses a combination of words and pictures to tell stories. Mankind has been making comics in some form for at least 5000 years -- saying that comics will suddenly go away is like saying storytelling will become non-existent. The business landscape of comics might look vastly different even a dozen years from now, but comics as a medium aren't going anywhere.

22. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year I...
... have zero plans on attending any conventions. If my financial situation improves dramatically, I might go someplace close like SPACE, but I doubt I'll be in that much better off financially by April. Don't expect to see me anywhere but online in 2009.

24. What you should have had on this list -- and I'll give you an answer, too, so you can see how good it would have been -- is...
... I think the biggest comics-related victim of the lousy economy will be...
... Creatively, I think comics will actually improve. Much as a bad economy tends to elicit more business start-ups in general, I think the desperation individuals face will lead to more creativity in comics and the marketing efforts surrounding them. While those creators might be running lean operations, they're going to work extra hard to attract a regular audience. So the fans, ultimately, win with more comics of higher quality. I think this will also prove to be liberating for creators, making their work more emotionally rewarding, even if it's not entirely financially rewarding. The biggest losers, I think, will be the larger publishers whose size inhibits quick business manuevering and whose infrastructure is more bloated. I expect we'll be seeing upcoming layoffs among the larger players and, as Marvel and DC make money from licensing than from comics, I suspect that means cutbacks will come from the pulped wood divisions of those companies.

*****

Marc Mason

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... sitting at lunch every day and reading the work of a number of incredibly skilled cartoonists who have mastered the strip format. As much as I love a number of strips that appear online, the tangible sensation of holding the paper in my hand cannot be replaced.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... the work of those who never let me down. For instance, as long as I have dollars in my wallet, I will own Kyle Baker's work. Period.

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... that Marvel and DC lack the common sense to maintain their readership through it. The sheer number of stupid tie-ins to Final Crisis and Secret Invasion shows a distinct lack of vision as far as sustainability goes. Your audience has less money to spend- gouging them for an event is only going to drive them away.

10. My local retailer will be fine because...
... I don't use a brick and mortar store as my local retailer. Businesses like DCBS will only grow as comics get more expensive.

11. Comics should cost...
... two dollars or less for the 32-page (22-pages of story) pamphlet format. Anything else is excessive. The 16-pages of story Astonishing X-Men: Ghost Boxes for four bucks is the height of pricing arrogance for Marvel.

*****

Colin Panetta

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... ceasing purchasing a bunch of crap that I didn't really like anyway, at least not enough to pay the amount I was to read them. I've also made an effort to buy more self-published comics.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... stop making movie pitch supplements, and re-start making comics properties that are born out of comics history.

15. The Internet will save us all because...
... it has the potential to take a lot of the middlemen out of art, and allow more artists to get discovered on their own merits. You don't need to be business savvy, personable, or have great knowledge of distribution to get your work on the Internet.

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... people will definitely always be drawing them, and people will probably always buy them -- it'll just be in some weird form that we haven't figured out yet.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... not having something to do for ten minutes at my grandparent's house.

23. Marvel and DC will have aggressive on-line comics programs in place by...
... the time someone else has already figured out and tested a system that works and Marvel and DC can convince their boards or whatever to let them copy it. Marvel seems to be taking the first steps.

*****



Dustin Harbin

1. What worries me most about comics and the possibility of a prolonged recession is...
... that most people will, like me, think last about comics in their economic priorities. Thus putting me out of a job.

2. I think you guys are entirely too worried about this stuff. What you're forgetting is...
... that comics have always been a for-the-people medium, which got really big on the backs of kids and poor people. An economic contraction may be just the thing to stave off what I see as an inevitable glut in sub-par material, if it isn't already here.

3. It's already here. Case in point...
... even comics news sites are talking about it.

4. I could see my comics-buying habits change in 2009 in that I...
... lose my job and fat discount at the comic book store. In 2009 I will limit myself to whatever Christophe Blain and Dash Shaw publish, and MOME. Oh, and Popeye. And Peanuts. Shit.

5. I figure I might cut my comics buying as much as...
... 40%.

6. The first thing about comics I would give up if money got tight is...
... anything lacking a spine and a real sense of anticipation when I open the cover. Exceptions: Crickets, Uptight.

7. The last thing having to do with comics I'd ever give up is...
... Popeye.

8. I've already changed my comics buying habits by...
... trading in a bunch of my crappy old comics to make room for Popeye, etc.

9. I'm worried about my local retailer because...
... I work there.

10. My local retailer will be fine because...
... I work there?

11. Comics should cost...
... as much as they need to. It's a luxury, like fancy bread. Once you decide you want fancy bread, you pay whatever fancy bread costs. I'm talking about books, not pamphlets -- those won't matter in a few years.

12. The best thing that comics could do right now is...
... publish less and better.

13. The worst thing that comics could do right now is...
... continue with giant events, variant covers, etc. It's like 1996 again over here.

14. The one thing I remember about comics the last time we had economic hard times is...
... we survived barely.

15. The Internet will save us all because...
... wait, maybe the Internet will kill print pamphlets, actually. If it's killing newspapers, magazines, and other more mainstream print media, doesn't it follow that it will kill (or at least greatly change) periodical comics?

16. Forget about the Internet as a safe haven. What people don't realize is...
... that comics sell best when they're cheap, or when they're incredible. Everything in between should be looked at by publishers and retailers with extreme caution.

17. A little downturn would be fine, actually. Comics has some fat it could stand to lose. Why, there's...
... 6 or 7 answers above in which I've alluded to just that idea!

18. I think comics will do just fine in the long run because...
... people will continue to make incredible comics.

19. The thing I'd miss most about comics in the newspaper is...
... Dick Locher doing Putty Puss in Dick Tracy in the '80s, which is the last time I read comics in the paper on a regular basis. In-ter-net.

20. The number of days before I'd realize the comics and/or the newspaper that carries them is gone is...
... a large one.

21. There are something like 60 full-time staffed editorial cartoonists working in North America right now. By 2012...
... they will all be bloggers.

22. I usually go to a convention or two, but next year...
... I want to do all the fun ones, hopefully as a cartoonist and not a retailer.

23. Marvel and DC will have aggressive on-line comics programs in place by...
... Fall 2009.

24. What you should have had on this list -- and I'll give you an answer, too, so you can see how good it would have been -- is...
... 26. The major comics publishers will adapt to the growth of online media by...
... following in webcartoonists' footsteps and begin doing periodical comics online and then collecting them in print omnibuses; thus able to generate ad revenue through weekly periodical strips, and then keep print collections available for those of us who prefer paper. Money times two.

25. In five years, the comics industry will be...
... handing me an Eisner.

*****
*****
 
posted 6:30 am PST | Permalink
 

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