Errrrr ... why?

Why should I care about "collecting?"

Quote:

Everyone should heed Mr. David and buy monthly.

No.

Quote:

Anyone can go out and buy a trade paperback. However, it takes some actual dedication to a title to pick up each individual issue

Ahhhhhh ... so?

I should buy something I don't want to prove I'm "dedicated?"

Seriously, go to hell.

I don't have a collection. I have a library of books I read.

I'm not putting you down because you look at comics very differently than I do, and because you want different things from them than I do. But that's the key here: Bookstore distribution and book-format comics are widening the medium to many new readers, and some people are made uncomfortable by that. It's like when the internet became open to the general public; lots of techies didn't want to deal with people who couldn't be assumed to be just like them.

I love that book comics have a wider variety of material and publishers than DC and Marvel superheroes. I love that it's much easier to recommend book comics to friends and family without having to give them directions to some hard-to-find speciality shop; they can just go ask at the closest Barnes & Noble or order online. I love that book comics are easier to read and re-read and carry around with me. I love that many more types of people are reading book comics.

But to someone who got into collecting comics because he loved the wish-fulfillment fantasies and was thrilled to find a group of fans just like him, that diversity can be scary.



I realize that. What you don't realize is that I don't care. It's my job, as consumer (as has been pointed out already), to buy products I want at prices I find reasonable. It's not my job to prop up a failing format or title (if that's truly what they are).

If the publisher doesn't have the faith in their title to put it out in a different format that might bring it more success, then I'll go read books by those who do. Those publishers are, more often than not, NOT the big established companies, but the smaller, more nimble and adaptable ones.

While some might call this "la-la-ing", I call it realizing the harsh realities of the commercial marketplace. I've had tons of my favorite series cancelled under me in years past, for a variety of reasons. But then, I'm very used to not being part of the target audience, since I'm a comic-reading girl. When I complained about not having comics I was interested in reading, the general fanboy response was "so?" Doesn't feel so good to be on the other side, does it?

MBunge asks if we want nothing on the shelves but reprints, to which I have two responses:
1. if I haven't read it yet and it's enjoyable, why should I care whether it was originally created last year or last decade?
2. there's so much great comic stuff that's already been created that I could last a good while not seeing anything new. That would be terrible, of course, because I like seeing the medium grow and explore new subjects, but I would still have stuff to read.

Heck, I just started exploring manga, and I already have over 20 series on my targeted-to-try want list.

PS Would it really be so bad if there was a weeding-out of titles, such that we had fewer but higher quality books to choose from?

Funny, your description here does not match any conversation I've had with folks in the movie business, nor any recent knowledgable writing I've seen on the movie business, nor even the evidence I see with my own eyes. I see ads for videos of films that were not profitable in the theater all the time. Some films do make more on video; consider a flick like Wrong Turn, which has done more in DVD rentals alone -- $15.65 million as of December 8, less than 2 months afters its video release -- than the $15.42 million it got in its entire US/Canada theatrical run. Add on another $8.5 million in VHS rentals. And then there's the sales on top of that.

There's no doubt that trades are making things more difficult for publishers. But that's because for a long time, they had it pretty easy: Solicit the book, print to order (plus maybe a little extra), and cash the check. Not much risk there, since the comics shop owners are the ones who have to "eat" any books that don't sell at the retail level.

But now we're moving from a strictly periodical market to a mixed periodical-and-book market, and now the comics publishers have to deal with the same issues that book publishers have had for decades. Trades have a potentially big payoff, but there's also more risk. There's more money tied up in them at first, and it can take longer to see a return on them. Publishers and retailers both are accustomed to that quick monthly turnaround, and they're going to have to get used to dealing with something with a longer cycle.

Comics have always been a fly-by-night, short-term industry, and now they're finally seeing the benefit of planning for the long run. Jim Lee's Batman was a huge hit in singles, and I'm sure the trade will do decently, but I don't think it will be the kind of perennial moneymaker that Sandman or Preacher or Transmetropolitan is. Some books are "hares" and some are "tortoises", and it's hard to know which is which until they're out there. It's an investment -- if the publishers want that long-term cash, they've gotta take some short-term risks.

Right now, trades are seen as a sideline... "found money" as some have called it. I think that balance is slowly going to change; in the future, the singles will be seen as "loss leaders" for the eventual trade. It's going to take a while to get to that point, and it's going to be a bumpy ride. But the alternative is to continue watching the Direct Market audience erode into oblivion, and that's not good for anyone.

Your first point is true. It is the publishers, and certain very vocal creators, that deserve the blame for cultivating the trade-only attitude.

After that, however...

1. Trades only bring comics into bookstores. There's no evidence that trades will get comics back into any of the other places they used to be - drug stores, convenience stores, grocery stores, etc. It's better than nothing, but there's still a lot left to do.

2. They may be more convenient for people already interested in the product, but everything we've ever learned about economics and human nature tells us that the trade format is less appealing to people who do not have any pre-established interest. Which would a completely uninterested consumer be more likely to try on a whim, a 10, 15 or 20 dollar trade or a 2 or 3 dollar comic? And frankly, if comics were written again so that missing a month or two wasn't such a big deal, the casual reader wouldn't care.

3. They're only easier to keep track of when you have a fairly small number of trades. If you've got 500 to 1000 to 1500 trades in your library, you'll have many of the same problems keeping track of them as people with equivalent size monthly comic collections.

4#5. As far as keeping trades in print, that really only applies to certain books. Look at SPIDER-GIRL. It's going to make it to issue 81. That's over 6 and 1/2 years on the shelves as one of Marvel's lowest selling titles. How many trades that sell at such a proportionately low level get to stay on the shelves for 6 and 1/2 years?

6. They are only relatively inexpensive because they are, pay attention now, REPRINT MATERIAL. It's just that simple.

Mike

So, wouldn't another way of putting your viewpoint be "F**k you. Give me what I want." And not just "F**k you" to the publishers, but "F**k you" to all the people who work at the publishers. "F**k you" to the creators. "F**k you" to the distributors. "F**k you" to the retailers. "F**k you" to anyone who wants something different than you. And even though you try to run away from it, "F**k you" to the next generation of readers.

And for those "smaller, more nimble and adaptable" publishers? How many people actually make a living at any of those places? Oh, but that's right. "F**k them".

Mike

Mike,


We aren't buying comics to keep people in business (thats just a fortunate effect of CAPITALISM) We are buying them to be entertained. Its not saying F*** them, its saying "I will buy your product if it interests me and is cost effective". THat is the way business works, otherwise its not business its charity.

I have a great deal of respect for Peter David, but he needs to broaden his thinking on what comics are and how they should be produced. As one poster pointed out they have become to used to the quick turn around of profit on the monthlies and now the business model has shifted to a format that may be a little slower in revenue returns, but in the end is still profitable.

This is backwards thinking, something the comic book industry has been great at for years.

I would like to clarify one thing, after reading some of my posts it would appear that I am a militant trade pusher. I am not. I believe that there is a demand for the monthlies just as there is GROWING demand for TPB's. Both are making money, the only differences are that Monthlies see a quicker return on the investment than TPB's.

Buy what you like, but you are under no obligation as a consumer to buy a specific format just because some narrow minded creators and industry people are stuck in a paradigm.

Mike. Trades, and the original graphic novels that surround them on the bookstore shelves ARE reaching out to customers who DO NOT frequent comic stores. This is not a thereotical statement; this is an observable phenomena. I mean, those people at the bookstores are just NOT at your local comic shop, for the most part.

You talk about human nature, but remember; people at bookstores are not shy of spending $10-$20 on a single product. That's what they DO. Its normal; there's books, CDs, DVDs and other higher-priced items at bookstores. Those customers are not going to flinch at a $14.99 price for a book, be it comics or not.

-regarding that relatively low price, please look again; publishers that put out original graphic novels (ie, "not reprints") have a similar pricing as collections of reprints.
Let me count the ways:

SPX orEXPO books: $9.95 each, for years.

Dark Horse Maverick: Happy Endings: $9.95

Same Difference and Other Stories: $12.00. This material was previously seen on the artist's website, but was never previously published for money, so is essentially "new."

Where Hats Go: $7.99

Suckle: The Status of Basil: $14.95

Death: At Death's Door: $9.95

A Contract With God: $12.95

Monkey Vs. Robot: And the Crystal of Power: $14.95

Fantastic Butterflies: $14.95

Blankets: $29.95 (500+ pages; same expected price point for a prose book of the same size)

The Fixer: $24.95 (hardcover)

Good-Bye, Chunky Rice: 14.95


So....what are you saying? All of these books are original graphic novels, and none of them are astronomically-priced; in fact, many from my list are cheaper than Marvel's trades! So, its not that simple.

Please study the industry and pay attention to existential factors, rather than creating conjecture based on your personal opinions. Thank you for your time.