It's rare to find a columnist in the American press who acknowledges that reasonable people might disagree with him. It is even more rare to encounter a columnist who actually challenges his readers to disagree.

So Tony Isabella's 12/15/1998 online journal is rather unusual to say the least. In it, he criticizes small press exhibitors at the Mid Ohio Con and the small press community in general, and invites them to respond. In fact, Tony sent a preview of his column around to a number of small press folks. (You can see the finished column by navigating to Tony's site from the comicon.com 'links' area.) Here's my response, based upon the preview:

Tony writes: '...Every November, Roger Price and his staff of volunteers put on an absolutely terrific MID-OHIO-CON. After the con, for weeks and even months afterwards, I hear rave reviews from fans and pros who attended the event. And, every year, no matter how good the show was for everyone else who attended, I hear from someone, sometwo,
or somethree small-press creators what an awful show it was...'

JZ-- A careful reading of what follows doesn't show that anyone has complained that Mid Ohio Con was 'an awful show.' The critics apparently are complaining about one aspect of the show. Tony's overgeneralization tends to unfairly place the critics at odds with other show attendees.


Tony writes: '...I have worked with Roger [Roger Price, Mid-Ohio-Con promoter] to make sure they [small press creators] had a place at his show. The vast majority of those creators appreciate Roger's making
display tables available to them at a fraction of the price they're
charged by other shows, including their own Small Press Expo. But,
I've got to tell you, those two or three annual whiners piss me off
like you wouldn't believe.'

--JZ: The Small Press Expo is a nonprofit event benefitting the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund; also, they have about 20 times the traffic of the small press area at Mid-Ohio. Therefore, it's reasonable for them to have higher rates than Mid-Ohio. Also, my understanding is that there are comparable shows to Mid-Ohio who charge less. According to another post on the comicon.com discussion board, Pittsburg's show offers these tables for free.


Tony writes: 'I just read a small-presser's online review of Mid-Ohio-Con. He wasn't happy with the amount of traffic that made its way to the small press area, which is an area of concern Roger and I are going to address--one way or another--by next year's event. Unlike the whiners, he did something about it. He tried to get fans to come
into the small press area by handing out fliers advertising his own
publications. He worked the show.'

--JZ: It's unfortunate here that Tony resorts to name-calling. Maybe he doesn't think exhibitor criticism is fair, but by referring to them as 'whiners', he is making a personal attack. What good does it do to make personal attacks?


Tony writes: 'However, in the middle of this review, he also made a comment to the effect that shows have to support the small press. I did a double-take when I read that one. Because the obvious response to his comment is...why should they?'

-- JZ: I agree that show promoters aren't under any obligation to support the small press. I wish, however, that Tony had quoted his source, instead of refering to a 'comment to the effect that...' How broadly is Tony interpreting the critic's comment? --JZ


Tony writes: 'I think it started with Dave Sim, the first god of the small press creators. Sim espoused the belief that self-publishers were somehow more moral than other comics creators. It was an utterly
ludicrous elitism that some small-press creators bought into hook,
line, and sinker. And, even since, those--thankfully few--creators
have been looking for a free ride.'

--JZ: I don't recall that Sim made any such statements. In fairness to him, Tony should quote him if Tony is trying to saddling him with this. I think Sim's line of argument was that commercial publishers tend to exploit artists unfairly, and that artists would be better off self-publishing. Whatever the merits of this argument, I don't think it has much to do with morality or elitism; I also don't think Sim was attacking other artists who happen to work for commercial publishers. From my own admittedly limited experience, I don't think the small press is any more elitist than other sectors of the comics business. Furthermore, Tony hasn't made a connection between the elitism he says exists, and 'free rides.'


Tony writes: 'Time to face reality. Small-press creators--with exceptions, to be sure--don't sell con tickets. And those exceptions generally don't remain "small press" for long... Vision and talent and skill are what drives such creators...not free rides.'

--JZ: Once again, no specifics about what 'free rides' are being demanded, or by whom. This is puzzling. Since the initial topic was convention tables for which a fee was paid, the term 'free' seems irrelevant.


Tony writes: 'Too many small-pressers cling to their elitism. They are so comfortable in their little tiny clubhouse--the "we're better than
the guys who actually have more than fifty readers" club--that they
alienate convention promoters and even those mainstream readers who
are tempted to try their books.'

--JZ: Initially Tony said that one, two, or three small press table holders criticized a show, out of 30 or 40 table holders. Now he says that this is too many. If one small press person criticizes a show, is that enough to alienate a convention promoter and mainstream readers?

Tony writes: 'At Mid-Ohio-Con, a self-publisher asked why I hadn't reviewed her book. She seemed shocked when I told her that it was because she hadn't sent it to me for review. To her credit, she recovered quickly enough to--on the spot--place a whole bunch of comic books in my hands.'

--JZ: The above passage is a puzzler; what's the connection between 'free rides' and free comics for Tony? Is Tony trying to say that he himself is the elitist demanding free rides?


Tony writes: '...I read four issues of them yesterday and was simply stunned by how inaccessible they were... Though there was no denying that the creator of these comics had considerable artistic and writing talent, there was, likewise, no denying that she lacked discipline...
the stories jumped around all over the place as if they were some
sort of stream of consciousness comics.'

--JZ: What's wrong with that? Some of the classics of world literature have been in the stream-of-consciousness mode.


Tony writes: '...I haven't named either the self-publisher or her comic book-- though I'm sure many of you have already figured it out--because I intend to give her comic books another read once the hectic holiday
season is over.'

--JZ: Talk about lack of discipline! Talk about inaccessability! Tony gives us a tentative review of an unnamed book by an unnamed female artist. What are we supposed to make of that?

Tony goes on to describe a proposed Comic Buyers Guide supplement devoted to the small press; he points out that it must be supported by advertising: 'Yep, that means that self-publishers and small-press creators are going to have to shell out some cash for advertisements. Not a great deal of cash, certainly not when compared with the ad rates in Diamond's PREVIEWS catalog, but cash nonetheless. It means these creators and publishers would have to work very hard to design attractive ads that will catch the eye of those new readers they want. It means these same creators are going to have to think about where they want their work to take them.'

--JZ: I wonder if the CBG uses a similar tone when selling ads to DC, Marvel, and Image.


Tony concludes: 'If you want, think of this TOT [Tony's Online Tips] as a challenge. I want to hear from small-pressers and self-publishers on the issues I have raised today...'

--JZ: Yep, it's a challenge, all right-- in more ways than one! [img]/resources/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img]

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Joe Zabel

Joe,

WHere is the link?

I was at the Mid Ohio Con and I didn't even find the small press room until the second day. Tony is obviously biased.

Tony's column can be found at
www.wfcomics.com/tony

He recently celebrated a full-year of daily online installments.

Cheers,
Steve

Ok everyone I took the initiative and sent this email to Tony in response to the article. I'm sure I will either be blasted or applauded one.. [img]/resources/ubb/wink.gif[/img]





Tony:

While I was not one of the people who had set up at Mid-Ohio a few weeks ago, I was in attendance to check the convention out so I could see what it was like before I do the show next year.

Now while I am not one of the outcryers that you speak of in your article I do know the people whom you refer to. I was part of the afterwards discussions about the Mid-Ohio Con and I don't think there was a general bashing of the convention going o,n although there were those couple of people who raised hell about the set-up. I think the main focus of our discussion was on how we could bring a higher profile to the Small Press area next year and thus bring in more people to the booths.

We are even as I type this still discussing ideas to do just this. As you probably know there are quite a few of us that have "booths" at the online COMICON.COM. This is where the main conversations have taken place on the Mid-Ohio Con to my knowledge. As I said we are determined to make the Small Press more visible and I feel we are leading the way at COMICON.COM by being united and in a group atmosphere that we hope will change the face of comics one day.

So like I said before I thought that the majority of our conversations on Mid-Ohio had been on how to make the Small Press area more accessable to those whose generally steer towards mainstream comics only. And while I do realize that most Small Press creators do not bring in those big crowds like a lot of the mainstreamers do, I also feel that is something we can work towards changing with a better presence and better visibilty at not only the Mid-Ohio Con but every other convention as well.

Just to close I will be at the Mid-Ohio Con next year...I like the venue even though I felt the Small Press area was too far removed from the main action. But, also like I said these are issues that can be worked on and they are in no way any reason to whine and say you won't attend the con anymore. Discussion never hurts...in fact it can only help in this situation.


Best,
Eric L. Kent
Powermage Studios
http://members.aol.com/kurserod/welcome.htm
www.COMICON.COM

Keeping in mind that I have not read Tony's actual article, here I go.

Tony,
Your wrong. Your biased because your friends with Roger, and I understand that.

Elitism aside, it's about cash. Roger gets 70 bucks a pop for those tables. If he doesn't want them there, eliminate the small press area, simple as that.

BUT DO NOT CHARGE $70 A TABLE THEN IGNORE THE PEOPLE WHO GAVE YOU THAT CASH IN YOUR PROGRAM GUIDES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS.

I'm sorry your pissed off Tony. Did you pay for your table?? Was it in a high traffic area??? Did you make any money at the show???

For the record, Mid Ohio is among the most expensive shows to get a table at.

Tony, seems to me your the one strutting around like an elitist, you have your voice, and your using it to make the small press look bad. surprise.

Also, on the issue of small pressers not selling tickets, your right about that. Maybe that's because no one knows we're at the show, ever think about that?????

You can call us whiners all you want, but all your doing is whining about us whining anyway. It's counter productive.

I do agree that many small pressers are elitists, BUT so are many mainstreamers, for lack of a better term. You included.

I took the time to post some rumblings about an issue I feel needs to be addressed. Others shows I've done, they did their best to let the people know, in the program guide, and in announcements that the small press area was around, and you can find some cool stuff there. Or they gave us no names equal space in the program guide next to "stars", leading poor hapless con attendies to think we might have something to contribute that they have not seen yet.

Maybe it helped sales, maybe it didn't, but every show is different. Every show has it's own vibe, and it's own feel.

I did not attend SPX, so I can't comment on that one, but I'm not sure the comics need to be segregated in that way. Main stream comic cons, and small press comic cons, it's all just rock and roll to me, for the most part.

Also, for the record, have you ever self published anything TONY, or simply cashed the checks of various publishers?????

Dear Mr. Isabella:

Just thought I'd drop you a line to answer all your questions about small press at Mid-Ohio. Your December 15th column is being
talked about over at Comicon.com and I just had to respond. I will be posting this on the discussion board.

"Every November, Roger Price and his staff of volunteers put on an absolutely terrific MID-OHIO-CON. After the con, for weeks and even months afterwards, I hear rave reviews from fans and pros who attended the event. And, every year, no matter how good the show was for everyone else who attended, I hear from someone, sometwo, or somethree small-press creators what an awful show it was. And I ask myself...whose fault was that?"


That's Roger's fault, Mr. Isabella, and it's not for lack of trying. Roger is a sweet-heart, but to me, he doesn't strike me as a guy who has changed much with the times. The main floor of the con was jammed with Adam West, Frank Gorshin, The Trilogy Tour
and several large publishers and dealers. These were Roger's best guests and they were all right off the escalator, which is a
HUGE miscalculation.

The best selling products in a store go in the back so you have to walk through the store to get them and see all the other
merchandise. This is a basic selling point that Roger (and I guess you, since you helped) forgot.

Roger also put a sign on a column which said you need bracelets to walk past the sign. But its position was ambiguous and
confusing, leading people to believe they needed bracelets to get down the right corridor where I (and I think you) were sitting. We got a little traffic from the dealer's room, but certainly not as much as last year when we sat where the Trilogy Tour was seated.

The Small Press room was on the SECOND FLOOR, up a set of stairs and to the left PAST several well-known creators. So, in
order to see something new, I have to bypass the con's best guests, go up stairs, past more famous guests and then go off into a
little side room that looks empty and sad.

In my opinion, Roger's got a lot of nerve charging $70 for those tables. What did YOU pay for a table Mr. Isabella? If its so great for you, are you paying Roger for the wonderful service you're getting or is this all lip service so you continue to "ride free"?


"The vast majority of those creators appreciate Roger's making display tables available to them at a fraction of the price they're charged by other shows, including their own Small Press Expo. But, I've got to tell you, those two or three annual whiners piss me off like you wouldn't believe."


First off, most cons the size of Mid-Ohio toss those tables to Small Press publishers for free. $70 is not a fraction of free. The only cons I know of that charge for Artist Alley are cons like Chicago Con. Even San Diego gives tables away if you call early
enough.

Second, for a guy who claims to support Small Press you are quick to lump us all together at our "own Small Press Expo". It's not
my show, I just went a few times. And while I'm certainly familiar with the elitist attitude that is prevalent amongst some small
publishers, I don't share their views. Would you like me to generalize about you corporate-whore-monger-major-label comic book
writers? Does everything that applies to Peter David, Neil Gaiman and Warren Ellis also apply to you because you worked for
DC?


"I just read a small-presser's online review of Mid-Ohio-Con. He wasn't happy with the amount of traffic that made its way to the small press area, which is an area of concern Roger and I are going to address--one way
or another--by next year's event. Unlike the whiners, he did something about it. He tried to get fans to come
into the small press area by handing out fliers advertising his own publications. He worked the show."

Yeah, great, fliers. First time at a show? They hand you a bag of crap at the door to begin with, what's a flier supposed to do? I
brought a bullhorn, but Roger wouldn't let me use it. (He dislikes the carnival atmosphere.) And yet, he spent all day making announcements (which couldn't be heard in the whole con because of the lousy PA system) and the lobby was a mob scene all
three days because all the good guests were stationed there. Guys got half-naked chicks at their tables and you think fliers are
gonna help?


"However, in the middle of this review, he also made a comment to the effect that shows have to support the small press. I did a double-take when I read that one. Because the obvious response to his comment is...why should they?"

Because small press is the future of comics. Because you can only live on the nostalgia of the Baby Boomers for so long.
Because they don't take up much room. Because fans of the medium are being driven away by the repetition and callousness of
the larger, publishing houses that promote collectibles and not comics. Because all they have is the comic book and they love it and they love the medium or why would they take such crap if they didn't? Because fans might remember an issue of "Spiderman"
they saw in the dealer's room, but let them get within 2 feet of me and I guarantee you they will remember the Jersey Devil.

And because is so fucking easy.


"I think it started with Dave Sim, the first god of the small press creators. Sim espoused the belief that self-publishers were somehow more moral than other comics creators. It was an utterly ludicrous elitism that some small-press creators bought into hook, line, and sinker. And, even since, those --thankfully few--creators have been looking for a free ride."

And you only write comics because you're paid, right? What a ridiculous generalization you make. What "free ride" are you talking about? Most cons give away artist alley tables. Roger, in my opinion, makes out like a bandit charging $70 a table for tables that are on the second floor in a highly inaccessible section of the hotel. You expect small press guys to kiss his ass for clearing $1400 from people who can barely afford the hotel room?! Walk a mile in the small press shoes, Mr. Isabella, but if you
start praying at the Temple of Sim, don't be surprised to find yourself very alone.

"Time to face reality. Small-press creators--with exceptions, to be sure--don't sell con tickets. And those exceptions generally don't remain "small press" for long. Entertainment Weekly names Mark Crilley as one of the most creative people in entertainment. Hollywood comes knocking at Batton Lash's door. Nickelodeon cuts a dream deal with Jeff Smith. Vision and talent and skill are what drives such creators...not free rides."

Yeah, face reality, Mr. Isabella. To the general public outside of comics, your name is likely to sell as many tickets as mine. As a matter of fact, because my comics aren't narrowly tailored to the superhero genre, my comics are MORE likely to bring in people
outside the fandom. Face reality, you don't have to pay for a table because the con guys know you and you've worked for DC and
your work for CBG. How many free tables did you get before that?

You compare well-established creators who have books that regularly make money, to guys that just put their first book together?
Drew Hayes (who I'm sure you know, since you're so caught up on small press) self-published 20 issues before getting any
recognition. Would he have gotten any if he didn't go to some cons and get free tables to promote his work before he was
successful? You're probably right, it's SOOOO much more IMPORTANT for fans to see Adam West, AGAIN. Because after
spending $25 on an autograph picture and after standing in line 40 minutes, the next thing I want to do is buy some comics.


"Too many small-pressers cling to their elitism. They are so comfortable in their little tiny clubhouse--the "we're better than the guys who actually have more than fifty readers" club--that they alienate convention
promoters and even those mainstream readers who are tempted to try their books."

Too many corporate comic book writers generalize. They are so comfortable in their Park Avenue offices---the "we make more
than guys who sell the creator-owned comics" club---that they alienate fellow artists who are attempting to try and continue comic
books.

"Maggie Thompson, the editor of COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE, and I are in the very early stages of discussing the feasibility of a small- press supplement for that publication. This would be similar to the convention and gaming and entertainment card supplements which CBG has done in the past. My vision of
this supplement would have it bursting with small-press news and reviews. The catch is that it has to pay for itself. Yep, that means that self-publishers and small-press creators are going to have to shell out some cash for advertisements. Not a great deal of cash, certainly not when compared with the ad rates in Diamond's PREVIEWS catalog, but cash nonetheless."

Hey, I got an idea. Let's raise money for the homeless by taxing them. What a great system! You take money from publishers
and then review their comics! How credible! How kind of you! That makes about as much sense as when Maggie started charging people to put their strips in CBG. Gee, I wonder how much you will charge Image to review their comics? Will you be going back and charging DC and Marvel for doing retrospectives of their past works? You are so UNBIASED, I'm sure the reviews will be well-balanced. And, what a coincidence that you suddenly decide to broaden the scope of CBG, now that many of the comics they cover no longer garnish CBG sales. Wouldn't it have been nice if CBG had broadened its scope when comic books actually sold?


"For starters, we can throw the elitism out the window. In an industry where the best-selling comic book in America doesn't sell even sell a half-million copies per month, no creator--and I really mean NO creator--has anything to feel particularly "elite" about. But the creators working for Marvel and DC and Image and Dark
Horse and even the minor majors have the advantage of visibility. That's who the small-pressers are competing with for readers."


But some creators are more equal than others? You call small press publishers elite, while at the same time, identifying with them
because we're all part of the "grand crusade" to keep comics alive. You want some ideas for the supplement, here's a few:

Segregating small press into a separate section further alienates us from "mainstream" titles. How about completely redesigning CBG so you cover the comics medium, not just superheroes? Hundreds of comic books are published every month, yet CBG reviews 5 or 6 about every 3 weeks. How about reviewing 100 comics or a few dozen a week? Hey, if I can do it, you can do it.

How about covering comic books because they are original and new and good, instead of comics that are being turned into bad
movies, bad plays or have been in CBG hundreds and hundreds of times? How about holding DC, Marvel, Dark Horse and Image
to the same high standards of artwork for their ads? (I'm sure CBG has turned down thousands of dollars worth of ads becasue
they are not "eye catching".)

How about having CBG columnists do a little more research before they open their mouth about small press?

Just my opinion.

Tony DiGerolamo
South Jersey Rebellion Productions
http://www2.netcom.com/~thefix/sjrp.html


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Hey, give Tony some respect. He created BLACK LIGHTNING, who had his own comic book in the 1970s, and who was later played by Sinbad in a hilarious Saturday Night Live sketch!

"I taught Superman how to fly! Taste some lightning bolts, chump!" ZAAAPP!

Chris Crosby
"Ow, that stings!"
http://www.crosbycomics.com



[This message has been edited by Chris Crosby (edited 12-17-98).]

Yeah, I remember that skit in SNL, I almost pissed myself man. Used to be a great show. Dan Akroyd was the Flash, Bill Murray was Superman with a beer gut, YES!!!

Tony G. YEAH, give him hell man, give him hell. Great points you make on all counts.

Tony Isabella reveiwed a friends book, 40 Winks, and it's a good book, and he gave it a good review. Previous to this, it's all I've ever read of his CBG stuff. I don't read CBG for the same reason I don't read Wizard, and for the same reason I DO read Comics Journal, and Indy Magazine. But even Indy has got a certain click in the Indy scene it will touch. Funny how we break things down like that, isn't it??

The world around us is segregated, I doubt that the comics industry will ever "just get along".

One more thing, I'm in no way looking to hurt Roger Price, he's a nice fellow to talk with, and be around. I'm in no way looking to hurt the Mid Ohio Con. I want it to be a better show, I'd love for it to be a better show, step one to changing things?? Speak up about the problems.





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