Countdown to FCBD

The countdown has begun.  Free Comic Book Day is this Saturday May 2^nd, which is fast approaching, and I am totally stoked for it!  Why am I so excited you may ask?  Well, first it’s on a Saturday, which is the best day of the week.  And secondly; it is a day devoted to comics.  Everyone else has their holidays; the Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Taoists, and now the Geeks!

FCBD began as a marketing ploy to try and attract new readers to a dwindling market, and that is something I wholeheartedly support due to my own selfish agenda of trying to sell comics.  It provides antidote comics with an opportunity for exposure, which is very important to a small press publisher such as Antidote.  The more people I can get in front of means the more books we have the potential to sell, which means the more books we can create in the near future.  

It’s not just about monetary gain, however:  I love the medium of comics I love sharing them with everyone I know.  Just ask my wife who puts up with my incessant babbling over the newest issue of Nova, or Proof trade paperback I picked up at this year’s Planet Comicon.  Or you can ask my neighbor Matt who owns a comic shop, and can’t seem to get any gardening done without me pestering him about Marvel’s releasing Wolverine’s title out of numerical order, or Peter Parker revealing his identity as Spider-Man in not one, but two books this last month.  I wish more of my family and friends read comics, and I suppose they do if you count mine, but I digress.  

FCBD has not been around too terribly long, and I aim to help it grow and flourish.  I will be doing that this year by hanging out at Jay’s CD and Hobby on SE 14^th Street in Des Moines IA behind Culvers, and across the street from Menards.  We will have a table and will be selling books and T-shirts from noon to about five or six.  Bring the whole family for comics, games, movies, CD’s and toys.  There will be folks in costumes allowing great photo opportunities for the kids, and food and drink as well.  

I hope to see you out there!  

What else is going on?

X-men Origins: Wolverine is released in theatres this Friday.  I plan on checking it out despite the unfinished copy leaked to the internet several weeks ago and the poor response it seemed to receive from those the viewed it.  

In anticipation of the films release Marvel has been mass-marketing Wolverine comics for the month of May.  This includes a little switcheroo in the numbering sequence of the ongoing monthly titles.  Issue #73 will be released on May 13^th, while issue #72 will hit the stands on May 20^th.  Wolverine #73 will be written by Jason Aaron and Daniel Way, and their story wraps up in Issue #74, which is due to his shelves on May 27^th.  Is everyone following me so far?  Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s “Old Man Logan” arc which has currently been running through the title will be wrapped up in a spin off Giant Size Old Man Logan.  The out of synch release of the titles does not bother me really especially since I am confident that the stories will be good.  

I am a little bothered with the “Old Man Logan” story arc being concluded in a one shot title.  One of my biggest gripes with Marvel these days is the sheer number of mini-series and one-shots.  Mostly because of my very limited funds I am in the process of weeding out some titles as it is, so when I have to purchase Dead Pool and the Dead Pool mini-series it stretches my funds even thinner.  I wish that more story arcs would be worked into the main title, but I also understand that Marvel makes money off of suckers like me when they do release the one-shots and mini-series!  

I should also note that Wolverine changes its name to Dark Wolverine with issue #75 where Wolverine’s son, Daken appears to take the lead.  The name change along with shift in focus from Wolverine to his son means that I will save an extra $4.00 a month since I plan on dropping it from that point on.  I hate the idea of having to drop a book that I follow and have enjoyed, but up to this point I have not enjoyed the portrayal of wolverine’s son.  I have nothing against the idea of Wolverine having a son; it’s just the way he has been written to this point seems redundant.  The money saved will gladly be allocated to Jason Aaron’s new Wolverine: Weapon X series that I touted last time.  

And speaking of movies, I saw 17 Again on Saturday.  I was only going because I was forced to by my wife; we also took our daughter and my sister.  The movie was surprisingly better than I expected, and very funny!  How can you not love a character that is fluent in Elvish, sleeps in a Land Speeder bed, and seeks answers to life’s problems in an extensive collection of comics, and sci-fi literature?  Much of the humor was fairly adult oriented as well; during the movie my curious daughter asked me what a douche and bastard were.  All in all I thought it was very funny, and even very touching!

That’s enough rambling for this week.  Before I go I do want to mention that you can follow me via Facebook, and  twitter as well.  I am much better at updating Facebook than I am at twittering, but both are good tools to keep in touch!

The Price is Right?

This impromptu entry is based on an interesting article I read here.  The article provides some insight to the rising cost of comic books from various comic book publishers.  The article was primarily spurred by Marvel Comics increasing more and more monthly books a $3.99 price tag.  This is compared to the typical $2.99 that fans have been accustomed to paying the past several years.  As opposed to spewing everything the article references, I will let you read it for yourself.  

However, I did want to provide my own thoughts as well as some explanations regarding our own price points at Antidote Comics.  

Since we are not paying any freelance or contracted talent at this time, the price of our books is based simply on printing.  The rate we are able to print a book for will be the deciding factor in what we charge.  There is a learning curve to this whole self publishing thing and we are slowly climbing it.  For example:  When we first printed Bloods Own Issue 1 we assumed we would be able to move huge volumes of books at local retailers, to friends and family, and on the convention circuit.  We printed four thousand copies!  Yes, that was FOUR THOUSAND copies.  Aside from our confidence that the book would sell like hot cakes, we also received each copy for a sensational low cost of about a dollar an issue.  The general cover price on the book is $2.99, which is in line with the majority of the monthly books offered by today's larger publishers.  It is also $1.00 to $2.00 cheaper than most other independent publishers of equal or greater production value.  

Unfortunately we have not yet sold out of the book and it's creator, Anthony Lucia has about three thousand of them sitting in his basement.  I am actually okay with this since we can continue to sell them at future shows without having to go back to the presses.  

With our second book, Black Jack we initially ran a small print run of about 150 books to test the waters and see if there was a market in the for it.   Due to the very small print run the books cost to us was about $5.25.  I knew we would not be able to sell the books at conventions for that cost, especially with the economic recession looming overhead.  I did feel that $4.99 would be an acceptable price tag, and I was right:  Within a few months of the initial release we sold out.

A local retailer had purchased some copies as well and was selling them off the shelf for over $7.00 an issue.   

At Minnesota's Fallcon last year, there were people that would stop by the table and check out the book.  Often they would hesitate at the $5.00 price point, but once they learned we were taking a loss in order to pass the deal on the consumer they were immediately at ease and purchased a copy.  That is a technique I learned in sales called framing.  You "frame" the sale so that it makes sense to the buyer.  

With the initial run of Black Jack selling out, it was back to the presses this spring with 1,000 more copies.  Some edits were made to correct some copy errors, and a blurb from creator Phil Hester was added to the cover.   Printing more copies inherently came with a larger print bill, but the cost per issue was significantly less.  We are now able to sell the issues at $3.99 an issue, which is very much in the same range as both large and small press publishers these days.

To me, it isn't a matter of the cost of the book, but more a matter of the quality of it's contents.  I am comfortable paying $3.99 or even $4.99 for a book as long as I feel I am getting my moneys worth out of that book.  You hear on message boards and internet sites all across fandom that people intend on reducing the number of monthly books they purchase in favor of trade paperbacks, others feel that the price increase is the first step of Publishers eradicating the printed comic all together in favors of both trades and web-based comics.  As a traditionalist, I hope this isn't the case.  I love being able to hold the pages in my hand, I love the feel, the smell.   I love being able to read them anywhere; the car, the office, the toilet ( I don't love the smell as much in those cases).

The out cry of the recent price increases across fandom can be understandable for someone on a fixed budget or with limited funds.  If people actually decide to show their dismay by voting with their wallet as they so loudly proclaim then we may see the eventual demise of the printed monthly comic in favor of online digital comics and trade paperbacks.  

As someone who has a fairly decent take on the inner-workings of publishing I can understand that the cover price of the book is going to increase as the cost to actually publish the book increases.  Print cost, distribution, company expenses including salaries to home office people and wages to freelancers are all variables that may fluctuate.  

Those "monetary conscious" fan out there who denounce Marvel, DC and other companies for the increase in price will be the same fans ones to thank when the printed comic becomes utterly extinct. And when that happens it will be those same "fans" who sprint to the message boards and comic forums bitching and moaning about it as well.  

Sometimes you can't win, hopefully you can at least break even.

Life and Comics, what else is there?

What’s up world? 

I meant to post part of this entry last week, but have been busy at work and with the writing. I have been really good about sticking to my goal of writing four pages a day, and the result is amazing. I reworked parts of Black Jack issue five, and am nearly complete with the first full issue of Freedom Guard.
Some of you may remember Freedom Guard from a blurb in the first issue of Bloods Own or through the prints we sell at cons. This book has been through more rewrites and revamps than anything else I have ever done. I at one time had seven different word docs saved on my computer all with a different version of the first issue. One showcased only the villain while another took place fifty years ago and spotlighted a completely different team roster. The concept began simply enough as a homage to some of the classic characters from old stories like Weird War Tales with classic characters like GI Robot and the Creature Commandoes. Over the past few years it has slowly evolved and taken on a life of its own. I feel I finally have a good grasp of who these characters are, and why they are a part of this book. Along with rewriting the first issue for the last time (I swear) I have been busy plotting future issues. I have a multiple page outline consisting of about sixty issues. That’s five years worth of stories, and I haven’t even reached the end yet!
One unique aspect of Freedom Guard that I am striving for is to bring back the try monthly serial. To echo the sentiments of Grant Morrison, most comics these days have become a story board for movies. The comic book medium is completely unique and I feel a part of is becoming lost. Why make Kick Ass a comic first, when it was obviously intended to be a movie? At the rate Kick Ass hits the stands the movie will be on DVD before the first story arc is even completed. I am not trying to knock Kick Ass as a story because I am enjoying the shit out of it. I am simply trying to state that you will probably never see a Freedom Guard movie, and that is entirely the point.
For the most part Freedom Guard is good to go; all I need is an artist willing to draw that many pages. Anyone out there want to draw 1,320 pages for free?


A new JLA creative team? I read a rumor about the possibilities of a new creative team for what should be DC’s flagship title on Rich Johnston’s column, “Lying in The Gutters” at comicbookresources.com. According to Rich, Geoff Johns and Jim Lee will be an upcoming creative team on the book. This has the potential to be awesome! Geoff Johns is one of the best Super Hero writers in comics today, and Jim Lee was a major player in revolutionizing the comics industry back in the early nineties with the launch of Image Comics.
Remember Jim Lee and Chris Claremont’s X-men #1 from back in 1990. It still remains the best selling single issue of all time by selling about five million copies.
A high profile comic these days will sell about hundred-thousand copies. Last years the big seller was Marvels secret Invasion #1, which sold about two-hundred and fifty thousand copies. Of course cover prices are very different as well X-men #1 came with a cover price of $1.50 where as Secret Invasion #1 had a $3.99 cover price. Besides the variance in cover price, comics seemed to be a different beast back; it was not uncommon for hot first issue to sell a million plus copies. That bubble burst back in the mid nineties for better or worse (that’s a topic for a different day).
Do I think A JLA relaunch with Jim Lee and Geoff Johns will sell five million copies? God do, but I do think it will kick major ass. I think it will give the JLA the juice it needs to be the company’s flagship title it should be. I know I’d be in line to purchase my copy.


Look for a copy of Black Jack at a retailer near you very soon. We just reprinted about a thousand copies and are in the process of getting them into stores around the Des Moines area. I am even branching out to other retailers across the state and (hopefully) even regionally. I have put together a new order form and sending that out along with a complimentary copy of the book. I will start doing this next week. I have no idea what the response will be like, but am optimistic. If anyone stumbles across this from out there in the wide open US of A and is interested in getting a copy of the book, please drop me a line.
We are working on having them available to order through the website as well, but as with everything else regarding our website, it is a slow and tedious process.

One of my favorite days of the year is fast approaching and that is Free Comic Book Day. FCBD is the first Saturday in May, and is a great opportunity to introduce new generations to the medium as well as re-enlist older readers. Some retailers throw huge parties, with giveaways, contests, guest creators on site signing books. As far as I know the local retailers around here have never really put much effort into FCBD in the past, but hopefully that can change this year. I have been speaking at length with my friend and comic shop owner, Jason Shreve is going balls out this year with a live radio feed, discounts on merchandise, and local talent on hand signing books, and doing sketches. I will be there as well with copies of both Black Jack and Bloods Own. Aside from the comics we will have some shirts made specifically for this event. Depending on how well they sell, we may produce more with different images on the. I think the first is a Black Jack wanted poster. Anthony Lucia will be there along with his new pinup gallery he’s been working on. They look amazing and are definitely worth checking out. I may try and hit up another local retailer as well, but have not yet finalized those plans, so there will more details to follow as we get closer to the big day.

So X-men Origins: Wolverine will be hitting theatres soon, which I am quite excited for. Even more so now that Hasbro has released their new toys based on the movie. These toys have great articulation and are about the same size as the old school GI Joe figures I grew up obsessing over. So far I have picked up a Wolverine, Maverick (one of my favorite characters), and a bizarre Deadpool figure that I pretend is a new character all together. I thought about calling him X-assin.

Aside from the figure Marvel has released its new Wolverine series called Wolverine: Weapon X. The series is written by fan favorite, Jason Aaron (Scalped, Ghost Rider), and illustrated by the wicked talented Ron Garney. The two creators previously worked together on a very popular Wolverine Arc titled “Get Mystique” where Wolverine set out across the world to do just that. The run was chock full of intrigue, action, and awesome surprises. A beautiful variant cover by Adam Kubert was released as well, and since I couldn’t decide between the two covers I bought both despite the 3.99 price tag. Needless to say I loved it, and can’t wait for the next issue.
Aaron does a great job in this issue with setting the stage, introducing us to a new group of high-tech mercenaries with a secret, but bloody agenda. When we meet Wolverine in this issue we are quickly reminded why he is such a timeless character. Aaron reintroduces us to Maverick, one of wolverine’s old allies from his Weapon X days who sets wolverine on the path to tracking down these Mercenaries.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Garney’s art, which always impresses me. I first took notice of his work on the “Get Mystique” arc in Wolverine, and that left me simply wanting more. I guess this book is like a wish come true.
The issue itself follows a standard first issue process, though that is not a bad thing by any means. There is great set up for the story and its plot points, introduction to the players, and plenty of action. The issue is easily accessible to those looking to get into a Wolverine Book for the first time. And those that feel Wolverine is overexposed and does not need another ongoing title would truly be missing the beginning of something great by passing on this. For any fan of the character or fan of the creative team this book is well worth the cover price.