For comic fans, just some questions

[xisaacx]

1. What kinda marketing do you like seeing from the comics you buy?
ex movies have trailers, posters, viral campaigns...what attracts you or catches your attention?
2.what makes a good comic in your opinion?
3. what a genre of comic would you like to see more then you dont?
4. do any of you have any comic project you want to promote in the future or need help promoting?
Im starting this newsletter, and im just trying to get some inside info, so hit me up.

 

[Andy C.]

Hmmm....might as well give this a shot:

1) Honestly, I never really pay attention to the advertising. And Lord knows that's not an easy thing to do when most comics have ads on virtually every other page.

2) That's a pretty difficult question, since there are so many different styles of comics and approaches to the material. But the one overall thing I can say makes a good comic is being able to look at a subject in a way that no one else has. That's especially the case for characters that have been around forever, or concepts that everyone seems to embrace.

3) I'd like to see the return of pure sci-fi comics, without having to tie it to a franchise like Star Wars or whatnot. But really, just about everything else I'd want to see in comics is already out in one form or another.

4) Unfortunately, I can't draw well enough to warrant creating a comic, so no. Unless someone's looking for a writer.

 

[yenaled]

1. What kinda marketing do you like seeing from the comics you buy?
ex movies have trailers, posters, viral campaigns...what attracts you or catches your attention?

Nothing more than the monthly previews and solicts are needed for me. Posters in comic shops and those stupid videos Marvel sometimes do are a waste of time for me. Obviously interviews and stuff coming out of conventions are the best form of advertising and hyping. A good series of adverts inside comics for other series are always good instead of endless fastfood or car adverts.

2. what makes a good comic in your opinion?

It has to make you care. It can be through great character development, heartpounding action, gut wrenching drama, mystery, great art, anything as long as you are emotionally invested while reading.

3. what a genre of comic would you like to see more then you dont?

I'd like more fantasy really, I was excited by Aquaman going that route but obviously it's not what fans want. Mice Templar, Sword, WOW Comic, Mouse Guard (and others) are fantastic mix of genres with a big base in fantasy.

Comics are pretty hard to pin down genre-wise I can't really name a comic which sticks to genre boundaries really strictly.

4. do any of you have any comic project you want to promote in the future or need help promoting?

I publish through smalltime press a quarterly comic book, with movements to online publishing. More help in getting to conventions would be appreciated more than anything else.

 

[film_geek]

Good questions.

1) depends, I'm not much on the marketing for comics. mainly the only marketing I see is the adds in comics for other comics. if it looks interesting to me, I'll pick it up. Or if it has a writer I like. that's mainly how I get comics, I look for writers I like, and/or characters that interest me. Also, anything by Warren Ellis.

2) good writing. if you have good writing and good art, you have a great comic. if you have good writing and meh art, the comic can still be good, but even the best art in the world won't save pathetic writing.

3) that's a hard one. honestly, just more good independent stuff. I've grown tied of the big two, besides runaways I've pretty well sworn them off.

4) nope, my writing isn't strong enough yet for a good comic, and unless it was the adventures of stick man, my art isn't good enough either.

good luck with your newsletter.

 

[Addendum]

1. What kinda marketing do you like seeing from the comics you buy?
ex movies have trailers, posters, viral campaigns...what attracts you or catches your attention?

An entry on wikipedia, where I can get an idea of the comic is about, or a website

2.what makes a good comic in your opinion?

One that has a story that I can come back to at least annually, read it, and enjoy it as much as I did when I first read it, or enjoy it more

3. what a genre of comic would you like to see more then you dont?

Anthologies, like EC's Weird Science, The Vault of Horror, or Tales From the Crypt, but I don't want copies just something that has the same quality.

4. do any of you have any comic project you want to promote in the future or need help promoting?

Since I have the ability to only get a quarter of my ideas written down before I forget the idea forever, no.

 

[Cosmic]

As far as marketing goes, I like to see cover art and couple of preview pages. A short interview with the creator(s) is also very good. I want to know when the book will be on sale, and I don't want to hear anything about it not being ready to ship.

I don't really care about genre. I just look for good comics.

 

[Aristotle]

1. What kinda marketing do you like seeing from the comics you buy?
Generally it's just online hype, some exposure in Wizard, and the like that influences me to buy a comic. Still, I know that the brain works in specific ways, and ads in the comics we read influences what we buy later. Specifically, I'd like to see some more cross-promotion between DC and WildStorm. Instead of just flooding WildStorm comics with DC house ads, how about some WildStorm house ads in DC books? Of course, I could go on for ages about how DC mistreats WildStorm, but that's not what the question is.
2.what makes a good comic in your opinion?
A good story that's respectful to the characters and treats them like something other than the writer's personal playground. Of course, the second half basically only applies to the Big Two, and to licensed properties.
3. what a genre of comic would you like to see more then you dont?
I'd actually like to see a lot more licensed properties in comics. I've been very happy with the recent influx of that, and I want more. I'm a firm believer in the idea that if it was great on TV or on the big screen, or even on the written page, you can slap a decent writer and a decent artist on a comic book of it, and it won't be half-bad. Ace Ventura: The Comic? **** yeah, I'm buying that.
4. do any of you have any comic project you want to promote in the future or need help promoting?
About a million of them, but I need to finish school before I can really work on them.

 

[Mladen]

1. What kinda marketing do you like seeing from the comics you buy?
ex movies have trailers, posters, viral campaigns...what attracts you or catches your attention?

large ads with a big splash page and about three words usually dont interest me. in previews for example, i'm attracted to books which sound interesting or unique in the paragraph description, have an attractive cover (sometimes), and I like to see some interior art before I buy. I'm also attracted to artist/writer interviews. In general, I'm attracted to books in which I can have an okay idea of what to expect and whether its something I'm likely to enjoy.

2.what makes a good comic in your opinion?
something which I have some emotional reaction to usually. don't care if its action or depressing or terrifying, as long as i react to it (I definately don't prescribe to the idea that 'comics should be fun'... do people ever say 'movies should be fun'? its just a really limited thing to say). however, i'll count comics which engage me mentally and technically (as in, admiring the craft of the comic for example).

3. what a genre of comic would you like to see more then you dont?
I'd definately like to see less crime comics, and I'm pretty much done with superheroes.
I'd like to see more genreless stories, stuff which doesn't seem to fit anywhere comfortably (stuff like Preacher is a good example... now what genre is that?)

4. do any of you have any comic project you want to promote in the future or need help promoting?

later in the year definately. all depends on whether school will get me time to finish at least the first volume before my local con in july.

 

[November Rain]

1. What kinda marketing do you like seeing from the comics you buy?
ex movies have trailers, posters, viral campaigns...what attracts you or catches your attention?
2.what makes a good comic in your opinion?
3. what a genre of comic would you like to see more then you dont?
4. do any of you have any comic project you want to promote in the future or need help promoting?
Im starting this newsletter, and im just trying to get some inside info, so hit me up.

1. the only thing that really gets me is either other fan interest via word of mouth or nice covers. What really gets me into things is having a good consistent style and story of writing and if there are crossovers then that may get me to start reading another title, i'm fairly old fashion that way.

2. consistent realistic story writing where action takes a backseat to story telling. Saying this though, i'm easily put off by bad art work so when there is action, it has to be top notch and well drawn.

3. realistic takes on reality and some changes to the norm. I really like 1602 or AoA. New takes on old mythos, currently collecting ultimate titles but i think they've taken more of the 'shock' tatics with changing people's backgrounds etc. Favourite period of spidey was the clone saga where spidey's mythos was flipped on his head, i enjoy fresh takes on things, especially old established ones.

4. nah