Print farmers and how we feed them
I’ve never worked for Marvel or DC comics, and I admire those that do. Not only because it isn’t easy to break into the big two without an immense amount of talent but because the grind of producing work is tough. Imagine having to produce for a machine that doesn’t stop year-round, but also for a machine that will replace you in a heartbeat because there is no shortage of hungry artists willing to work for low pay and unimaginable schedules. They will work for the “prestige” of saying they drew an iconic character for an iconic company. And the Big Two know this.
I made a conscious choice not to pursue that kind of career at some point. Instead, I worked in the indie market and came to the conclusion that perhaps I should take a break and someday do a creator-owned book. I experienced the struggles of the indie market, in a landscape that doesn’t really support the proper monetization of comics in a way that makes it worthwhile for artists and creators. The Image comics founders did something completely necessary and made it possible for creators to make some kind of living AND own their own properties. This brings us to today. Today, it’s a mixed-bag of creators fighting for a piece of the market and other artists and personalities riding on the pop-culture properties for their own gain or spotlight. The big two, well, they’ll always be doing what they do in another stratosphere.
I remember seeing conventions filled with retailers selling comics so people can buy and read the actual comics we are celebrating. I used to see comic book pros signing those books, some B-list celebrities from pop-culture related T.V. shows or movies, indie-creators selling their latest books, and up and coming or amateur artists in artists alley, probably also selling their own creator owned stuff. Some brave soles did a bit of cosplay for fun. This was not a time when the technology supported prints, because Xeroxes and laser printers at Kinkos was really expensive. Some of us paid for printers to make posters and such. Not cheap.
Today, we have the internet, where artists can feed their drive to produce with the encouragement of LIKES, and FOLLOWS on social media. Today we have inexpensive prints that we can produce to help defer the cost of convention tables, and we have the new craft of cosplay that now has made what would have been just a fan of the industry, quasi-celebrities themselves for their talent for crafting these costumes. These are all amazing and wonderful steps in the evolution of the industry. Where there is a growing issue, at least in my mind’s eye is not just that we are celebrating pop-culture and comics, but that some of us are cashing in on what other people own. We all do it to various degrees.
Have you sold a print of a character that you, not only didn’t work on professionally, but that you don’t own? Have you sold merchandise of yourself in a cosplay costume of a character you had no part in creating? Are you selling t-shirts or whatever other “merch” of properties you have no legal right to do so? It’s getting to be pretty commonplace.
I don’t typically do conventions unless I’m asked to attend by a publisher for a book I’ve worked on to promote a book by said publisher, or if I’m asked as a guest. Since I haven’t produced any creator-owned material to promote yet, I don’t just want to promote myself, with no option to sell anything other than unlicensed art. I feel as though conventions suit 3 purposes for a vendor:
1.) Promote your art or a project
2.) Sell merchandise as a retailer
3.) Convene to network with like-minded industry folk
If you’re promoting yourself as an artist, then it should be original art you are selling. If you’re a retailer you have acquired the proper license to sell certain merchandise. I think some artists have confused both. They’re essentially a retailer now.
1.) Because it’s EASY to do and there’s DEMAND
Cost of prints and the mark up is crazy. They’re cheap to produce and easy to sell at a huge mark up. Believe me, I did this last weekend just to kind of do it with a more critical eye. And I see what the appeal is. People WANT art of their favorite BIG TWO characters, or popular indie characters. There’s demand. After leaving with a wad of money that didn’t take much selling skill, it’s clear why both artists and cosplayers are cashing in. Paying for the cost of your table just got easy right?
If you’re not a pro comic book artist or a card carrying model/actress the pseudo fame is a big draw. After years of dreaming about working for the Big Two or having a successful creator owned book, (or being famous in any capacity) and all of a sudden, you’re being treated like one at a convention by mainstream people, you might like it. People that don’t know whether you’ve actually worked in the business, or just sell a ton of prints of popular characters, will buy from you, and those customers just don’t care. This print-selling artist guy has a convention set up 10 feet high with a wall of prints visible from the Hobbit Shire on Middle-Earth over some of the pro artists at the Con. That artist may love the attention, the feel of the Conventions, the camaraderie, and that’s fine, but it really undercuts what I feel should matter: making actual comics. Instead of working on another big-selling sexy girl print, maybe more artists should focus on story-telling. But it all depends on what your personal goals are.
Is this a black and white issue? It is for some. But It used to be selling copyrighted characters without permission was “ok” if it was in a limited print run. I used to see this more from pro artists. I can’t see that convention after convention, some of these un-numbered prints aren’t just reprinted over and over again. I know because if I’m invited to a convention, I’ve just printed more without keeping count to feed demand.
After this last weekend, I’ve decided to tackle this in a way that makes some sense to me personally.
I will probably attend more conventions in the future, proactively once I have either more original art or a creator-owned book to promote. It’s kind of like actors who promote their current film. That’s just the marketer in me.
However, presently, I have decided that I will go back to drawing more at Cons. If someone wants a print with a character that is NOT mine, it will be FREE with a donation of their choosing for a sketch. So they get a Con sketch, and with it a print.
Otherwise, I’m just adding to this latest trend that I’m not too sure I completely understand though I’ve tried to make sense of.
For the record, I respect and tip my hat to cosplayers that do more than just model and sell “provocative” images. Cosplayers that are true craftsmen/women. I tip my hat to artists with dreams that are working towards those dreams. I say to them, focus all of that energy into working on your storytelling, and hone your craft versus the quick buck and pseudo fame from the wall of prints. If you’re just an artist having fun, then have a great time and sell what you own, if you’re only selling copyrighted characters and a lot of other people are doing just that - this bubble is going to burst at some point. If I create a character and it becomes successful, I’d not like to see it on your wall of prints without being asked. If asked, I’ll probably be more than happy to say, “yes.”
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