Broken Frontier

Welcome to the first installment of my new column at Broken Frontier. Special thanks to Frederik Hautain for the offer. I hope you don’t regret it. Yes: that was a joke.

As I believe introductions are in order, I am your host, Dwight L. MacPherson. My first published work was a four issue mini-series entitled Dead Men Tell No Tales, published by Arcana Studio. I had two one-offs published by Silent Devil Productions: Jim Reaper: Week One and Lil’ Hellions: A Day at the Zoo, and several short comic stories in various anthologies. To find out more about my work, please check out my website.

With formalities (and shameless self-promotion) out of the way, we come to the purpose of this column. My hope is that VOX POPULI will become a useful resource to creators and a bit of entertainment for our beloved comic book readers. I intend to delve into several areas of conversation which may prove controversial and angering to some—and absolutely invaluable to others. In fact, I am certain that I will receive a bulk of hate mail during the course of this column’s run. To be honest, I am not concerned about it. I’m looking out for you—because someone’s got to.
Having said that, let’s get to it…

Permissum Artifex Caveo: Let the Creator Beware

News Flash: Creators, there are publishers out there who want to take advantage of you and your creation. To those of us who have been around for some time, this is no revelation. Oh—and we talk, publishers. Trust me. We warn one another and whisper about you in dark alleyways. But fear not… I won’t be spreading your name about the internet. That is not my style.

Creators, here are a few warning signs that you are working with a shady publisher:

1. No contract.

Please… if you take only one thing away from this column, take this bit of advice: Good publishers are professional publishers. Do not go forward with a project until you have signed a contract with them. It is laughable to think that some publishers don’t have standardized contracts—but there are those who do not. Also, if they ask you to write up a contract: run. Run far away from this publisher and don’t look back. Small press or large, publishers should conduct business professionally. If they do not, look for another potential publisher.

Oh—and spurned creators: don’t use a public forum to “warn the masses” about a publisher. This only makes you look like a fool. If you are intent on looking like a jackass, use a political thread to do that instead. I’m joking, of course.

2. Unreasonable contract.

Let me explain what I mean. There are publishers out there who want 50% of the rights to your property for the next 5 years! And what do they do for you in return? They will publish your book and get it listed in Previews. Of course, some will tell you that they have invested thousands of dollars (“Out of my own pocket!”) promoting your work and shopping it around Hollywood. If these assertions are true, ask them to produce receipts for what they say they have done. If they have been rendered services, they have been given a receipt. Is it unreasonable to ask that you receive one as well? Short answer: nope. If they cannot, it probably isn’t true.

Let’s do the math, folks. You get 50% with which to pay your creative staff—and trust me—they aren’t cheap. The publisher takes his printing costs right off the top—out of the 100% of profits, so we’ll just nod, wink and acknowledge that fact. The publisher then takes his 50%. If indeed they do have an agent shopping your property around Hollywood, the agent’s cut is almost always a 15% finder’s fee—after he lands the deal. They don’t get paid until you get paid. So the publisher retains 35% of profits at this point. Then—as your project is made into a film, the publisher will get 50% of the check from the studio—and you will get the remaining 50%. The publisher does nothing to earn this 50%. Do you see what I’m saying here? There are publishers whose deepest desire is to get rich from your hard work.

So before you sign your contract, have an attorney look over it. It may cost you a few bucks, but it’s worth it in the long run. You can be certain the publisher covered all his bases to ensure that it is most beneficial to him/her/them. Hey—that’s just the way it is. But you should also ensure that it is beneficial to you. I have noticed a trend of more and more creators turning to self-publishing. More often, these are creators who have been burned by a publisher—and some more than once. Protect yourself and your interests.

3. No receipts.

After your publisher receives his initial purchase order back from Diamond, you should receive a copy of that receipt. If you are receiving a back-end percentage, how will you know if you are receiving your just due unless you are allowed to review the purchase order? If they become angry, or offer “Don’t you trust me?” they are most likely not being honest. But more importantly: they are not being professional. Hell—when I buy gas, they offer me a receipt. Isn’t your creation more important than a tank of petrol?

Well, that’s all I have time for this week. But fear not, I will return next week to drop some more knowledge on your arse. One word of caution: I tend to joke around quite a bit. When I do this, I will let you know.

Small press creators: I’m here for you. If you would like to send material for me to check out, I would be more than happy to do so. If I dig it, I’ll say a good word or two about your book in a future column.

Thank you for reading Vox Populi. I hope you’ll check us out every Thursday. Next Thursday, I’ll be naming names. Don’t miss it!

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Dwight L. MacPherson is a creator, writer, editor and poet. He lives under an abandoned bridge with his three sons in the mystical land of Tennessee. He makes up for his deserted whereabouts by being present all over cyberspace:

- E-mail: dwightmacpherson@brokenfrontier.com
- Personal site: www.dwightlmacpherson.com
- Writer’s café site: http://www.writerscafe.org/profile.php?id=4190
- Myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/dwightlmacpherson