Broken Frontier

I ended my last column commenting that I was going to go into the process of how to get your stuff read and hopefully published by a company or person that isn’t named “You.”  Well, in a fit of irony, I recently just pulled a project out of the market to publish it myself.  I spent the past two weeks debating what to do with it and where to take it.  And the answer, it seemed, was staring me in the face every morning while I brushed my teeth.

I have a project – let’s call it “Untitled” for safety’s sake, while it’s still in “pre-announcement” mode – that is untraditional to the comic market, with a specific format requirement, and a VERY tight creative team including an editor I adore. 
Now, let’s have a look at the pros and cons of publishing with someone else.

PROS:
Wide Exposure
No Inherent Cost to Me
Builds Reputation as Creator
Better Placement in Previews
Better Coverage in Media

Now all of those are arguable points (as you’ll see in a second), but ultimately, and generally, going to a company like Dark Horse, IDW or Image will get you all of those things. 

CONS:
Give Up Percentage of Media Rights
Give Up Full Creative Control
Give Up Marketing and Packaging Preferences
Give Up editorial and ancillary staff.

Now, while the media rights are what a LOT of people focus on, realistically, as my manager says, “100% of nothing is still nothing.”  So, if they do help to position you to sell it, take the percentage pay cut, and be happy to get paid.  The bigger problem, for me, is that even in the subtlest ways, you lose control of your property.  You have someone telling you “Well, our marketing experience says that this will work.”  The fact is, though, that with a non-traditional product, it takes a broader eye and commitment to a project to properly deliver it to the masses.

Now, let’s turn our attention to self-publishing.

PROS:
Complete Creative Control over EVERY Aspect
Hand Picked Staff
Builds Reputation of Your Company (assuming you already have one, of course)
100% of Media Rights

Again, the media rights point is sort of moot until your project sells, so the real meat here is complete creative control. Being able to package, distribute, and market your book as you see fit is a very valuable thing, but it also brings us to the cons of self-publishing.

CONS:
Costs Lots of Money
Worse Rates on Advertising
Much Harder to Get Media Attention
Getting Approved by Diamond is MUCH Harder

So, look, if you can float the cash, now how to work the Internet marketing game, there’s really pretty few “cons.” So, if you can afford the money it’ll cost (and you can get terms or even on credit from some publishers), why not?  Self-publishing your property shows prospective publishers down the road that you’re willing to put your money where your mouth is and that if they aren’t willing to get on board, you’ll just do it yourself and make another success.

Right?

Well, that’s what I’m counting on anyway.  The simple desire to have full creative control, especially in a medium (and, in a broader sense, profession) that creative control is so rare, is worth the extra work and cost in my opinion.

But, ultimately, it’s up to you as a creator whether you can handle the undertaking yourself or under the watchful eye of a publisher.  There’s nothing a publisher can do that you can’t do yourself, it just takes know-how and plenty of capital to be able to do it.

Next time, we’ll talk about the smile and shake fest that is Convention Season.