How to Succeed in Self-Publishing Pt. II

About a month ago I went to the Kazoo Zine fair in Guelph. Following the fair, the showrunners, owners of The Dragon comic shop hosted an after-party at a nearby bar. There they asked me and a long-time local zinester to give a talk about our experiences in self-publishing. While we were coming at from different perspectives, what we had in common was the desire to share what we were making-- and connect with people through our writing.

The last post I wrote about why I self-publish, the motivation. All of which was cool-- but what I didn't get to, and what I wanted to share in the talk are the actual nuts and bolts-- all the practical things you learn by hitting the small-press, indie-comics circuit. So grab your extra long-stapler, cause here goes:

1. MAKE STUFF FOR CHEAP

This one seems like a given, right? But it's not easy. Cause you have a stack of pages, or a pdf, and kinkos are there, and it's the last minute, and the show's in less than 12 hours! But whoa there. It really is worth taking the time. Ask around with other cartoonists you know whose books you admire, find out where they get their stuff done, get as many different quotes as you can. We ended up going to a printer north of Toronto up in Vaughn-- far enough to get a great price-- close enough that we can still pick up copies and proofs in a hurry if necessary. Or course, cheap in printing is a relative thing as the price tends to go down when you start looking at volume. Which brings us to the next thing. 

2. PRINT IN QUANTITIES YOU CAN MOVE

Again this is relative, but what are we talking here? 10? 20? 1000? Well you have to test the waters. You're going to sell a certain amount of books to people you know. You can then sell a certain amount in the number of shows you get out to in a year-- with any luck. Once you've done a show you'll have an idea of what that number is.

While it's hard to make this guess-- it makes much more sense on the small press scene to try and underestimate what you can move rather than opt for that big print discount (as anyone with umpteen many cardboard boxes of books around their house / garage/ parent's house even can tell you.) Be realistic. It's much more satisfying to sell-out of a print run-- the worst thing is you have to print it again (as we did with Freelance Blues #1 opting this time for a smashing colour cover.) Because then you've got a reason to celebrate! Unless you're looking for another way to prop up your bed than a box-spring, in which case I say volume discounts all the way. 

3. MAKE FRIENDS

Now this should be simple. But honestly, it's one of the biggest ones there is. Because when you're making your own books at the level where you're representing yourself at comic and zine -fairs, you're gonna need help. When Freelance Blues was first launching we teeamed up with the up-and-coming Canadian Fiction publishers The Workhorsery to share a booth at Word on the Street. Partly cause, well, we missed the deadline, partly because it made it more affordable for all of us.

This leads to all sorts of amazing effects. Carpooling to shows in different cities? Bam. Twitter shout-outs to your newest projects? Pow. And just sharing knowledge about stuff like shows you haven't heard of-- like did you know there's a fan convention in Burlington!?! Thanks to Chris Howard of Dressed for Success, I do.

But one of the best things, is having people around you to give you that boost you need when you're out pushing your books. Because you'll need it with the amount of rejection you'll face when pitching your masterpiece on total strangers. Which brings us too:

 

4. HAVE A PITCH

This I believe-- and it's something I've noticed at shows. It's very easy for an artist to just sit behind a table, maybe sketching, maybe chatting to friends. And I get it. There's lot of reasons for this: they could not be used to standing up for their work, they're shy, introverted, or just feel the art can best speak for itself.

But you know what? From my side of the table, when you're there-- it's not your job to be an artist or writer. You're there to promote your work. You love it -- you've already poured your heart and soul into making the thing. But none of that matters. Unless you're coming in with a massive internet following-- most people will be coming to your stuff cold. So you've got to make a pitch.

Now anyone who has sat beside Mike Leone or I at a show know what I'm talking about. They can practically repeat our sell verbatim by the end of a weekend. Because when we start telling someone who comes by about Freelance Blues-- we tell them the story. We tell them what it's about in a way that gets to the essence of what our book is. That hooks their attention, gives them something they can grab on to. And that's enough for them to dive into it themselves, flip through a few pages and make up their own minds.. So find a way to tell someone about what your book is-- why they would like it-- what makes it good.

It's not about a hard sell-- it's literally about giving them the 30 second version of what the thing is that has maybe already caught their eye. And that just might be the difference between your book sitting on the table or going home to be enjoyed by someone else. 

THAT'S THE SHORT SHORT VERSION. 

I'm by no means an expert on any on this-- the DIY route is one that has been well travelled, particularly well chronicled on sites like those of sci-fi novelist, filmmaker and multimedia impressario Jim Munroe, whose http://nomediakings.org/ is a wealth of articles with all sorts of how-to advice on getting your stuff in motion, printing, selling, distributing, programming, you name it. 

But everything I've learned and that has kept me doing this has come from those practical guideposts. You can't keep making comics if you're broke. And you can't reach out to readers with your work if you don't know how to talk to them. So get out there to some shows already! And speaking of...

AND FINALLY-- TCAF!

This weekend I am very fortunate to be making my first appearance at the Toronto Comics Arts Festival, aka TCAF. I'll be there Sunday May 6^th, at the Toronto Reference Library. I'm one of the folks booked for Sunday after Kid Koala ships out his massive installation on the first floor so look for me there. It's way in the back! But I promise goodness.  Like this: 

Hope to see you at the show!