Since launching, Kickstarter has funded 2,652 comics projects, raising $37 million. Comics have a 49.72% success rate—the fourth highest after dance, music and theater, so it’s a well established category for the crowdfunding giant.
In the month of April, Kickstarter’s Brooklyn office will host several comics related seminars and events. You can RSVP for all of these on the Kickstarter page, but here’s a rundown, with a pair of events this Thursday.
Kickstarter 101: Starting Your Comics Project
APR 2
6:00 pm
at 58 Kent Street, Brooklyn, NY 11122
Host: Jamie Tanner (Kickstarter, “The Black Well”)
Special Guests: Molly Ostertag (“Strong Female Protagonist”), Ray Sumser (“The Entire Cartoon Universe”), Hazel Newlevant (“Chainmail Bikini”)
Whether you’re a writer or artist, working in print or online, there are great ways for you to use Kickstarter. This primer will show you how to bring your Comics project to life. A panel of experts will discuss how to structure your campaign to tell your story, come up with great rewards, and spread the word about your project.
Kickstarter 201: Comics Rewards & Fulfillment
APR 2
7:45 pm
at 58 Kent Street, Brooklyn, NY 11122
Host: Craig Engler (Kickstarter, “Lovecraft: The Blasphemously Large First Issue”)
Special Guests: Heather Antos (“Unlawful Good”), Amy Chu (“Girls Night Out”), George Rohac (CEO, Breadpig)
Join us for a candid and in-depth talk on creating and fulfilling rewards for your Comics project. This panel discussion will explore the virtues of digital vs. print rewards, unique experiences you can offer your backers, and the always-popular subject of shipping costs.
Talking Shop: An Evening with Bill Plympton
APR 7
7:00 pm
at 58 Kent Street, Brooklyn, NY 11122
Moderator: Signe Baumane (“Rocks in My Pockets“)
Join two-time Oscar-nominated filmmaker Bill Plympton as he screens his award-winning, animated feature film, “Cheatin’” — a tale of love, jealousy, revenge, and murder. Following the screening, Bill will discuss the making of the film — and its 40,000 hand-drawn frames — with moderator Signe Baumane, and take questions from audience.
Talking Shop: Comics in the Past, Present, and Future
APR 22
7:00 pm
at 58 Kent Street, Brooklyn, NY 11122
Moderator: Charles Brownstein (Executive Director, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund)
Special Guests: Karen Green (producer of “She Makes Comics,” Graphic Novel Librarian at Columbia University), Locust Moon Press (publishers of “Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream”), John Roberts (Comixology)
Across genres and styles, comics have gone through significant transformations in their century-plus of popularity. This lively evening of talks with industry all-stars will explore how comics have evolved, and dig into their fascinating history, development, culture — and what the future might hold.
Introduction to Comic Book Drawing with Josh Bayer
APR 25
12:00 pm
at 58 Kent Street, Brooklyn, NY 11122
Special Guest: Josh Bayer
Writer, teacher, and editor Josh Bayer will discuss comics tips and best practices in this two-hour workshop aimed at adults. Attendees will also get to put what they’ve learned into action with an actual comics-making exercise. Josh is the editor of the comics anthology “Suspect Device,” author of the comics “Raw Power,” “Rom Prison Riot,” and “Theth,” and a contributor to “Henry and Glenn Forever and Ever,” among many other small press anthologies. He has been drawing underground comics since 1988.
I can vouch for this as a viable way to put out your comics. I’m currently working on my third Kickstarter-launched graphic novel (“Casefile: Arkham”). I’m not getting rich by any means, but it does allow an out-of-the-mainstream creator like myself to do paying comics work. If you do it right, Kickstarter lets you pay for your time and initial printing costs, and gets some buzz started by pre-selling hundreds of books to eager readers. All this while making it easier to get publicity online while the Kickstarter is going on, in the form of podcast interviews, crowdfunding roundups, etc.
Plus! I’ve worked on a few games and other projects as an illustrator which were funded on Kickstarter (though on those I’m just a beneficiary of the crowdfunding, rather than a principal on the project). In short, I just have to say “thanks, Kickstarter!”.
Kickstarter isn’t worth the shipping costs it requires to get the rewards to Canada. If it shows up at a comic shop or on Amazon I get it. It seems like fewer American pros who ryn successful kuckstarters are showing up to FanExpo, and I barely attend that anymore due to poor execution. The only thing worse than kickstarter international shipping is eBay’s international priority shipping which killed 99% of my purchases.
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