Focused Linkblogging

• Johanna has moved into new digs. Update your blogrolls, feed readers, and coffee break plans accordingly.



• Somehow, my synapses fire and connect the latest "Basement Tapes", about creator's reaction to online criticism, to Larry Young's online grenade. But that's just me, and I accept I may be damaged. There's no doubt that the Internet has increased the exchange between creator and consumer in comics, and that has to impact the process in some way.



• I am trying to find the money to contribute both to YACB's Second Annual CBLDF Fund Drive and Child's Play. I am going to go over this week's list again, and see what I can skip.



• Caveman Robot himself stopped by to let me know where I can buy his book. It would have been very welcome news, had I not already found the site and made my purchase 24 hours before his post. As Diamond distribution becomes more and more an issue for some publishers, easy-to-use websites that offer two books shipped for $4 total is at least one way to make sure your distributor doesn't control your artistic fate.



• I regularly read Rich Johnston's spoiler-filled Lying In The Gutters, but paid little attention to this week's discussion of Speakeasy's business practices. I assumed the creators involved made the decision to go with Speakeasy knowing full well what the deal was. Joshua Hale Fialkov of Elk's Run fame points out that this isn't the case:
  

  Consider this. When I signed with Speakeasy, they had about 5 books being published, each of which was sellin 3500 copies. I was told that the plan was a slow expansion. Now, by the time the bumper edition came out, they had about 20 books, wach selling closer to 1500. Currently, they have something like 29 different projects (including trades etc.) and books are barely breaking 1000.
  
  If their business practices are responsible for the falling numbers and essentially cause you to owe them money, especially when the system is already rigged against you from the beginning, then what?

  
  Mike Justice, who is my main man at
  2005 Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award Winning Night Flight Comics has mentioned Speakeasy's aggressive line expansion to me again and again, and I will have earned the "I told you so" I should get when I head into the shop tomorrow. I'll follow the resultant Engine thread carefully.

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