Yes, his name is really Al
According to a report on Newsarama.com citing various sources, “Diamond will be ending the print edition of its Previews Adult Supplement catalog (which lists all adult comics and products offered to retailers from various publishers), and, due to economic conditions, is raising the purchase order minimum from $1500 to $2500.”
As a retailer and even just as a comics fan, I have this to say.
Oh my god…about frigging time.
As someone who has to input between 100 and 200 new titles every frigging month, and who goes through nearly 5000 items in the Previews Catalogue to figure out which 100 new items to put on the site, I say “BRING IT ON!”
The market is so fragmented and marginalized that we need a MASSIVE cull in the industry to get things under control.
“But whither the little guy” I hear folks say. Hey, I appreciate the hard work that goes into creating comics, and I know that for many it’s a life long passion. Good for you folks! Follow your dream!
The harsh reality is that if you’re not able to turn $2500.00 worth of product over in a solicitation, then you’re not creating something that’s worth the time you’re spending working on it, and if you’re just creating it “for art’s sake”, then don’t try distributing it through a mainstream distributor…sorry, that’s just reality.
In other really real industries if you create niche product, then you do niche distribution, if you want to be carried by the mass market, then you write books that Penguin or Harper Collins will release, or you design T-Shirts that the Gap will want to sell. Otherwise you get your stuff on Threadless and you self publish your book and hawk it to the bookstores individually yourself. Hell, if you’re really ambitious, go direct to your customer.
There are plenty of vanity publishers who will publish your book for you, and there are plently of venues for you to sell it in.
Heck, if you really want to create an audience, then publish it online and generate a community around it.
Don’t think it’s your right to be in the Diamond Catalogue, and don’t think it’s my responsibility as a retailer to carry your product. It’s your responsibility to convince me that I HAVE to carry your product.
And for the love of god, please stop blaming Marvel and DC. They market their products folks, that’s why their stuff sells. Even stuff that they don’t directly market still sells because they have literally billions of dollars of good will established already. Your “brand” doesn’t have that history, so you’ve gotta do the legwork on your own. Stop your whining and get down to business.