THE SOUS–SOL JAVITS WAS PACKED FROM FEB. 24-26 FOR THE 1ST Annual New York Comic Con with loads of comics, books,
toys, video games, posters, artists, retailers and fans. Fans
canvassing the aisles for rare comics and autographs. Fans wearing
corsets and pleather pants and Jedi gear. Fans that give new
etymological emphasis to their root – fanatics.
The “comics” ranged from standard classic (Archie; the
extended Justice League crew) to Manga (including the up-andcoming
“theologically sound” Christian manga – there was even a
panel on spiritual values in comic books), to Graphic Novels to art
books. Merchandise spilled forth. Many booths offered free
books, posters and pins, and even more had dollar entry raffles
with original signed art as the prize. Beyond the dollar a pop,
exhibitors collected the far more valuable contact information
(name, e-mail, telephone number) of the hundreds who signed up.
This networking finesse tied in directly to the extensive multichannel
marketing and merchandising taken on by nearly all of the
artists and publishers in attendance. Frank Beddor author of
THE LOOKING GLASS WARS (Penguin Fall 2006) was one artist
whose mini-empire embodied the advantages of a thorough
attack. The whole concept originated as a novel, but in a twist
Beddor introduced a spin-off character from the novel in comic
book form before the novel itself was released. In the US, the first
comic HATTER M, came out in December 2005, and the second is
due in March. In all, four will be released, all before the novel.
“Every reviewer who writes about the comic book mentions the
novel as not being available, which makes everyone only want to
talk about the novel,” Beddor said. In addition, Beddor created an
elaborate website, original music (a CD will be released at the San
Diego Comic Con), and video book/comic trailers running viral
on the web (25,000+ people downloaded the videos over the
weekend). “It’s really about offering content,” Beddor said.
Publishers, Rags, & Wookies vs. Captain America
The NY Daily News was in attendance (offering a $.99/week
subscription along with a free cartoon covered umbrella in hopes
of upping circ) and Publishers Weekly was giving away their “PW
Comics Weekly” – a full color 8-page newsletter that seemed like a
fair special, but is actually a permanent, free e-newsletter available
to PW subscribers.
From the exhibitors, the overwhelming consensus was that the
event was much more highly attended than anticipated. Although
the scene is still nowhere near as large as the San Diego con (which
one exhibitor said snakes on for a solid mile plus) there was
already chatter in the aisles about next year’s expansion. As for
larger trade publishers, DK attended due to their heavy licensing
activity, showing off classics like Pink Panther and Spider Man
branded books. Pocket Books (S&S) emphasized their CBS
affiliation with CSI and MTV branded books, while Abrams
drew attention to their graphic novels and art books – especially
MOM’S CANCER (Brian Fies) which Abrams picked up when it was
still in web comic form. In another web comic pick-up, Holt is
publishing Laura Weinstein‘s graphic novel GIRL STORIES this
spring. Originally published on gurl.com, a sequel is already in the
works. Weinstein, who is used to the “DIY aspect of promoting a
book,” now has the industry heft behind her, focusing on all of
the larger retail channels, while she continues to fill in the gaps
with smaller comic book stores and independents. She said that
Comic Con was great for exposure with the fans as well as a
chance to meet various industry contacts – specifically foreign
publishers who were roaming the aisles looking to acquire.
Conversely, some foreign publishers at the fair expressed
difficulty at getting their books picked up by American houses. A
representative at Actes Sud BD (the stunning graphic novel
division of the French publisher known primarily for its literature
and art books) said that although traffic had been steady and the
books garnered a good response, they have yet to sell many of the
rights in the US. For more information, contact Michel Parfenov
(m.parfenov@ actes-sud.fr).
HarperCollins and Abrams used the New York event as
hometown leverage to get into the game and show off their
growing graphic novel titles (HarperCollins had the largest
traditional publisher booth spread), while many of the others like
PaperCutz (publisher of the graphic novel Nancy Drew and
Hardy Boys books), SLG, Dark Horse and Tokyo Pop added
New York onto the San Diego affair they already attend on a
regular basis.
The biggest difference between the two? “California is much
more Star Wars,” the DK booth attendant said, “New York is
more Avengers.”
