"Everything's Gone Green..."

A while back, I was told about the website Green Metropolis, an on-line charity bookshop where every book costs £3.75. One look at it and I found myself craving a whole load of new reading material, but I also saw the opportunity to get rid of some my old books and make sure they went to a good home rather than into a bin. So, I set up an account to do just that.

And then immediately had it hijacked by my mum who had a load of books to get rid of herself.

So, I now have a crap load of books looking for a good home, and Green Metropolis seems like a better way of getting rid of them than eBay. Why? Well, as I said at the top of the post, Green Metropolis is an on-line charity bookshop, so there's that. Every book costs £3.75, with 75p of that going to charity (the £3 comes back to the seller to pay for the postage costs) - well, that's the theory, anyway. Sometimes, the books cost less, and sometimes - depending the size and weight - they can cost more.

And, really, I just hate seeing books thrown out or destroyed. To me, it's just a waste, and not something I've ever been comfortable doing. I know what I have listed there won't be to everyones tastes, but there's bound to be someone out there who'll take what I have or know someone who might be interested, and take some enjoyment out of them.

So, won't you please go and take a look at what I'm selling...?

A[nother] Good Idea

Last week, I, like most of the comics reading internet, read this article by Image Comics publisher Eric Stephenson (and, like a good portion of the comics reading internet, I found myself wishing I'd written it). As you'd expect, the reaction has been mixed, with the comments on Robot 6's post about the essay being the perfect encapsulation of everything that bolsters Stephenson's argument (although, to be fair, it appears the some of the Robot 6 commenters didn't actually read the whole essay - or possibly even the blog post on which they were commenting on). The reaction to the post speaks volumes to the siege mentality of comic fans, and the fact it's becoming so deeply ingrained into people that they're literally beginning to turn on the creators and publishers that make up the industry if someone dares say, well, anything they don't agree with (Steve Niles appears to be the whipping boy for this kind of thing at the minute).

I know it's just a small, increasingly vocal minority expressing these opinions, but, as with everything on the internet - whether its news sites, music or tech blogs - it's that minority that comes to dominate the conversation and provides an increasingly toxic atmosphere that pushes other, more reasoned voices away, and stifles what could be well thought out and insightful debates. In this particular case, though, they're missing the point that Stephenson is actually right.

Here's something that a lot of people may not be comfortable reading, but it's true: people's desire to share their creative efforts is spawned from their ego. If you write a song, you want people to hear it, or if you make a film, you want people to watch it - you want your creation to reach as many people as you possibly can. Comics are no different. By selling the rights for film or TV, you can get your creation to reach out to a whole new audience, find new readers and maybe even earn a few new fans along the way. As Stephenson says, how is that a bad thing?

There are people who do just make comics as storyboards, there's no denying that, and, more often than not, those comics aren't great. But to lump all creator owned comics in with them is doing everyone who puts the time and work in to make them a great disservice.

I can categorically say that Babble wasn't conceived as a "movie pitch" - but if Hollywood want to offer me and Bryan some of their filthy American dollars, I think we'll happily take it. Because, the other side of the creative coin is that it's business.

Like it or not, we live in a Capitalist society, where we need money to pay for goods and services and everything has a value, including the things we create. Some people can and do make a comfortable living from doing just that, and, personally, I'd like to be one of those people that can do that. If that means selling the rights for a TV series or merchandising rights for video games for anything I write, then so be it.

But people will still insist that Babble - hell, creator owned comics as a whole are nothing more than "storyboards for movies", and no amount of persuasion or discussion will ever change their minds. So, y'know what? Don't buy them. It really is that simple.

But, please, let people who enjoy creator owned comics just...enjoy them.

Please...?

Another Country

This isn't the blog post I wanted to put up today, but it's something that's been kicking around my head for quite a while now, and I want to...vent, I guess.

With the Before Watchmen controversy ready to kick up all over again, I have no doubt that we'll see the same arguments for and against the series wheeled out, and we'll also probably see the same issues about creator rights being brought up all over again. And, I've come to realise, I have a problem with that...

I want to clarify something right now, just so they're clear in case anyone stumbles across this blog and wants to cherry pick that last comment: I am very, very much in favour of creators rights. I co-own (with the artists) pretty much everything I've done, and I make a point of retaining the rights to anything I do wherever possible. While I have no interest in Before Watchmen, I'm pleased that the whole thing is highlighting creators rights and the issues that surround it, but as that discussion plays out across the comic news sites, it becomes clearer that it's concentrating on events of the past. Whether it's mistakes people made with contracts or the business practices of corporations from 60+ years ago, it all builds a picture that makes you realise that the comic industry - publishers, fans, commentators, creators - are stuck firmly in the pages of history and don't want to come out.

In some ways, I get that. With Marvel and DC, it's understandable that they'd strip mine their catalogue of intellectual properties. After all, they're owned by large corporations who have shareholders to satisfy and money to make, so why not just re-use old properties that are still profitable? Especially if there's a market for those properties and those old stories being re-told by new creators. Like it or loathe it, it's just the way it works, and it doesn't look like there's any change on the horizon. But throw consumers fans and commentators into that mix and it becomes an endless cycle of old stories, opinions and articles about them, increasingly fuelled by the internet and the weird, vitriolic sides it brings out in people who don't like what they're reading, but continue to buy (even though it's "not as good as it used to be"). And now, as the mainstream media begins to take notice of the comics world, the same arguments and discussions are going to be brought back into the limelight, and the cycle begins again.

But it has to stop. There has to come a point where the discussion has to end and creators - from every part of the comic spectrum, small press to professional - have to take the lead and start putting those endlessly talked about practices to work. While we can go over and over who got shafted by which company or who stabbed who in the back, we should be looking at those cases as history that we can learn from as we move forward. Comics is one of those industries that needs creators to survive, but to make it thrive, those same creators have to force people - fans, commentators, press and publishers - to start looking ahead and stop living in the past.

That's far easier said than done, of course. I have no idea how to even begin to go about it, I'll be honest, but I guess trying to convince people that there's enough space for creator owned and/or non-superhero material alongside Marvel and DC collections on their shelves would be a small step in the right direction. Or, y'know, vote with their wallets.

Is this a "call to arms" for creators? Well, not really, no. It's just me throwing some thoughts down about the way I'm seeing things and trying to figure stuff out. There's a lot of untapped potential and talent in the comics world, a lot of great stories waiting to be told and a lot of great creators...creating, but it's all for nothing if readers stubbornly refuse to look forward to see what new material is being produced, instead of behind them to see what's been and gone.