Thoughts on Creating & Small Press Comics

Lots and lots of thoughts

Intro

You ever think twice, three times about something you create before you want to publish it? To the point where you don’t even think it’s good enough to be published? To the point where you get in your own way? That’s been me with this newsletter.

I used to be confident that it wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible. But I felt like I had to follow some type of formula to gain traction. Once in a while I would write something that really came from the heart but it was more of an exception than the rule. I never lied or shilled anything but sometimes I was definitely not feeling it. I have come to the realization that what I write may never get much traction and that it may suck. But if it does suck, it will at least be what I wanted it to be vs. sucking because I followed some preconceived notion of what will be accepted.

Creating for You, Not for Anyone Else

During an interview between Colin Blanchette (co-publisher of “Canon” and “Die With Your Mask On”) and writer Robert Boyd, who contributed to the famous Top 100 list of the greatest comics ever made appearing in “The Comics Journal” issue #210, Colin said the reason he published a special issue of “Canon” to revisit this list was that he wanted to see it, not mindful if anyone else wanted to see it. It reminds me of an interview with Noel Gallagher, one of the frontmen for the rock bank Oasis. In it, Gallagher gives this brilliant quote:

“The consumer didn’t fucking want Jimi Hendrix, but they got him, and it changed the world. And the consumer didn’t want “Sgt. Peppers” but they got it. And they didn’t want the Sex Pistols, but they got it. Fuck the customer, the customer doesn’t know what he wants. You fucking give it to him and he likes it.”

So, if you are out there wondering if it’s worthwhile to add your contribution to comics (or to anything, really) and if anyone will want it, remember it’s about you doing what you want to do and running the risk of not being widely or even slightly accepted. Rejection is the price you must be willing to pay for being creative.

You can get a copy of this Canon special issue with a Noah Van Sciver cover and the rest of the Canon offerings here and you can subscribe to Robert Boyd’s Substack. More about this interview below.

I Was Wrong About Newsletters

I have had a change of heart when it comes to newsletters and essays about independent and small press comics. I had thought that this was a dying way of discussing comics and that video was the only relevant path going forward. I even stopped writing for a while and, when I did come back, I wasn’t fully invested. While I still think that video is the major path, I will say that I was wrong about formal written commentary. As with any history, it has to be documented with words. Lots of words.

During the interview between Colin and Robert, I had an epiphany when, upon Robert stating that anyone that does not have “The Comics Journal” #210 could just google the list, Colin’s counter was that while you could access the list, you wouldn’t get to read the reasoning of why a certain comic received its respective ranking. The idea of a list without the reasoning behind the list reminded me of this scene from Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Court Martial”:

It made me think deeply about the information that is available and how it’s recorded and how much of it is not documented and how much of it should be documented. I think of it like a great meal. It’s not just whether the food you are served looks, smells and tastes good, but for people that like to cook (like me), how it’s made, the spices and ingredients used and the reason why a certain food is cooked a certain way is as important as the food itself. I think it’s important that we try to communicate our thoughts about small press and independent comics because we don’t have the Disney or WBD machine behind us. If you have thoughts or want to engage with someone who writes or posts something, do it. We need more of it. I have been reading small press for only about five years now. However, in that time, it’s become apparent that this genre of comics has always been and will always be sort of an underground movement (no pun intended). That short blip of time around the turn of the century where mainstream media was talking about independent comics seems to have been an outlier and not a trend.

Here’s the interview between Colin and Robert that I referred to:

The Unravelling of Indie Comics Social Media

Up until 2024, Instagram had been the preferred spot to show off people’s collections and spread news from small press comics publishers and cartoonists about upcoming work, primarily for the under 40 crowd. However, in 2024, Meta (the parent of Facebook, Threads and Instagram) announced a change in their terms of service that essentially states any and all content posted on their sites can be used to feed their AI engines without permission and no compensation to said creator. This led to the exodus of many Instagram users and, from what I have seen, a large number of them have not landed on other sites.

Twitter has turned off a legion of users due to its CEO Elon Musk and his recent Nazi propaganda and for allowing Twitter to increasingly be a feeding ground for right-wing, racist and misogynistic social media posts. For years, people have called Twitter a trash fire but these days, it truly is a raging trash fire and more people are leaving.

BlueSky has struggled to gain traction in this space. My theory is that people want one, at most two social media spaces to interact with and those platforms are well-aligned with age and demographics. Leaving Instagram does not automatically mean that people will go on another platform and we are seeing that now. Many people have left Instagram and just not gone anywhere else or have a BlueSky account but don’t feel the desire to post content there.

And, before someone mentions Facebook, Facebook is mostly where old comics fans go to talk about old comics. I’m a member of a Barry Windsor-Smith group there and it’s great to see his art and I could probably find a Love and Rockets group there, but if I want to see what’s new from younger creators like Cash Browns, Stephen Pellnat, Desmond Reed, Tillie Walden, Alex Graham, etc., Facebook is NOT the place for that.

I think that the era from 2020-2024 was a great time for comics social media, especially for small press. I don’t think it will be like that again because of corporate interests and the need to feed AI which IMO is a ton of bullshit and is something that the tech companies are saying what we need so they can make money. And you can use DeepSeek for free and it’s much better than anything being created in America.

Creators You Should Be Aware of - Tom Manning

I was introduced to Tom Manning by Colin and in my opinion, Manning makes graphic novels like no one else. Each of these stories are long, engrossing, page-turning and original. These are not formula or trope books. Tom is someone that doesn’t get talked about enough but really should be talked about and talked about often. This is a level of brilliance in comics you don’t often see. You can find his books online or at his site at tommanning.info His original art is being represented by Athenaeum Comics Art here and it is a feast for the eyes. Below is a video that Colin posted last year and is a great introduction to Manning’s work.

I’m going to sound egotistical but I have good taste in comics. If I recommend something strongly, you should strongly consider seeking it out. You will not be disappointed.

Outro

The publishing frequency of this newsletter will be more fluid, as I come up with an idea I think worth writing about instead of gathering a bunch of ideas or, not having any interesting ideas, feeling the need to publish it on a monthly schedule. I’m working on doing better quality content and that is somewhat uncharted territory.

If you like this, please let me know. If you have qualms or critiques, let me know. While I did say that I would do what I wanted to, only a fool cuts out all external input. Sometimes you need to sanity check yourself and be okay with it. If you do like it, please consider sharing it. Until next time, remember that as much as you are struggling, someone you know may be struggling too.