Thanks for sharing these impressions. As a Costa Rican middle grade illustrator and comics artist who's been there not once but twice as a visitor and looking to pitch my wares to international editors (thus learning the rights market is NOT the place for that, hehe) I share your same impressions on the future of publishing for authors — going indie and growing up your own fan base isn't without its big set of challenges and pains, but might well be the only secure route for authors the way things are going. Still, being around a whole village completely consecrated to comics all over the world for a full weekend is an unforgettable experience for anyone with a passion for comics art.
I also have a Substack dedicated to the ups and downs of yours truly making art and my latest issue is precisely about the festival, which I last attended in 2023 and link to an in-depth piece I wrote a year ago about it.
Hey Margreet! Lovely to get to know you better in this post - and in English, no less. ;-) I appreciate your overview of publishing trends. Now following your Substack!
Thanks! It's just an impression I got, I'm sure there's more to say about the state of comics worldwide. But I do definitely stand by the community gathering, so thanks for signing up!
Looks like it was a lovely trip, and a nice educational experience on publishing. Thanks for sharing your time and discoveries. I agree. Publishing online first and building an audience you can sell books to later is a good plan now and where we're moving in the future.
I also think, with the growth of AI art, more people will be interested in the human person behind the drawings. They'll look for more personal true stories and desire to know about the life of the artist creating the work.
I'm not half as versed in Substack as you are, but my gut says to cultivate your audience on Substack (and other socials) and then send them to a crowdfunding site, as you did for your marvellous '5000 miles of comics'. BUT I do see a model on Substack for putting your work-in-progress, for instance, behind a paywall. Erika Moen is doing such a thing for her upcoming mental health book, on Patreon. It's a thrill to see her process from sketches to final art, and to see the sometimes drastic changes she's making during that process. Well worth 5 dollars a month!
Ah yes, that would be even easier on Substack because you can just add a paywall break in a post. So I might experiment with sharing parts of the book and maybe add some insights into my process behind the paywall. Thanks!
Aw that top photo of you has such great energy! An Author Book Bio photo, for sure ❤️
Thanks! My publisher took that, he always makes me smile. :D
Thanks for sharing these impressions. As a Costa Rican middle grade illustrator and comics artist who's been there not once but twice as a visitor and looking to pitch my wares to international editors (thus learning the rights market is NOT the place for that, hehe) I share your same impressions on the future of publishing for authors — going indie and growing up your own fan base isn't without its big set of challenges and pains, but might well be the only secure route for authors the way things are going. Still, being around a whole village completely consecrated to comics all over the world for a full weekend is an unforgettable experience for anyone with a passion for comics art.
I also have a Substack dedicated to the ups and downs of yours truly making art and my latest issue is precisely about the festival, which I last attended in 2023 and link to an in-depth piece I wrote a year ago about it.
https://open.substack.com/pub/alzamon/p/lad-4-angouleme-comics-festival?r=1vtkkh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcome=true
Thanks! Also this is so great about festivals like Angouleme: that we get to connect with other artists worldwide!
Hey Margreet! Lovely to get to know you better in this post - and in English, no less. ;-) I appreciate your overview of publishing trends. Now following your Substack!
Thanks! It's just an impression I got, I'm sure there's more to say about the state of comics worldwide. But I do definitely stand by the community gathering, so thanks for signing up!
Looks like it was a lovely trip, and a nice educational experience on publishing. Thanks for sharing your time and discoveries. I agree. Publishing online first and building an audience you can sell books to later is a good plan now and where we're moving in the future.
I also think, with the growth of AI art, more people will be interested in the human person behind the drawings. They'll look for more personal true stories and desire to know about the life of the artist creating the work.
I think that's so true!
This is so interesting! Would you recommend publishing a whole book on Substack before you crowdfund a physical copy? Or just snippets?
I've never been to Angouleme, but would love to visit some time, looks really fun!
I'm not half as versed in Substack as you are, but my gut says to cultivate your audience on Substack (and other socials) and then send them to a crowdfunding site, as you did for your marvellous '5000 miles of comics'. BUT I do see a model on Substack for putting your work-in-progress, for instance, behind a paywall. Erika Moen is doing such a thing for her upcoming mental health book, on Patreon. It's a thrill to see her process from sketches to final art, and to see the sometimes drastic changes she's making during that process. Well worth 5 dollars a month!
Ah yes, that would be even easier on Substack because you can just add a paywall break in a post. So I might experiment with sharing parts of the book and maybe add some insights into my process behind the paywall. Thanks!
🥹❤️