Nov 08 2008
When is an anthology real, when is it not?
I haven’t been writing comics for a long time. I’ve been at this for just under two years. I’m still a novice. But I think I’ve learned a thing or two. Hopefully, one thing I’ve learned is how to spot a “real” comics anthology and one that will never, ever come to fruition.
Last year, I responded to an ad on a comics help-wanted site. The poster said he was publishing a new anthology series. He planned to come out four times a year. Each issue would have six to eight short comics in it. I sent out two of my short scripts. The “publisher” was enthusiastic and said he’d like both. Of course, there was no upfront money. All payments would be made on the back-end, depending on how well the anthology sold. The next step, the publisher said, was to hook up my scripts with artists.
Well,that was the last I ever heard from that publisher. If I go to the publisher’s online forum — that he created specifically for his new anthology — I get an empty page. This anthology, and this publisher, is gone.
Today, I would have never answered that ad. There were obvious warning signs that this anthology was never going to be published.
The first, and most obvious? This guy had no publishing credits to his name. He was a novice, too. With the Internet, everyone thinks they can be a publisher. Obviously, they can’t.
Secondly, the guy had no edit requests for my story. Most publishers want at least some changes. Those who accept everything blindly are the ones you have to worry about.
Thirdly, the guy had no set timetable for when he wanted to publish this anthology. That’s bad news. Without deadlines, very few publishing projects get done.
Fourth, the guy’s e-mail messages often had typos. Now, I know a lot of people don’t proof their e-mail messages. But they should. And professional publishers do.
I consider myself wiser — just a bit — now. Today, before biting on new comics and new anthologies, I do some research. Most times, I pass on the project. That’s because the vast majority of comics and anthologies by novices never do materialize.
One Response to “When is an anthology real, when is it not?”
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When you send a script like that, are there a lot of contracts to sign to ensure that there’s no intellectual property theft? I mean with real publishers, not fly-by-nights. Or is the existence of the date-stamped script enough to prove ownership? That might be an interesting post for newer writers who don’t know about such things. I ask because of an experience with signing a dozen contracts when sending a submission to one gaming company a few years ago.