web comics Webcomics vs Print

[aftershockstudio]

They say that every thing has it's upside and downside. As an avid comic book fan who bought and now have a somewhat aged collection of comic books I always relished the feel of artwork in my hands.

then a time a time comes when you grow up and you realize just how much this way of producing comics costs. When i first ventured to open my own art studio, creating a line of comics was pretty much one of my objectives.

When i did the ground work and found out all the constrictions of printing and distributing comic books i realized why there are so few big name comic publishers. the cost to print is crazy. distribution a nightmare and buyer indifference was heart crushing.

these odds can be beaten but not at the price that i wanted to pay. not when you have a mortgage and kids. so for a while i abandoned my comic book publishing dreams an stuck to doing illustrations for commercial clients.

while roaming the internet in 2007 i realized that web comics was an option that was not only growing in popularity but was actually doable in terms of budget. there were little or no over head start up costs. at this point i went digital with all my stuff. i dusted off my characters and old stories, gave them an update and with my new website http://aftershockstudio.com/ i was now able to publish my comics with little start up cost.

i admit that there is nothing like having printed art in your hands but web comics offer a kind of freedom and versatility that is incomparable.

[moloko]

I used to be a comic collector but it just so expensive now. I rather get the graphic novel now and read it on my Nook Color.

[threetonesun]

It will be nice when all the printed versions offer free digital downloads. I prefer printed, but they're also harder to track down, especially when you like something that isn't DC or Marvel.

In the future though, I think it will be all digital singles, print trades. They're really driving themselves down that road, I was getting every issue of American Vampire, but when they released the second hardcover with the spin-off included for less than what all the issues were costing me, I stopped. Just one example, but pretty much every comic I read now has a compelling reason to get the trade over singles.

[Allan]

I read all my comics online - including Garfield, Buckets (I've been featured in this one), and others like For Better or For Worse.