Self-Promotion – Writing Richie Rich Comics
Buddy Scalera with Richie Rich #5
Storytelling. It’s more than just an abstract concept. It’s something that we all do. In my case, I occasionally write comic book stories.
So here’s a bit of shameless self-promotion. It’s still about marketing and creativity, except it’s about the other creative stuff that I do. In this case, I am currently writing the Richie Rich comic book series.
As a kid growing up, I absolutely loved the Richie Rich comics. The fantasy of limitless wealth, cool gadgets, and the most awesome butler in the world was a dream for a kid like me. Even when I grew up and became “too cool” for comic books, I held on to my modest collection of Richie Rich comics. By good fortune (and some good friends at Ape Entertainment), I managed to write some issues of Richie Rich.
The links below give you a sense of what I’ve been doing outside of marketing. I hope you check out a few of the reviews…and the comic books, of course!
REVIEWS:
- GeeksOfDoom.com: Nice to have something that you can just sit back with, relax, and allow yourself a few chuckles
- ComicBooked.com: Scalera has taken a 50 plus year old property and found a way to make it work while maintaining the all-ages appeal
- ComicBookMom.com: Pure escapism for a adults, too
- Examiner.com: keeping the fun quotient high!
- Buddy appears on Where Monsters Dwell podcast (at the end of show)
- Jazma Online interviews Buddy about Richie Rich
COMIC BOOKS – My issues include Richie Rich #2, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8
- Richie Rich App for iPhone and iPad (digital comics)
- Richie Rich Digest #1 on Amazon (includes Richie Rich #2)
- Other Richie Rich on Amazon
- Westfield Comics
- MyComicShop.com
- Midtown Comics
Anyway, thanks for checking out this post and please share the links with people who might enjoy reading some all-ages comic books.
A few other comic book related posts on my blog:
- How You Can Be An Avenger Too
- Marketing Obscure Comic Book References
- For Sale: Print
- Superman, Journalism, & Next Generation Media
- Amazing 600 – Spider-Man & Comics Today
- My First Self-Published eBook for Kindle
- Batman Isn’t a Comic Anymore?
- Why Comic Book Publishing is Doomed
How You Can Be an Avenger Too!
Avengers Assemble in Avengers #151
As The Avengers movie hits the big screen, you will have a chance to be a real, live hero. Are you ready?
First, meet the villain: Torrent and his evil henchmen Piracy and Complacency.
If you haven’t met Torrent before, you probably will when this movie hits the screen. At some point, someone will introduce you to this true villainy. Evil, unspeakable.
Here’s how Torrent works. You can pay for the overpriced movie ticket (and it IS overpriced!) or you can succumb to Torrent’s siren call.
You will read about the unfathomable salaries of the actors in the film. And, of course, the giddy box office reports of the millions the movie makes. With all this money, why should you pay? Torrent’s henchman Piracy have copies for your 1080p home theater. For free!
It’s a victimless crime. Who gets hurt? Those celebrity millionaires? They don’t need your $12 (or $16 in 3D). So burn a digital copy. Read more
Marketing Obscure Comic Book References
Captain America The First Avenger Movie Poster
Superheroes are back! Well, at the movie theaters at least they are. Love ‘em or hate ‘em epic comic book battles are generating big buzz and big dollars on the silver screen.
As a marketer, it’s easy to observe the big, obvious things about movies based on comic books. There’s a built-in audience: check. There are usually top stars and/or directing talent: check. There’s usually some impossibly large budget: check. That’s the obvious stuff.
Then there’s the geek stuff. As you may know, I am a big comic fan, so I get into these tiny references that are like catnip for fans. It’s small stuff (and some big stuff) that won’t even register for the average moviegoer. But for the devoted comic fan, it can be pure joy. Read more
Google Doodles Will Eisner
Google Doodle Will Eisner
In a pleasant surprise this morning, Google‘s logo was changed to celebrate the birthday of Will Eisner.
For those of you not familiar with the name Will Eisner or the Eisner Awards ceremony, it’s worth noting that Eisner is considered one of the original giants in the comic book industry. He was a prolific and influential comic book writer/artist who pushed the boundaries of the medium.
Eisner is credited with coining the term “graphic novel” as he published one of the first major self-contained, long-form comic book stories. He was the creator of the classic comic “The Spirit,” which still holds up today, unlike many other early comic book stories. Even by today’s modern standards, “The Spirit” is mature and intelligent, both in story and art.
Eisner was a passionate educator, who published multiple books on the topic of creating comic books, including Comics and Sequential Art and Graphic Storytelling and Visual Narrative. These books treated comics like a legitimate medium, providing much-needed respect for the craft of sequential art.
Read more
For Sale: Print
Marvel Comics on iPad
I have seen the future…and I am selling all of my books.
Okay, not all of them, but an awful lot of them. Books, comic books, magazines, and just about everything print. Y’see, I’ve had an Amazon Kindle 2 for over a year now. And don’t get me wrong, it’s an amazing little machine.
But then I saw the iPad, and it changed the way I thought about books, particularly comic books.
Tablets have been around for quite a while. In fact, at work, we run tablet PCs with Microsoft Windows. It’s a nice technology, but for whatever reason, it just didn’t lend itself to reading full novels. Even comics were a little awkward, since you had to use a little stylus to turn the pages of a digital comic.
Apple’s iPad interface is amazing. It’s intuitive, pleasant, and fades quickly into the background. Admittedly, it’s not quite as good as the Kindle when it comes to reading plain text books. But it’s terrific for reading comics. And if they get that screen just a tiny bit larger on the next version — without increasing the total size of the device — it’ll be about a darn near perfect comic book reading experience.
Lots of comic book friends think this is just crazy, but I happen to think that it’s the way I’ll be consuming comics in the future. Sure, part of the comic book hobby is bagging, boarding, and saving your comics. But if you think about it, that’s just a tradition rooted in print and distribution.
Back in the early days, comic books were distributed on the news stand. If you wanted comics when you were a kid, you went to the nearest news stand, pharmacy, or convenience store and got your issues. The problem was that there were very few comic book stores, so it was difficult, and often very expensive, to find back issues of comic books. Scarcity increases price, so that’s the short version of why some old comics are expensive. More people want them than there are comics to buy, and suddenly, people are paying a million dollars for a single issue of Superman.
Because of this relative scarcity of back issues — and the fact that some comic book stories are one long serialized saga — people learned to buy and collect comics. A supporting industry sprung up that supplies bags, boards, boxes, and just about ever variation in between. Multiply that by a few decades of my personal collecting fervor, and I have a room that’s seemingly overrun with white boxes.
As I stare at the iPad, I wonder how many comics will fit on this device? Better yet, how many will fit on my Mac, which I can transfer over to an iPad or whatever device? How many boxes can I possibly clear out of my collection, and how much of my man cave will I be able to reclaim?
One by one, I have been getting rid of my regular books. I’ve donated them to book sales, shared them with friends, and have basically just purged many of my bookshelves. There are still keepers, but the vast majority have found a second life somewhere else.
High quality digital content is easier than ever to find. You can even do it legally through Amazon and Apple, which means that you’re not stealing from the pockets of your favorite writers or artists. The only thing that is changing is the distribution channel, and bookstores, comic stores, and newsstands are scrambling to adapt to this new profit model. Some will survive, but many will not.
In the meantime, I’m trying to figure out what to do with my comic book collection. It’ll be a few years before everything in my current collection is ready in the digital format. It’ll start with the mainstream publishers like Marvel and DC Comics, but it will move quickly to independent publishers. I’m a traditionalist, so if publishers offer comics on DVDs
The way content — including ebooks — is popping into the Apple iTunes store, I think the future is happening sooner rather than later. And that’s just fine by me.
In the meantime, does anyone want to buy some classic comics? Cheap.
iPad vs Kindle – First Look
Apple iPad
It’s nice. Really nice. The color pops, the screen is sharp, and you just don’t want to give it back.
Sure, I have a Kindle, and it’s a great ebook reader. And considering my initial assessment of the iPad, I think that the Kindle is still a better ereader.
But, wow. That iPad is just about better for everything else. Video, web browsing, games, apps. None of these are even available on my Kindle 2.0, which is looking a lot like old technology.
The iPad is really expensive. If you get the top-o-the line with 3G coverage, you’re dropping a ton of dough, even before you start paying for your phone service. Crazy as it seems, the Kindle suddenly downright inexpensive as compared to the iPad.
For everyday use, the Kindle is a great ereader. I didn’t realize how light and portable it was until I picked up the iPad. The iPad has clearly superior screen technology, but I guess that comes with dense, compact electronics that add an unusually uncomfortable weight. While reading a sample ebook (which looked much better than expected), my instinct was to rest it on a table, just to balance the weight. The Kindle, on the other hand, is pleasantly light. You hold it like a paperback novel. The iPad is like holding a textbook.
For me, of course, the iPad is a damn nice device for reading comics. The colors look amazing and digital comics are perfect for this platform.
It’s unlikely that my Kindle will be banished anytime soon, since I tend to read a lot. The e-ink technology means excellent sharpness and long battery life.
But for everyday, all-around fun, the super-cool, insanely useful iPad is the hands-down winner.
Superman, Journalism, & Next Generation Media
Check out this panel from an old comic book. It’s a great reminder of the how society’s view of the media has changed over the years…and how that has helped fuel online news growth.
Superman debuted in 1938. The creators clearly wanted him to be a paragon of American virtue. He was, of course, the ultimate illegal alien. But like many foreigners of the time, Superman wrapped himself in the flag and declared himself a proud American.
Since they were creating an icon, the comic book creators made Superman’s alter ego a newspaper reporter. At the time it made sense, since newspapers were symbols of truth. Papers required balanced, honest reporting from ethical journalists.
There was a time in recent history when Walter Cronkite — the CBS News television anchor — was named “the most trusted figure” in the American public.
Flash forward to today, and Jon Stewart of the Daily Show was named the most trusted newsman. What does that say about the state of news in America?
If Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegal were creating Superman today, it’s unlikely that they’d make Clark Kent a reporter or any part of the mainstream media. The news has become so editorialized…and polarizing…it’s hard to imagine people looking at the profession as trustworthy or ethical. These days, journalists are considered among the least trustworthy of all professionals.
There are honest and trustworthy news professionals. Yet, it’s the public perception of the media that matters in this case. It’s perception and how customers interpret the product.
Let’s cut to the heart of the issue. Namely, journalists have an image problem. It’s a marketing and branding challenge. This is particularly ironic, since they (theoretically) control the media.
This poorly regarded public perception of the media may have even helped fuel the demise of print.
- Print folks were dreadfully late to the Internet. As the Web was developing, many news organizations tried to pretend it didn’t exist. Few created decent brand footprints online, which allowed upstarts like the Huffington Post to grab a foothold on news reporting.
- Traditional media failed to recognize the power of citizen journalism. Instant broadcast platforms made it possible for anyone with a keyboard, a digital camera, or a mini camcorder to play reporter. They failed to leverage the cheap, easy news right in their own backyards.
- Many stories are simply a headline and two paragraphs, which satisfies the basic need to know what’s happening. Depth and breadth of reporting comes later. Newspapers made a terrible mistake when they moved to bite-size news stories in print. Suddenly, the print newspaper was reporting the same stuff that was online the day before. For free. And that depth and breadth stuff? That was cut out of the paper.
- Newspapers drifted away from being impartial journals that worked to get both sides of the story, no matter how difficult. They replaced it with lazy advocacy journalism that was barely better than the basic blog.
People aren’t stupid. They know when something doesn’t smell right. If the paper was going to offer opinions and recycled stories, it was destined to lose value in the eyes of the community. Why pay for lazy reporting and opinions…when you can get it online for free?
In marketing terms, newspapers lost their unique selling proposition. They lost their mojo.
What was left was the tattered remains of the mainstream media. But don’t get me wrong, it has been a long, long time since journalists were considered trustworthy. This is not a recent problem.
Newspapers today are a mere shadow of their former glory. Many of them now just reprint news stories from the Associated Press or Reuters or some third-rate wire service. A few hang on, but it’s just a matter of time before they simply fizzle out.
That’s the bad news. There is, however, a glimmer of hope.
From the ashes of this pyre, it’s likely that some ember will spark a new journalistic flame. It’s possible that the old guard reporters will team with next generation journalists to build a new style of news reporting. Perhaps they will redefine what content, news, and balanced reporting is in today’s modern society.
It could be something that reports news of global significance, offering a view of the world beyond our neighborhood. At the same time, this new media can help us stay in touch with the local issues that affect us directly.
With newspapers dying, someone is going to have to pay for genuine news content. Perhaps one day, we’ll actually find a way to fund good journalism. You know, pay for stuff that has value. Remember when we used to do that?
And, if we’re all lucky, the next generation of inventive minds will create another archetype Superman character who represents rock-solid ethics and legendary strength.
If we give them the next generation of journalism, young idealists may again view journalists as a benefit to society. Guardians of truth who get both sides of the story, and allow us to formulate our own opinions. A friend to the community they serve.
And symbol of truth, justice, and the American way.
Apple’s 10 Billion…eBooks?
Apple iTunes Store Sells 10 Billion Songs
Ten billion. That’s how many songs have been legally downloaded from Apple’s iTunes Store.
This is what that looks like: 10,000,000,000
If it look impressive, that’s because it is. And it is significant because it may represent a small victory in the war over digital piracy. Apple has made it easy and affordable to buy music (something the record industry didn’t do themselves). As a result, people have paid money for stuff that they can easily steal.
If you own an iPod, iPhone or some other Apple device, you know that the Apple iTunes Store is really, really easy to use. Plus, they sell more than just music. You can get movies and TV shows as well.
As the iPad comes out, Apple will begin to roll out ebooks, newspapers, magazines, and other new media content. It’s going to be a broad range of materials, many of which will be purchased by the download. (Currently there is no subscription model.)
From a content perspective, this is a huge opportunity. People have grown used to getting content for free on websites. Few websites have managed to get money out of their visitors. Marvel Digital and Disney Digital have online subscription models, but those are premiere brands with highly exclusive content resources and characters.
As the iPad hits the streets, Apple is going to be working hard to get you to pay for content. Amazon already gets people to pay for ebooks and blogs on the Kindle, so there is a segment of the population prepared to pay for content.
No, don’t get me wrong. I am not looking forward to paying for stuff that I am getting free today, but that’s how it goes. Only so many websites and publishers can survive on the freemium model. Eventually someone is going to have to pay.
Sure, there will always be people who figure out a way to get stuff for free. In fact, many pirates don’t rip DVDs and MP3s because they want the media. They do it because they enjoy the challenge of cracking the code or beating the system. (And DRM doesn’t seem to work.)
With ereaders like the Kindle, Nook, and iPad, publishers are going to have to figure out a way to get people to buy digital books and magazines. Free is not a sustainable business model for most publishers. As the music industry will attest, it’s not going to be easy, but it is possible to get people to pay for media.
Price them right, make them easy to get, and maybe in a few years I’ll be blogging about how there were 10 billion ebooks sold on the Apple store.
LINKS – NOT NECESSARILY ENDORSEMENTS:
- Apple iTunes Store Records 10 Billionth Download, Gives Away $10,000 Gift Card
- 10 Billion Songs Sold by Apple’s iTunes Store
- Simon & Schuster Issues Digital Piracy Policy
- Publishers Fear eBook Piracy, But Shouldn’t
- Piracy, Avid Readers and New Business Models
iPad – Content, Marketing & Comics
Steve Jobs presents the iPad
If you’re a Macintosh fan or a Steve Jobs zombie (Jobzie?) today was like Christmas. Maybe even better. Today, as if you didn’t know already, Apple finally announced the long-awaited tablet device “iPad.”
If you follow this blog, you know that I primarily talk about content, interactive media, and marketing. Oh yeah, and occasionally comic books. So let’s talk about what the iPad means for each of my favorite topics:
- Content: Well, as I’ve said before, it all comes down to content. The best device in the world will only go so far on mediocre content. Touch screens are cool, but they need to be worth the extra cost.
Positive: As usual, Apple fully delivers on the iPad. Right out of the gate, you’ll be able to tap into the iTunes store for eBooks, videos, games, and music. Plus there’s probably a lot more content on the way. You can buy the iPad knowing that Apple will provide plenty of content in full, brilliant multimedia and color.
Negative: It’s hard not to compare the iPad to the Kindle when it comes to reading ebooks. At this point, it looks like Kindle’s e-ink has an advantage over the iPad’s screen. It’s just nicer to read books on a reflective surface, as opposed to an active matrix display. Sorry, color just isn’t that important for the enjoyment of text, particularly long-form prose.
- Interactive media: We’re now in a society where we fully expect to be able to interact with a certain amount of media. And Apple doesn’t disappoint here. The iPad is packed with nifty new tech that will allow us to touch, drag, scale, and game. We are at the tip of the creative iceberg, and it’s exciting to just dream about the amazing applications that will take advantage of the iPad platform.
Positive: What’s not to like? It’s going to revolutionize gaming and allow you to take your fun wherever you go. As a parent, I love portable movies and games. Apps are what made the iPhone special, and the same tech will work on the iPad. Nice.
Negative: It looks like I may have to re-purchase movies that I have on DVD so they play on the iPad. Something tells me I will be buying a lot of stuff to feed my iPad.
- Marketing: At the core, Apple is an electronics manufacturer, but somehow they have managed to position themselves miles above the rest of the industry. Their brand is huge. No other manufacturer can launch a product quite like Apple. Plus Steve Jobs knows how to give a presentation. If you’re a marketer, take a close look at your lame PowerPoint decks and ask yourself if you can somehow do better. (You can.) Apple’s marketing is a brilliant mix of art, science, and magic. This is what they should study in universities.
Positive: Apple breaks many marketing rules, but somehow they make it work. We can all learn from them when it comes to branding and event marketing. Apple makes it look easy, even though they are probably working like mad in the days leading up to the event.
Negative: What they do as marketers isn’t really taught in school. And try as they may, very few marketers can match their magic formula for generating excitement around product launches. But is this really a negative? Nah, it gives us marketers an achievement goal.
- Comics: It’s hard to say how this will affect the comic book business. Comics are already being pirated and distributed through torrents. Up until now, people had to buy printed comics to get a decent experience. Sure, you could read a pirated comic on your computer monitor, but the mechanics were wrong. Monitors are horizontal, while comics are vertical. Marvel’s Digital Comics actually give a pretty good experience, but it still required you to be sitting in front of your computer. I work in front of a computer all day, so sitting at my desk to read is a bit unappealing. Printed comics are still my favorite way to read full-color comic books. But for how long?
Positive: The iPad could make reading comics really exciting. I would love to read my monthly titles on a nice, clear tablet. I could store them on the device (as opposed to reading them in the cloud), that would free up a lot of space in my house. Set the right price, and I will pay for a digital subscription to my favorite comics. I’m ready, let’s go.
Negative: The pirates are already killing comics the way they nearly killed music and movies. If piracy doesn’t stop, it won’t make economic sense to create comics. Easy file sharing and torrents could kill mainstream comics as we know them today. The iPad just gives the pirates a better platform for sharing files.
So that’s it. The ‘Net and the pundits are already buzzing about the iPad. I’m going to immerse myself in the excitement and optimism.
Merry Christmas, Apple fans.
5 Reasons Disney Digital Matters
Disney Digital Publishing Interface
It’s unlikely that kids entering elementary school today will graduate with a backpack full of books. eBooks are quickly becoming a more cost-effective way for schools to distribute educational materials to students. Books and kids? That’s history.
Disney recently launched the Disney Digital Books service, making a portion of their back catalog available online. Disney, which is associated primarily with movies and theme parks, also has a pretty active publishing division.
Here at Words + Pictures = Web, we’ve listed five reasons that the Disney Digital Publishing portal is going to be pretty darn important for consumers, marketers, and content creators:
1. Tiny steps to a world of paid content.
Like most content creators, Disney wants to get paid for their content. This is a tough concept for many people, since we’ve grown accustomed to getting everything free online. At $8.95 per month, this subscription feels a little high for a new launch, but many parents are willing to plunk down serious cash for anything that seems to have some educational value. This subscription model is retraining people’s expectation for free content.
2. Traditional media begins to strike back.
Disney has a huge backlog of content. They’ve done a pretty good job of getting movies out of “the Vault,” but they haven’t done as much with the publishing division. They are launching with 500 title with a promise that there’s more to come. For the past dozen or so years, new media companies have enjoyed a pretty competition-free environment. Now that Disney and traditional media companies are getting smarter about their backlog of content a lot more content will be moved out of the archives.
3. EReader technology inches forward.
Disney is acknowledging the inevitable future of ereader technology. Even though this is launching on the browser, the digitized assets will probably be reformatted for the next generation of ereader devices. Disney’s relentless quest for customer experience will push the boundaries of ebooks and influence improvements in ereader technology. Disney’s branded content will expose more people to digital books. When the right ereader is available, Disney will modify their content for that platform. With Disney’s connection to Apple, we’d expect to see a content deal through the iTunes store, especially if Apple releases the mysterious iTablet.
4. Story extras are no longer extra.
Disney’s digital books are multimedia enhanced, offering more than a flat, linear experience. Kids today expect to interact with their content. These books offer interesting features, including an integrated dictionary. That’s the kind of minimum experience it’s going to take to engage the next generation of readers.
5. Traditional media wants you back.
Disney’s purchase of Marvel Comics opens them up to a gigantic library of titles and characters. It’s unlikely that Disney will put many Marvel properties on the Disney Digital Books site, but they will probably share technical expertise. Last year Marvel launched the Marvel Digital service with thousands of back issues of Marvel comics titles. Disney isn’t satisfied with the silver screen and the TV screen. They want your computer monitor and your mobile devices too. And for the younger audience, they’ve got stuff for boys, girls, parents, and young-at-heart adults. Traditional media companies want you back, and they are going to work hard to win back your attention.
So, even if you don’t watch Disney movies or plan to read Disney ebooks, the Disney Digital Books portal will probably have some impact on your content-consumption habits. Not today, of course. But this business initiative opens the doors for other content companies to get more aggressive online, particularly with their formerly printed materials.
Depending on how you look at it, this may be the next generation of The Wonderful World of Disney. But if you’re Disney’s competitor, it may be the scariest story you’ve read in a long time.
Buddyverse
Facebook
Subscribe on Kindle
Buddy Scalera
Upcoming Appearance
