Having a great idea and being able to follow up with it are two very different things. It takes a lot of time, energy and money in order to get what you want, but when it happens you are left with a sense of accomplishment that is unmatched. Publishing a book is hard work but publishing a comic book be even harder due to the inherent failures associated with the medium--but being successful at it can mean a huge cult following.
Instructions
Your Publication Goals
1. Define the nature of your comic book.
2. Making a comic book means making tough choices financially. Your comic can either appear in color or in black and white.
3. The cover of your comic, no matter your budget or internal artwork, should always be in color.
4. Set a sales goal for yourself. Decide, within reason, the amount of sales your comic needs in order to break even and how many sales to make a profit.
5. Determine the cover price of your comic.
6. Begin marketing your comics directly to the fans in order to spread your work by word of mouth. Create posters and small one page strips of your story and artwork to give out for free.
7. Copyright your story, characters and artwork prior to printing and distributing.
8. Obtain a business
Printing
9. Scan your art work into your computer. Choose the highest setting and DPI that your scanner allows. If the software lets you, select to scan directly into Photoshop. If not you can open Photopshop right away, click on file and "obtain from TWAIN device" and select your scanner.
10. Once the images are obtained in Photoshop, use its features to correct any blemishes there may be.
11. Comic books, like novels, are always even and odd numbered pages. You will be printing in such a way to allow collation. Your pages in Photoshop should have two comic pages on a sheet: Page 1 and the last page to one sheet. As such, you must combine the two pages that will go together into one image. Open an image and click on image--then image size. Double the properties and add 10 pixels to the size. Select the second page, copy it, then paste next to the first. Save.
12. Once your comic is fully scanned (or created in photoshop) it is time to close Photoshop and open Microsoft Publisher.
13. Click file and select new. Use blank and make the orientation portrait.
14. Select insert and picture from file and locate your artwork and load it.
15. Your work will appear huge, in the landscape setting, as opposed to portrait. Find the edges and hold down the "shift" key while clicking the corner of the image, and dragging it toward the center--until you can see the border of the canvas in publisher.
16. Move your mouse to the center of the image. An arrow will appear and you can now click and turn the image to make it the proper orientation.
17.Adjust the image size again until it fits.
18. Save your publisher file.
19. You are now ready to print. Choose the image you wish to print first and select file then print and go to properties. Make sure your printing options is to print portrait and at a DPI of no less than 900.
20. After you have printed assemble your book properly by going in reverse. The cover is laid down first followed by page 1 and page 16 (facing down). You continue until all the pages are together.
21. After your book is assembled (do not fold it!) you can take your finished project to an office supply store and have them run off several pages, double sided. Black and white pages are cheaper than color by 90 percent. Start with 50 books (you can always make more). You are looking at 4 sheets for 16 total pages and you will be charged for 8 copies. Your cover will be in color and will cost the most.
22. For an added fee they will bind your book for you. Otherwise fold your books and reopen them, press them open then staple 1/4-inch from top, bottom and one in the center. You now have your finished comic book.
Selling and Marketing
23. Obtain a business license and sales tax ID number.
24. Use the internet and your fan base as your initial distribution channels. Once popular and refined enough, try to get your comic into the hands of distributors.
25. Your comic is created. Take your book to local comic stores and pitch a proposal to them and include them in profit. You will allow them to sell your book--with no money out of their pocket-- you will come by every two weeks with a new issue, pick up the old ones and collect the portion of the money that is yours. Generally, 60 percent to you and 40 percent to them is fair to start.
26
Create flyers announcing a new comic and distribute them to cars, mailboxes and local comic stores.
27
Post on comic related message boards.
28
Casually leave around "free sample" books to entice people to read them.
29
Get into comic book conventions as a vendor or artist. This is a great well to sell yourself and your book to other comic lovers, as well as stores.
30
Obtain a list of comic book stores and send a sample of your book, sales literature and a short bio. to them.
31
Create a press release to promote your comic and release it online as well as sending it to print publications.
32
Create a website that includes your company information, art and comic book excerpts, as well as a list of where they can buy your book. Do not sell on line yet, instead, aid those stores who supported you by giving them free advertising.
33
Send your finished comic book to all of the major comic book companies. You never know--one might bite and offer to publish you under their branding.
