Making a rookie mistake on my first comics series.
Over the past eighteen months, I've learned a lot about making comics. Much of it has been technical stuff, like discovering the best placement for word balloons on the page, or how to create a workflow from pencil sketches to finished digital artwork. I've also gotten a lot better at switching between writing and drawing—in truth I need to wear both hats throughout the process.
But if there's one thing that I wish that I'd done differently in 2022, it’s printing more copies of issue #1. Doh!
I’d assumed that anyone who bought the first issue would be ready willing and anxious to buy all the rest. Not so. Whether folks are speculating on the presumed value of a “rare” first issue, or simply giving it a go and deciding the series is not for them, I definitely miscalculated. Whenever I show up to a comic book store to restock or peddle my latest issue, the proprietor is likely to ask “Got any more of number one?”
To which I must reply, “Not many!” I have stockpiled about 100 in order to be able to sell the complete set of ten issues as a set. But most of the remaining run are scattered to the four corners of comicdom. Which leads me to an interim solution.
On Monday, January 8, I will begin serializing When We Were Trekkies on my Instagram page. If it goes well, I may continue to post the entire series, since there are about 200 pages and it will take 40 weeks to get to the end. The first three issues have been in print for a year at this point, and I expect issues 9 and 10 to debut before March 15.
So if you haven't had a chance to check out Trekkies yet, now’s your chance. And of course, if you enjoy the strip, please like the posts and follow me—it helps me to get the word out.
And if you want to show more support, please check out my Patreon page, which is updated weekly with posts, essays, advance art and more. Everyone who joins my Patreon before January 15 will receive a sample issue of Trekkies and my latest mini-comic 1968: A Boy’s Odyssey as a thank you.
Meanwhile, Happy New Year, and thanks for reading!
