Quick (?) addendum to our discussion about Netflix, comiXology, and the profitability of digital:
As it turns out, I was wrong about one thing: Netflix does claim profitability .
(And as of a few weeks ago, Warner Bros. Discovery now says they will turn a profit in 2023.)
But even at profitability, my argument still stands: there’s no clear cut way to attribute the value that a specific show or movie brings—certainly not in the way a traditional Box Office would.
The whole thing reminds me of something Paul Levitz, former president of DC Comics, said in this wonderful book of interviews by comic scribe Paul Kupperberg.
Paraphrasing:
A lot of the old DC management weren’t really trained businesspeople. And before Paul Levitz came along, no one thought to track the individual sales of their comics.
The philosophy was: as long as the whole line was profitable, who cared which books sold what?
Levitz says it was like saying you sold shirts, but didn’t care which shirts sold.
The young whippersnapper pointed out to his upper management that if they knew which books sold the best, they could strengthen their efforts there and stop making books that didn’t sell.
DC tried it. And you know what happened?
They were finally able to pay creators royalties.
Because now they knew what a book (and creative team) was worth.
As anyone who’s sat through a ComixLaunch Mastermind with me knows, I’m not huge on worrying about numbers and analytics.
But knowing which of your efforts is paying off seems pretty dang important.
CARMILLA UNBOUND: 1973
Speaking of paying off, CARMILLA UNBOUND is closing in on our second stretch goal, and it’s all thanks to YOU!
ICYMI: Based on the erotic novella by Sheridan Le Fanu that inspired Bram Stoker's vampire tale 26 years later, CARMILLA UNBOUND 1973 is a 26-page one-shot written by me and D.E. Schrader (Baby Badass, Rafael Garcia: Henchman, Cannibals on Mars), edited by Malissa White (Nightmare, Soundbox, PanelxPanel) and featuring the art of Ismael Canales (Athena Voltaire, The Catch, Zenescope´s Robyn Hood and Belle), and colors by Alex Zief (Cult of Dracula, Hatchet, Monster Matador).
We've lined up a murderer's row of great cover artists, and there's even a chance to snag some sketch covers and original cover art if that's your thing.
We recently slayed our first stretch goal, adding a sweet digital bundle to everyone's rewards, and we're thisclose to unlocking more goodies for everyone.
So if you'd like to join us and haven't already...
Other Great Campaigns to Check Out
Hard-rocking George O’Connor has graced us with quite a few theme songs for our Kickstarter campaigns, and now he’s back on the platform with a new comic:
Charlie's Spot—The Complete Series
The pitch: “When a homeless veteran loses his prized busking spot, he sets off on a magical, bizarre, and heartfelt adventure to get it back.”
I was lucky enough to snag the first issue when George brought it to Kickstarter a while back, and now I’m positively chuffed to be able to complete the series.
The book looks phenomenal, so you should absolutely…
CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT CHARLIE’S SPOT
Frequent Frier Will Allred is back with a hardcover edition of his fun series…
Crossover Division Vol. 1: Fictions & Other Truths Hardcover
Unfortunately for Will, he came down with Covid during the second half of the campaign and hasn’t been able to promote it as much as he’d like.
The campaign ends in a few days, and it needs just little more to get over the funding goal. Here’s the pitch: “When stories invade reality, only two bookworms can save the world from an unhappy ending.”
So if you like public domain fiction (and crossovers!)…
CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT CROSSOVER DIVISION
PARTING SHOT
It recently came to my attention that mystery writer—and real life murderer!—Anne Perry has passed away.
Years before he adapted Lord of the Rings, filmmaker Peter Jackson made an excellent movie about Perry’s teenage misdeeds called Heavenly Creatures:
Ms. Perry was played by none other than Kate Winslet—in her screen debut!— alongside another young talent making her first appearance on film, Yellowjackets’ Melanie Lynskey.
At the time the movie came out, no one knew the secret past of the prolific, Edgar-award winning author, and I remember being stunned to realize that the person whose books took up nearly as much space in the mystery section as Agatha Christie could be an honest-to-goodness killer.
Write what you know, indeed…
OK! Time to go suck some blood.
- Clay (not really a lesbian vampire)