#481 Digital comics!

Comixology & WebtoonThe digital comics universe continues to expand. This week, Tim looks at two different platforms.

If you’re into American comics at all, you no doubt know of Comixology. Since we last talked to company co-founder John Roberts, Comixology has joined the Amazon family, and their integration is starting to become visible on both companies’ sites. John talks about this, the penetration of digital in the market, how to get your comics into Comixology, and more.

South Korean Web giant Naver started Webtoon in that country back in 2004, and since then its reach has grown in Asia and around the world — the English version is called Line Webtoon. We meet Webtoon content manager David Lee and New Mexico-based creator Stephen McCranie (whose Space Boy is available through Webtoon) to discuss the site’s reach and business model, the differences between making a comic for print and making one that the reader scrolls through, and how to get your comics into Webtoon.

#470 Erotic comics, erratic censorship

erotic comicsAs long as there has been erotic reading material, there have been people trying to make it harder to find. We might have expected that the brave new world of the Internet was going to make everything accessible to everyone whenever they wanted it, but as it becomes more controlled by certain big corporations, the situation has become more complicated. Our friends John Roberson and Dale Lazarov have both found that they seem to have more trouble with digital versions of their erotic (or even just semi-erotic) work getting pulled from digital comics stores than they’ve had with the print versions of their work!

So this week we hear from both of them about the issues they’ve faced, and then for the big picture, we’ll consult British author Tim Pilcher, whose two-volume history of erotic comics includes the work of both John and Dale! Tim discusses the ongoing problems for erotic comics in digital distribution, including seemingly capricious and inconsistent removals of some erotic works; the limitations to what the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund can do; and what both creators AND fans of these works can do to keep them available!

See below for Tim Pilcher’s BBC appearance discussing the child pornography law in Japan.

Continue reading #470 Erotic comics, erratic censorship

#379 Jason McNamara: Read, Write, and Rattle

ShorthandJason McNamara, last seen in a San Francisco Italian restaurant, returns to the podcast! He talks with Tim about his latest comics, Shorthand and The Rattler, publishing through Comixology, The Martian Confederacy, and Superior Spider-Man, and we also discuss the art of writing.

#374 Adventures in Comics Retailing, with James Sime

isotopeSo what’s it like to be an American comics retailer in 2013? Is the digital market your friend, or a sworn enemy? What kind of hassles are presented by the weekly shipments of new comics? Is there any reason to stock back issues these days? In this episode, Tim explores these issues and more with James Sime, co-owner of Isotope Comics in San Francisco!

Critiquing Comics #053: “Barbadango”

barbadangoThis is the prettiest comic we’ve seen in quite a while! Gorgeous art and a promising story characterize George Caltsoudas’ all-ages digital comic Barbadango. Tim and Mulele savor.

#354 Expanding comics’ audience, pt 2: Manga

The 2000s have been thought of as a “manga boom” in the US. Well, that’s true in comparison to the ’90s, but North American manga sales have never come close to the numbers in Japan. Sales of manga — and books in general — have dropped the past few years, but there are signs that the market has stabilized.

Deb Aoki, who writes about manga for About.com, joins us again this week to discuss the reasons why publishers hesitate to put out new manga titles, why Jmanga died and Manga Reborn’s business model is imperfect, and what bright spots there are for the future.

#349 Expanding comics’ audience, pt 1

Recently asked on our Facebook group: What would you do if you controlled Marvel and/or DC? This led to another question: How can comics, particularly in the US, gain a larger audience?

No one’s really sure of the answer to the second question, but its a good springboard for podcast discussion of comics evangelism and the state of the industry in general. What role will digital comics play? In the first installment of an occasional series, Tim bounces these questions off our friend Tom Spurgeon.

#239 Comixology

Comixology.com, which first appeared as a comics information site with pull lists, surprised a lot of people when it branched into selling major-publisher comics for the iPhone. Says CEO David Steinberger: “A lot of people see this as transforming; we see it as following our business plan.” This week Steinberger talks to Tim about formatting print comics for electronic viewing, why electronic comics are not a threat to print, and the possibility of e-rotic e-comics.