Skip to Content

Doing it yourself is great but you have to know what’s involved

The DIY philosophy is an appealing one: we are our own boss, we don’t answer to anyone about the editorial turns our comic is taking. It lets us cut out the middlemen, like publicists (“…That’s the Spice of Life, Bud: The Todd McFarlane Interview,” The Comics Journal, n° 152, August 1992). When it’s put that way, it may sound like a choice, but at the same time, we have to be honest and acknowledge that we have to adopt this approach because traditional channels don’t embrace our projects. 

In any case, whether or not we voluntarily adopt the DIY philosophy, it’s important to assess all of its implications. Steve Morris summarizes the stages of production for a comic (script, design, illustration, inking, colouring, lettering) (“Interview: Stephen Mooney Goes Creator-Owned for ‘Half Past Danger’,” April 2, 2013, http://comicsbeat.com). We would add a few others: bibliographic research, validation, corrections and translation. For the Web, where posting regularly is the name of the game, the production cycle becomes very long, which requires the creator to also take on the role of project manager. 

And on top of that, we must also develop promotional skills, which isn’t something everyone takes to (Hannah Means-Shannon, “On the Scene: WonderCon 2013, Indie Marketing Tips from Comixologie, Dark Horse, IDW, Archia, Valiant,” March 31, 2013, http://comicsbeat.com). So, even when we want to go it alone, it quickly becomes apparent that teamwork still has to be involved.

complement123