Trades and Issues

[Middenway]

I had an odd moment today. I was talking about comics online and mentioned that I was a trade waiter. The response I got was "It's a good thing we aren't all trade waiters. The industry would collapse".

I don't live in America, so I'm unfamiliar with the issue versus trade situation. In Australia, only hardcore collectors buy single issues. Everyone buys trades, because single issues don't really exist, except in extremely rare comic book stores (and I mean rare. I didn't even know comic book stores existed in Australia till I was 20).

But I am very curious about this. As an outsider, the idea that the comics industry rests on the sales of individual issues seems very strange. It's such a disposable medium. I would've thought trades were the real business, and the only reason issues were still being published was because that was the way it had always been, like continuing a tradition for tradition's sake.

Obviously this isn't the case.

So does anyone know some good articles out there about this I could read? Preliminary web searches returned lots of forums with people arguing about the merits of buying trades or single issues, which is really not what I'm interested in. I'm much more interested in the impact each format has on the industry as a whole. I'll continue searching, but I figured I should try asking here first.

[Middenway]

An interesting article I found on the topic.

[Nitz the Bloody]

The author of that article started with good points, but lost me when he went into the " Think of the children, won't somebody PLEASE think of the children bit". Even if adults aren't keen on reading superhero comics, they can still read comics period, be it as webcomics, ecomics, graphic novels, or whatnot.

[Blue Blazes]

the individual issues bring in advertising money probably to offset costs. its the printing of the individual issues that may help keep trades prices down. it may be like a movie, 1st its in a theater then you can get a dvd/blu-ray with some extras. comics may be similar. sure there are direct to video movies, much like there are direct to HC original graphic novels. so anything beyond the original release is beneficial, hoping you break even at least initially so afterwards any other release type is profit.

this is purely speculation on my part, will have to read that article a little later though.

[dumbstruck]

I had an odd moment today. I was talking about comics online and mentioned that I was a trade waiter. The response I got was "It's a good thing we aren't all trade waiters. The industry would collapse".

I don't live in America, so I'm unfamiliar with the issue versus trade situation. In Australia, only hardcore collectors buy single issues. Everyone buys trades, because single issues don't really exist, except in extremely rare comic book stores (and I mean rare. I didn't even know comic book stores existed in Australia till I was 20).

But I am very curious about this. As an outsider, the idea that the comics industry rests on the sales of individual issues seems very strange. It's such a disposable medium. I would've thought trades were the real business, and the only reason issues were still being published was because that was the way it had always been, like continuing a tradition for tradition's sake.

Obviously this isn't the case.

So does anyone know some good articles out there about this I could read? Preliminary web searches returned lots of forums with people arguing about the merits of buying trades or single issues, which is really not what I'm interested in. I'm much more interested in the impact each format has on the industry as a whole. I'll continue searching, but I figured I should try asking here first.

It is my opinion (and this is based on absolutely nothing) that sales of the monthly comic are a large part of whether or not it will be collected as a trade. If the monthly is a resounding flop, you aren't likely to get it as a trade. If it's anywhere from a monster blockbuster to a middling success, you can bet it'll probably be reprinted as a trade.

[dancj]

It is my opinion (and this is based on absolutely nothing) that sales of the monthly comic are a large part of whether or not it will be collected as a trade. If the monthly is a resounding flop, you aren't likely to get it as a trade. If it's anywhere from a monster blockbuster to a middling success, you can bet it'll probably be reprinted as a trade.

It's certainly part of the decision, but I doubt it's all of it. I'd like to think (and this is also based on absolutely nothing) that publishers will apply a bit of common sense and have some awareness that certain comics sell better in trades and other types sell better in issues, so some titles might get a trade with poorer floppy sales than another that doesn't get a trade.

[dumbstruck]

It's certainly part of the decision, but I doubt it's all of it. I'd like to think (and this is also based on absolutely nothing) that publishers will apply a bit of common sense and have some awareness that certain comics sell better in trades and other types sell better in issues, so some titles might get a trade with poorer floppy sales than another that doesn't get a trade.

You're right. I didn't mean to imply this was the only thing that went into the decision. Only to say from a certain perspective, the person the OP was talking about had a point.

[dancj]

You're right. I didn't mean to imply this was the only thing that went into the decision. Only to say from a certain perspective, the person the OP was talking about had a point.

Fair enough.

I think that person's way of thinking might work on an individual book, but wouldn't make a difference in the big scheme of things.

The industry is at a point of change where it needs to adjust its model to think in terms of TPBs and digital comics to the point where floppies might even die off (but not for a good 10-20 years yet), and trying to guilt people into doing things the old way is just going to make it harder for the industry to evolve.