When Daniel and I debuted Robot 13 at MoCCA in 2009, we didn’t know what to expect in terms of a response; while we knew we had produced a good, professional looking book, we had no idea how the book would be received. From the moment the show opened it’s doors, however, we were pleasantly surprised to find that we has a slow but steady stream of people actually looking to find our book. In every case, these people read about Robot 13 from coverage on the internet. What was really interesting was that it seemed people were drawn to the book from sites all over the map – in fact, some of the sites which offered the most sketchy information prompted the most people to come check the book out…

Today’s Failure lesson is: Too Much Coverage Is Never Enough.

In the past, it was somewhat difficult for an independent comic to get press coverage for a variety of reasons. Traditional comics press always wants information that they feel is both timely and “hot” when the book publication the newsstand- since independents are always a crap shoot to judge in both regards, many of the larger magazines stayed away from anything without large National distribution. Zines, on the other hand, have always been Indy friendly but many of the print fan operated Zines were difficult to contact and very regional in nature- meaning that while your local Zine would cover you, other Zines might not just because you weren’t in “the scene.”

Today that dynamic has changed dramatically- while there are still traditional print Magazines and handfuls of independent paper Zines covering comics, the Internet has changed the entire game. While there are a handful of large sites that are well known & dedicated to Comics coverage, there are thousands of small sites and blogs which cover comics in whole or part as well. Every genre, every niche and every subculture within Comics is not only represented online, but is most likely covered by a variety of sites. What this means to YOU is that if you take the proper approach, you can get coverage for just about any comic…

What is the “proper approach?”

While I could spend the rest of today debating philosophy on the subject, I think time would be better spent giving you five points that I think will at least point you in the right direction.

1)     ALL Press ISN’T Good Press: The notion that being mentioned 1000 times is always better than being mentioned once isn’t really true in the age of the Internet. People online feel much more anonymous and act with much less regard for other people than any Print journalist ever would. In fact, things like fact checking and standing behind an article are often not the norm with the New Media. A person can create a Blog under a pseudonym, slag you all day long in ways traditionally defined as slander and even legal harassment, and then disappear.  In addition, often people will make wild claims that they might never have done in the past, simply because the Internet is so immediate. Take, for example, the ridiculous controversy over the cover of Robot 13 issue 3- only someone with history of mental problems would conclude that Daniel copied the “almost colossus” Hellboy cover, but because it was easy to say, it was said. While you can never avoid bad press or inaccurate statements, you should focus your attention on building positive buzz rather than endlessly fighting with inconsiderate people.

2)     “Small” Press Outlets Matter: Yes, there are sites that are visited daily by thousands of people, but that isn’t all the Internet has to offer. Quite often, smaller Blogs and sites have a very loyal fanbase, and having 100 readers who actually read every word can actually matter more than you think. One thing that individual Blogs and small sites can have going for them is a very clear personality and point of view. People connect, for example, with the author of SuperPunch because he has things he likes and doesn’t like and he spends as much time on talking about things as he is interested in talking about them and no more. At a more traditional comic site, articles have to be X long and give all the typical information and be structured a certain way, and while that is designed to give information to the masses, it missed the boat with some people. While contacting 10 sites takes more time than sending out a general press release, if the person writing the site content likes your Comic and talks about it, you get that more personal touch with the reader that can win people over…

3)     Nobody Likes Receiving Cold Calls: Before you send a single email to anyone about your Comic, do your homework first. Check out the site you want to contact and see if what you have is something they might like. Is your book similar to Peanuts? Then sending a review copy to a guy who thinks any non-Marvel book later than 1987 is automatic crap isn’t a great idea! And don’t just think about the reviewer- look over a sites content and see if what your book is about fits in. While you are looking everything over, also get an idea as to how often the site or Blog is updated. Not everything is added to daily or even weekly, but if you see the last posting was months ago or that it’s done very erratically, then you might want to move on to the next site. In any case, when you contact people, make sure you personalize what you are saying as much as possible- that not only shows that you cared enough to read their site, but if the recipient isn’t interested, it doesn’t burn any bridges with them like spamming them with unwanted info would. And NEVER send people PDF’s or Review copies unless you contact them first and have had a back and forth with them so you know they want to look at what you have to offer…

4)     Trust (Almost) No One: In the past year, based on the best information I have been able to find, there have been over 800,000 copies of Robot 13 Issue 1 illegally downloaded from fileshare and torrent sites. From what I have been able to see, there are 2 basic files which have been shared- one was scanned from a paper copy, and one was created from the PDF that we sent to reviewers. While it is impossible to stop determined thieves from stealing, you can limit the possibility of that happening by knowing who you send your copies to. In most cases, a person who regularly reviews Comics and has been responsible will treat your review material correctly. When you make that contact with them before you send them review materials, you also have a mutual understanding that they are receiving something confidential from you and need to keep it that way. When you send someone review materials unannounced, that person can always say they never got your stuff and whatever happens after that is up to that person being honest. In our case, one PDF that went astray robbed us blind. Since that time, I only give PDF’s to people I have built a personal relationship with, and as a result the PDF’s of Issue 2 & 3 haven’t (as of yet) come to the same fate.

5)     Big Sites Need Content Too: Never forget that large sites, being large, need daily and even hourly content updates. To feed that need, many of the larger sites have become increasingly Indy friendly as long as you approach them in a professional manner. Sending them a formal press release with Jpegs of your cover can go a long way- even if they don’t run your PR, often that information is passed along to editors, laying the groundwork for getting your Comics reviewed. If you can build up a little buzz from other sites covering your work, you may even get asked to be interviewed and that gives you the opportunity to make a positive impression beyond people that might naturally gravitate toward your work. In any case, the bottom line is the bigger the site, the more content they need to maintain readership. In a sense, the large sites “need” to talk about you to fill space at the very least, unless of course you don’t present yourself as someone who has their act together.

While the “rules” outlined above don’t guarantee you anything, they at least point you in a logical direction.  If you want to Fail, though, the steps above point you in the opposite direction from where YOU want to go. Believe me when I tell you that every step above was learned by me the hard way on some level, so I know how wrong things can get if you go that route. Then again, Know IS half the battle- especially when your goal is to lose both the battle AND the war…

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