My book has been out for almost exactly two months. I’ve heard from many readers and had some great fun doing events. While I expect that there still are reviews and reaction to come, I have a pretty good idea of how my work is being received. Below is a far-from-complete list of things on my mind during this eventful stretch.
Here’s what good:
• The book’s initial printing has sold out, and a reprinting is on its way. I was anticipating that the initial printing would be enough for the calendar year, but sales started strong and have remained steady. This is great news, not only because it shows support for this project, but it demonstrates that there is an audience for this kind of story.
• My family and I drove to Muncie, Indiana last weekend for an event at Aw Yeah Comics. Christina Blanch was a great host, and turnout was solid. I can see why her store has become a frequent destination for comics creators doing signings. See the end of this post for more.
Here’s what’s weird:
• The parts of the book that I expected to be controversial have not been, at least not yet. I’ll leave it to others to guess what those are.
• I am realizing the extent to which there is a regional element (I’m avoiding using the word “bias” here) when talking about the history of the comics retail business. Broadly, this is separated into two main camps: East Coast and West Coast. People from each side tend to talk about the early days from the perspective that their region was on the leading edge, and its people were the pioneers. Here’s why I find this weird: I’m from Iowa, where we often feel like everything happened somewhere else. And, the pioneers of the business were from all over, not just one or two metro areas.
Here’s what I’ve learned:
• Let’s call this the “Tintin Rule.” If I’m walking into a comic shop for the first time, I look for whether there is a children’s section and whether Tintin books are on display. The presence of the Tintin series by Hergé is a strong indicator that I’m in a good store. I realize this may sound random, but I found it to be true over and over.
And that brings me back to Aw Yeah Comics. The store covers two floors, and the upstairs is packed with old books and comics, many of which are at bargain prices. I found a nearly complete run of Tintin paperbacks for $5 each. I bought four of them. Sometime soon, I’m going to write about another book I picked up, the black-and-white reprints of Alex Toth’s Zorro from Eclipse Books.
Thank you to Christy and everyone who attended. Here are some photos:
Dan Gearino 