I wanted to do a little research on how to introduce more women to comics. I didn’t want to have to hang out at the comic shops while dressed in drag, or do a reverse  “Chaz Bono” surgery to gain insight on how women or women characters are treated in comics. Luckily before I had to walk a mile in a woman’s shoes (even though they make my calves look spectacular), I looked to my left and found a woman who reads comics just sitting on the couch next to me.

It was my girlfriend and webmaster Nicki!

She not only reads comics, but can school me on comics trivia any day of the week- and I’ve been reading them for almost 40 years! She is more than qualified to give an opinion on getting women into reading comics, and is pretty easy to talk to.

I asked her what could comic creators do to help attract more female readers to comics?

“Don’t play to stereotypes. Not all women love manga or hate superheroes. Don’t try to write the perfect story for women- just write a good story.”

What else?

“Don’t talk down to readers- don’t patronize. People can fly, shoot laser-beams outta their eyes, climb walls, etc. and I’ll go along with it. But you have to establish your ground rules for that reality and stick to them. There needs to be some rules for that universe based in our reality. For me death is that. In Harry Potter or Star Wars you might see someone’s spirit or ghost, but dead is dead.”

Ok- so we were off to a great start. I then asked her what she thought the retailers were doing to encourage new readers, especially female readers into checking out comics?

“Not a damn thing!”

That question had an immediate response and she followed that answer with-

“Well, most I’ve run across don’t.” She then expanded on that thought.

“Whether it’s retailers not being interested in attracting female readers or just bad customer service- who knows? One of my pet peeves is not greeting customers when they enter a store. They get one first impression as a new customer. Not acknowledging they’re in your shop is just rude. If you don’t do anything to encourage them to stay, look around and explore what your shop has to offer, or to ask questions why should they? I’ve gotten the sense that many retailers have their own niche or share of the local comics market and are good with that. They aren’t really interested in increasing their core customer base or increasing business. Sure there are exceptions out there, but in my opinion comic retailers have that attitude of just opening the doors and waiting for the customers to find their way to the shop. Luckily my local comic shop owner is happy to see me when I stop by to pick up my hold bag on Fangirl Wednesdays. But I see bad attitudes elsewhere and all too often.”

I have to agree. I’ve been to a lot of comic shops all over the country and I can count on probably one hand the shops I was really impressed with their customer service. At one time, there were a dozen or more comic stores in Memphis.  Many were badly run and have gone out of business.  We’re down to two successful shops now, which is 200% more comic shops than a lot of other cities. I received such bad or rude service in a couple of the out-of-business shops that I put the books in my hands down and walked out.

I next asked her how she felt comic book publishers were marketing to new readers?

“Things are better than they used to be, but they’ve got a long way to go.”

How so?

“They are as guilty as the retailers about growing or not growing the market- otherwise they would be more open and aggressively marketing to women.”

What can publishers do to help expand the market?

“You have to get eyeballs on your products to sell them. The direct market is very narrow, and the distribution is even more so. The comics need to be in more places than just comic shops.”

“When I was a kid I could go down to the corner convenience store and buy comics off their spinner rack. I can’t do that today. Heck, my nephew can’t do that. How many communities even have a local comic shop (LCS)? I can go online and buy a trade paper back or graphic novel from Amazon.com, but I can’t order monthly titles from them. I can go into a few bookstores here and pick up some monthlies along with my trades and graphic novels, but if bookstores are unable or unwilling to carry the comics, then what are publishers doing to market TPBs and GNs to women?”

“Publishers need to highlight female creators- writers, artists, editors, publishers, etc. and promote them.  How many people know that there are women working in comics? How many know the head of DC Entertainment is a woman? I’m not saying that women will only read female-created books, but it makes the industry more inviting. Comics are notorious for their depiction and treatment of women. They need to be less misogynistic and sexist- and I’m not just talking about the art. Most of the art doesn’t bother me. Sometimes I roll my eyes or comment on how that’s not anatomically possible. For me it’s more about how women are portrayed in the story, their characterizations. Is she just a plot device or a fully fleshed out character?”

“Publishers tend to sacrifice one female character to build up another female character. Recent Batgirls are examples. You don’t tear down Superman to build up Superboy, so why do that with two females? Recently with the Hal Jordon “threesome”, they tore down two female characters to make a throwaway joke and make Big Hal look like a pimp.”

So what was Nicki’s first exposure to comics? Funny thing, it was pretty much the same as mine.

“It was a spinner rack at a corner store. I got an allowance and I’d spend it on a coke, candy, and comics.” Me, too!

I asked her if she was only drawn to female characters/comics?

“No, I read a lot of Richie Rich, Casper, Archie, and G.I. Joe. ”

Wait, no Wonder Woman..?!

“I was a HUGE Wonder Woman fan growing up, but I didn’t read the comics because they weren’t available on that spinner rack where I shopped. I loved the Super Friends cartoon and the Wonder Woman TV show. I wanted to be Lynda Carter when I grew up- I still do! My mother made me a Wonder Woman costume for Halloween, and I would wear it everyday. Mom would have to wait until I fell asleep to take it off so she could wash it. I would put on the costume and spin and spin until I was ready to hurl. I hoped if I could spin fast enough I would become Wonder Woman.”

So had Nicki always read comics?

“No, I kinda grew out of them. You can only read Casper for so long!”

So what brought Nicki back to comics?

“I got back into them a few years ago at Midsouthcon, a local sci-fi/lit convention in Memphis. John Jackson Miller was on a Star Wars panel discussing the comic series Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic that he was writing for Dark Horse Comics. I had read a lot of the Star Wars EU (expanded universe) novels and read the Star Wars: Obsession comics mini-series, and I had played the KOTOR video games and was familiar with the era his story was set in. The way he described his story became infectious and he hooked me on it.”

“When I got back home to Nashville I bought and read the first two KOTOR trades and fell in love with them! I was only going to buy the trades, but I couldn’t wait for the story to be collected so I started buying the monthlies via mail order.”

“After my friend Traci had her epiphany with (Star Wars) Broken, she kept harassing me to read (Star Wars) Legacy- which I also loved. I was happy in my own little Star Wars niche until you and I started dating.”

“How did that change you view of comics?” I asked.

“I knew you were a big Batman fan and my only exposure to Batman was the 60’s Adam West TV show, SuperFriends, and the movies. I asked you what I should read, and you  gave me The Killing Joke hardback…and that book pissed me off royally! I was so mad after reading that damn book and seeing what had been done to Barbara (Batgirl) by Alan Moore and The Joker. I had very fond memories of the 60’s show and Batgirl, so I googled ‘Barbara Gordon’ to see if she ever got better. People in comics come back from the dead more than people in soap operas. It happens all the time in comics. I got even madder when I found out she never got out of the wheelchair until I saw the name ‘John Ostrander‘. I was familiar with his work on Legacy and found out that John and his late wife Kim Yale had created the Oracle persona for Barbara.”

“In that bit of research I found out that Oracle led a team of women superheroes called ‘The Birds of Prey‘. I had to read that! There I found Gail Simone’s work on the series, and my friend Traci turned me on to Gail’s first story arc, The Circle, in the current Wonder Woman series. That was when I started to look outside the Star Wars universe for comics.”

Speaking of looking for comics, have conventions become fan-girl friendly?

“Ok, I’m not a fan of Twilight, but it disturbed me the way Twilight fans were treated by comic fans at the San Diego Comic Con recently. It was as if a hostile takeover was occurring by these mostly young girls who were Twilight fans. It was not Nazis invading Poland. It’s acceptable to male comic fans for women to be at the con as long as they’re ‘booth babes’ or scantily clad cosplayers to ogle, but heaven forbid they take up any space in a panel room or share the same dealers room. Sorry guys- that’s sexist.”

I’ve seen the same thing with some comic fans and their feelings towards manga/anime fans, especially the young cosplayers. It’s almost like a silent turf war! “What are those kids doing here? Stay away from my comics- get that manga comic-wanna-be crap outta here! And get off my lawn!”

“Harry Potter and Twilight and even Star Wars have proven there are female fans out there. When we saw Wolverine at the theater it wasn’t all guys there. If Hugh Jackman can sell a comics property to women, then I’m all for it!”

I agree. I wish more comic based movies would promote the fact that they came from a comic and not try to hide the fact. Don’t know why there aren’t comic commercials before the movies or advertised in media other than comics.

“The comment about “sexist”  goes for the publishers, too. The publishers are the gate keepers. It’s up to them to say, “No, you can’t portray our characters this way.” or, “No, you can’t treat our female readers that way.” They should demand better from their creators. Same goes for creators of the publishers. Marvel Divas was mismanaged from the get go and Joe Quesada made it worse every time he opened his mouth to defend their actions. This is how not to market to women! We as readers should demand better. We have to vote with our ‘pocket books’, which sometimes paralyzes us as readers. We unfortunately can’t buy a book featuring one of our favorite characters because of the characterization, bad plotting, or other offensive objections. On the flip side of that we need to support the books and creators that are doing it right. If you think a story or series is good, then you have to support it. It’s a business and the numbers have to be there for it to continue, whether it’s for the big two or an independent.”

So what is Nicki reading and supporting these days?

“My current pull list:
Batgirl
Power Girl
Secret Six
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Legacy
Star Wars: Dark Times
Star Wars: Invasion
Stuff of Legend
Wonder Woman

I also check out the Bat titles on your pull list – Detective Comics, Streets of Gotham, Batman & Robin, and Gotham City Sirens as well as Green Arrow/Black Canary.

I just finished reading the Y: The Last Man series, and I’m about to start reading the Fables trades.  My library has a good selection of trades and graphic novels, so I’m able to read many titles like Y: The Last Man that I might not be able to afford to read otherwise.”

“I also love digging in back issue boxes for hidden treasures.  I had a geek-out moment when I found a copy of John Ostrander’s Batman: Seduction of the Gun in a quarter box at a recent con, and he was kind enough to autograph it for me at Metropolis.  I’m enjoying reading older series like Suicide Squad, Grimjack, Birds of Prey, Huntress and previous Star Wars series like Republic and Empire.”

Yes Virginia, it’s ok for girls to read comics.

Thanks to Nicki for sharing some of her thoughts on women and comics. I learned a lot and really enjoyed our conversation!

Hope you did, too.

Lin

Tags: Alan Moore, Archie, Batgirl, Batman, Cape Comicon, Casper, comic books, Comic Whore, comics, DC Comics, Diamond Distribution, Fables, fangirl, G.I. Joe, Gail Simone, Gotham City, Grimjack, Halloween, Huntress, John Jackson Miller, John Ostrander, Joker, KOTOR, Lin Workman, Memphis, Midsouthcon, Nashville, Nicki, self-publishing, Star Wars, Suicide Squad, women, Wonder Woman, writing comics, Y: The Last Man

Today I’m going to climb up on my soapbox for a bit and talk about something I think is vital to the comics industry and keeping it going.

New readers.

Now when I say new readers I mean just that- people who haven’t read comics before. They could be kids, adults, men, women, anyone who hasn’t read comics before. Each group or person can be introduced to comics in several ways. I’m going to talk about a few that I’ve witnessed and/or think will work. This week I’m going to start with younger readers.

How to get kids into reading comics? First, you have to show them that they exist. That’s what happened to me. Back in the mid-70’s when I lived out in Utah, a friend gave me a beat-up copy of Marvel Team-Up #4 that had Spidey and the X-Men fighting Morbius- The Living Vampire! It was pretty cool, even with the cover missing. We moved shortly there after back to Memphis, and I found a spinner rack at a nearby 7-11. That spinner rack had a copy of Amazing Spiderman #171 (which co-starred Nova). I bought that comic and have been buying comics ever since.

Now, this was back before just about every kid had a video game system, DVD’s, and personal computers. Heck, this was a year or two before I knew what Pong was. This was also a time before you had to tell kids to go outside and play for at least an hour a day.

For the most part, spinner racks are a thing of the past, and like kids reading comics they’re kinda rare these days. Still, I’ve seen kids in comic shops, shows, and conventions (mostly shopping with their parents)- and at cons usually while wearing a costume, kids and parents!

That I love to see. Parents and their kids enjoying comics together. And it doesn’t have to be parents. It could be grandparents like my buddy Dave’s who used to read him war comics. It could be an older sibling who passes down comics when they feel “too old” for them. It could be an aunt or uncle. I’d occasionally get to take my niece Lindsay with me to the local comic shop on a Saturday afternoon and let her pick out a comic. She’s now a big fan of manga. It could be a neighbor who gives out comics to trick-or-treaters at Halloween. Or it could be a friend who hands them that one comic that gets them hooked not only on comics, but reading.

There are a lot of great ways to introduce kids to comics these days. Free Comic Book Day in May, cartoon and movie or video game inspired comics, old classics like Archie, and more. Many comic shops have a designated shelf or area that’s usually a bit lower for shorter readers for kid friendly comics. Others may have an old fashioned spinner rack.

Some publishers are doing smaller digest sized comics- much like the Big-Little books my mom had as a kid. The Star Wars: Clone Wars, animated Batman, Archie, and Spiderman Adventures in this format seem to be very popular with kids, teens, and adults. It’s very much like many of the manga books being sold today. I’d snag up any of the digest sized books when I was a kid, the over sized treasury editions, and the comics that had a record you could listen to as you read along in the comic. Anything that was different was cool!

So, what are some of the problems with introducing kids to comics? First off, many parents are happy to let video games, the internet, and TV be babysitters for them. When the NFL has to run commercials reminding kids and their parents that children need to play for at least 60 minutes a day, something’s wrong.

Some that actually do feel like getting the kids off the couch feel comics are low-brow entertainment, too violent, or too adult. “Go read a real book!” Even decades after the comic witch trials some parents still feel comics are bad- and some might be. I remember picking Amazing Spiderman at the same time as The Electric Company’s Spidey Super Stories, Marvel Team Up, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spiderman, and Marvel Tales- which was a reprinting of classic Spiderman stories. There was violence, relationships, some drug use (which was shown to be bad), and Jonah chomping on a cigar, but nothing my 10 year old mind couldn’t handle. Not so sure all Spidey stories are kid-friendly these days. You still have to be a parent and watch what your kids read, even with comics.

Other parents just feel that comic books are way too expensive- which is what I tend to agree with.

I recently heard a shop owner in New Jersey say on a podcast that he felt kid targeted comics art printed on too nice of a paper stock and have too high of a cover price. Yeah, the brightly colored glossy shiny cover and interior art is going to get the kid’s attention, but that $3.99 cover price is going to have the parents say, “No way- you’ll tear that thing up in no time!” Why not print more “cheaper” comics? Comic books that are ok to roll up and put in your back pocket. Comics you can trade with your friends. Comics you don’t have to bag and board.

This brings us to another problem- some parents have a collector’s mentality. “Comics are for collecting. Don’t take it out of the bag. Don’t leave it out where sunlight can destroy it. And stay away from my collection!” If someone is that anal about their comics, they should start their kid his own collection and teach them how to collect and protect their comics. I would just hope they would teach them how to read the comics as well. It can be a fun hobby parents and their kids can enjoy together.

I still have that copy of Amazing Spiderman #171…

There was a time when comics were cheap entertainment. Many retailers want higher prices for comics and have said so to publishers. They make more profit off their shelf space (one of the reasons you don’t see comics on magazine racks much these days). The big two have pushed prices up and up to see just how far they could push them. I, like this NJ retailer, think that maybe if the comics were cheaper, you’d sell more- especially to kids. Heck, there are plenty of shops and shows with $1, $.50, $.25 comic bins to look through. Give the kid a couple bucks and point them towards a row of discounted long boxes. They are guaranteed to find some real treasures and not just the bag and board and never see again kind, but ones they’ll want to read over and over or trade with friends.

Kids love comics. I’ve seen fussy kids at cons become quiet intent readers when handed a comic. My friend and comics writer Josh Elder became a super-hero to a group of kids on a subway when he not only stopped their attacker, but gave comics to his fellow stabbing victims to calm them, and it worked! The kids stopped crying. Ask him about that story if you see him at a convention or signing- it’s amazing!

Speaking of Josh, he’s working to get more comics in schools and libraries with his Reading With Pictures non-profit initiative. Way to go Josh- you’re my hero, too!

I’ll be back next week to talk about other new readers- including girls! I know, it sounds crazy, but I have proof they exist and I’ll reveal it all to you next time.

Lin

Tags: comic books, Comic Whore, Dave Beaty, DC Comics, free, Halloween, Josh Elder, Lin Workman, Marvel Comics, Memphis, Spiderman, writing comics

Hope you all have a great Halloween. Here are a few things to do this Halloween…

Comics and Collectibles Signing and Sale

From Donnie at Comics and Collectibles-

Our very own Memphians Curt Franklin & Chris Haley will be here October 31st autographing copies of the first collected edition (LBFA V.1 Under Pressure) of the very popular and good web-comic letsbefriendsagain.com . Come by and support two hard working young fellows who will no doubt make their mark in the industry. They will be here from 12-4 and you will get an extra discount if you are in a Halloween costume! For reals!

To promote this occasion we are having a special contest/drawing type thing. Purchase a copy of these guys’ book and we put your name into a goldfish bowl. The winner will receive FREE OF CHARGE: 1 copy of the Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus V.1 HC that retails for $99.99. You heard it right, so buy this thing & help out some swell local talent!

For more info email C&Cs at comiccollect@comcast.net or call at (901)683-7171.

For fans of Sivad…

Tom Foster is having what he calls his ‘’3^rd annual Sivad tribute art show’’ this Friday and Saturday night at 525 S. Main, with “free Sivad masks to the 1^st 100 attendees!” Showtimes are 6-9pm October 30th and 31st. Not sure of the admission price (or Vincent Price!), but it should be part of the south main arts district trolley night- which happens the last Friday of each month on Main in downtown Memphis. Very cool!

Haunted Web of Horrors!

Open rain or shine this weekend! For info on the best haunt in Memphis go here. (I may be biased, but it’s true!)

I got to run around and take pics and scare a few folks last night. I’ll post pics on my site.

Oh, and if you picked up a copy of the Daily Helmsman newspaper (U of M) yesterday one of my photos from the haunt was in it!

Scared Silly!

To check out some of my Scared Silly toons you can go to my site- LinWorkman.com or buy some merch featuring my horror inspired toons here.

Hope you all have a safe and fun Halloween!

Limb

Tags: comic books, Comic Whore, comics, free, Halloween, haunted house, haunted web of horrors, HauntedWeb.com, Lin Workman, Memphis, self-publishing

Check today’s Commercial Appeal’s GoMemphis.com section and you’ll find me!

Was waiting for my Chick-Fil-A to-go order this morning and saw a copy of the Commercial Appeal sitting on a table next to me.

I opened it up and looked for the Go Memphis section (was the Playbook) to see if my show got listed.

I opened it up and viola- there I was!

It almost scared me a bit. Glad I wasn’t having my morning coffee when I saw this!

Great listing, and I couldn’t ask for a better placement!

I’m also listed on the GoMemphis.com site!

Lots of other great Halloween happenings going on around town listed, too- like Haunted Web of Horrors haunted house and “Gorey Stories”, a macabre assortment of tales, songs, and limericks from the gothic outpourings of writer-illustrator Edward Gorey.

Looking forward to just hanging out and having fun tonight at my art show finally. Finished the last painting for it this morning before leaving for work (Jack).

Stick a pitchfork in me- I’m done!

In other pimp it related news, Dave Beaty is in the DC Universe Halloween Special. This is his first official DC Comics credit! The issue is on stands in local comic shops and on-line stores now.

Congrats, Dave!

Lin

Tags: airbrush, art show, Bushi Tales, comic books, Comic Whore, comics, Dave Beaty, DC Comics, Edward Gorey, Halloween, haunted house, haunted web of horrors, Jack Nicholson, Lin Workman

The latest Denny O’Neil blog is up- How To Write Comics #4- Why Don’t You Grow A Spine?

Also- I’m in the latest issue of the Memphis Flyer!

No…that’s not me on the cover, but I wish I had those abs!

I’m a media ho’!

Don’t forget- the art show is this Friday, October 23rd from 6-10pm at Adam Shaw’s Studio on Broad Ave. Directions to the show can be found here.

The Memphis Flyer can be found all over Memphis (look for the green newspaper boxes in front of stores and on street corners). The paper is free and lists many other cool events going on this week/weekend like the Haunted Web of Horrors haunted house, which benefits Youth Villages.

Once the art show is over I can get out to the haunt to play. Miss scaring folks!

Scare ya later!

Lin

Tags: 3-D, airbrush, Bushi Tales, Comic Whore, Dennis O'Neil, Denny O'Neil, free, Halloween, haunted house, haunted web of horrors, HauntedWeb.com, Lin Workman, Memphis, Memphis Flyer, newspaper, self-publishing, writing comics