NJW&C 01: Guilting Folks, But on a Professional Level
Hey, Kids! It’s Nice Jewish Words & Comics!, the latest installment from Neil Kleid's bi-monthly newsletter with updates and info about his latest projects!
Hello! Welcome to the first, for-real, official newsletter edition of Nice Jewish Words & Comics. The actual NON-official edition was the one explaining what this thing will be about—but this is the real deal. No turning back, so let’s dive in and talk about promoting a comic book.
As those of you reading probably know, in two week’s time we’ll celebrate the release of Nice Jewish Boys #1, the first installment of a five-part Jewish suburban crime comic by John Broglia, Ellie Wright, Sarah Litt and yours truly from Comixology Originals. Now, I’ve been doing this sort of thing for a while now—launching books, that is. And I have to say it never gets any easier. Every single little comic book baby requires time, patience, energy and creativity to market, and in some cases a little bit of kesef (that’s Hebrew-speak for $$$, my Gentile friends). Sure, you always hope that the premise, hook, art and creators (as well as the publisher, if you’re lucky) help sell the book on its own. But more often that not, as a creator of co-author, you spent a good deal of time out on the interwebs and in the actual world banging the metaphorical drum.
Now, I’ve been lucky at Comixology Originals; the team employs a wonderful publicity team which helps with that sort of thing. For my last book (The Panic with Andrea Mutti), CO’s PR folk did a bang-up job crafting an announcement press release, securing a venue or outlet that would exclusively announce it, and also partnered with me and Andrea to set up interviews, podcasts and promotion at conventions (signings, panels) and that was a huge help getting out the word. I’m hopeful (and can’t imagine this won’t happen) that we’ll do the same thing for Nice Jewish Boys…and over the next few months, you’ll probably begin to see those efforts bear fruit.
(art by Andrea Mutti)
Even still…while a PR team like that does extend your reach, no one will sell your comic like yourself. With The Panic, for instance, I did my best to connect with folks and outlets that might have slipped the publicity team’s eye, and attempted to identify opportunities they might have missed or those that with specificity—for instance, providing them with a list of Jewish influencers, bloggers, sites and periodicals which might be interested in Nice Jewish Boys. And then, of course, there’s the print edition—a second release window specific to the release of a physical collection, targeted at the direct market and bookstores, as well as readers planning to pre-order copies or acquire the book the week it hits shelves. All of this requires some careful planning and thinking…and, yeah, a healthy dose of guilt. Or, as it’s really known, the hard sell.
For instance, how do you convince comic book retailers to buy more copies of your book than the thousands of other books listed in that month’s Diamond Previews catalog? What’s going get your signal through all the noise in both the market and online, drawing eyes to your cover art, your pre-order code, your press release, interview, link or store? How do you get friends, family and colleagues to support yet another book when they literally just bought the last one? How do you turn a disparate group of random readers into a devoted, continuous fanbase that will be there for every comic, graphic novel or book you offer?
Look; I’m no marketing genius. Everyone does it differently. What’s worked for someone like Scott Snyder or Chip Zdarsky, or for a Terry Moore or Liana Kangas, may not worked for me or you. The struggle is real for each and every person, and each and every book. There are ways they do it. There are ways I do it. Here’s a few things that have worked for me:
Build a mailing list; use it strategically. This one is hard, because you don’t want to annoy the folks that you’re close to by filling their inbox with announcements about every single little thing you’re publishing or offering. My mailing list is a mix of family, friends, close colleagues, acquaintances I know would be interested in my work, and a few outliers. I also have some press contacts in there, and an assortment of specific websites and media outlets. Generally, I try to only mail that list for the larger projects…or for projects that need a boost. And I only mail it once per project. For instance, I sent out an email for each book I’ve released between 2020 and 2023—Savor, The Panic, The Phoenix Chase, Nice Jewish Boys—and I also sent one for the Kings and Canvas crowdfunding campaign. If folks ask to be removed from that list, I remove them immediately with an apology. I weigh each contact and address carefully before adding to the list. But over time, it’s grown extensive…and the plan has been to gradually phase it out by doing my best to transition those contacts to this newsletter.
Start a newsletter. This ain’t for everyone, people. We’re not all armed with hundreds or thousands of fans at first, and generating a hefty subscriber list can be difficult. I’ve had enough success and notoriety that it was time for me to jump in and get this one up and running…but it’s starting slowly, and I’ll need to work to keep it consistent. But if you have enough folks on your mailing list and social media followers that would appreciate the odd consistent newsletter vs random updates filling their inboxes or feeds, this might be an option. Substack makes it pretty easy to get one of these started and quickly connect to other newsletters and fans. You can also try other services like MailChimp. Figure out what works best for you, and think about how you plan to structure whatever it is will be landing in folks’ inbox. If it’s all hype, you may have readers drop off. If you offer something that want to read or see, they’ll keep on reading and look forward to future installments.
Build a retailer mailing list…and a marketing kit. Remember that bit about selling the physical edition? I find it helps to keep a master list of retailer email addresses, and create a template letter I can modify for each. Generally, sending out a blind copied email to 50-100 retailers feels a bit impersonal to me, so I try to send them…one at a time. Yeah, that can take a while depending on your list. What does help is, like targeting publishers, knowing what the store tends to carry, If you’re emailing about a superhero title, odds are you may not want a store that only sends indie/European graphic novels. If you’re promoting a mature readers book, don’t email an all ages store. It’s pretty basic. What isn’t basic is this: some of these stores are contacted by hundreds of creators, publishers, promoters and distributors trying to get them to carry their product. Why should they carry yours? Why should they care and take a risk on your product? How will you help make their lives easier and help the book sell through?
This is why having a great cover, a clear logo, a fantastic hook and—maybe most importantly—a brief, killer pitch will help your signal clear the noise. It also helps if you can link to some press or an interview online that reveals more about the book or creative team, as well as some interior art samples. Which brings me to something I’ve adopted over the last few years that has been a huge help: building an online marketing kit.
Basically, I’ll link to a Dropbox folder containing a cover image, a PDF of the book, creator bios, social media banners and a shelf-talker design the retailer can print (a shelf-talker is a piece of paper or a screen fixed to a shelf in a store, to bring attention to goods on that shelf). For The Panic, I also included a video file for the promotional trailer. For every five retailers I emailed, 3-4 responded positively, and I believe that’s what helped get The Panic and Savor into so many stores. I’ll be doing the same thing for Nice Jewish Boys…so get ready, retailer pals out on the front lines—Neil’s coming for you in 2024!Word of mouth and social media. Sure, getting folks to tell a friend who’ll tell a friend is undoubtedly the best and most desirable way to build a following and have them slavering for your next release. But seriously, that’s a marathon and not a sprint. What you really want is to have folks outside of your close friends and family constantly reaching for their wallets to buy your latest endeavor…and get that organic extension of your fanbase, where folks you don’t even know half a world away are hotly anticipating the next project. All of the above definitely helps with that, but the best and most immediate way I know how to make that happen is by using social media.
Okay, yeah—over the last year, social media has pretty much gone to hell. Where a creator with a larger Twitter following in 2022 might have immediate access to a single source of dedicated buyers and readers…now, with ‘X’ imploding and strangling its viewer algorithms and readers searching for a home across Facebook, Instagram, Blue Sky, Mastodon, Tumblr and Threads…pinpointing that single source has suddenly become like trying to hit a moving target. In the old days, I could rely on a few small social channels and some thriving message boards to get out the call for a new book or project. Now, though, it’s harder to break through all the memes, Kickstarter campaigns, political outrage and cat videos to find healthy purchase.
That said, I continue to persevere. Figuring out when to post, what to post, unique and interesting content and ensuring the right tags and links are present to get the immediate click-to-convert is pretty key. Also key? Getting folks with a lot more followers than you to repost and point to the aforementioned links, and do it at the right time. And agree to keep doing it. More than once. Which brings us back to word of mouth.
Again, marathon. Network, get out there and be part of the conversation beyond just spamming peoples’ feeds with your promotion. Also, pay it forward and promote others’ work, as well. Remember you’re part of a creators’ community and we’re all looking for a little love in this tough little market, so make sure you push your pal’s project as much as you’re asking your pal to push yours. And when you do ask for friends and colleagues to help broadcast your stuff, remember to be Polite, Professional and Patient…but never Pushy and only slightly Persistent.Buy some ads. Okay, granted I don’t have a ton of experience doing this. I bought a few Facebook ads back when we first launched the digital version of Kings and Canvas. I was talking to some friends about this the other day, and they’ve informed me their campaigns with periodic targeting online advertising on Facebook have funded much heavier than those without. So I think I might try this for another book. Stay tuned, and perhaps we’ll unpack it in a future newsletter.
There are plenty more ways to promote your work, of course. Attending conventions is one. Starting a Youtube channel or Patreon is another. The above is what’s worked for me, but I’m always looking fr new tools to add to my kit. If you’ve got ideas, send them along. Above all, find what works for you, and know that you aren’t alone.
Two weeks until launch, my friends. Let’s get the word out.
HERE’S WHAT NEIL’S WORKING ON
So, yeah. Nice Jewish Boys #1 is out on November 7th via Comixology Originals, and the other four issues will follow monthly after. The way this works is you buy the issue via Amazon and then download the Comixology app on your mobile device (Kindle, iPhone, iPad) and open the comic to read there.
All five issues have been written, and four of them are fully produced. Issue #5 is currently being illustrated; I just completed the afterword with our wonderful editor, Sarah, and we’ll start locking pages and the cover over the next two months for its March release.
(art by John Broglia and Ellie Wright)
Will there be a print edition? I can’t imagine there won’t. When will it come out? You’ll be the first to know, I swears it.
Other than NJB (that’s our shorthand, friends; use it. Love it), I’m currently finishing the synopsis for a little horror story someone asked to see…and then I have a separate short rom-com story to work on for a prose anthology into which I was invited. Other than that, The 2023 Writing Plan has shifted a lot over the last few months, especially after attending New York Comic-Con a week or two back (which was amazing, by the way. Thanks for asking).
The last edition of The 2023 Writing Plan included:
Project Teaneck (this is Nice Jewish Boys, which is now announced and set for a November launch, of course. I like to use “Project” codenames for all my writing, so I can refer to them without leaking the title before it’s time)
Project Red, Book 1 (the first installment of a supernatural crime prose novel series I’ve been toying with for a while. I’ve written 55k words out of 85k so far, but I’m a little stuck on a chapter. I’m thinking of giving it some space for a bit while I work on other projects, like…)
Project Vigilant (this is a different novel, which used to be a superhero comic I was gonna do with Joe Eisma. But we’re not getting a lot of opportunities to pitch superhero books these days, so I may give it a whirl in prose. I’ve been re-reading Paul Tobin’s Prepare to Die! to wrap my head around how I might construct an intimate, family-oriented superhero prose novel, and I think I may have it all figured out)
Project Madness (this is the horror synopsis I mentioned above, due on Friday)
Project Baker (the rom-com short story, due February 2024)
Project Unwanted (another horror pitch, but with a comedic flair. Neil’s take on vampires. I kid you not)
Over the last two weeks, though, some licensed opportunities may have arisen and I may need to shift gears for some of the above. I definitely have a few springboards I need to email to some editors. Beyond that…wish a Jew luck.
Oh, finally, the Kings and Canvas collection has been sent to the printer by our pals at Outland Entertainment. It takes about 30 days to print and 45 days to ship to the distribution center, so we’re hoping to have book in hand by either the end of 2023 or in January. Once we do, we’ll get them out to backers ASAP. Thanks for your patience—and your support—if you’re a backer!
Will there be more Kings and Canvas? You never know. The story definitely continues, but it kind of depends on what our pals at Outland think. We have been chatting with them about a unique KaC-adjacent offering…so we’ll see where our talks may lead.
HERE’S WHERE NEIL WILL BE
Do you live in the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut tri-state area? Come join me and other Jewish comic book luminaries at the inaugural Jewish Comics Experience at the Center for Jewish History in Manhattan on Saturday night, November 11th and all say Sunday, November 12th, as we celebrate Jewish comics…and Jews in comics during this one-day convention!
Obviously, as I’ve stated elsewhere, original Jewish stories and Jewish representation in the comic book medium are very important to me, now more than ever with anti-semitism on the rise and my brothers and sisters in Israel mourning for our fallen and fighting for our right to exist. A convention like this, no matter the size, is important to show to our industry—one built on the backs of Jews with names like Lieber (or as you know him, Lee), Kubert, Eisner, Siegel, Shuster and Kurtzman (ok fine, Kirby)—that Jewish stories and creators are important, have much to offer readers and audiences of all kinds, and need to be offered and spotlighted in all genres and mediums. The more Jewish creators, young or old, we have out there making authentic, heartfelt, stirring, confrontational and compelling Jewish comics the better…and a forum like JEWCE, with a focus on the masterful work and masterful artists that have come before with an eye on the future of our medium is a wonderful place to show your support for Jewish comics.
Not only will I be selling my books and graphic novels in the convention’s Artists’ Alley, but I’ll also be appearing on a panel at 4pm—“Telling Other People’s Stories”—alongside Julian Voloj, Tracy White, Stephanie Phillips, and Karen Shadmi. I may also attend the 11:30am panel about Jewish superheroes, “From Strength to Strength”, featuring Brian Michael Bendis, Frank Miller, Dean Haspiel and E. Lockhart. Hopefully they’ll mention Ragman! We love Ragman here at NJW&C, so you must, too!
(art by Stephen Segovia)
Oh! I’m also nominated in three categories for the inaugural 2023 “Jewcie” Awards, a “ceremony dedicated to honoring the creators behind Jewish comic book narratives, themes, and characters.” I’m up for Best Writer, and my books Brownsville (with Jake Allen) and The Big Kahn (with Nicolas Cinquegrani) are nominated for, respectively, the Historical Narrative and Contemporary Topics categories. Three chances to win—here’s hoping G-d is on my side!
Anyway, hopefully you’ll be on my side and come support me at JEWCE. Tickets are available for the show right here.
HERE’S WHAT NEIL’S WATCHING AND READING
This was a bit of a long installment, so only bullet points for now.
I quickly knocked out the Family Guy Star Wars trilogy this week, but I’m thinking of digging back into Locke and Key. If you haven’t checked that out yet, and loved shows like Stranger Things, The Sandman, or Paper Girls, give this Netflix adaptation of Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez’s wonderful IDW comic book series a shot. It’s got heart, horror, wonder, magic, and some pretty compelling acting. Also, read the comic book series if you haven’t yet. I re-read it once a year, and it never disappoints.
Loki Season Two has been pretty spot on thus far. I will admit that while I love Miss Minutes…I might be getting annoyed with the Kang variants. How is this gonna hold up for the next few years? Even still, the show’s worth it for Hiddleston, Wilson and Di Martino, as well as our man Ke Huy Quan and character actor jewel Eugene Cordero. Only three episodes in, so catch up quick.
I just started reading MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios by Dave Gonzales, Gavin Edwards and Joanna Robinson. Not as many revelations as I’d hoped, but pretty juicy thus far. Learned a lot more about Ike Perlmutter than I’d have liked, but some of the backstory about the film casting and production is quite dishy.
I’m also about to dig into Crowded by Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein and Ted Brandt from Image Comics, which is a comic book series set “ten minutes in the future”, in which “the world runs on an economy of job shares and apps, including Reapr: a crowdfunding platform to fund assassinations.” Looks promising, and I love Sebela’s work, especially his crowdfunded beekeeping crime project, Foulbrood. Learn more about Crowded here.
Last week I also read Parasocial by friend of the newsletter Alex De Campi and Erica Henderson. “In the middle of the pandemic a fading genre-TV actor fresh from his long-running series' cancellation collides with an obsessive fan at a Texas convention. When she lures him to her home he'll have to put on the greatest performance of his life simply to survive until morning. Unless of course he's the real monster.” Devoured it in one sitting, and boy am I happy not to be famous. Creepy as hell, super grounded; a visual roller coaster of delight (in the best way). Haunting, intimate and incredibly relatable if you’re in fandom or fandom-adjacent. Misery for the social media age. Check it out.
BACK AGAIN SOON
That’s all I’ve got this time, Hebros and Hebrettes.
Stay safe and classy out there, and watch each others’ backs. Otherwise the world will sneak up behind you and steal your Twizzlers.
Back to the word mines,
Neil
MIGDAL: Neil Kleid's Nice Jewish Words & Comics is free! Tell your friends, enemies and interested dragons. If you enjoyed this email, you can show Neil that his writing is valuable to you by checking out his books here and supporting independent comix: https://bookshop.org/shop/neilkleid