As crowdfunding continues to be a viable method for creators to fund their creative endeavors and connect directly with fans, comic-related projects flourish on sites like Kickstarter, Patreon and IndieGoGo. Here’s a look at a few recent campaigns that caught our eyes.
A Perfect Circle minicomic
Creators involved: Writer Eric Esquivel and artist Ryan Quackenbush
Deadline: July 22
Goal: $150 (Funded!)
What to know: Esquivel shared where the story idea for this eight-page minicomic came from on Tumblr. “I got dumped at the tail end of October last year. It was, as these things often are, horrible,” he wrote. “To cope with my confusion, I did what I always do: wrote a comic about it. Specifically: a comic book about a guy who–after realizing that the last three decades of his life have been essentially a repeat of the same sad story over, and over, and over again– embarks on an epic journey to find a supernatural means with which to obliterate his personality, and start fresh.”
What’s the deal? There’s only one level for this one: for $10 you get a copy of the minicomic.
The Big Book of Bisexual Trials and Errors
Creators involved: Elizabeth Beier
Deadline: July 27
Goal: $15,000
What to know: This another Kickstarter Gold project, where the crowdsourcing site is spotlighting creators as they run new projects inspired by favorite rewards and ideas from their past campaigns. Publisher Northwest Press has run several successful campaigns. Publisher Zan Christensen writes about this one:
As part of the Kickstarter Gold celebration, I’m working with artist Elizabeth Beier to produce a collected edition of her series Bisexual Trials and Errors, a graphic memoir about starting to date women after breaking up with a long term boyfriend. The collection will contain not only the best stories from Elizabeth’s Bisexual Trials and Errors comics and We Belong: Collected Stories and Portraits from the Lexington Club, but also 60 pages of brand-new work.
This new collection will be a great companion volume to our most successful Kickstarter project Anything That Loves—the first anthology of bisexual comics. We think giving a comprehensive look into one bisexual life will be a great complement to the 30 shorter stories of sexuality beyond “gay” and “straight” in Northwest Press’s award-winning anthology.
What’s the deal? They’re offering a digital copy for $10 or a print copy for $25. You can also get a copy of Anything That Loves in many tiers, plus retailer packs with multiple copies and original artwork.
Blocked: Stories from the World of Online Dating
Creators involved: Edited by Ally Shwed and published by Little Red Bird, the anthology features the work of Gerardo Alba, Beli, Claudia E Berger, Colleen Frakes, Alejandra Gámez, Andrew Lytle, Ian McGinty, Cara Stasick, Zoe N. Sugg, Maria Sweeney and many more.
Deadline: July 13
Goal: $16,000
What to know: Per the campaign page, “Blocked is a collection of art & stories from that world of swiping and Bumbling one’s way to true love. Featuring over 200 pages and 25 stories by comic artists and writers from all over the world sharing their insight on dating in the 21st century.”
What’s the deal? Get the e-book for $10, or the print edition for $25. They’re also offering stickers, pins, screen prints and commission by some of the artists involved.
Quick hits:
Inverse Press has less than two weeks left on their campaign to create a comic biography of The Killer Bees, the wrestling tag-team that featured B. Brian Blair and Jumping Jim Brunzell.
Daredevil and Black Widow artist Chris Samnee has started his own Patreon, where he’s sharing artwork and behind-the-scenes material.
Alternative Comics publisher Marc Arsenault could use some help after his appendix burst.
Artist Craig Rousseau is raising funds for the upcoming Pan Mass Challenge, a bike-a-thon that benefits the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. In addition to riding in the event, Rousseau is also selling prints featuring the Perhapanauts, his comic with Todd Dezago. You can find his rider profile here, and check out the print he made this year below.
