[Sid_Bane]

After doing some thinking, I'm going to see if I can rework my Old Bones & New Meat comic and submit it for publishing. 
I figured this would be as good of a place as any to ask for advice on trying to get a comic published. Really, almost any advice that can be given would be appreciated, but there are a few specific questions that I'd figure that I'd throw out there.

1.) Where are some good places to get connections/contacts for people working in comics?

2.) Which comic publishers should I work on approaching with my ideas?

3.) Digital publishing vs. traditional publishing- pros & cons for both.

4.) Any resources on self-publishing or industry publishing?

5.) Where are some good places for initial inquiries?
 
I would love to hear what ya'll have to say. Thanks.

[Angie]

1.Bigger comic cons are probably your best bet. Smaller ones you're less likely to find an editor.

2.Anyone that's taking submissions! I'll be honest that Image is probably the hardest of the creator owned ones to get into because they're so popular. But they do have the benefit of you retaining the rights to your work. That's kind of their thing. You may want to look into smaller companies like Archaia and First Second.

3.Digital publishing is honestly probably the best way to go now. I only do print runs of my personal work when I have a table at a con. And even then, self published work can be a tough sell unless you're just an amazing sales person. (I'm not, most my sales are commissions or pony comics) Digital publishing is the most cost effective and the easiest way to get your work to people.

4. http://beckycloonan.tumblr.com/post/71721963332/self-publish-or-perish-a-short-essay-or-4-000 Becky Cloonan just did a really longass post about self publishing that is worth a look

[Pennydox]

I'll note I have never worked with a publishing company, but if I am done with all the work I need to do now, I'd actually work towards it. However, it doesn't hurt to build as many connections as soon as possible BEFORE you consider working a project anyways. And since i never been published by another company (I did a self-published comic once though), I have been featured in some anthologies but no success in them.

What I did do that has opened an opportunity was bring a KICKASS portfolio of my best work to publishing companies. And don't just bring pretty pictures. If you want to be published as a COMIC artist, your portfolio has to have actual pages of comics you worked on. If you wanna be an inker, you should bring samples of work you've inked for other people (or samples you made yourself). If you want to be a colorist, show some color samples of comics you've done or pinups.

And you need to go to conventions that actually has tables set up specifically by the company themselves. You have a much higher chance of meeting the publisher/editors directly than hoping they might pop in through a retailer. If the table is hosted by the company themselves, just pop in. Hopefully they're not dead tired from the other million people that do it, but even if you don't want to be 100% published by them, you can always ask for any tips or advice about it.

-If you wanna publish a comic you need to have at LEAST two complete pages, an entire synopsis and possibly a script if possible. Sometimes more
-You can't just tell them you draw comics. If you wanna be hired as a comic artist, you need to have a sample comic
-'promo pieces' are small works you can give to the publisher after meeting them that helps them remember your art. It's basically a postcard with your contact info and art site behind it. If they really like the art, they'll keep it for the future.

Just knowing what kind of comics the publishers go for is also good. For example, Last Gasp is in San Francisco, and they support bay area artists a little bit higher. 01 Publishing is strictly scifi genre. Marvel/DC have their own universe of comics. And so on. Still, getting tips from everyone about what to work on is always good practice, so don't loose the chance if you get it.

[Monday]

You can always get started with us here:

http://entervoid.com/index.php?topic=12646.0

If we see that you can do the work you can snag a shot with us.

We're kind of a leap of faith as we're starting out but we're also open to give plenty of people a shot.