Many comics creators are unfortunately familiar with this cruel fact: too many direct market publishers have predatory practices. With so many creators fighting for very few spots on a publishers payroll, these practices are often overlooked in an effort to get a foot in the door. But understanding what you as a creator are signing up for and what you’re getting in return is important to consider. Self-publishing and crowdfunding are always an option if a publisher isn’t offering a fair wage and contract.
So what are some some red flags that can give creators can and should be wary of when it comes to publishers?
- NON-NEGOTIABLE CONTRACTS – Many contracts in the direct market are non-negotiable, which should immediately tell you some things about the industry. Publishers who want to treat their creators properly should always give them (or their legal representative) the chance to negotiate the terms prior to signing a contract. It’s become all too common though for that to not be the case.
- HIDDEN FEES – In a contract, you’ll have standard terms to outline the legalities of any project. That includes your financial compensation, terms for payment, royalties information, expectations of your role, and more. When it comes to royalties, creators don’t usually make any additional money off of a project until they “earn out.” This means that until your project makes back what a publisher has paid you—either as an advance or page rate—you won’t earn royalties if you’re entitled to receive any. But some publishers try to hide the fact that there are other financial factors to consider before you can “earn out,” such as printing costs and marketing fees, so the publisher can place those costs on the creators and subtract them from potential earned royalties.
- ANTI-AGENT – This is a big red flag. There are some publishers in the direct market who will actively encourage you to avoid legal representation, in the form of an agent or a lawyer. They say things like, “an agent will hinder your ability to make a fair wage,” and try to spook a creator by pointing out an agent (or lawyer) will take a cut of what you make, therefore taking away from your payout. But in my experience, every time I’ve worked with my agent or a lawyer, the amount they’ve negotiated on my behalf—or the additional terms that they’ve worked out—always wind up being significantly more than what their cut would’ve been. Agents and lawyers are in a creator’s corner to advocate for them. Any publisher that tries to convince you otherwise, is almost always trying to take advantage of a creator.
- ONGOING PAYMENT ISSUES – This one can be a bit harder to know about if a creator doesn’t have a peer support system or network. Occasionally when the issues really pile up, creators will talk about them on socials—sometimes in subtweets, but when it’s especially egregious, it becomes very open. We saw this happen with publishers like Action Lab, prior to a class-action lawsuit being filed against them by several creators, and also Aftershock Comics, in the days and weeks leading up to their bankruptcy announcement. But a good rule of thumb is to check in with your peers who have worked with a particular publisher to see if they’re known for paying on time…or not.
- PUBLICITY STUNTS – If you think about a publisher and can’t name a single title or creator there, that’s a problem. Sure, outside-the-box thinking can be great! But if you’re publishing comics and graphic novels, the thing you want people to remember at the end of the day, are those comics. If you’re only remembering the stunts, be they an excess of variants, or perhaps trading on the very concept of bad ideas, it’s not a successful campaign. A creators’ work should be what’s memorable, and publishers should be putting that work front and center.
- REVOLVING DOOR OF STAFF – Over the last few years, we’ve seen a couple of publishers clean house entirely and then rebuild from the ground up without otherwise changing much. Oni Press has done this at least twice in recent memory, causing much stress and mayhem for their staff and creators. When a company is unable—or unwilling—to retain employees, that’s something to be concerned about. A comic and/or graphic novel can take a lot of time to make, so having a consistent team to keep things moving and to be in your corner is invaluable.
- NOT GIVING CREDIT(S) – If a publisher does splashy marketing and press releases, that can be great. However, if they’re only choosing to highlight the most well-known person on the creative team, rather than acknowledging all the creators, that doesn’t bode well. A good publisher understands the importance of each creative role and gives them the credit and acknowledgment they deserve.
- IP FARMS – A few publishers exist to adapt their content for other media. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, unless they’re tapping creators for original content AND trying to keep 100% of the rights to it. Creators should never give a publisher 100% of the rights to their original IPs, including adaptation rights. Comics and graphic novels have proven their commercial success on the big screen for film and TV. If a creator is doing work for an IP farm, it should be with ideas the company has brought to the creator to adapt and with a substantially higher page rate or advance to compensate.
- OVER-ACQUIRING TITLES – Having competition in the industry can be great, and seeing new publishers launch in the direct market is exciting. However, many of those publishers don’t have endless funds at their disposal and in the early days, have to be smart and conservative with what titles they put out. Meaning, curated content that fits with their brand and will be given the attention needed to reach audiences is especially important. It tends not to be a good sign if a publisher is over-acquiring titles or launching numerous imprints early on. It can mean the company won’t have the funds to pay on time (or at all), the staff to give creators and properties the attention they deserve, and more. While it can be great to have ambition as a publisher, but taking the time to grow at a reasonable rate is also important.
If you have additional questions regarding publishers, contracts, and finding work in the industry, ComicsLawyer.com is a great resource. It’s run by Dirk Vanover, who is a lawyer who specializes in comic book contract law. He provides lots of insight into the industry, contracts, and other legalities that you’ll be glad you learned about. A great piece for those going the creator-owned route is Top 5 Questions to Answer Before Signing a Creator-owned Contract. But there are plenty of other gems on there as well.
Additionally, Jim Zub has been providing insight into the comics industry on his website and socials for years. He recently did a dive into some of his own publisher red flags over on Twitter, in the wake of the Aftershock Comics bankruptcy news.
And as one more resource, be sure to check out Creator Resource. Full disclosure, this is a site I founded and run, solely as a passion project to help folks better navigate the industry. In addition to more articles like this one, we also have page rate info, contract templates, copyright information, and more to help you understand the ins and outs of publishing.
