tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post4236783131823366378..comments2024-03-02T04:06:40.545-08:00Comments on Barry's Pearls of Comic Book Wisdom: Masterworks and Archives Part II: The Price of Things to Come (in the mail)Barry Pearlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03833042323353543770noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-12088547895772259382019-10-21T10:42:27.577-07:002019-10-21T10:42:27.577-07:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.AHMAD IKMAWANhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00964701351046374561noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-74791252301823587342014-02-25T02:00:40.740-08:002014-02-25T02:00:40.740-08:00Hi
Thank you so much for giving us such kind of ha...Hi<br />Thank you so much for giving us such kind of handy content which will be most useful to me as well.... I will follow your blog always. Thanks!!!jameshttp://www.snappingturtlecomics.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-90815608897243217122013-04-03T08:34:38.612-07:002013-04-03T08:34:38.612-07:00Ghastly,
I am not sure, but I think you can align...Ghastly,<br /><br />I am not sure, but I think you can align you subscription just for the books you like. I've just asked Pete and Nick if they would like to join me in a blog and I would certainly ask them those questions.<br /><br />This is just an opinion, but I doubt very much if DC or Marvel would give up copyrighted material such as Plastic Man or the Kirby and Ditko material from the Atlas era.Barry Pearlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03833042323353543770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-67308228475428109802013-04-03T08:07:02.847-07:002013-04-03T08:07:02.847-07:00I've debated doing the subscription thing, Bar...I've debated doing the subscription thing, Barry, but have held off just in case they introduce a line that I've got no interest in. I'm in for the long haul on ACG, but have no interest in Planet Comics and am a little hesitant to take the Phantom Lady plunge. It'd be nice to see if Pete can get approval from DC to publish some of the other Quality characters like Doll Man.<br /><br />And if Marvel is abandoning the Atlas Era Masterworks, and if DC isn't gonna move any further on the Plastic Man Archives -- I'd love to see PS take a shot at it -- but without the collateral material (ads and such), which get very repetitious.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-49639272943674205912013-04-03T08:00:01.459-07:002013-04-03T08:00:01.459-07:00I find the best way to get the PS books is to buy ...I find the best way to get the PS books is to buy a subscription. They have been very helpful and very nice in taking care of me! And the books are great.<br /><br />And I am avoiding your argument! Barry Pearlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03833042323353543770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-70252742748074266322013-04-03T06:29:12.456-07:002013-04-03T06:29:12.456-07:00Steven, in my experience I get the same royalties ...Steven, in my experience I get the same royalties for a book sale whether the book was bought online at a deep discount or at a con at full price. I know Fantagraphics responded to this question somewhere awhile back and said that they get paid the same amount from Amazon for each book sold as any other distributor. Amazon is just willing to take a smaller profit, no doubt because of their massive volume.John Porcellinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11857989027423938268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-61935764898960063082013-04-03T06:23:50.661-07:002013-04-03T06:23:50.661-07:00Do ya REALLY want to bring Masterworks boards conf...Do ya REALLY want to bring Masterworks boards conflicts over here, Kris? If you look at what I actually WROTE rather than what you READ, you'll see that I said I found these books "before the PS Publishing thread became the behemoth that it is now" -- NOT that I found the books before anyone else on the board. I used those words for a reason -- because that thread didn't used to be titled "PS Publishing", but something like "How come no one is reprinting the old Harvey horror titles?" and the thread existed for a year or two before Pete came along to say he was doing it, at which point the thread title was changed.<br /><br />My point is also that even at the point that the publisher came along with an announcement, that was no guarantee that I was going to buy it on the publisher's say-so. I think I chimed in to the thread before Pete came along, then basically ignored it for awhile since I didn't figure there would be any useful news. It took me HOLDING THE BOOKS IN MY HAND and taking note of the quality of the artifact before I was prepared to actually buy them.<br /><br />That's really my underlying point -- that many folks need to actually look at an artifact before they decide they want to own it. That means that having all these books only available online becomes a tragedy, because it becomes a case of preaching to the choir. Which means (sing it with me, children) "selling an ever decreasing number of copies to an ever-diminishing customer base".<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-51799027042769773072013-04-03T03:21:22.402-07:002013-04-03T03:21:22.402-07:00Ghastly is, as usual, somewhat wrong. That PS Thre...Ghastly is, as usual, somewhat wrong. That PS Thread...Pete popped in before the first book was even published. Posted a link. It's on the board for anyone who cares to look, go back through the thread. I was a PS subscriber from DAY ONE, which was before they were sold. So for you to have 'SEVERAL' of them before the rest of the board is laughable. Your revisionist history continues I see.Kris Shawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07459412655631882698noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-36162586469653558372013-04-02T19:51:21.374-07:002013-04-02T19:51:21.374-07:00JohnJ,
I must respectfully disagree with you on o...JohnJ,<br /><br />I must respectfully disagree with you on one point. While all "first" os a series of DC archives have more pages, the most recent ones are only 250 or so. That is, Wonder Woman, Amazon Princess, which came out last month, is the first of a new series. It is 350 pages. The last Batman (Dark Knight); Sgt Rock 4,Green Lantern 7,Flash Vol. 6 and the last Batman archives are 250 page or less. Batman I think was 225. Please check it out. And don't go by what Amazon promises it will be before it is published.Barry Pearlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03833042323353543770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-30974522883337934622013-04-02T19:06:53.115-07:002013-04-02T19:06:53.115-07:00One difference in the price of old and new DC Arch...One difference in the price of old and new DC Archives is the larger page count. They used to be around 240 pages but the new ones run more to 400 and if you buy one for full-price, you just aren't trying. The Captain Comet Archives, msrp $75, is at $42.85 on Amazon with free shipping.<br />I'd like to buy these from online comic shops but not only do you get a smaller discount compared to Amazon, you also end up paying for them 4 to 6 months before release instead of not being billed by Amazon until they've shipped it and with their pre-order guarantee you frequently save even more money.JohnJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11322910801412594388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-64648142084427671192013-04-02T17:48:15.656-07:002013-04-02T17:48:15.656-07:00Steven and Ghastly,
There is no great answer here....Steven and Ghastly,<br />There is no great answer here. I should have posted that Marvel and DC now make more from the sales of their books in bookstores and online than they do from the actual sale of comics.<br /><br />Bookstores are fading away, with B and N being the last big one.But, as Steve suggests, I can have two books, or even three for the price of one at my closest (no longer local) comic book store. And if comics go more digital, where will these stores be?<br /><br />NY used to have monthly comic conns where I got the handovers for at l;east half price. But that is no longer happening. Barry Pearlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03833042323353543770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-86695714553622903752013-04-02T17:30:02.203-07:002013-04-02T17:30:02.203-07:00I've talked to a couple of authors recently wh...I've talked to a couple of authors recently who've complained that Amazon undercuts the list price so much even before publication that, after everyone else associated with their books gets paid, the authors get little or no money out of the books even if they sell lots of copies! Bookstevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09797445163866512849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-36537642576762189242013-04-02T15:50:20.653-07:002013-04-02T15:50:20.653-07:00Hey Barry, interesting write-up. My experience is ...Hey Barry, interesting write-up. My experience is below:<br /><br />I hate paying full price for ANYTHING, and I hate special-ordering anything as well. When I first got back into buying collected editions of comics in 2005, I bought two ways: using Border's weekly 30% to 40% off coupon, and going to my local comic store in Fair Lawn, NJ where they provided 10% back loyalty coupons.<br /><br />Well, since my buying habits seemed to have driven Borders out of business, and since I now live in Texas rather than New Jersey, my buying habits obviously had to evolve.<br /><br />Now, I tend to buy from TalesOfWonder, but I sometimes look for even deeper discounts, so I am known to frequent local comic shops. But something happened to two local Dallas comic shops over the last two years.<br /><br />I found one of them, Zeus Comics, when I first moved down here, and picked up three or four Masterworks there during an annual 30% off sale they had there. A while later I returned but found absolutely no new Masterworks on the shelves; when I asked why, they said they couldn't compete with online prices so they'd no longer be bringing any copies into the store.<br /><br />Then I found another one, Titan Comics, which happened to have a Wall of Bargains up during my first visit where I found the Simon & Kirby Newsboy Legion hardcover for half-price (among other deals). They also had a very deep stock of trades and hardcovers, so this became my vendor of choice. However, I tended not to buy brand-new releases since he did not provide a discount, so a book that would cost me $34 at TalesOfWonder cost me $54 (plus tax) at the store -- so I just focused on building up on some of the OOP volumes, one every two weeks or so.<br /><br />For Christmas of 2011, Titan had a huge month-long sale -- all in-stock Masterworks and Archives for half-price! I bought a few titles I needed, and the sale continued for a few weeks into the new year. But one day when I showed up, not only was the sale over, but there were NO Masterworks or Archives to be found anywhere in the store!! The store owner had decided to sell his existing stock on eBay and no longer carry new releases. Why? "can't compete with online prices" of course.<br /><br />But while I was there, I saw the first three Harvey Horror books, long before the PS Publishing thread over at the masterworks board became the behemoth it is now. Holding them in my hands and paging through them, I had to have them, even at $60 a pop; he had imported them in special from the UK on a friend's recommendation. So this series became my primary reason for visiting that shop every few weeks.<br /><br />But two weeks ago, I found the PS Publishing Books online for about $30 a volume. Sorry; that is a price difference I cannot ignore.<br /><br />So now the only reason for me to visit local comic shops is to check out sales and remainder bins, or in hopes of tracking down an out of print volume. Which is sad, because it means that people will only buy what they already know they want, and what they already know about; there will be very little accidentally stumbling upon something that you had no clue was available. Like how I got back into collected editions buying back in 2005.<br /><br />Barnes & Noble seems to have stopped stocking most graphic novels as well. And so the print runs are declining. You have to already know you want something, and then you have to buy it immediately upon its release, if not announcement. Which means that the publishers will continue producing fewer and fewer copies to sell to an ever-dwindling number of cognoscenti.<br /><br />Kind of like what has happened with comics themselves.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1950548200539861214.post-58767564407458798282013-04-02T15:14:00.220-07:002013-04-02T15:14:00.220-07:00Try my favorite:
http://www.instocktrades.com/Try my favorite:<br />http://www.instocktrades.com/Kris Shawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07459412655631882698noreply@blogger.com