There is a lot of recent business-related news, so here’s a summary, but please scroll to the end for my own report.
John Moyzan in a happy era
•Boom has received several layoffs, including senior editor Jon Moisan, editor David Mariotte, Associate Publicity Amanda Lawson, and retailer sales manager Rosalind Monelhead. Moisan and Morehead are what I think of as comic veterans. Moisan was in the boom for three years, with Skybound in six years and Marvel in six years. He also worked at Dark Horse, so if you’re looking for someone who saw it all, Moizan is your guy.
Morehead has a wealth of sales experience as well as time on DC on IDW and LinkedIn. She listed herself as open to work and said, “Hello, guys! I’m looking for a new role and thank you for your support. If you want to hear or catch up with any opportunity, please send us a message or comment below.
Mariotte has been on the boom for nearly two years, previously with six people on IDW. He is also open to do his job:
everyone! I’m officially on a job hunt!
In the long run, I’m looking for new stable editing gigs and related things.
Currently, I am freelance open as both an editor and a writer. If you need someone with 10 years of experience, hit me!
As much as I can with some freelance fees for the editing service and expectations of what I can offer, I will update my website, DavidMariotte.com.
And to answer this earlier, regardless of your job hunting status, I will be at SDCC this year. Meeting schedule/flexibility is very TBD.
Honestly, I’m scared of all this outlook. There are so many bad things in the world right now, and this is an extra stressor in so many ways.
I want to bet on finding something new for myself now, but I also know that the best way to do that is to support my community.
I have not heard any specific reasons to let go of the four extremely experienced personnel, but I have heard that the continued shift in the boom to PRH and recent direct market issues have probably contributed.
•I acknowledge that I have not followed Zenescope circumstances in the wake of Diamond’s bankruptcy. You probably have it. They are one of the few remaining publishers of Diamond, but recently signed up for startup Philbo, and they are one of the bigger ones. The mix of Generalescope’s 90s Bad Girl comics mix is not my favorite, but it has long been located in the ecosystem. In a sense, they directly represent the market itself. Nevertheless, it is the publisher of the top ten publishing regular niche comics, a business made possible by the quirks of the systems Diamond has overseen for decades.
Like most (all?) publishers, General Thorpe has not been paid by New Diamond since May and appears to be pulling books from them. Owner Joe Blasia has had trouble with the new diamond public and shares a letter he sent on another website.
I’m the owner of Zenescope Entertainment. It has not been paid on an invoice dated back to early May. This includes both past due amounts from diamonds and new invoices since then. This does not include more than $70,000 that we still owe from bankruptcy. This is currently unpaid business. As a small publisher, we cannot continue to operate under these conditions. The accounts receivable manager in our accounts has made multiple requests for updates or direct contacts, and those requests have not been answered. Let me be clear: our financial situation has reached a critical point and my patience has gone away. If you do not receive a response within 48 hours, we will suspend all shipments until payment is made.
I have refrained from publishing this, such as talking to outlets like Bleeding CL. Because I didn’t want to throw more fuel into what was already the dumpster fire. But if we continue to be ignored, I will start to make this situation public as much as possible. This is not a way to do business.
Blasia continues to say that he has not received a response to the new diamond, saying, “At this point we will need to explore legal options, and based on what I’m hearing, I think we are the only publisher considering the path.
Don’t pay people and then make them ghosts…
Future releases from Zenescope include Killer Cobra #3.
•In a more positive note, Diamond veteran Steve Reef was hired by Hermes Press as sales director. Leaf was previously an assistant manager at Diamond Comic Distributor.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in visual arts from Georgia State University and was accepted in his first class at Joe Kubert School. In the early 1970s, he was actively involved in the Atlanta comic scene, including the original Atlanta Comiccon, an Atlanta comic and fantasy fair, and was a pioneer in bringing direct markets into the area.
After that, he had been involved in retail and sales for almost 20 years, he began working for Diamond Comics, a retailer service, before making a purchase, and began processing publisher accounts such as Dark Horse, IDW, Wizard Magazine, Archie Comics, Slave Labour Graphics, AC Comics, Abstract Studios, and General Corp Entertainment for over three years. He also served as judges for the Eisner and Apple Prizes.
He is now bringing decades of expertise to Hermes Press as sales director.
•More Growth News adds a massive pilot program, where large comics are new divisions. This will be an activity that will face creators who will help bring more indie comics to the market via crowdfunding. This was a bit complicated, so I’m just doing the PR completely, but the short version is that the first book in the program is dismissed by Josh Blaylock and will release Kickstarter on Tuesday, 6/17.
Massive Publishing is proud to announce the launch of its brand new initiative: The Massive Pilot Program. This is the creator first platform designed to help Comic Book Creators launch a new series, combining the power of Creadfunding with Massive’s publishing infrastructure.
The pilot program offers fans and collectors a unique opportunity to support and shape the future of independent comics. Each pilot campaign features a high-end early release version of the series debut and is produced in limited quantities for collectibility. These premium editions feature upgraded paper stocks, specialized covers, exclusive content, and collectable treatments specifically curated for campaign backers investing in the future of the series.
“Our goal is to build a bridge between creator ideas and reader support,” said Michael Carero, CEO of Massive Publishing. “In the pilot program, fans don’t just buy comics. They’re part of launching it.”
Home to hits like Zorro: Man of the Dead, Eye Lie Popeye, Detective Kaiju and Pinupocalypse, Massive Publishing continues to innovate with an independent approach to comics. This initiative will provide fans with early access to potential breakout series with backer exclusive content, both physically and digitally. The series gaining traction is quickly tracked for full release and direct market distribution. Above all, 100% of your initial fundraising goal is sent directly to the creative team, covering production costs and supporting creators from day one.
The first title to be launched as part of the pilot program is “Denied,” written by Josh Blaylock (Mercy Sparx, GI Joe) along with industry veteran Popmann (Ghost Rider, Flash, Spyboy). This debut issue sets all tones for the pilot program. The creators own storytelling is the boldest, combined with premium productions of fans and collectors who want to enter the ground floor. If you like bold storytelling, killer art, and being part of something new from day one, you will be notified when it comes to the launch on Tuesday, June 17th, following the campaign on Kickstarter.
•Finally, the uncivilized book supports fellow publishers who live in the Line by carrying Mangabon Tentaro’s face meat by carrying Mangabon Tentaro’s face meat in an online store, as other websites have misreported. Tom Kaczynski of Uncivilized continued:
That being said, there is a central concern that it is civilized and living a shared line. We both have a long-standing relationship with Diamond Comics. Their reorganization was hoping to stabilize the market in the wake of the filing of Diamond Chapter 11. Instead, opposition occurred. The new ownership was unable to provide a timeline for payments for books already offered. At the same time, publishers are asked to seek more titles despite no communication since the new ownership period.
This situation is unsustainable. Publishers and shops are asked by either the Diamond “real estate” or the new owner to continue operations based solely on faith, with no outreach, clarity or publication plans. Uncertainty is damaging not only to our business, but also to the larger ecosystems of independent creator-owned comics.
We encourage new diamond owner AD Populum to provide a specific roadmap for repayment of all outstanding obligations, including those published on unpaid invoices and arising within the reorganization period. Without this, publishers like the uncivilized line rely on timely cash flows to release ambitious, artist-driven works, but cannot continue at the current pace.
The photo is irrelevant, but it feels good.
Photo by Eric McLean
•I spoke to small publishers in a background doing similar transactions with new diamonds, including shipping $10,000 worth or products in May. Maybe it was part of the “trade secrets” that former Diamond employees took to Alliance Entertainment? It feels like something gives as publishers, big and small, publicly appeal to new diamonds for lack of communication. I asked this publisher why they thought New Diamond was doing this and they said, “I wanted you to be able to tell us!” After some discussion about what’s going on, the publisher said, “Maybe that’s what they want. Maybe they want to stop carrying the comics and just want to close it down.”
As mentioned before, I’ve heard some elaborate versions of the above ideas have been floating around for a while. Certainly, the new diamonds do little to end this kind of speculation.
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