Zub Tales

This weekend I’m at PAX Prime 2012 in Seattle, set up with the UDON crew. 3 conventions in 3 weeks. It’s an exhausting end to the summer, but I’m riding through it on quite a high mentally, if not physically.

Gen Con had record-breaking sales for me with lots of interest in both Skullkickers and Pathfinder. This past weekend’s Fan Expo Canada broke Gen Con’s records from the week before, which was really surprising and amazing. The advantage of being in Toronto where I could restock books from home made all the difference. If I would’ve traveled for Fan Expo and shipped what I thought I could sell I would’ve had an empty table by Saturday morning.

The “webcomic effect” on my convention sales is distinctive and pronounced. Putting out a consistent comic, both in print and online, is breaking down resolve people have for trying something new. They see it, they keep seeing it and eventually they try it. At shows this summer I’ve been hearing a lot of “I’ve heard of Skullkickers, but haven’t read it yet” and “I heard it was really good”, which makes it even easier to get people on board when I’m right there ready to autograph a copy for them.

Contrary to what fans may think about Image based on the massive success of its founders, the Skullkickers creative team isn’t riding atop a mountain of money. I joke around that Skullkickers is the most expensive hobby I’ve ever had, but it’s actually quite true. I’ve never been paid to write SK. Practically every dollar I get from Image or make at conventions goes right back into the “warchest” to pay for art production on current/upcoming issues. Every time I have a really solid show, it keeps us moving forward bit by bit.

It’s an exciting time. My fingers are crossed that it all continues to roll onwards and upwards.