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| Apparently it's common for artists to cover their displays with a cloth when closing up for the night. Who knew? |
This was the first year I've ever tabled at conventions. I had just finished my Kickstarter for my webcomic-turned-graphic-novel Love Debut! and figured this was as good a time as any to try the convention circuit. I'd had a modest readership online, but I was by no means as well-established as some of the other creators who were tabling in the same space. Most of the people I met were meeting me for the first time. At various times, it was exciting, stressful, humbling, discouraging, and really, really fun.
It's been a few months now since my last convention, but I've wanted to write a post reflecting on my experiences and sharing some numbers in the hope that they might be useful. Keep in mind that all of this is from my perspective as a webcomic artist and writer!
Some Lessons Learned (in no particular order)
Lesson 1: Don't make too much stuff.
Don't order too much of anything until you figure out what sells. Every convention is a little different, but there are reliable patterns that emerge, and that slightly lower price per item doesn't even out the hassle of figuring out where to store all that merchandise no one is buying... For comics, my new goal is to not have more than 50 copies of any one item unless I know it sells fast.
Lesson 2: Keep very meticulous notes on what you are selling, and for how much.
It's very weird, but in my case, my gut feeling on how well I was doing really didn't match up to the numbers at all. Conventions that I felt I'd done badly at turned out to be pretty okay when I did the math later, and items I thought were selling really well ended up not making me that much money. Luckily, the reason I can figure all that out is because I kept track of what I was selling.
I've seen some artists with spreadsheets on clipboards, others who kept a journal. I did the not-recommended approach of grabbing whatever scrap of paper was closest to me and jotting down cash purchases. (Square, my point-of-sale app, did a fairly decent job of tracking card transactions -- except when I forgot to add new products, or needed to do a custom transaction.)
Lesson 3: When traveling, suitcase-weighing is absolutely essential.
Traveling anywhere with a big ole suitcase is a huge hassle. The sight of stairs will make you want to weep. (New York City has to be one of the worst culprits when it comes to stairs you HAVE to climb.) But what will really get you (financially) is traveling with a suitcase over 50 pounds. For TCAF, my first international convention, I had shipped my books ahead of time and packed some extra merch in my suitcase. The net result was that my suitcase was juuust over 50 pounds on my return flight, and I had to spend a few tense minutes at the airport hastily re-packing to avoid the penalty. Think you're safe traveling by bus? Check again. You might have to pay extra if your suitcase is over 50 pounds.
Some artists have one of those luggage scales to check the weight; I did the less reliable method of standing on a health scale and trying to lift my suitcase. Either way, the lighter the better. Your bank account, and your back and shins, will thank you for it.
Lesson 4: Bring a sketchbook and pen.
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| Convention sketches! |
Maybe this is redundant and you travel everywhere with a sketchbook, in which case, excellent! You can skip the rest of this section. But seriously, having a sketchbook was SUCH an essential item. With a sketchbook, you can:
+ Hastily improvise new signage
+ Track cash transactions
+ Open commissions spur of the moment
+ Appear *very busy* so as to either (one) not frighten away potential customers by staring at them, or (two) give yourself something to do during slow periods
+ Take notes on cool recommendations from people you meet
So, yeah, definitely keep your sketchbook handy.
Was It Worth It?
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| Testing my display for Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) |
Well, maybe not, if I was doing it just to make money.
This past year I went to TCAF, Otakon, FlameCon, and SPX. 2 of those conventions were local for me, 1 of those conventions was in the city my parents lived, and then there was TCAF, haha. Not factoring in how much it cost to produce the merchandise I was selling, I made:
- TCAF: -$251.89 (Table: $151.13, Flights: $234.91, Shipping DC > CAN: $45, Lodging: $80)
- Otakon: $232.05 (Table + Badge: $165.00, Est. Metro: $20)
- FlameCon: $127.73 (Table: $132.00, MegaBus: $49, Subway: $15, 2 Taxis: $78)
- SPX: $180.33 (Table: $187.50, Taxi: $40)
Across all the conventions, my highest selling item was my 24-page comic short "Ramen Robot Cafe" (sold all 40 copies), followed unexpectedly by activism zine "What Now?" (sold/gave away all 26 copies). Love Debut!, my big Kickstarter graphic novel, came in third with 19 copies sold. Weirdly enough, despite conventional wisdom (ha) that prints do very well, I sold only 12 total. This data is all very specific to me, but more broadly, I do think short, standalone pieces at lower price-points are generally well-received. And given that most of the prints I have are original, their success is maybe not so surprising.
Compare those numbers above to my recent Kickstarter: I raised $4,731 from backers to print Love Debut!, and even after deducting cost of production and fulfillment, I netted about $1,787 in profit. Nothing crazy on its own, but it still is nearly 6x what I made over the course of 4 conventions. Which is really good news for comic creators who can't afford to invest in conventions and travel -- it shows just how much the Internet has really helped change the game.
So...
Despite the numbers not yet being what I'd want, I have no plans to stop doing conventions. I might do fewer next year, and choose my conventions more carefully to minimize costs, but I'm hoping this is just the start of a new tradition for me. Conventions are a lot of fun for their own sake, even if you wind up stuck at your table all day (but don't do that -- seriously -- try and get out at least once!). You get to meet fellow creators and readers face-to-face and bond over niche interests. You'll discover new stories and art and characters. Not to mention there's something wicked fun about setting up your table and trying to hawk your wares. But if for whatever reason conventions are not in your immediate future, that's okay too!
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