Indie creators taking over Phoenix Comicon 2011
Indie Aisle attended it’s first convention this past weekend, the Phoenix Comicon. It was a great event and I talked to a lot of people about reading digitally including how comics fit into the various options that are available. I also did a panel, Indie Publishing for E-Reading, that talked about the process of authors and artists making their own work available as eBooks. Below are my notes from it.
- eBooks and e-reading devices – Available through various platforms like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Comixology, etc. and via digital files downloaded to devices like Kindle, Nook, iPad, tablets, smartphones, and PCs. A newer option is to also read online – no e-reading software required except a web browser available on most devices.
- Traditional publishing vs digital ePublishing – Traditional publishing requires printing and delivery. Digital makes the process easier, with the internet for distribution and delivery made straight to e-reading devices. Even the payment process is easier for both the seller and buyer.
- Going the self-publishing route – Because the distribution and delivery to devices can be made the same way, it’s essentially a level playing field for publishing companies and those doing it on their own.
- What to use when writing your story – Apple’s Pages and Scrivener for Mac, OpenOffice with ePub extension for PC, Photoshop for comics to scan clean and export as JPEGs.
- Converting to eBook formats – Use Sigil to manually format ePub files, then Calibre to convert to Kindle, and Adobe Acrobat for PDF files. Files require certain software to read, but there is a lot out there to use.
- Publishing platforms/online stores – Amazon and Kindle device, Barnes & Noble and Nook, Smashwords, Comixology for comics. Platforms typically lock readers into having to use their software to read eBooks. Or they provide files that are encoded by DRM which can only be viewed by certain reading devices and software.
- Promoting – Both traditional publishers and going indie still requires promotion. But even that’s simpler with tools on the web. Including Indie Aisle.
For highlights from Phoenix Comicon follow the Twitter stream, and be sure to check out some photos.
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