Chris Hart Books

Publishing Your Graphic Novel

2012-02-02T08:31:00.000-08:00

ANNOUNCEMENT: You can NOW see 20 of my FREE drawing tutorials on Youtube. They were done for Howcast, a premier How-To portal on the web, which was voted one of the top 50 websites of 2011 by Time Magazine.

Simply go to Youtube, and keyword in these words:

"Christopher Hart" draw manga

The tutorials will pop up. And you can choose the topic you want. If you like 'em, please post a comment. And thanks!

BLOG

A great many cartoonists, manga artists and illustrators dream of launching their own graphic novel. And why not? It can establish you, and your cartoon or manga character, and spin off a series and licensing opportunities.

One of the main considerations is pricing. Many first-time authors, without writing or illustration credits, are currently self-publishing .99 cent books. Let's suppose you just wrote and illustrated the great American graphic novel. And BAM! - it takes off, at .99 cents, and rakes in an impressively big number of sales for a book in its class by a first time author: 25,000 copies. (To give you some idea of average sales: the average published novel, in print, sells 4,000 copies; and the average self-published novel, in print, sells around 175 copies.)

This many copies sold would invariably lead you to ask the following question (oh, come on, you know it would) -- What if your raised your prices?

You first have to ask yourself what is the elasticity of demand for a book by an unknoiwn author, priced at $9.99? They key question is: Have you made enough of a name for yourself that you can raise your price ten fold on a self-published book, and still retain your readership?

At $9.99 it's quite doubtful that you will sell anywhere near 25,000 copies. Or 20,000. Or 10,000. Or 5,000. And that's because, for $9.99, the reader can buy the work of the best, established writers, with the pedigree of a publishing house, and with the confidence that they will come away with a reliable read - not something they might have to toss out. At record stores - when there were record stores - a consumer might buy an album from an unknown band because the album cover looked cool - IF it had a fire sale price, like ... .99 cents. But not at the same price as other albums by your favorite groups.

Here's the thing: there is no impulse purchase at $9.99. People do not have it in their budgets to spend ten bucks a pop for the excitement of possibly discovering the next Sventlana Chmnakova (say that five times fast). But at a buck a pop, well, why not roll the literary dice?

Bringing our projections down to earth, let's see how much you might make at a $9.99 price, selling 1,500 copies in a year. That would probably yield you around $9,000; while 25,000 copies at .99 cents may yield around 8,750. Neither is going to make you rich.

So which way should you go?

There are many considerations, too many to list here, but money isn't the only one. Exposing your work to the public, as a first time author, especially if you don't possess the writing credits to get an established publisher to consider your work, is another. Having earned some success as an author is important for a career. And whether you charge a buck or a hundred bucks, a sale is a sale. Authors with higher sales are more impressive to publishers, and to the public at large, than authors with small sales and greater profits for themselves.

There are many other, legitimiate opinions on this topic - but that's the way I see it. I hope this has been helpful.

--Thanks for stopping by!

Chris

TO SELF-PUBLISH OR NOT TO SELF PUBLISH - CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE MANGA ARTIST AND GRAPHIC NOVELIST

2011-12-28T02:50:00.000-08:00

Before I start the Blog, here's an update that might interest you: I was just selected to be the host of 20 video tutorials from one of the leaders of How-To-Videos on the web: Howcast (howcast.com). Howcast was named one of the top 50 websites in 2011 by Time Magazine. These are free videos, which anyone can watch. To bring up my Howcast videos on a "search," it appears that you need to use the name "Chris Hart," and not "Christopher Hart." This is something I will bring to their attention. Meanwhile, here's the link. I hope you'll check it out:

http://www.howcast.com/videos/498757-How-to-Draw-Manga-How-to-Develop-Your-Own-Manga-Characters

Okay, now on to the topic:

The term "Self-Publishing" brings with it negative connotations, most notably, the practice of "Vanity Publishing," in which an aspiring writer, unable to interest a publisher in his work, decides to take matters into his own hands, and manufactures the books himself. This requires self-funding; selecting editors, art directors and other support staff; shipping associated with both sales and returns; bill and accounting; storage and promotion. Foreign sales and special sales are often beyond the scope of self-publishing.

The result is often a book that instantly looks and feels "wrong" -- homespun and amateurish. The printing, the layout, the paper and the binding simply do not have the feel of a book from a legitimate publisher. Add to that the stigma associated with self-publishing, and the fact that most book retailers will not stock them, and what you are likely to end up with is, in this author's opinion, a lot of expense, effort, few actual sales, and a garage-full of unsold books.

Of course, there are exceptions. Some self-published books have become successful. But those are rare cases. Yes, the royalties are higher, since you do not have to split them with a publisher. But receiving a greater royalty on the sale of, for example, 500 books - which is far above average for a self-published author - is still tiny. Because of the reduced outlets which accept self-published books; the number of areas of expertise required to produce, sell and promote them; the poor quality of the production,;and the associated stigma, I recommend against it.

Self-publishing - specifically a graphic novel - is a different animal, and features a business model that is much more favorable. More on that next time! Stay tuned.

ILLUSTRATED BOOKS AND E-READING DEVICES

2011-11-28T05:28:00.001-08:00

If you have apassion for drawing - whether it’s manga, cartoons, comics, or the humanfigure, then you’ve found the Blog that’s written just for you. Every week, I’ll discuss tips ondrawing; offer my analysis and predictions about the rapid changes in thepublishing industry; offer advice on how to become a published artist; and, ofcourse, give brief updates on my books. So make this a regular stop as you surfthe Blog-O-Sphere. No reservations required.

Maybe you've noticed; but ebooks are soaring as a percentage of overall book sales, from what used to be less than 5% a few years ago, to what many pros, who analyze the publishing industry, believe will be 80% in 3-5 years. One notable exception to this trend is the genre of heavily illustrated books, which include art books, art instruction books (from yours truly!), and specialty books. Their sales, in print, are healthy; but ebook versions, as a sector of the market, have been very sluggish to date.

Although I agree with the experts that ebooks will ultimately - and soon - vastly outsell books in print, I've also recently come to the conclusion that illustrated books may remain popular in print, at least for a decade, if not more. Nonetheless, we are sure to see serious challenges to the popularity of illustrated books in print, as ebooks are developed that offer a multitude of entertaining and useful visual bells & whistles to each title.

And yet...

There's something about illustrations in print. Art is a very primitive thing, an atavism wedged deeply into the fiber of the human psyche. Anthropologists recognize cave paintings that go back to the dawn of the species. There is an immediacy to seeing art as a physical medium, rather than in a virtual world. Consider what recently happened to the field of drawing, as an analogy: When computer drawing tablets became highly developed, and then ubiquitous, there was the concern, and the prediction, among many illustrators, that hand-drawing was quickly becoming obsolete, and that we were ushering in a new generation of "click and drag artists," instead of people with real drawing skills.

So what happened? To everyone's surprise, drawing freehand became more popular than ever. It's almost as if there were a push-back from artists, who craved the purity of drawing. Crafts, too, became more popular. Although it's true that many artists do, now, draw on the computer, very few comic, cartoon, or manga artists do vector art. The vast majority of artists who create illustrations on the computer choose to do so freehand, on a computer tablet, with a stylus. But even a larger percentage of professional artists, in my experience, draw freehand on paper, and then do their corrections on the computer.

A similar scenario may be playing out in the parallel field of illustrated art books. When someone picks up one of my Howe-To-Draw books, they want to simply open the book, and refer to it while they draw on paper. The interactivity comes from their drawing experience, and not from any extra buttons or menu options from an electronic reading device.

So where does this leave the manga artists, cartoonist or comic book artists, who wants to self-publish? What are the pros and cons of self-publishing as an ebook versus a printed book - or in both mediums simultaneously?

You'll have to come back to read my next blog for the answer! (I hope you do!)

Chris

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You can reach Chris by sending an emailfrom the “contact” option on this website. Chris reads all of his emails,responds to everyone, and never uses a “form” email. Due to his busy schedule, please be a little patient whenawaiting his response.

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ARE YOU NOT GETTING SUPPORT FOR YOUR ART INTERESTS IN ART CLASS AT SCHOOL?

2011-11-14T06:09:00.001-08:00

Welcome to the Weekly Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

NEW BLOG:

Taking art class in school, and not finding any support or instruction for drawing the style that interests you, such as manga, cartoons or comic book heroes and villains?

Don't worry -- lots of young students have the same problem in the U.S.A. Don't argue with your art teacher; don't show her your cartoon or manga drawings; just "act" enthusiastic about the style of art, or media, your art teacher covers, and try to get a good grade by following her instructions.

BUT...

At home, and during your free time, practice from how-to-draw books; and if you can, take a few art classes at your local art center -- even if it's not in your style of art. Show your classmates (but not the ones in art class) your drawings, in order to get suggestions, and also, to get some compliments and encouragement on your progress.

Parents are not usually good judges about contemporary art styles...

If you love drawing, and want to go into it as a field, then you should consider an art college - not a regular university. In a regular university, you might encounter the same problems; they may not appreciate commercial art. And their offerings of art classes will be much more limited. But in an art college, you'll find others who have the same interests as you, and draw the same kind of stuff that you do -- in fact, you will likely discover that many of your art instructors will be professionals in your style of art. An art college may offer cartooning classes in addition to foundation courses, such as animation, humorous illustration, comic book drawing, children's book drawing, and even manga. In my opinion, universities are far behind art colleges in terms of what they can offer students who want to become a pro. In my opinion, as a graduate of an art college, you would be far, far ahead of the competition, most of whom are self-taught. In a university, you still have your required classes, such as foreign languages, math, and English, in addition to art. But an art college concentrates almost exclusively in art instruction. As a result, the art college student typically spends about three times as much time actually drawing and creating art. The results are usually quite evident. (And, after graduating, when you start out in the field of art, without credits to show, you will find that you art college training IS a good and useful credit.)

Last point: If you think you may someday want to be a comics editor, publisher, or run your own commercial art business or studio, or license your work, you may want to go to a university, because they offer business classes. Artists who take business classes are less likely to be taken advantage of by employers. In addition, business-savvy artists have a functioning knowledge of how to get ahead financially. Universities also offer writing courses, which can be important, because if you can write, you do not have to split your royalties or fees with a writer. You can write and illustrate your own stuff.

Some things to think about.

Chris

Thanks for droppingby today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing.

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Working Like a Crazy Person

2011-11-01T14:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Weekly Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

Oh boy ... I've been working soooo hard on my new book. Going on five weeks without a day off, not even a day on a weekend... Went in for a checkup (which was fine), and my doctor asked me if I do anything for fun. I made the mistake of telling that to my wife. Now she's all over me to take a break once in a while. Hey, I sleep occasionally, but she doesn't seem to think that's what the doc meant.

Part of it is that drawing can be hypnotic. You can get lost in what you're doing. And the better the book seems to be coming along, the higher you want to raise your standards, to try to best yourself. This can be a chimeric goal, as the harder I push myself, the further the horizon seems to recede.

Nonetheless, every book that I work on is very important to me. It's not only that I want the readers to gain some insights and techniques in the art style that's of interest to them; it's also that I want the book to be a visual "experience." I want it to inspire, to uplift the aspiring artist, to encourage people whose confidence may be ebbing as well as to help to lift the level of artists who are already making good progress.

Well, I should stop now, and maybe do a little reading....

Nah. I'm getting back to work.

Chris

Thanks for droppingby today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing.

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2011-10-19T04:25:00.001-07:00

DRAWING CARTOON ANIMALS

Welcome to the Weekly Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

Ever wanted to draw cartoon animals, but didn't know exactly how to approach it? Many cartoonists use real animals as a reference for their animal cartoons. And usually, the result is an old fashioned looking cartoon. The reason? The styles of popular cartoons have zoomed way past the representational look of characters base upon their real counterparts. Instead, it's more effective to think of your subject as a cartoon first, and an animal second.

After all, how many actual physical traits do you need to make your character recognizable as the species you're attempting to draw? A cartoon elephant will look like an elephant if it is fat and has a trunk. That's the foundation. The rest is all about manipulating and exaggerating shapes to make it funny, witty and edgy.

If you would like to see hints, techniques and animal characters - in other words, if you'd like to give it a try, or improve your current efforts, I'd like to recommend my book, "The Cartoonist's Big Book of Drawing Animals" published by Watson-Guptill.

And let me know how you're doing with it!

*Thanks for droppingby today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing*

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You can reach Chris by sending an email from the“contact” option on this website. Chris reads all of his emails, responds toeveryone, and never uses a “form” email. Due to his busy schedule, please be a little patient when awaiting hisresponse.

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HOW TO MEET DEADLINES WITHOUT GOING CRAZY

2011-10-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Weekly Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

If you have a passion for drawing - whether it’s manga, cartoons, comics, or the human figure, then you’ve found the Blog that’s written just for you. Every week, I’ll discuss tips on drawing; offer my analysis and predictions about the rapid changes in the publishing industry; offer advice on how to become a published artist; and, of course, give brief updates on my books. So make this a regular stop as you surf the Blog-O-Sphere. No reservations required.

HOW TO MEET DEADLINES WITHOUT GOING CRAZY

Many artists struggle with deadlines. How do you make progress, with the clock ticking, which becomes like the the Sword of Damocles hanging over your head? And when you're working on more than one project, it can get tricky. How do you prioritize? How do you know which project to work on the hardest, and which to let wait? Here are some suggestions:

1) When you've got a deadline, before you begin to work, figure out how much progress you must make on a weekly basis in order to achieve your goal. If you've got a 28 page comic book to do, you know you need to do one page a day for a month. But is that really true? You probably need more time for looking over the work and refining it, or re-drawing some pages, before handing it in. Therefore, for safety, you would aim to finish 28 pages in three weeks, leaving the final week for revisions. Three weeks means you would have to produce about nine pages a week of finished art. So, that's a little more than one drawing a day for three weeks, right? Not really. Remember, a week is not 7 days, but five days: Monday-Friday. So, in order to produce 9 pages in 5 days, you have to come up with about 2 pages a day.

2) When you are doing more than one project at a time, remember this rule: The project that is closest to publication is always the most important one. This will help your work look its best, and also, benefit your relationship with the publisher. Quite often, I'm working on a new book, and then, my editor sends me a copy of a book I did six months ago so that I can contribute editorial suggestions. I'd love to stay on a roll and keep working on the book at hand; however, that's not the one that's about to go to print, which is the publisher's primary concern at the moment. So I literally drop everything and work as hard as I can - long hours - to squeeze in the new, additional work.

If you're having trouble coming up with inspiration while under a deadline, I've got three suggestions:

3) Do not take a long walk along the beach or head to a coffee cafe in order to allow your imagination to blossom. Stay working: draw, draw, draw until something comes up. Pros work hard to produce their work. It's a craft and skill in addition to being an art. What if a newspaper writer said to his editor, "I can't write my column this week; I'm not inspired." You think the editor would let him have a week off to get his head together?

4) If pushing through the stuck imagination isn't working, then drop your entire approach to the project and drastically switch directions. In other words, if you were drawing a pretty girl walking her dog, in order to come up with a cute scene, then instead of continuing to refine a drawing that's not working, drop it, and draw a completely new character and new pose. Frequently, you'll find that this allows you to approach the drawing in a fresh way, when you feel totally stale.

5) If all else fails - go back to the basics. Be less ambitious, and draw something that's in your wheelhouse. Then see if you can tweak it enough to give it a fresh angle.

Hope that helps! Thanks for stopping by. See you soon.

-Chris

Thanks for dropping by today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing.

________________________________________________________________________

You can reach Chris by sending an email from the “contact” option on this website. Chris reads all of his emails, responds to everyone, and never uses a “form” email. Due to his busy schedule, please be a little patient when awaiting his response.

Something New

2011-09-20T04:11:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Weekly Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

If you have a passion for drawing - whether it’s manga, cartoons, comics, or the human figure – you’ve found the Blog that’s written just for you. Every Wednesday, I’ll discuss tips on drawing; offer my analysis and predictions about the rapid changes in the publishing industry; offer advice on how to become a published artist; and, of course, give brief updates on my books. So make this a regular stop as you surf the Blog-O-Sphere. No reservations required.

Hey -- big news - my new board game came out! I'm very excited about this. It's a board game, like Trivial Pursuits, only this is a "drawing" game. It's called, "Cartoon It!" and comes from the prestigious game and puzzle company, Thinkfun. It's already in Barnes and Noble, and toy stores across the country, bless their little hearts. It was designed by me and my co-inventor, award-winning game inventor, Joyce Johnson. But I'm too modest to mention anything else about the game.... Well, okay, you twisted my arm: It's got a splash graphic on the cover with my name on it.

Outside of that, my dog had another accident, we visited the in-laws, and another payment is due on my daughters' tuition. In other words, back to real life now...

Meanwhile, I'm in the development stage of a new project -- coming up with the exact concept and angle. In the past, this has always been the tough part -- you know, like getting a tooth extracted. There's so much focus required: squeezing imaginative thoughts out of the correct hemisphere of the brain; weighing one idea against the next; looking for fresh and useful ways to present various topics. But now, it flows much more smoothly, and has become somewhat enjoyable. But there's no danger that I'll end up liking this process more than dinner at Japanese restaurant with my wife. But, this is where the bones of a book are set - it's the foundation. It's got to be done, and it's got to look just right to me, or I don't begin.

More on the process of writing a book next time...

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Thanks for dropping by today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing.

________________________________________________________________________

You can reach Chris by sending an email from the “contact” option on this website. Chris reads all of his emails, responds to everyone, and never uses a “form” email. Due to his busy schedule, please be a little patient when awaiting his response.

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CHECK OUT MY INTERVIEW ON SUVUDU

2011-09-12T07:22:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Wednesday Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

Hi, All:

"SUVUDU, a premier website covering manga, fantasy, Sci-Fi and pop culture, just did an interview with me that posted last week. To view it, simply Google SUVUDU, and then, once you're on the home page, select the heading "GRAPHIC NOVELS AND MANGA." That'll bring you to the page that has my interview.

The interview offers important and specif tips on How-To- improve as an artist. It's written for the serious beginner. Might be valuable for you.

--Chris

Thanks for dropping by today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing.

________________________________________________________________________

You can reach Chris by sending an email from the “contact” option on this website. Chris reads all of his emails, responds to everyone, and never uses a “form” email. Due to his busy schedule, please be a little patient when awaiting his response.

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2011-09-09T04:54:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Wednesday Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

MEET CHRIS, AS A GUEST ARTIST

AT AN UPCOMING ANIME CON

Hey, all -- ! I just got invited to an Anime Con, scheduled for February. Since it's geographically favorable (within driving distance), I think I go. They'd like me to do two panels for them. So I'm coming up with some ideas, which I think will not appeal to my readers. Right now, I'm leaning toward two: How To Get Your Work Published -- and -- a Portfolio Review. My style is not to criticize the work of aspiring artists with judgments, as may do, but rather, to identify each artist's strong and harshly, but to encourage aspiring artists by identifying each artist's area of strength (we all have them, but are not always aware of what they are).

I'll post the name of the Con, location and dates when I firm it up; and I'll also describe the two panels in more detail. So if you're one of my readers, why not stop by and introduce yourself? And even if you're not, you are, of course, invited.

Hey, I'd also love to get some feedback on the extensive redesign of this is website, if you'd care to use the "contact" mailbox on this website.

It was a significant revamp of the old one, and took a full month to complete. I hope you find it easier to navigate, and also, more visual. It's got added options, too, and the books are easier to view than before.

I'm also interested to know if you think the new Blog is a worthwhile feature for the website.

Thanks for dropping by for a visit today! I hope you make this Blog a part of your regular surfing.

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You can reach Chris by sending an email from the “contact” option on this website. Chris reads all of his emails, responds to everyone, and never uses a “form” email. Due to his busy schedule, please be a little patient when awaiting his response.

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Back from the Hurricane!

2011-09-02T08:21:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Wednesday Blog of Christopher Hart

Best-Selling Author of How-To-Draw Books on Art Instruction

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Sorry for the delay in writing the Wednesday Blog, but we were out of power for days during Hurricane Irene. The thing I missed most of all wasn't TV, or hot meals, but the internet! With it, you're connected to the world; without it, you feel as though you've disappeared.

Here's what I've been thinking about...With so much manga are available to read online, for free, what does the future hold for printed, graphic novels? Are they, like records, going to become the "Buggy Whips" of the next decade?

I don't think so. And this assessment isn't influenced by my personal preference. If there's one thing I've learned, it's that you can't allow your feelings to influence your analysis of a situation, or you'll end up with a worthless conclusion.

When I look at the experience a reader wants and enjoys from printed, graphic novels, the first thing that strikes me is that reading from a computer screen, for fun, is okay now and then. But it tends to get old. Who wants to do all of their pleasure reading at the same desk, and in front of the same computer screen, where they either do their homework or job? Reading your favorite graphic novel should be a relaxing, pleasurable experience. I can't envision a time when a reader won't want to curl up with a book, either on the couch or on the beach. Who wants to be tied to a computer when portability, and sharing books is also part of the experience?

Webcomics are great places to discover new talent. But often, they're truncated snippets of stories, offering only "teasers,"which give you only enough material to make you want to come back for more. And not every author of a webcomic is devoted to reliably updating it. So you run the risk of getting absorbed in a story, which has no ending.

Certainly, a large percentage of graphic novels will be sold as ebooks. The percentage is anyone's guess. No genre will be immune to the conversion. As the demand for more bells and whistles increases, don't doubt for a moment that the graphics will lose their static nature, become partially animated, and even offer a sound track to heighten the suspense at dramatic moments. However, the thing about manga, which is unique to this genre, is that its fans are often purists. They want their books to read right to left, in the Japanese tradition. They want accurate translations. They want it left alone. Something tells me that a good portion of manga fans will be resistant to adulterating the art form by turning it into interactive entertainment. After all, if it becomes too interactive, what have you got? Anime. And manga has never been in danger of being vanquished by anime.

Manga fans also enjoy collecting a shelf full of graphic novels. But perhaps the most persuasive element in my analysis is a subtle one: Drawings on paper have a certain appeal, which graphics in the virtual world do not. Yyes, graphic novels, like everything else in publishing, will change. But my guess is that printed graphic novels will remain a sector of the market for years to come.

Welcome To My Wednesday Blog

2011-08-19T12:58:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first installment of my Blog! But wait...if this is called "The Wednesday Blog," then why am I starting it on a Friday? Well, I've got to admit -- I've been remiss in getting this thing going, because of my deadlines. But now that the smoke has cleared just a little bit, I couldn't wait to jump on it.

Next Wednesday, there will be a new installment, and every Wednesday after that, until the sun supernovas (which, by the way, can't happen, because it doesn't have enough mass. That was for my 8th grade science teacher, in case she was reading this Blog).

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for stopping by my website, and also for visiting my Blog. In this Blog I'm going to cover various topics, which I think will appeal to you, and be informative. Here are some of the things I plan to talk about:

-Art techniques
-The publishing industry
-How to become a published artist

-Tips on drawing
-And updates on my work

So please stop back soon! Next Wednesday, we'll get into some specific art stuff!

Your Drawing Colleague,

Chris Hart