It’s been a while since my last post, and I've found a few new suppliers and services worth highlighting as part of my ‘micro-publishing toolkit’. Here are a few notable ones:
STICKER MULE
Recently, for Jay Stephens’ Dwellings Vol. 4, I used Sticker Mule for some fun stretch goals and giveaways (like the acrylic keychains below —don't worry, they're not scratched, each keychain has a protective film). I’ve been impressed with the quality, price and customer service provided, and they have weekly deals where you can try out small runs of various different offerings: https://www.stickermule.com/deals
Aw, Hell! keychains by Jay Stephens produced by Sticker Mule
CROWDFUNDR
This summer, Fundrazr’s parent company launched Crowdfundr, a funding platform dedicated to creative projects. I was proud that Black Eye Books was selected as a launch partner with J.R. Hughto and Curt Merlo’s debut graphic novel That Distant Fire. I’ve enjoyed working with the team at Crowdfundr, and they really do listen when it comes to user feedback. If you’re considering a comic book funding project, definitely take a look at the platform. With features like no fees, keep-it-all or all-or-nothing, roll-over into a store, and cloning existing campaigns, there’s a lot to offer creators!
VIDE PRESS
If you’re in Toronto and need risograph printing, I’m once again recommend Vide Press. They've been our choice of risograph printer here since Dwellings Vol. 1, and owner Quentin and his team always impress! Definitely check out their instagram feed for examples of all the amazing projects they’ve printed.
Risograph prints for Assorted Baggage by Matthew Daley, and Monster by Mariel Ashlinn Kelly
CLICK2MAIL
As I continued to explore different ways of reaching previous readers and backers for current crowdfunding campaigns, I found Click2Mail, a service that will print, personalize and mail postcards for a very reasonable rate, including tracking! Just upload your PDF artwork and a CSV file of names and addresses, and you're off. I created a custom short url using short.io so that I could track how many people responded to the postcard’s call of action.
Hope some of this is helpful to some of you!
Michel