Off-Panel: November 10, 2014
“For instance: Many people post their artwork online for free. (Or comics, movies, music, writing, etc.) But it’s not really free. The cost of your labor is absorbed. The value of the work goes to Big Tech. Everyone viewing your work has paid for whatever screen or computer through which they view your work, and also for their Internet access plan. But your audience doesn’t value you, Young Cartoonist, so much as the device that frames you. You are disposable.”
Matthew Thurber proffers a Letter to a Young Cartoonist in the social media era. (The Comics Journal)
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“I have my doubts as to whether I can finish it or not,” said Miyazaki, who turns 74 in January. “I wanted to put a lot of effort into it, ignoring costs, like a hobby. I thought I’d have free time, but I keep getting project offers. Not necessarily lucrative ones, but they have a significance for me.”
Even in retirement, Hayao Miyazaki is so busy, he says he may not be able to complete that samurai manga he’s been working on. Guys, stop inviting Miyazaki-sama to piddly stuff so he can enjoy his retirement and make this book! (Robot 6)
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“With six decades of work under his belt, Russ Heath is arguably one of the most important creators in comics. It was his art that was, to put it charitably, “adapted” by Roy Lichtenstein for the pop art pieces that made him famous. Of course, as is unfortunately so often the case for hard-working creators in comics, while Lichtenstein made millions lightboxing panels Heath had drawn in the pages of DC’s romance and war comics, Heath himself never saw a dime, despite continuing a career that saw him become one of the most respected elder statesmen of the industry.”
Now in his eighties, Rus Heath has made a comic about seeing his art repurposed by Lichtenstein, and of his much more positive experience with the Hero Initiative. (Comics Alliance)
