This weekend I will be attending the brand spanking new Wicked Comic Con here in Boston.
I'm very excited about the con as it has some of my favorite creators on the docket, some who I have met before and others that I haven't even seen listed at cons before.
As usual, I will hope to get a commission or two, get some books signed for me and friends, and maybe do a little back issue shopping.
One thing that has cropped up over the last few years is creators charging for signatures on books. And more importantly, the price for signatures has sort of sky-rocketed over time.
I don't blame the creators. Their signature probably increases the value of the book, especially if 'witnessed' and then slabbed. Plus, why shouldn't they act similarly to the other celebrities which attend bigger cons, like cosplayers, wrestlers, and voice actors who charge.
In the old days, I would usually pick around 5 issues to bring for a creator to sign, usually some 'big' issues but also I would try to bring a favorite issue. But know, I don't know how many issues to bring, if any. Am I willing to dole out $30 for a signature? $10?
What is even stranger is that there doesn't seem to be a clear landscape on who charges and what. Dan Jurgens was free. Joe Rubinstein was $10. Tim Sale was one for free if personalized, $5 otherwise.
As a result, with no foreknowledge, I don't know what to pack. And that is irksome.
Bigger cons will often post the price for signatures or photo ops with the celebrities. So why not do the same for the comic creators? That might help me figure out how much money to bring or how many comics to bring.
Then I wondered if I was the only one thinking about such a thing.
As an experiment, I posed the question on Twitter. 'Would you like the cost of creator autographs posted on the convention website?'
98 response.
84 people said yes.
So what do you say convention hosts? Time to start doing this?
I shouldn't lump this conversation with Wicked Comic Con.
I will be there.
I'll probably be wearing a t-shirt with the blog's banner on it for anyone there. Hope everyone locally heads there. This seems like a con that should be supported!
1 comment:
I am not big on autographs per se, I only own about three of them (one of them from Helen Slater, who lived up to her formidable rep for being nice and engaging)...this is a tough one since there is a whole celeb “working class” that views autograph sales and the like as a necessary “annuity”. I do think though, it would be to everyone’s credit for some transparency to be in play.
JF
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