by Clay Adams

Simon Birks was ready to experiment.

He’d already had success over the last few years launching multiple comics Kickstarters, and like any good entrepreneur, he was looking for a new challenge—and a new market.

Simon did his research and learned that gamebook Kickstarters in the Tabletop Games category often did well. Now the question was:

Could Simon branch out?

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• The best—and easiest—way to conduct market research
• Why you should consider putting “skin in the game”
• How to market your Kickstarter campaign

How to do Market Research for Your Kickstarter

Simon didn’t jump into the new market cold.

He studied the games category on Kickstarter and noticed that those projects tended to do well. This gave Simon the confidence to approach his existing audience. 

Simon had built up a reputation and a track record over the past several years launching...

by Clay Adams

Colin Devonshire was feeling dejected.

His pitch for BY THE TIME I GET TO DALLAS was going nowhere fast. The lack of response from publishers was taking a mental toll, and it would have been all too easy to throw in the towel.

But Colin knew he had a good book. And he was confident he could put together a professional product if given the chance. 

So he decided to bet on himself and turn to the fastest-rising star in the comics publishing game:

Kickstarter.

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• Why prepping your audience before launch is key
• How to expand your audience after you launch
• What to post on social media during a campaign—and how often

What to do Before Launching on Kickstarter

Colin self-funded all of the art production for the book, putting a lot of skin in the game. Taking a “tortoise” approach, he worked hard until he felt his book was ready. Meanwhile, he joined the broader...

by Clay Adams

Abrian Curington saw an opportunity. 

She had completely sold out of her first two books, and now her third was close to funding on Kickstarter.

As she watched her backer count and funding total rise, she carefully crunched the numbers and made a surprising discovery:

If Abrian did everything right, she might have a way to fund a reprint of her previous two books…

As stretch goals.

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• How thinking outside the box can help grow your audience
• What to consider when choosing the size of your print run  
• Why stretch goals can help you reprint books... and pad the bottom line

How to Expand Your Fanbase Before and During a Kickstarter

Abrian’s first Kickstarter was a success, overfunding her modest goal by nearly 100%.

But for her second campaign, she knew she needed a bigger ask. That meant finding more backers--any way...

by Clay Adams

Don Handfield had a brilliant idea for a comic.

The only problem?

Unlike his other work, UNIKORN would be all-ages friendly. And the subject matter—unicorns and grief—was so far outside his usual genre, he had no idea if he could pull it off.

With a short time until launch, how on earth was he going to reach an all-new readership?

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• How to quickly expand your network
• What you should fall back on if your Dead Zone plan fails
• Why Kickstarter isn't just for beginners—and why that's a good thing

The Challenge: How to Launch a New Comic Book on Kickstarter

Don works in the film and TV industry, producing material aimed at a grown-up audience. His previous comics work has tapped that same vein. But something was nagging at him.

“I have two children, 10 and 8, that mean the world to me. They can’t really fully enjoy my other work because it’s made for adults,...

Erin Ptah had a plan. 

She’d filled out her spreadsheets, worked carefully to build her sales page for the "Leif & Thorn" Kickstarter, and come up with a guiding philosophy that would see her through all phases of the campaign.

Now she just had to execute.

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• Why having a guiding principle is important
• One simple trick to boost funding
• How to resist “shiny objects” 

Erin’s Kickstarter Philosophy: Keep it Simple

Like many successful business owners, Erin knew that before she even made a sale, she needed a guiding principle—a philosophy she could always fall back on in the face of difficult decisions. So she settled on what would be her mantra throughout the Kickstarter:

Keep it Simple.

“The philosophy is, the more variables you introduce, the more opportunities you give yourself to screw up. Since this was my first time fulfilling a Kickstarter, it...

By Clay Adams

James Powell was feeling confident.

After two successful Kickstarter campaigns for his children’s horror comic, House of Fear, James felt the time was right to get his stories out to a wider audience. Before, he’d been too scared to pitch his work to a publisher. What if he wasn’t ready? What if they could tell he didn’t know what he was doing?

But now, armed with the confidence gained from crowdfunding success, James was ready.

It was time to submit.

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• How to pitch your book to a publisher
• What to do while you wait to hear back
• Why failure isn’t the end… and neither is success

How To Pitch Your Comic Book Or Graphic Novel To A Publisher

James knew that he couldn’t just spray his pitch around to every publisher in the game. His experience with Kickstarter told him that having a specific, targeted plan was important to success. 

“I made a list (a...

By Clay Adams

Travis Gibb was feeling stretched thin. 

With two campaigns running at once, he felt pressure to make both succeed. But as a collaborator on one project and "just the writer" on the other, Travis wasn’t fully in charge of either. 

How was he going to get through this month?

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• How to work with collaborators on a Kickstarter campaign
• The secret to a successful launch
• One trick to turbo-charge your final week

How to Work with Collaborators on Kickstarter

Both of Travis’ campaigns were a challenge—for very different reasons.

“One of those campaigns (DOG DAYS) was run by another publisher. It was challenging because I couldn’t build the campaign as I saw fit. I didn’t have complete control of how much we needed to raise. I didn’t know all the backend numbers, and I didn’t get a lot of pre-campaign planning in. I also...

by Clay Adams

Andy Perry needed a change.

Like many creators, he’d had an idea for a comic, which he successfully funded on Kickstarter. But by his own estimation, about 90% of his pledges came from friends and family. 

For his next campaign, Andy swore he’d expand his fanbase and get that percentage down. There was only one problem.

He didn’t know where to start.

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• How to grow your mailing list
• Why a Mastermind group can help your creative business
• The mindset needed for Kickstarter success

What is a Mastermind Group?

Andy decided he needed a support system, so he joined the ComixLaunch MasterMind, a group of creators who meet once a month to help each other grow their creative businesses. 

“Being around like-minded creatives gave me a sense of reassurance. I’d picked people’s brains before and received loads of help, but this was a forum where everyone...

by Clay Adams

Jim Whiting had a choice to make.

After years of Kickstarting his own series, Margo: Intergalactic Trash Collector, Jim was now faced with a different task entirely. His latest project, DarkARTS, was an oversized pin-up book featuring work by various artists. He knew he couldn’t rely on his established audience to come out and support it—and there was no guarantee the audience for a book like this even existed. 

Before hitting launch, Jim wondered, “How the heck am I going to market this?”

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• How to choose the best category for your project
• When you should identify your target audience
• Why “pocket” rewards can save you

How Do You Choose the Best Kickstarter Category?

The first challenge Jim faced was deciding on a Kickstarter category. It didn’t fit neatly into any of the available options, so he had to decide:

Would this be a “book”...

by Clay Adams

Newton Lilavois was in the hospital.

With only four days before the big Kickstarter launch for his webcomic, “Crescent City Monsters,” Newton was about to go under the knife for knee surgery. 

He’d spent a year posting his comic online, working through the ComixLaunch Course, and meticulously planning his campaign. 

But now, facing surgery and a painful recovery, he had to ask himself:

Should I postpone?

In this edition of the ComixLaunch Spotlight, you’ll learn:

• Newton’s Facebook ad strategy for campaign success
• Why you should plan your stretch goals before you launch
• When “failure” isn’t really failure at all

Knowledge is Power: Google Analytics and Your Kickstarter Page

So: did Newton postpone his launch?

Before we answer that question, let’s talk about the well-crafted plan he was thinking of putting off. 

Because Newton is a member of the ComixLaunch...