Date: Thu, 6 Oct 1994 01:34:41 -0400 From: [g--l--n] at [falcon.bgsu.edu] (Metroplex) Subject: FTP 498 ADMINISTRIVIA: I apologize for not sending off FtP in a timely fashion lately. Things have been hectic on my end. I just moved into my new apartment last week, started classes on Wednesday and am working three jobs. I'm hoping to get FtP into my regular Monday schedule (as opposed to Fridays, like I said last time). Anyway, please send all flames to me regarding the schedule of FtP, and not to Cat. Also, I'm sending this triple shot of FtP's to catch up with the ones appearing in CBG. - Greg ==== FIT TO PRINT by cathrine yronwode for the week of August 29, 1994. THIS IS FIT TO PRINT NUMBER 498: It's Free Plum Time in Forestville! YOUR NAME HERE? In the minutes of the Bay Area Comic Retailers meeting for May, there was a tantalizing glimpse of something that may (or may not) be coming soon to a comic book store near you. Mike Martin of Marvel attended the meeting to get feedback from BACR members on several topics, one of which was the marketing of "personalized" comics. Custom imprinting is very popular these days. "Personalized" greeting cards are sold in most malls and customized children's books are available through several large bookstore chains. To quote from the BACR meeting's minutes, "A customer's name can be inserted into a book template, resulting in an adventure where the reader can 'participate' along with the other characters in the book. Marvel envisions a system whereby the customer would order through the stores, then wait for several weeks while the book is actually printed and delivered." In giving Mike some input on how this idea could be marketed, BACR members noted that-as with customized greeting cards-retailers "need to be able to handle impulse sales [so] the store should have blank template books in stock with the ability to insert the personalized elements in place while the customer waits, for this idea to really fly." I agree, in theory, but the problem of binding may be an issue here. You cannot print on a sheet of paper unless it makes flush contact with a printing plate. Greeting cards are just a single sheet of paper, so they can be imprinted and folded right in the sales kiosk. Comics, on the other hand, are either saddle stitched (stapled) or perfect bound (glued). If they shipped to the store prebound, they could not be custom imprinted. If they shipped unbound, the retailer would need to acquire a stitchertrimmer or a hot glue bindery machine for use in the store. That's expen$ive, folks! Well, this is still in the market research phase, so let's see if anything comes of it. STATS: In keeping with fandom's restless search for esoteric knowledge, here is a request for data from Dan Richards of Santa Rosa, California: "Congratulations on your return to the CBG. Will you be running strange questions from readers (or should i say questions from strange readers?) like you used to in the good old days of Pork Adobo and allergic reactions to hair conditioner? If so, here is my strange question: "My brother and i were discussing the ubiquitous concept of the 'Evil Twin' in comics, and he said it's a really dumb idea 'because twins don't kill each other.' "We agreed that in real life identical twins probably almost never do kill each other because they are so much alike. But it seemed to me that fraternal twins don't have cues like age or size to prove dominance over each other, so neither would capitulate in a fight and they might end up killing each other. My brother said that regular siblings fight more often than twins do because they have even less in common, and that he's never heard of any twins, fraternal or identical, killing each other. "If i am right in asserting that fraternal twins kill each other more frequently than brothers do, then comic book scripters can continue to write 'Evil Twin' tales and things can go on as always. But if my brother is right, everyone would have to change over to doing 'Evil Brother' stories. "This is our question: If you check national crime statistics, which group has the highest per capita murder rate: identical twins, fraternal twins, or regular siblings? "I'll bet some law officer or lawyer will have the answer if you print my question. "By the way, my brother's name is Robert Richards, and if he wins this bet, i hereby declare him to be 'public domain' and grant permission for Neil Gaiman to feature him in a comic book." Okay, Dan. The question has now been thrown open to our readership. Let's see if we can get an answer. And, as always, i offer a free graphic novel to each person who sends in a well-documented reply. ==== Fit to Print appears in print each week in Comics Buyers Guide and is available via e-mail. Tell your friends! To subscribe to Fit to Print via e-mail send a request with the words "Subscribe FtP" in the subject header and your address in the body of the message to [g--l--n] at [bgnet.bgsu.edu.] You will be added to the list and receive the next available issue. Responses are welcome and should be directed to the address above. Fit to Print is Copyright 1994 Cathrine Yronwode. All rights reserved.