The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Nobs!
1. Just like Mix, I'm also into Batman. I have my own copy of The Long Halloween, The Dark Knight Returns/Strikes Again/Year One, The Killing Joke and even Absolute Hush (yes, just cause I loved the story so much) plus a lot more of Bruce Wayne. I also have others from DC like Infinite Crisis, Identity Crisis, Blackest Night, etc. I also read some stuff from Marvel like Civil War and 1602. I haven't read much from Marvel though because I've been trying to understand the DC Universe for quite some time. I recently took a break and began reading stuff like Y: The Last Man, Watchmen, Blankets, The Swamp Thing, Transmetropolitan, The Walking Dead and some local comics which include Trese, Zsazsa Zaturnnah, Nardong Tae, Kalayaan, Elmer, Tabi Po and Ang Alamat ng Panget and Many Other.
2. If I purchased them or read a soft copy of it obviously means that I enjoy reading them. I usually do a little research before reading comics/graphic novels, if I read good comments on it or if I like the synopsis then I look for them and start reading. I like reading them cause they are amusing from the drawing itself to the story.
3. What are you talking about? I think that comics are for everyone! It just so happens that not a lot of girls out there haven't tried exploring the wonderful world of comics hence, the claim that comics are for boys.
4. Craig Thompson (Blankets), Grant Morrison (52), Frank Miller (The Dark Knight Returns), Brad Meltzer (Identity Crisis), Allan Moore (The Swamp Thing), Budjette Tan (Trese) and Gerry Alanguilan (Elmer) are most likely my faves! They are my favourites because in my opinion, their stories are very unique or they just got me emotional. Blankets and Identity Crisis was a heartbreaker and that's why I loved their story and creators! The Dark Knight Returns just made me fall in love with Bruce Wayne much more! Superman in overrated plus Batman can beat the hell out of him!
5. Well, we have to admit that we don't see much male characters looking so seductive unlike the females but then I think all we women need is an open and mature mind. The story makes up for it anyway.
6. Oh dear! I really would love to make my own someday. Again, I don't think comics are specifically for one gender. Maybe we can lure in more girls by writing comics just like Blankets. Writing about love or probably experience itself makes a story interesting for women.
7. The story is king says my professor. Gender doesn't matter as long as the story is good! If there's one way to lure more girls then it's by influence.
8. So far, I think our local comics are doing great. If there's one thing I'd like to see more of, it would be probably more female comic book writers and more great stories!
9. See less of? I don't think there isn't anything I wanna see less of in the local comic scene.
10. We're going worldwide, that's for sure! We have great storytellers and artists :)
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Mimi!
1) Local: Usually whatever one-shot indie titles I can get my hands on. If loyal to any series, I cannot recall it at this time. Except for Windmills, reason obvious. I used to be into the big komik strips like Pugad Baboy, Kikomachine and Beerkada but have outgrown them.
Foreign: Currenly Daniel Clowes, Nate Powell, Adrian Tomine, Chew, Crossed, Blacksad, Peanuts. My pet series was Fables until someone told me that Bill Willingham supported the Iraq War thus soiling my enjoyment of it, which is wrong, I know. Webcomics like Pictures for Sad Children, Dinosaur Comics and Lackadaisy. Anything with cute animals (cats) in it I will probably pick up which is why occasionally there is a Jhonen Vasquez trip. Also, not-so-current manga like Uzumaki, Monster, Angel Sanctuary, Pure Trance, Nana (Is it ever coming back?) and Litchi Hikari Club (Which really kinda sucks but I want to have hope because it’s pretty.)
2) This is gonna sound bad but I can’t say I’ve enjoyed very many of the local komiks that I’ve read because most of them just aren’t about things that I can get into and if they are they just suck. Case in point- Budang. Cute cat! But it made me want to punch it for being so fucking dumb. Too many people are focusing on either emulating cutesy Japanese stereotypes or forcing “Filipinoness” into their work through weak social commentary, using folklore or writing in bad Taglish instead of actually developing characters or just writing good dialogue. What makes me stick to a series or creator is pretty/cute art (because shallow is easy), interesting stories and dialogue, defined characters, or even just ideas I can agree with such as with Clowes which is sad.
3) Um, I used to read W.I.T.C.H., webcomics like Perfect Stars and Tiny Kitten Teeth seem especially girly, but that might just be the art style, popular shoujo manga like Nana and Ayashi no Ceres. Generally the art is pretty but the stories eventually fall into vapidity which can be either a good or bad thing depending on my mood (how girly). They discuss things most girls can relate to or aspire to have which is part of the problem for me because the idea of the universal female doesn’t appeal to me personally. Most female oriented comics seem to be either romantic which gets boring quickly or let’s-be-feminist-yeah! which gets annoying immediately. Women/girls always seem like they’re part of a team (of other girls, most often) if not the love interest. More individuality would be nice.
4) Daniel Clowes because his art is distinct, he’s wordy which helps the non-visually oriented such as myself and because he keeps the reader occupied whether it be through reading his insanely long rants, visual cues or just figuring out what the fuck is going on. Favorites by him would be Ice Haven and Eightball (excluding Velvet Glove) because of the anthology-ness.
Locally I liked Oliver Pulumbarit’s Lexy, Nance and Argus but I don’t think I’ve read enough of his work to call him a favorite just yet. I liked his references, characters and . In all honesty I like Josel’s more focused work like Windmills because of the introspection and ambition. The focus on character and thought over flashy plot is something that a lot of other young local komiks lack.
I generally don’t like very many female creators in any field. This may be a problem. But I do like Lynda Barry well enough for her art style, humor and psychology. Favorite book: What It Is for its prettiness.
5) It’s not particularly welcoming to females but it doesn’t shoo them (us pala) away either. It does occasionally perv us out though. You’d think it’d just be the scantily-clad walking ads who would be pestered, but it seems that every girl present at a convention is subject to this. A lot of female characters in komiks are fanfare as well. I don’t want to go into a male gaze rant (because often they are stupid) but that objectification is pretty evident although not particularly oppressive. The scene is obviously predominately male and targets such but is open to female creators and fans.
6) If I had the skill, I probably would want to but I wouldn’t target it to girls if only because I don’t do well with that. But merchandise and pretty packaging is always a nice way to catch a girl’s eye. Look expensive but be cheap.
7) Not really but it’s not unwelcome.
8) Universality, good writing, colored work would be nice too
9) Milking Philippine mythology and history, heavily genre-d stuff, manga style artwork, homogeneity
10) Staying where it is now
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Kristine!
1) Hindi ako masyadong nakakapagbasa ng comics eh. Sa local, Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah, Kikomachine, 12, Pugadbaboy, at Trese pa lang ata. Sa foreign, puro webcomics: A Softer World, C'est la Vie, Cyanide and Happiness, Hark! A Vagrant, Oatmeal, Perry Bible Fellowship, Pictures for Sad Children, xkcd, at ang paborito kong Piled Higher and Deeper. Garfield and Calvin and Hobbes din, pero sadly di ko sila masyadong nasubaybayan. Nung elementary at high school, W.I.T.C.H.
2) Yup! I like comics that combine humor and social commentary, humor and nerdiness, humor and morbidness.
3) Yung W.I.T.C.H. -- magic girls! school issues! friends issues! fluffy romance! Sobrang natuwa ako sa kanya nung elementary at high school. Matagal ko na siyang di nasubaybayan; hindi ko alam kung magugustuhan ko pa rin hanggang ngayon. Yung C'est la Vie din ni Jennifer Babcock, the protagonist is a woman, an existential beatnik who doesn't conform to the ideals of conventional femininity. It often talks about "women's issues" -- women's relationships, career, romance, motherhood (or repulsion to it) etc. Nakaka-relate ako sa views ng protagonist.
4) Sa local, favorite ko si Manix Abrera! Kikomachine lang ang kumpleto kong comic book series. Sobrang benta sakin ang humor niya, at ang social commentary na dala nito. Ang astig din niya mag-drawing, at ang galing ng characterization! Sa foreign naman, si Jorge Cham ng Piled Higher and Deeper na tungkol sa grad school. Aside from my interest in his observations and insights about grad school life, the webcomic is also very funny and well-drawn. C'est la Vie din, for the aforementioned reasons, at Hark! A Vagrant ni Kate Beaton. Sobrang panalo lang ni Beaton, I like how she plays with literary and historical characters!
5) I really don't know much about the local komix scene, so I can't substantially comment on this. Basta pansin ko lang, karamihan sa mga komiks fans ay mga lalaki, at karamihan sa nakikita kong komiks, parang geared sa mga lalaki. I want to reiterate that I have a very narrow experience of komiks.
6) If I had the skills, oo naman. I just want to create a good story in the medium, pero being a girl and a feminist, i think it would be inevitable that i'd create komiks from a particular perspective -- i'd probably tackle experiences i encounter and issues relevant to me as a woman.
7) I feel ambivalent about this, because it might further entrench gender stereotypes. A good story is a good story, but yeah, sana mas maraming komiks ang may mga babaeng bida, hindi yung madalas accessory lang sila sa male heroes.
re: the last three questions, i don't know much about local komiks (really, comics in general) in the first place, so i can't really comment on them. siguro sana mas mapalaganap pa ang komiks, as in i-promote sila sa mga bata kahit sa mga paaralan, dahil marami namang komiks na worthy of readership and study!
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Gabcanfly!
1) I'm ashamed to say I don't read a lot of local comics. I read a bit of Pugad Baboy and I used to read Culture Crash when it was still in print, but that's about it. Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah was pretty awesome too.
The current foreign comics I'm reading are: Batgirl, Fables, The Unwritten, various Batman titles, Secret Six and Freakangels.
2) Yes. I just like to read period.
3) I don't really look out for comics that are specifically targeted to girls. Mostly because girl comics usually translates to chick lit, and I'm not a big fan of that either.
I do like reading comics that feature very strong female characters. If that qualifies as comics specifically targeted to girls, then I'm all for it.
4) When you say creators, do you mean the writer or the artist or someone who does both on the title (because I can't really think of anyone right now)?
For writers, I'm a big Gaiman fan. I also like Warren Ellis, Paul Dini (because of Batman the Animated Series) and just recently, Gail Simone.
When it comes to artists, I will read (at least once) anything that David Mack, Dustin Nguyen, or J.H. Williams have worked on.
My favourite comics are Sandman and Y the Last Man (Although its Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra aren't on the list above, just because I haven't read anything else by them yet.)
5) I haven't read a lot of local comics to say, but I do go to conventions a lot and I don't feel any hostility towards girls as comic fans.
6) Not particularly. Just because I don't think I'd have the patience for it.
7) I don't really look at good stories as specifically for girls or boys. A good story is a good story.
I've read a couple of shojou manga titles and they're irritating. If that's the kind of plots "girl comics" are going to have, then I'd rather there not be any. Local or foreign. I'd rather read something that's not targeted specifically for girls that has a great, strong, female lead.
8) Great stories with great characters. I'm sure they're out there. I just need to do more local comic reading.
9) I agree with one of the other commenters that I'm sick of seeing local comics with the three stars and a sun motif. The false patriotism thing is everywhere, not just in comics. It needs to stop.
I also think it would be great if local comics featured women who are drawn more realistically with costumes and breasts that don't defy the laws of physics.
10) I don't know. Haha. Sorry. walang kwentang sagot.
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Drew Santos!
1) Well, Josel's comics have been very influential in my reading -- that and a lot of comics from Oni Press and SLG. I also, shamefully, like reading Shojo Manga on the internet.
2) Yep, I wouldn't read them if I didn't like them. Mainly because they're drawn well. The appreciation of the plot comes second in place of the art. It's kind of like looking at books at a bookstore - you buy the book with the best cover and then you later on appreciate what's inside the book.
3) Yes. I like Hope Larson's Chiggers, Jen Wang's Koko Be Good, and My Faith in Frankie. Oh yes, and a lot of Shojo Manga.
My fave creators are Becky Cloonan, Hope Larson, Jill Thompson, Kristian Donaldson, James Jean, Jen Wang, Matthew Woodson, Alessandro Barbucci, Nate Powell and Fabio Moon & Gabriel Ba.
4) The way they produce their art is pleasing to the eyes. Too many to list.
5) I like the local comic with the sheep on it. More cute things = more merch I say. And girls are always in for the cute merch. I can't say, personally, I like how the rest is drawn -- plot-wise, I like 'em. Love your own they say.
6) I'm good with that. I wouldn't say I'd make it specially for girls. I'd start with online comics. That's how people get noticed anyways -- online comics. :)
7) I think there are a lot of those in badly drawn Manga form. But it wouldn't hurt if there were more.
8) More of the local artists' style rather than those deformed Manga ones. Sorry, I just had to say it.
9) Ugly art and unoriginal plots. :)
10) Hmmmm I think local komix is heading towards a bright future now that witty people are making witty comic books. I'd like to say I like Apol Sta. Maria's Alamat ng Panget because its weird sense of humor. Yes, I just had to say that. Anyhow, I see a bright future for Pinoy comics. I dunno about girly themes -- but those Manga comics are girly girly themed and all so yay for that bright future in girly comics.
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from the Simpson's Edna Krabappel!
1) I like Seth's, Dan Clowes, Jim Woodring, Chris Ware, Fletcher Hanks, Charles Burns, Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Susumu Katsumata and Imiri Sakabashira.
Local comics… trip ko ang Punnx, Alamat ng Panget at syempre Pugad Baboy.
2) Yep. Ganda ng drawing plus galing ng story. Gusto ko yung drama ni Seth. Trip ko lalo ang design ni Chris Ware. Kay Tatsumi, ang galing lang talaga nya magkwento. Sakabashira dahil fan ako ng kaiju.
3) No, I read what interests me. Pero yung "for girls comics" na sinasabi mo, nagustuhan ko ang Ghost World ni Daniel Clowes. Pambabae ba sya?
My faves would be Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Seth, Dan Clowes, Charles Burns.
4) Tatsumi's Good-bye, Black Blizzard, Abandon the Old in Tokyo, The Push-man and other Stories. Seth's Wimbledon Green, Its A Good Life if You Don't Weaken.
Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron, Pussey, Ice Haven by Clowes. Big Baby, el Borbah, at Skin Deep ni Charles Burns. Sakabashira's Boxman. Nice story and drawing.
5) I don't know, I think if you're interested in things like these, it doesn't matter.
6) Yep, I also want to make my own, ala Tom Tomorrow. haha!
7) pwede, tipong romance comics. haha
8) ??
9) Yung superhero na flag ng pilipinas ang costume. O yung tipong nagpapaka pinoy ang dating. Wala na kasing bago sa tikbalang, zombie na manny pacquiao o nagsasalitang manok at syempre ang anime/manga-inspired drawings.
10) I have no idea.
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Alquanna!
1) Leaning more on webcomics ngayon - xkcd, Oglaf, garfield without garfield. Sometimes Questionable Content and A Softer World. Foreign, kung hindi strips (Dilbert), manga (karamihan yung manga na pinanggalingan ng anime). Local, marami-rami: Kikomachine, Pugad Baboy, Trese, Kubori Kikiam. Used to follow the now-defunct Culture Crash.
2) Intelligent humor (for the strips), and for the story (tulad ng Trese, na minadali sa book 3, boo). Bonus na lang sakin minsan ang good art. xD
3) Nearest probably would be manga from CLAMP (ex. some parts of Fushigi Yuugi), sinundan dahil sa anime, tiningnan lang kung anong parts ang iba sa anime.
Pinakanatatandaan ko noon eh yung WITCH (hindi ko matandaan kung anong country galing, pero may local version dito). Late elem/early HS ata kami ng barkada ko nun, at hindi ko masyadong gets kung ba't sila sobrang bilib dun, kasi sakin eh naunahan na sila ng Sailormoon (na trips din naman namin noon). Yun ang girl kung girl.
4) Local: Manix! Budjette Tan! Carlo Vergara! Pol Medina!
Foreign: mas more on titles ako pag foreign works, hehe. *points up to #1* xD
5) For the local comics, other than intelligent humor, dahil nakakarelate at usually a new twist on old tropes.
6) Dahil hindi naman talaga ako ganun "ka-active" sa komix scene, medyo mahirap mag-comment dito. Noon medyo pumupunta ako, kaso noon parang halo pa sya ng mga anime/gaming/toy conventions; at siguro ganun pa rin impression ko ngayon kaya di na ako talaga pumupunta. Or talagang malas lang ako sa mga cons, either hindi ako pwede sa mga araw na may con or nalalaman ko lang pag tapos na (kasi di ko na talaga inaalam yung dates, di tulad ng dati).
Siguro sa material, yung mga sumikat, kadalasan naman appreciated by both guys and girls (at least sa mga kakilala ko). In terms of characters appearing in strips, balanse naman more or less yung cast - isang buong pamilya yan sa Pugad Baboy, tapos co-ed naman yung barkada sa Kiko Machine. Yung topics din naman, hindi exclusive for guys or girls lang.
May effect lang siguro ng "hostility" kasi so far, kahit ok yung material, eh wala talagang sumisikat na comics recently na girl ang gumawa.
7) Oo naman, pero siguro hindi ko magagawa na from the outset alam ko na dapat for girls yun. Lalabas na lang siguro yun if ever; kwento muna.
(At sana, maraming taga-drawing din xD)
8) Why not? Basta maganda pagkagawa. Tipong mala-Persepolis.
9) Sana mas marami pang magandang series. Laging may aabangan na next issue. Yung mga nagustuhan ko kasi, karamihan one shot.
10) Dahil di ako masyadong "in" sa local comics scene, hirap uli mag-comment xD Siguro yung knee-jerk reaction ko na lang sa isang title na nakita ko sa Sputnik dati - ayoko yung feeling na kailangan isampal sa mukha ko na "PINOY KOMIX AKO!", title pa lang. xD
11) Hmmm. Simula siguro 'to.
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Lukinda Skye!
1) foreign - mostly fantagraphics (hate, anything by crumb, daniel clowes) hernandez brothers, stray bullets, heavy metal, mad magazine, vertigo titles confined to enigma, tales from the crypt, recently stripburger comics, free mangas in japanese restaurants, archies, betty and veronica, xmen, batman, dark knight, grendel, peter mulligan, tank girl, collab bet. jodorowski and moebius, max and pete (as far as image comics is concerned) anything basta maganda drawing
local - funny komiks, wakasan, liwayway, aliwan, pinoy horror komiks, ghost story komiks, lovelife, komiks sa tabloid, sa inquirer, sa phil star, sa manila bulletin, pugad baboy, pupung, cesar asar
2) of course, anything that's drawn, even illustrated instructions on manuals, product literature, architectural drawings, sticker sa jeep, basta me drawing
i enjoy reading/looking at them mainly for the drawings.
3) are archies specifically targeted for girls, or betty and veronica? as i said, i read almost all kinds of comics and dont necessarily classify them as anything or for any type of gender. comics is comics!
always looking forward to paul pope, hernandez brothers, anything from fantagraphics, anything from the guy who did stray bullets, nestor redondo for the drawing, victor balanon - eto dapat suportahan
4) stray bullets - so far, bitin kasi e
5) i buy my comics from 2nd hand bookstores. or skim through them sa bargain box ng (what's this comic store in megamall that also sells static models?)maybe i look 30ish so im not bothered or im too engrossed with looking through the bargain bins that im too oblivious of any discrimination.
i also dont go to comicons, tho it's fun sometimes to see yummy girls in cosplay costumes, it makes me want to squish their boobies and grab their perky butts.
6) ha!!!!!!!! ha ha!!!!! why bother?
what for? comics is comics!
7) what for? generally for the local comix scene to flourish it needs better original stories and more original illustrators (enough of those manga type drawings, it's too damn easy)
also a wider market for comix (also increasing general literacy would help for this to happen) , financial backing for publishing, incentives for major publishers if they produce a free comics for a freee comic book day, international exposure for local comics, local comics alliances, comics forums, peer network support systems
8) see answerr above
9) manga type drawings!
10) komix for girlS?
even though komikera is made up of a collective of mostly girls, i dont see it as targeted exclusively for girls
The questionnaire can be found here. These answers are from Mix!
Dapat may libre akong kopya ng komiks mo when it comes out, for being the first commenter or something.
1) Batman comics, a healthy smattering of other DC titles, never Marvel titles 'cause I'm a purist. Locally, some early Alanguilan, Vergara, and that comic 'sex, rock gods, and something something.' But my hands down favorite Arre was Trip to Tagaytay.
2) Nah, I just like wasting my cash/ time.
Superhero komiks kasi exciting. Insane plot twists abound that could never exist in any other genre and are taken as seriously as the Old Testament (he SHOT a GOD with a TIME BULLET. His used his MEMORIES as a WEAPON. BLACK RINGS bring the DEAD BACK TO LIFE) without sacrificing some sort of highly esoteric internal logic. Local comics kasi... well, baka makatisod ng magandang kwento.
3) Most my friends disagree when I claim that superhero comics are geared for girls. C'mon, look at those abs, that bulging package. Sure, the action and violence might make the boyz happy but dude. Seriously? Muscular men doing crotch-shot jumps right in my face? That's fangirl service. ...Or baka may kinalaman ito sa pag-buo ng 'ideal'/ impossible female fantasy of the perfect guy-- yung maginoo pero medyo bastos, can beat the shit outta the Joker but will never hurt you shtick-- parang yung super bishonen jerks ng shojo manga who still somehow get the girls. (see, sineseryoso ko ang survey mo)
Morrison, we already sort of talked about. Nancy Collins kasi... well, Swamp Thing just rocked all around.
Local, hm. Wala pa masyado akong nababasa that has blown me away...
5) I have to admit that the local komiks industry seems to be leagues ahead of other countries in terms of gender politics. Zatturnah at Trese pa lang as characters, panalo na tayo. Zatturnah and Trese writers, more so. And these are the two most popular Filipino komiks in recent memory (sabi ng source ko, si Dr. Pwet, PhD. Sorry, no reference. Gut instinct lang). As of conventions, there are women. Don't know what percentage of those women read a lot of comics, though I do feel the comics scene here is pretty friendly. AND I'LL TELL YOU MY OUTLANDISH THEORY AS TO WHY-- kasi largely middle class ang komiks scene dito ngayon. Insert here a tricky discourse on the 'castration' of the middle class male who averts himself from the 'macho' image for fear of being associated with the low-born working class but also avoids the too-feminine image of the homosexual who is seen as a deviant, resulting in a class of males who hide behind the guise of 'sensitivity' and will not step up for their women, etc, etc, bitter ranting. Tapos na ang panahon ng palengke komiks, the Pinoy golden age with Kafgu and Indio and such. YUN, dude komiks kung dude komiks.
6) I do want to make my own komiks, but I don't necessarily want to make it specifically for girls 'cause I'm not crazy.
Kasi... complicated mga babae eh. You always run the risk of generalizing and stereotyping women if you try to do something specifically geared toward them. Toys, dolls = creating unachievable body images. Hello kitty and such = stereotyping women as fragile, pink-loving, whatevers. Chick flick/ chick lit = as if to say that women are incapable of appreciating 'serious' literature. Twilight = well. Yung parang ganoon? I dunno why that is, either. I'm just saying there's that risk.
Also, I read somewhere that these two manga series (later turned into anime series) Yu yu Hakusho (ghost fighter) and Rurouni Kenshin (samurai X) were original conceived as shojo titles, as evidenced by the gaggle of bishonen boys. Even when they were turned into anime and garnered male audiences, the female audiences still outnumbered the male. Can these be considered 'geared for women?'
I think the key factors for making girl comics/ comics for girls are:
1. don't patronize your audience/ readers because they're women
2. a good story-- which is always asexual in nature
3. non-hideous looking male characters.
7) Um. Not really.
8) Just good stories, god. Less masturbation from artists who think action sequences/ squiggly motion lines = good story
9) masturbation from artists. Oo, ang daming magaling magdrowing sa Pilipinas. the indie sections of every komikon proves that. Pero bat walang marunong magkwento?
10) Nowhere.
As I was setting out to re/work on a few lost things from my computer, Don Jaucian eMailed to ask a few questions about book design. For some reason, he had it in his head that I have ideas about these things - I think it's more my constant Facebook updates on naught but book design for nearly four whole months - and so, just to add one more thing in my already grossly-full plate, I said "Yes, I shall answer your questions to the best of my abilities!" And so, I tried my best.
1) How important are book designs and covers these days? I've noticed that big publishing houses like Penguin, Vintage and Gollancz have been releasing books with impressive book covers.
Covers are the main point of entry for potential readers if not the only marketing tool the publishers use to sell their books, and like with the three publishers you mentioned in your question - Penguin, Vintage, and Victor Gollancz - they can also be used to establish an aesthetic identity, either for the publisher - regular Penguin books have a thoroughly distinct look different from everyone else; Vintage has more of a common vibe with all their books and less of a common aesthetic look, but this common vibe (image-driven minimalist, simple title type) is strong enough that when you see a Vintage book from afar, even when they don't look that different from all the other books, you still just know it's a Vintage book; arguably, the same can be said about VG books, although they have a weaker aesthetic overall - or for the books themselves - Penguin's many many many book series(es), like the Penguin Tattoos, Penguin Great Ideas, Penguin Classics, Penguin Classics That Have Alternative Comic Book Artists As Cover Artists On Them, etc etc - already effectively announcing just what their books are about, just what they're all about as a publisher. So yeah, aside from the obvious "it has to look beautiful so people will buy it," covers are also for establishing identity.
Book design, though, as in holistic book design, interior book design, is an art that is a lot more subtle, a little more invisible than cover design although I'd argue that it's loads more important as an element of the book - with covers, you only get to see them for at most five seconds or so in the whole two or three hours an average reader might devote to actual book reading, and when you're not reading the book, they're mainly on the shelves with only their spines showing - as with interior book design, specifically page design, there are so many things that are meant to happen altogether and with such precision that if only one is out of synch, tragedy ensues: if the typeface is too large, it can be seen as made for either kids or fogeys, and can be intellectually off-putting for some readers; if the typeface is too tiny or if the kerning and leads between types are too wide or too narrow, they'd cause headaches; if the size of the type for the page numbers is too big, it'd be distracting the reader's eyes from the main text body; if you use a sans serif typeface for the main text body, it'll be a bit more difficult to read and follow than when you use a serif type; but if you use a sans serif type for the chapter titles and such, it'll be a far more pleasant read than when you use a serif type; not to mention the widows and orphans and hyphens and em dashes and italics and text that begin on the verso pages, etc etc etc - all of these things are so precise that when done right they're invisible, but when done wrong they're irritating.
These things have been steady constants throughout the history of printing, and for the most part, they're all still relevant in the age of digital books, only some I feel will be eventually abandoned as the eBook readers and iPads and other digital reading devices manage to establish a more secure foothold as mainstream media - I'm already seeing this change with the guidelines I was given when I was asked to design covers for eBooks: because the market for eBooks is online, the demand to make the covers pop-out has gone up in the sense that you can't really play around much with type because of the need to make the cover instantly legible and noticeable when seen in your monitor as an 8.33%-thumbnail amidst all the other 8.33%-thumbnails; also, the need for the back cover is gone, as well as the need for blurbs or synopses, or even the spine. As for the interior book design, a lot of eBook readers have customisable settings with regards to font size and page orientation and paragraph flow that it renders the page as artifact moot - even page numbers are irrelevant! And one can even set up a book as a set of hyperlinks instead of the far simpler page-to-pixel transfer, demanding from the reader - and the book - a far more different reading experience compared to the conventional linear experience.
But there are still publishers who'd rather concentrate on doing print than doing digital, and for some cases it's vice versa, but for more and more publishers, addressing both concerns is starting to look like a good publishing model. So, in short, it's both all changing and all staying the same, for the betterment of everything.
2) How is the book design trade here in the Philippines?
Most publishers are also managed by people who are mainly businessmen - which is understandable as it is a business - who only have eyes for the bottomline and not for design - and often design is dictated by beauty, and beauty isn't always wise for business, thus design is always left on the level of perfunctory, often just a case of laying everything out in Times New Roman in a typo-filled rush to get the book printed, as the sooner it's printed the sooner it'll be sold.
But there's hope in the form of the independent press, in the form of publishers who are thinking more of the presentation as a way of selling, the beauty as marketing tool, the book as artifact to be appreciated not only as a vehicle of text ideas but also as a work of art, be they in print or in web. I first noticed this with High Chair's poetry books and their webjournal, and also with Heights at least ever since the mid 90s, and now with customizable blogs and Twitter pages and Deviantart portfolios, it's all converging into one big messy colourfully flavourful salad. There are smarter people making decisions nowadays, people who grew up on animes and mangas and rock posters and comic books and ukay-ukays and dress-up dolls and TV ads and music videos and Playstations and iPads - everyday, people are getting exposed to more and more examples of great design often as soon as one can point at a button and press and stare and say "dog" as Blues Clues runs around the vivid verdant fields of virtuality, and these kids will grow up on Photoshop and InDesign and Manga Studio EX 4 and talking like prodigy rocket scientists in Facebook and maybe they'll end up working for mainstream markets but they'll be making their own things, too, all smart and beautiful things. Like I said, it's all already happening today, and when you think about it, it's all just still planting seeds. I live for the day when we get to reap these things by the bushels.
- and a new blurb, too. The cover is obviously an homage to Warhol's portrait of Monroe, only with (of course) Paraluman as subject, and also I replaced about three or four old variations with three or four new ones (maintaining the 99 variations thing), all part of my intent to always do new stuff to the book every time I get the chance to reprint the damn thing: replace timely variations with more timely ones, redo the cover in another artstyle homaging someone or the other - my plan for the next edition is that it'll have a Lichtenstein cover - Ben Day dots and all - and have some variations replaced with Josel Nicolas's komix renditions, not to mention I intend to do new variations with him, too, all this done with the nonchalance of a casual flinging of a booger into your neighbour's congee as it is all self-published, or at the very least, dictated by a singular vision not influenced by anything other than to make it a good book - looks and contents - for everyone.
And come back here soon so you can read about me designing the covers for the Kobayashi Maru of Love! It's worth the wait, and the return! Tell your friends!
In the spirit of Hope Larson's own survey on (American) girls' comic book reading habits, I'm planning on embarking on a new komix writing thing - criticism and creative - and I wanted to ask a few questions specifically for the girls in the audience (if there are any), but if any of you girly guys want to answer the questions, I'd see it as a great kindness. Feel free to pass these questions around, as long as we get the feedback from it.
It's been a couple of months since I last posted something here. I've been very busy, and lotsa stuff happened in between being busy, namely, my mom fell from a roof (and was miraculously saved by her bed) and I passed a kidney stone, both of these things happening within the same week. These two things sort of depleted our financial reservoirs, as little as they are to begin with, so we're all sort of reeling from that, trying to survive with what we can, etc etc. So: the usual.
- (all drawings in this set are by Josel Nicolas, by the way) -
- and these things -
- and these things -
- so I've been busy, and as usual, I continue not to earn anything from anything. All of these things have been for other people. I've been very hungry to do stuff for myself, to write stuff for myself, even hungry to write stuff for money. But most of all, I've been very hungry, period. Contact me if you want me to do stuff for you! Especially if you're paying! Send eMail to juncruznaligas(at)gmail(dot)com! I won a best book award last year for a book I published myself! A cover I did got nominated in an industry awards night that was fixed at the outset! I've been doing this for eleven years! I know what I'm doing!
Cubao Postcards - a collaborative anthology
the Readers of Oblique Strategies
the Books being read in Oblique Strategies
the Archives of Oblique Strategies
the Words of Oblique Strategies
