Wait, tense as in the time indicated by the verb—not as in the action! My book How Comics Were Made has been acquired by Andrews McMeel Publishing and will be issued in a second printing, shipping in June 2025. My Kickstarter edition—which remains for sale while copies last—is a laminated softcover with French flaps. The Andrews McMeel retail version will be a hardcover with a dust jacket—a nice contrast. It will also be sold under the name How Comics Are Made with a refreshed cover to which I updated design elements.

The new printing will have almost exactly the same content but reach a far broader audience. Among other things, Andrews McMeel has international distribution directly and through partnerships, so if you live outside of North America, you’ll be able to get a copy very cheaply compared to how much it costs me to ship a copy of my edition from my warehouse partner in Canada. You can already see the price on pre-order pages at bookstores around the world; I compiled a short list here.

This deal is thrilling to me and lets the book have a longer life. I was able to produce a no-compromises version in which I could pick a heavy-weight premium paper, print in North America to oversee the printing, and develop a nearly one-to-one relationship with book buyers. Having hit the goal, the book could zoom through into print, which, remarkably, is what happened.

But it’s essentially impossible for a publishing company of one person to get your books into bookstores and online retailers—there is so much overhead in managing the process on top of the wholesale discount required (25% to 50% or more) off list price. I budgeted my title for selling most copies at the list price of $65 plus shipping; selling below that means giving up the money given the finite print run, which I expect to sell out. But I can also only sell a limited number of this premium edition directly.

This is where Andrews McMeel slides right in: Their hardcover retail edition is $40 because it’s budgeted around standard mass-market production. The printing will also be great, but the paper is a more standard grade, and they simply have enormously better pricing and leverage with printers outside the United States. They handle all the risk, all the printing supervision, and all the warehousing and logistics.

I have probably reached about all the people directly I can sell my copy to—they can reach an audience of untold millions who would never have seen my book at all. It’s quite exciting!

I am so grateful to every person who bought (or is yet to buy) a copy of the Kickstarter edition, which made all this possible!