Minding His Own Business
Peterman isn’t the only one out there who distributes a lavishly illustrated catalog. Why, there’s also Gary Sassaman.
Who? Gary Sassaman, publisher, writer and artist of “Innocent Bystander,” a fun “slice of life” comic book, created his own catalog this summer to generate interest for the comic (and sell a few copies to boot).
About 3,000 copies of the catalog, a mini-version of the comic (an “ashcan,” in fanboy terms), were distributed at several comic book conventions Sassaman exhibited at this year, including Wizard World Chicago, Pittsburgh Comicon, Comic-Con International: San Diego and the Small Press Expo in Bethesda, MD. Copies were also distributed in comic shops and sent to the 300 folks on the “I.B.” mailing list.
Items for sale included the first six issues of “I.B.” (covering topics including the Marx Brothers, Sassaman’s first date and the continuing adventures of his cats Stan and Ollie), a paperback collection of the first four issues, a T-shirt and a tour badge.
“It worked better as a point of purchase thing than as a take home/order later at their leisure thing, which was my intent,” he says. “There were a number of instances at conventions where people picked it up early and came back later and said ‘I want that cat book’ (an all-cat issue).”
Staying positiv e, he is trying to combat the tough times currently facing the comic book industry (circulation for “I.B.” has slipped in recent months) by capitalizing on his feline following and developing a cat storybook. He’s also continuing to promote the “I.B.” paperback (“A perfect Christmas gift for any comics or non-comics fan on the list,” he-we’re sure unbiasedly-notes).
Sassaman self-publishes “Innocent Bystander” under the Ollie Ollie! Oxen Free Press imprint. For information, contact him at 808 Fourth Ave. #401, San Diego, CA 92101 or gsassaman@aol. com. A Web site (www.innocentbystander.com) is scheduled to debut this month.-BN
