Comments on: The Perils of Colleen Part I http://adistantsoil.com/2009/06/27/the-perils-of-colleen-part-i/ The Official Website of A Distant Soil, the legendary graphic novel series from Image Comics. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:48:16 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: mamid http://adistantsoil.com/2009/06/27/the-perils-of-colleen-part-i/#comment-2454 mamid Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:05:04 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=659#comment-2454 http://justbreathecomic.blogspot.com/ I'm trying to get a lot of my older stuff up. I'm going to see if I can track down one of my older sketchbooks and put up at least two ADS images I drew that are bugging me to put up. http://justbreathecomic.blogspot.com/
I’m trying to get a lot of my older stuff up. I’m going to see if I can track down one of my older sketchbooks and put up at least two ADS images I drew that are bugging me to put up.

]]> By: Colleen http://adistantsoil.com/2009/06/27/the-perils-of-colleen-part-i/#comment-2452 Colleen Wed, 11 Nov 2009 06:30:56 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=659#comment-2452 Cool! Please do post a link so we can see your work. And karma: I dunno if the bad guys always lose, but in this case...I know what their site traffic really is, and I know what the sales on their last book really was, and if that's not karma, it's mighty close. Cool! Please do post a link so we can see your work.

And karma: I dunno if the bad guys always lose, but in this case…I know what their site traffic really is, and I know what the sales on their last book really was, and if that’s not karma, it’s mighty close.

]]> By: mamid http://adistantsoil.com/2009/06/27/the-perils-of-colleen-part-i/#comment-2451 mamid Wed, 11 Nov 2009 06:15:06 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=659#comment-2451 Don't be sorry. Karma has a way of coming around. It looked like a good contract at the time. I should have had a lawyer on the Canadian end look over the UK contract at the time. We, husband and I, were both pretty sure that the contract was valid and there was a way for us to get the money if they screwed me over. Within 6 months, I got screwed over, we looked at the contract with the fine tooth comb and realized it wasn't worth toilet paper. I guess the caveat that others can learn from both of us is threefold: keep your copyright at all costs, contracts are only worth the fine print, and publishers will try to pay you as little as possible. I have homework to get back to: The Group of Seven, a bunch of Canadian Artists that I have to replicate one of their pieces of work. Don’t be sorry. Karma has a way of coming around. It looked like a good contract at the time. I should have had a lawyer on the Canadian end look over the UK contract at the time. We, husband and I, were both pretty sure that the contract was valid and there was a way for us to get the money if they screwed me over. Within 6 months, I got screwed over, we looked at the contract with the fine tooth comb and realized it wasn’t worth toilet paper.

I guess the caveat that others can learn from both of us is threefold: keep your copyright at all costs, contracts are only worth the fine print, and publishers will try to pay you as little as possible.

I have homework to get back to: The Group of Seven, a bunch of Canadian Artists that I have to replicate one of their pieces of work.

]]> By: Colleen http://adistantsoil.com/2009/06/27/the-perils-of-colleen-part-i/#comment-2450 Colleen Wed, 11 Nov 2009 06:03:30 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=659#comment-2450 That is just terribly. I can't tell you how sorry I am. It's so hard to get people to understand that because this is civil law, even though creators are robbed, they have little power in the matter. Enforcing contracts takes money, and unless there is a lot of money at stake, and a hungry lawyer looking for a big contingency payday, it is so easy for unscrupulous publishers to take advantage of creators. Creators simply can't afford to sue. That is just terribly. I can’t tell you how sorry I am.

It’s so hard to get people to understand that because this is civil law, even though creators are robbed, they have little power in the matter. Enforcing contracts takes money, and unless there is a lot of money at stake, and a hungry lawyer looking for a big contingency payday, it is so easy for unscrupulous publishers to take advantage of creators. Creators simply can’t afford to sue.

]]> By: mamid http://adistantsoil.com/2009/06/27/the-perils-of-colleen-part-i/#comment-2449 mamid Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:39:42 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=659#comment-2449 Yah, but I learned by example. I knew what they were up to, I knew what they had done to you in general at the least through various information channels, and after that fanzine I mentioned elsewhere had tried to own my art, I wasn't about to let anyone do the same thing with my graphic art again. I had enough background info that even though I still enjoy what they produce, I wouldn't want to be under their banner. I'd rather self publish or even Open Source publish. It happened about 15 years after you started publishing ADS, and at least 10 years after Starblaze - that's how long I had my ADS GN. Your example kept me, I guess, sober is the word I want, in my dealings with them, and I let my then boyfriend and now husband take over the conversation and change the subject from courting me to offers of libations. He's chuckling at the memory. It got them to stop and let me be. My needlework is a completely different story, and the needlework publisher burned me even worse than what your first one did. In a nutshell, they are still publishing my work under their name and copyright and I don't have the money to go after them, especially when they live an ocean away from us and I'm not about to go up against international copyright law. As I said, Karma. Sooner or later, someone will sue and they will loose. I had the same type of contract you did, I got a percentage, but that percentage also paid for the kit, the publishing, etc etc etc. In the end, I might have made a few pennies per kit at the most, and that is if they sold at all. So, if they want to go through the expense of keeping two or three tiny patterns as kits still up and running, they can go ahead. I got paid in a different way and my revenge was to release one I still had to the aether. Yah, but I learned by example. I knew what they were up to, I knew what they had done to you in general at the least through various information channels, and after that fanzine I mentioned elsewhere had tried to own my art, I wasn’t about to let anyone do the same thing with my graphic art again. I had enough background info that even though I still enjoy what they produce, I wouldn’t want to be under their banner. I’d rather self publish or even Open Source publish. It happened about 15 years after you started publishing ADS, and at least 10 years after Starblaze – that’s how long I had my ADS GN. Your example kept me, I guess, sober is the word I want, in my dealings with them, and I let my then boyfriend and now husband take over the conversation and change the subject from courting me to offers of libations. He’s chuckling at the memory. It got them to stop and let me be.
My needlework is a completely different story, and the needlework publisher burned me even worse than what your first one did. In a nutshell, they are still publishing my work under their name and copyright and I don’t have the money to go after them, especially when they live an ocean away from us and I’m not about to go up against international copyright law. As I said, Karma. Sooner or later, someone will sue and they will loose. I had the same type of contract you did, I got a percentage, but that percentage also paid for the kit, the publishing, etc etc etc. In the end, I might have made a few pennies per kit at the most, and that is if they sold at all. So, if they want to go through the expense of keeping two or three tiny patterns as kits still up and running, they can go ahead. I got paid in a different way and my revenge was to release one I still had to the aether.

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