RECENT COLUMNS
Thu, December 16th, 2010
Brian Hibbs is at it again this month with a look at 2010 sales figures, an examination of "deconstructed" storytelling, the effect of event comics and rising prices on periodical sales and more.
Fri, November 12th, 2010
Brian Hibbs returns this month with a look at the sales of "Superman Earth One," JMS' announced move to OGN and self-contained, shorter stories, predictions of the death of the monthly periodical and more.
Thu, October 14th, 2010
Brian Hibbs weighs in on the recent price rollbacks announced by Marvel and DC Comics while also delving deep into the issue of shipping schedules, accurate solicitation information and more.
Thu, September 9th, 2010
Brian Hibbs is back this month with some potentially dire observations regarding comic book sales numbers based on data culled from his San Francisco-based store, years of experience and his personal observations.
Thu, July 15th, 2010
Brian Hibbs returns this month with news about a meeting DC Comics held for retailers in the wake of their digital comics announcement, leaving Hibbs feeling cautiously optimistic about the publisher's plans.
Thu, June 17th, 2010
Brian Hibbs is back with more on digital comics, this time focusing on the current debate over Day-and-Date releases, what they would mean to the comic book industry as a whole and why slow and cautious is the way to go.
Thu, May 13th, 2010
Brian Hibbs takes a look at the emerging digital comics market, likening it to the newsstands of old and explaining how - if done properly - sales of digital comics can help boost the bottom line of comic book stores.
Wed, March 31st, 2010
TILTING AT WINDMILLS arrives a few weeks early due to Brian Hibbs' excitement at a great weekend-long ComicsPRO event that saw a Robert Kirkman keynote address, DC Comics dialoguing with retailers and much more!
Fri, March 19th, 2010
In the latest edition of TILTING AT WINDMILLS, Brian Hibbs poses the question "Are publishers trying to kill the periodical comic?" and offers up examples of why it's worth asking in light of modern market realities.
Thu, February 11th, 2010
The time has arrived for the annual TILTING AT WINDMILLS analysis of the sales numbers for 2009 graphic novels in the bookstore market, and this year, Brian Hibbs looks at them in more depth than ever before.
Fri, January 15th, 2010
Brian Hibbs is back with a new TILTING that takes a look at comic pundit prognosticating about the coming year, physical comics versus their digital counterparts and Marvel's recent DC Comics "Blackest Night" return promotion.
Thu, December 17th, 2009
Brian Hibbs returns this month and explains not only why the comic book industry is as healthy as it ever was, if not healthier, but also why the Original Graphic Novel may not necessarily be the end-all be-all comic book format of the future.
Fri, October 23rd, 2009
Brian Hibbs takes a look at Diamond Distributors and finds that, while he wouldn't call the comic book wholesaler blameless, the problems faced by today's retailers aren't solely due to the distributor's monopoly status.
Thu, September 17th, 2009
Brian Hibbs looks back at what Paul Levitz has meant to the Direct Market over the last few decades, and what his exit from DC's executive branch may mean, not only for DC Comics, but for the entire comic book publishing industry.
Fri, September 4th, 2009
You all know comics retailer Brian Hibbs isn't once to mince words. Well, today Hibbs shares his thoughts and opinions on the Marvel/Disney sale in an open letter to the Walt Disney Company.
Fri, August 14th, 2009
This month, Brian takes a good look at the direct market, measures the pros and cons of the non-returnability aspect of it's set-up and explains why, in his mind, there's very little reason for retailers to want that to change.
Thu, July 16th, 2009
What do Neil Gaiman, Tyrese Gibson, social networking and guerilla marketing have to do with each other? Quite a bit, it turns out, as Brian Hibbs illustrates in Tilting at Windmills latest cautionary tale.
Fri, June 19th, 2009
"Captain America" #600's big release has come and gone, and fans have been debating the issue heavily all week, but what was the end result for the retailers? Brian Hibbs is back with his analysis of the event from the front lines.
Fri, May 15th, 2009
This month, Brian Hibbs takes an in depth look into the whole "Wolverine" #73 before #72 controversy and whether or not it had the intended results for his store. Plus, Free Comic Book Day and how to make it even better.
Fri, April 17th, 2009
Following the 20th Anniversary of his store, Comix Experience owner Brian Hibbs reflects back on what it's taken to survive all these years and how things have changes. Plus, a visit to NYC comic shops, the Amazon fiasco and more!
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