British small press comics

File:Some British small press comics.jpg

A small number of British small press comics for sale at the Caption convention, 2005

British small press comics is a term used to describe comic books self-published by cartoonists and comic book creators within the UK. It also serves to describe the loose community of creators, publishers and facilitators involved in their production and distribution.

A "small press comic" is essentially a zine predominantly comprised of comic strips. The origins of the term is uncertain but probably emerged in the late 1970s and serves to distinguish them from zines about comics.

Creators of British small press comics often work in webcomics.

Origins

Traditionally, a small press publisher was literally a publisher who operated on a small scale, often with a manual printing press in-house, producing limited print-runs of publications that larger more commercially inclined publishers would reject.

The history of British small press comics is tied up with the underground press of the 1960s with publications such as Oz and International Times, the British underground comix scene led by Nasty Tales and Knockabout Comics of the 1970s and with the Punk zine explosions of the late 1970s. The latter was probably more significant as it was born of cheap and accessible photocopying. This dramatic lowering of technological barriers to entry meant anyone could produce a publication with a print run as low as one regardless of commercial potential. Although sometimes small press comics are a good "stepping stone" to the mainstream. Andi Watson and Paul Grist both broke through to commercial fame and fortune.

Within the British comics fandom of the 1970s and early 1980s there were many zines about comics, mainly concentrating on American superhero titles. Since high-street retailers of comics were scarce these zines ran mail order services and relied on the postal service for distribution. The first and most famous being Fantasy Advertiser. There were also regular markets or "marts" which also served as a social meeting place for aficionados. This gave a backbone for small press comics to emerge and in many cases react against.

Formats

Due to the popularity of photocopying as a means of production, the dominant format for British small press comics is the A5 booklet comprising of any number of double-sided A4 photocopies folded and stapled across the middle. Variations on the ISO 216 paper size system are frequent with sizes under A6 commonly known as "minis" after American minicomics. Minis have been known to go as small as 4.5cm² though A6 and A7 are more common. A4 is the second most common size though A3 (single sheets bound without folding) has been known. Creative forms of folding and cutting exist producing odd shapes have been tried out by Rich Holden in his "chain mesh" and "mini mesh" series of minis.

As it has become cheaper and short print-runs viable, many small press comics are being printed professionally.

Small press comics have traditionally been black and white due to technological and financial limitations, though in recent years cheap inkjet printer cartridges have made full colour more viable, especially for covers.

A common trait for small press comics is to be collated and stapled by hand and often extra flourishes will be added such a hand colouring or decoration making the comic something of an art object, the perfect example being Rian Hughes' early small press comics.

Distribution

The predominant form of distribution for small press comics is by mail. Most publishers will post individual copies direct to the reader with orders coming from reviews, classified adverts, websites/email lists or word of mouth from flyers which arrive with other small press comix. If a creator has a regular series they may take subscriptions.

Creators who live in the same area or share similar goals will sometimes group together as a loose collective to share resources, often bringing their titles together in a catalogue/website or under an imprint and sharing tables at conventions and marts.

There is usually one or more mail order service, commonly known as a "distro", operating in the UK. These will hold a wide range of titles and take a cut of the cover price. The main distro at this time is SmallZone.

Comics conventions and festivals will often have a small press presence where publishers are able to display their wares at a reduced rate. There are also events specific to small press comics such as Caption in Oxford and the Web and Mini Comix Thing in London.

Distribution into comic book stores via traditional distributors (such as Diamond) is rare. Stores will often stock titles by local creators though some, notably Gosh! in London and Page 45 in Nottingham, stock a wider range and deal with small press comics on a level playing field. In recent times small press titles have sold in larger bookstores Borders and Foyles in London.

Creators will often make international links to these forms of distribution in other countries and vice versa.

People

A number of people and creators have been associated with the small press comics scene over the years. Alan Moore, Eddie Campbell and Dave Gibbons were regular attendees at the Westminster Comic Mart originally organised by Paul Gravett. Gravett has been seen by many as the key figure in the burgeoning small press scene of the late seventies and early eighties, with Campbell referring to him as the "man at the crossroads" in his work The Fate of the Artist. Ed Hillyer was another small press creator who worked with Campbell on stories related to his Bacchus series. Rian Hughes, later to work with Grant Morrison, and Glenn Dakin and Phil Elliott were also associated with the small press scene, with Dakin and Elliott returning to self-publishing their Greenhouse Warriors series after initial publisher Tundra (comics) ceased trading.

Pete Ashton became heavily involved in the scene in the mid to late nineties, setting up the Bugpowder mail order service and the Bugpowder weblog. During this period Jamie Hewlett created Tank Girl with Alan Martin, and Nick Abadzis launched his Hugo Tate strip. The Caption fanzine, edited by Jenni Scott, was an influential publication and leant its name to the annual small press Caption convention. Recent creators to have launched through the small press include Gary Northfield, whose Derek the Sheep has gained a recurring slot in the Beano.

The main driving force behind today's British Small Press scene is Shane Chebsey [1]. He founded Smallzone Distribution in 1999, and also provides a printing service to help smaller publishers get started. Along with Andrew Richmond he also publishes new material under the Scar Comics Banner. In 2006 the first Scar Comics Graphic Novel - Falling Sky - by Ben Dickson won "Best Indie Surprise" on Aint It Cool News.

Another activist for British independent comics is writer/artist Barry Renshaw. Founding the Engine Comics imprint in 2000, Barry wrote and published the Rough Guide to Self Publishing, which is now in it's fourth edition (2007) and was described as 'essential purchase for budding self-publishers' by industry paper Comics International. In 2004, Engine Comics launched Redeye Magazine, a news/reviews magazine specifically created to educate and promote small press and self published comics to the wider public. It has been described as a 'vital read' by SFX Magazine and 'a must have' by Aint It Cool News. Other titles include Seven Sentinels and the Fusion anthology.

Other names now prominent on the small press scene include Jason Cobley and Neill Cameron, who work on the title Bull Dog Empire, with Cobley working on a new project with Kula Shaker.

Accent UK, a collective headed by Dave West (DEVA COMICS) and Colin Mathieson (M56 COMICS), was formed in 2002 and produce high quality themed US format anthologies featuring contributions from dozens of UK independent creators: Remembrance Days (2002), Phobias (2003), Pirates (2004), Twelve (2005), Monsters (2006), Zombies (2007) and Robots (scheduled for 2008 release).

In the early 2000's Leonie O'Moore founded the publishing company 'There Goes Tokyo...', and Judge Dredd Megazine launched a column by Matt Badham on the small press scene. In 2007, David Baillie began a regular column in the Megazine about his routine as a cartoonist.

In 2005 Daniel Merlin Goodbrey won the 2004 Isotope Award for Excellence in Mini-Comics, presented at the 2005 Alternative Press Expo.

Organisations

Given the DIY nature of producing and distributing small press comics there have been countless organisations, setups and collectives operating in the last 30 years. Some significant ones past and present include:

1980s

Escape Magazine: Main article: Escape Magazine

Escape Magazine, published by Paul Gravett and Peter Stanbury from 1983 to 1989, printed comics by many small press cartoonists and had regular reviews and "how to" guides.

Fast Fiction: Main article: Fast Fiction

Generally seen as a pivotal player in the development of British small press comics, the Fast Fiction stall at the Westminster Comic Mart in London, started in 1981 by Paul Gravett, provided a focal point for creators and readers to gather around. It later developed into an anthology, mail order service and news sheet. Fast Fiction ran throughout the 1980s and was closed by its final custodian, Ed Pinsent, in 1990.

Zine Zone: Between 1983 and 1995 Zine Zone (later Zine Zone International), a Bristol-based company specialising in mail order, comic mart service and publications, created the focus of international attention on UK Small Pressers and help a number go on to mainstream comics. A publisher and creator in his own right,Terry Hooper is today still seen as an influence on independent comics publishers, as evinced in his 2005 interview with Silver Bullet Comics and work in China and India despite his extreme reclusiveness. Today runs several groups including one for the small press.

1990s

Battleground: Battleground (BG) was a zine similar in style to Fantasy Advertiser with a long typed letters column. It was edited by Andy Brewer in the early 1990s. At first mainly concerned with American superhero comics it did have many reviews and articles on small press comics and interviews with the cartoonists and by the end was moving towards a more "alternative" agenda.

BugPowder: BugPowder set up by Pete Ashton was a mail order distro starting in 1996. It sold any British small press comics that cared to be listed as well as importing selected books from the US and Europe. The BugPowder distro closed in 2000. However the BugPowder weblog points to British small press activity online.

Pete Ashton also set up Vicious a zine with many articles and reviews on comics. He also printed TRS (The Review Sheet) with short reviews of small press comics and zines printed from 1995 to 1998. Similar in style to the Fast Fiction newsletter, it was distributed via a number of comics-related zines.

Caption: Main article: Caption (comics convention)

Caption is a yearly convention held in Oxford since 1992. Loosely based around a theme, each event offers panels and workshops related to small press comics along with the opportunity to buy and sell them. Caption was also a zine-cum-APA devoted to small press comics edited by Jenni Scott that ran from 1992 to 1998.

Dachshund: Dachshund was an organisation run by Andy. Amongst other things he printed a zine Graphic Reviews in which the reviews were in comic strip form by Lee Kennedy and others. He also printed a A8 size anthology Itsy Bitsy.

Massive: Massive was a short lived distro of small press comics set up by Andrew Moreton in 1992. He also printed a zine The Comics Cut Quarterly.

Psychopia: Main article: Psychopia; Psychopia was a small press zine and mail order distro run by cartoonist B. Patston, the first issue appearing in 1994, printed comics by small press cartoonists and had many reviews and articles on British comics. Psychopia continues to this day as a website.

Slab-O-Concrete: Slab-O-Concrete was a mail order distro and publisher set up by Australian pavement artist Peter Pavement and also Dave Hanna in the early 1990s. Initially printing a comic Pavement Pizza with strips by Pavement himself and interviews he then started selling British small press comics and zines on marts in Brighton and Hove, Pavement began importing books from the US, Australia and Europe. Slab quickly developed into a publisher, repackaging small press comics and zines for the bookshop market and originating new works. Of note was Pavement's general rejection of the traditional comic book industry, making connections with underground publishers, zinesters, indie record labels and other subcultural scenes. Slab was laid low by cashflow issues in 2001.

Zum!: Zum! was a review zine run by cartoonist Luke Walsh and reader Mike Kidson, the first issue appearing in August 1991. Zum! distributed copies of comics submitted to a panel of reviewers, often cartoonists themselves, who were encouraged to write critical reviews of significant length. It also featured reproductions of the comics under review, usually a whole page reduced in size. Its stated aim was to treat small press comics with the critical respect they deserved rather than sidelining them as other zines had done in the past. Zum! continues to this day as a website run by Paul Schroeder.

2000s

Accent UK: Accent UK is a collective of small press comics publishers from the North of England. The collective regularly publishes themed anthologies as well as individual titles from founding members DEVA COMICS and M56 COMICS. They frequently have a presence at British and European comics events.

Studio Blink Twice: Blink Twice is a Bristol based three man publisher of Malcolm Magic, Night in the City and Moon! Writer Robin Etherington and artist Lawrence Etherington founded the company in 2003 and was joined by webmaster Mark Clements shortly afterwards.

British Small Press [2]is a yahoo group run by Terry Hooper to help promote the small press and creators and get more people involved in creating comics.

Engine Comics: Engine Comics was founded in 2000 as a collective for developing upcoming comics talent in the anthology FUSION. Since then Engine Comics has published the crtically acclaimed Rough Guide to Self Publishing and Redeye Magazine, which promotes the UK comic industry and its creators with a focus on independent publishers.

FutureQuake Publishing: FutureQuake Publishing was originally set up to publish the anthology comic FutureQuake. By a combination of launching new titles and taking over existing ones whose owners retire from the scene, they have built up a stable including MangaQuake, Something Wicked, Dogbreath, Lost Property and many others.

IndieReview: IndieReview was set up to provide an easy and simple way for people to access UK Small Press publications. The site features regular articles, reviews and Small Press publisher info, as well as the latest news and events.

Rebellion: Publishers of 2000AD, Rebellion themselves are by means small press. However, starting in 2006, they have published 6-page excerpts from small press comics in their monthly title The Judge Dredd Megazine, accompanied by articles on the small press scene by Matthew Badham. This has given newsstand presence to small press titles such as Bulldog Empire and Mr. Amperduke.

Scar Comics: [3] Scar Comics are independent publishers providing an outlet for both new small pressers and professionals who wish to experiment with different styles and ideas. Their most well know publication is the critically acclaimed Dead By Dawn horror anthology. Scar Comics are one of the few UK Indy publishers who pay royalties to creators.

SmallZone: SmallZone is a mail order distro run by Shane Chebsey dealing in British small press comics and imports books from America, Australia, Europe, Canada, and South Africa.; The SmallZone website also has an information portal for new self publishers.

Solar Wind: Solar Wind has won numerous awards for its long-running series of parodic comics, which pastiche the style of children's comics of the 1970s. The group publishes Solar Wind, Sunny for Girls, Big War Comic, Omnivistascope and is connected to The End Is Nigh (through Solar Wind editor/writer Paul Scott and other creators).

Sweatdrop Studios: Main article: Sweatdrop Studios

Sweatdrop Studios are a collective of UK Original English-language manga creators who publish British small press comics.

The Fat Man: TheFat Man [4] is a trilogy of graphic novels written and published in Glasgow by Thomas Cochrane, Illustrated by Alan Tanner.

Web and Mini Comix Thing: The UK Web and Mini Comix Thing is a yearly event in London run by Patrick Findlay that brings the British small press and webcomics communities together to sell and promote their work.

Regional activity

With communication mainly taking place by post or online, there is no geographical centre for British small press comics. However, creators who discover they live in the same town will often meet up. In doing so they form a local scene. Some significant local scenes have included:

Birmingham: The Birmingham International Comic Show, every October at the Think Tank, Millennium Point, supports the UK Small Press Scene, offering creators cheap exhibition space.

The Birmingham Arts Lab was an Arts Council funded organisation in Birmingham that was in effect hijacked by Hunt Emerson and other local cartoonists from 1972 to 1979 producing Large Cow Comix, Street Comix and Thunderdogs.

Brighton: As the counterculture capital of the UK it is unsurprising that Brighton has been home to many small press cartoonists. The distro and publisher Slab-O-Concrete was based here and during the 1990s a regular art show and anthology, Sofa, featured local cartoonists.

Liverpool: The Liverpool Cartoon Workshop run by Ian Herring had a significant influence on the regions small press output which continues to this day. The reviews zine Zum! was based in Liverpool.

London: Given the size of the capital there has always been a significant small press presence in London but it has usually been amalgamated into the general comics scene. Events such as the Westminister comics mart and the annual UKCAC convention had a strong small press presence throughout the 1980s and 1990s and the Cartoon Art Trust embraced the small press, especially when Paul Gravett was the curator. The London Cartoon Centre ran regular classes in comic art during the 1990s which produced a number of small press anthologies. The UK Web and Mini Comix Thing is a yearly event combining small press and webcomics.

Oxford: In the early 1990s a number of members of the Oxford University comic book society became interested in the British small press comics scene and started the yearly Caption convention which continues to this day.

Other Regions: Many other regions of the UK have had significant concentrations of small press comics creators including Bristol, [[Glasgow - [5]], Manchester and Reading.

References

Books

Huxley, David (2001) Nasty Tales: Sex Drugs, Rock'n'Roll and Violence in the British Underground. Headpress. ISBN 1-900486-13-X
Sabin, Roger (2001) Below Critical Radar: Fanzines and Alternative Comics from 1976 to the Present Day Slab-O-Concrete. ISBN 1-899866-47-7

Magazines

[http://www.enginecomics.co.uk/redeye/reframeset.htm Redeye Magazine has regular interviews with small press comic creators and features on the growing UK comic book scene, including David Hitchcock, Pulp Theatre, Lee Kennedy, Tom Gauld, Martin Eden and many others.

Magazine articles

Judge Dredd Megazine #240 (February 2006) contains a five-page article by Matthew Badham on the British small press comics scene, including interviews with many creators (such as Pete Ashton, Al Ewing & Arthur Wyatt), and reviews of titles such as FutureQuake, Solar Wind, The Girly Comic, Violent, Bugpowder and Engine Comics’ Redeye.

Zines

Scott, Jenni (Ed.) Caption APA 1992-1998

Websites

External links

News

http://www.indiereview.co.uk
http://www.bugpowder.com
Pencil Monkey Forums - includes forums for specific titles
http://www.forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog
http://www.downthetubes.net/

Creators

Other