brianwood

@stuclach - I know you weren't, but I still disagree that exclusives force the cover price of comics up.  There is just zero proof of that, or even any casual indication of that, directly or indirectly.. and it just doesn't make sense in any case.  I actually doubt the companies would offer exclusives if so.  And re: the health insurance, I mean, who the fuck knows... not you or me, and I was just using random numbers as an example.

Everything I have heard or been told over the years says higher production costs cause higher cover prices, period.  But like I said, neither of us knows for sure.

re: added costs of exclusives and health insurance:

Giving a creator an exclusive does mean the publisher spends more.  That creator then creates more for the publisher as a requirement, thereby supposedly making up for it.  And the health insurance we (exclusive creators) get is the same plan as everyone else in the company, and probably only means a tiny increase across the board.  If DC employs 200 people (random number) who all get insurance, and then 20 creators (also random) are added on, what's the increase overall?  Spread out over those 20 people?  Probably barely worth considering.

bw

"I'm saying that if we can't all collectively agree on a value which would then be translated to price, the pricing of a comic has to be based on the materials or maybe the bankability of the creative team or prominence of the story line."

By "we" you don't seem to be referring to readers, right?  Trying to understand your point here.  This sentence SEEMS to be referring to publishers, who are the only ones involved in pricing comics.  I'm not sure there is any point in readers, or even creators, trying to insert themselves into that decision-making process.

If you are using "we" to mean "publishers", than yeah, materials is certainly a consideration.  One of a thousand, I'm sure, that goes into the price of comics and if this proposal is accepted and what format to put this story into, etc etc.  But I am only slightly more privy to that decision-making process than you are, and really, none of us really has any accurate insight.

One thing I can say is: If comics go up fifty cents or a dollar, its not like we (creators) are seeing an increase in our income.  No one is getting rich of a price increase.  Publishers know a price increase = people dropping books, and no one likes that reality.  Price increases, very generally speaking, happen when costs rise... paper costs (which are always rising), fuel, printer costs, stuff like that.  

Some indie companies do what you said before: have better production values on books that cost the same as Big Two books, which I admit can make the Big Two look bad in comparison.  But indie books don't pay page rates, and that extra money spent is a decision freely made where they acknowledge they will make less money.  They choose art over income, like we all did with the LOCAL hardcover.  Who knows when I'll see a dime off that book... it has to pay for its print bill first.  The Big Two, shareholder companies, don't have that luxury.  They have corporate responsibilities to not hemorrhage money if they can help it.  :) 

As a purchaser of comics myself, its annoying, yeah, to pay more for the same thing, but I only spend money on comics that I actually really WANT, so my decision is pretty simple:  do I like them?  Do I still want them?  Will I pay what they cost?  If yes, then yes.  

-bw

"If we can't put a price on aesthetic quality, that means the price is based on raw materials."

It was too tedious to try and reply to you via twitter, so here we go.  No offense, but the above is insane.  I don't believe you think a comic's worth is based only on type of paper and how many dots of ink per page.  The thing is, YOU CAN put a price on aesthetic quality, its just that its can't be a blanket worth that applies to everyone.  Comic Book X might be worth $4 to one person, but to another it might not even be worth 4 cents.  That's what it comes down to.  If comics start to cost more than what it's worth to you, then stop buying it, right?  No guilt, no pressure.  No one, no creator or publisher or retailer can rationally expect more. 

Reducing this decision to pennies per page or comparing this book to that book and trying to suss out which gives you more molecules of printer matter for your buck is not how people should treat any form of entertainment.  Go with what gives you pleasure and the chips will fall where they may.  The market will adjust and correct and, most importantly, you get what makes you happy.

 -brian wood