Power Pulp, a new comics distribution collective with members based across the U.S., is billing itself as an innovative, author-led organization aiming to lower the barrier to entry to the comics market for indie creators.
Made up of thirteen creators at the time of launch but open to more, members will support the Pulp’s operations on a voluntary basis, with five core members handling essential distribution business. Authors will retain 100% of the profits from their work, and shipping costs will be covered by the buyers. The Pulp launched on June 20 with an inaugural catalog of more than 50 titles, and aims to distribute works across a range of formats, including both serial comics and original graphic novels in the fantasy, sci-fi, action, and horror genres, to comic shops and directly to readers.
“There’s a whole world of comics with appeal for the entire range of readers’ tastes that have had a barrier getting into shops because paying for shipping from each individual creator would be an arm and a leg,” cofounding member Chris Anderson said. The collective plans to pool member resources to reduce these costs, offering comic shops and readers across the U.S. a more convenient one-stop-shop for independent comics. The Pulp hopes to expand to Canada in the near future.
Though the plight of small creators is a perennial issue, the collective’s launch seems especially prescient amid the turmoil at Diamond Comic Distributors, which once dominated the direct market arena but left publishers scrambling for alternatives after filing for bankruptcy earlier this year. In this tumultuous landscape, the Pulp is billing itself as an oasis from corporate chaos. “We aren't sitting around waiting for some publisher to come save us,” as cofounding member John Coats put it. “We are taking control of our future,”
Strung together more by their artistic ideals than financials, the community of likeminded creators hopes to dodge the financial calculus that pervades corporate comics publishing. Punctuated by a lime-green eye, the Pulp’s logo alludes to their ideals, Anderson explained: “We’re combining forces and resources to bring these free-thinking comics to retailers and individuals... under the all-seeing eye of quality.”
