AMA: Evil Inc toys?

Q.: AMA: Have you ever toyed with expanding your merchandise empire beyond "print on demand" offered by Redbubble? Or would designing, prototyping, fabricating, and shipping plush dolls, action figures, etc., destroy your free time?

A.: First things first. Recently Redbubble added new fees to their service. I was making such a small amount of money through my Redbubble store that this change made shutting down the store easy. It's gone now.

Now, a little more detail. Very little of my merchandise is POD (print on demand). The main reason is that the money I get from POD products is abysmally low. Most of my merchandise-related revenue is generated through the books that I have Kickstarted. These are printed a few hundred at a time and are stored in the same building where I rent studio space. There was only one reason I kept a Redbubble store open for T-shirts, mugs, and prints: There's not a strong demand for that stuff, and it's easy to point a reader to a POD store on the few occasions it pops up.

Over the past twenty years, books have been the only merchandise my readers have shown a significant interest in. As a result, most of my energy has been spent self-publishing my work. Occasionally, a reader asks about T-shirts, mugs, action figures, and plush dolls. However, there are significant drawbacks and barriers to entry for each — beyond the lack of demand.

These Evil Inc LEGO mini-figs were made by a kind fan.

T-shirts: On the ComicLab podcast, I tell younger cartoonists that the biggest lie a reader will tell is, "I'd buy that on a T-shirt." Without fail, as soon as the T-shirt is released, that reader disappears faster than a vampire in front of a crucifix.

OK. Confession time. That was the other reason I kept Redbubble around. I could make a T-shirt available in about three minutes through Redbubble. So when a reader would give me that "I'd buy that on a T-shirt" line, I would often respond with a link to the T-shirt mere minutes later. My sales records showed that they'd never buy the shirt. Ever.

But beyond that, T-shirts are difficult to monetize because of the sizes. Printing large numbers of shirts is the only way to generate significant revenue. But that invariably means that you'll be left with unsold sizes. I've spent several conventions with a box full of small T-shirts and a line full of extra-large fans. (Or vice versa.)

Finally, the best-selling T-shirts feature a few words expressing a unique thought and a simple illustration. Neither of those is in my wheelhouse as a creator. The closest I get to T-shirt-able concepts are the bonus cartoons, and even those are too wordy.

I printed these VILF T-shirts in 2006. I still have some in my storage space.

Mugs: Coffee mugs (and other drinkware) are also popular merchandise. But they have the same conceptual roadblock for me that T-shirts have — my stuff doesn't translate well. And although mugs are one-size-fits-all, they have a considerable drawback: They're very breakable. That means extra costs for packaging. And all it takes is a single chip, and the seller is on the hook for the cost of a replacement mug and additional shipping costs.

Evil Inc HeroClix figures made by another kind fan.

Action figures and plush dolls: This one's a little more complicated. That kind of merchandise is considered a toy, meaning it would fall under (necessary) regulations in place to protect children. That adds costs and legal liability. This would be a non-starter for me — even if the demand existed. (It doesn't.)

Some mugs I’ve offered in the past.

Statuettes: That leaves collectible statues. It's tempting, but it would mean working with a sculptor to design something that would be really worth offering to my audience. I would have to believe the demand would be strong enough to cover that extra expense, and the past twenty years suggested otherwise.

That brings us back to books. And the good news is that I have a lot of great books lined up to come out in the coming years!

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One of about a half-dozen handmade Argus plushies.