One thing I have noticed about fatherhood is that you need to be organised. You can’t leave the house without fresh nappies, or fresh clothes (for you and baby), or even things like your wallet or hat or sunscreen. You have to be on the ball constantly. And this goes for your comics, too. I have upped my level of dedication to how I procure, read, and organise my comics so I’ll share these masterful tips after the jump.
One Of These Days I’m Going To Get Organazized
I usually have a system for most things. I don’t fly blind, at all times, but sometimes I do enjoy the view. There is still time to enjoy the view, but only if you make that time. Structure it into the outing, pencil it into your diary, and consciously stick to the plan.
I usually have a system for most things. I don’t fly blind, at all times, but sometimes I do enjoy the view. There is still time to enjoy the view, but only if you make that time. Structure it into the outing, pencil it into your diary, and consciously stick to the plan.
I shop at my LCS which is Impact Comics I think they’re just great. But I take it for granted and haven’t heard about the LCS experiences of others. Impact is a great store for many reason. The basic greatness can be exemplified by the location, the atmosphere, the stock, and the staff. The store isn’t down some back alleyway, nor is it poorly lit. It’s right in the main shopping mall of town and it’s got a great big window front and lights that are always on. I think this is standard but often hear from others that it might not be. Music constantly plays over the speakers and just walking around the store is a pleasure.
Then there’s the stock. Impact usually stocks everything, and enough of it. Whenever I hear of sell outs on the ‘net, people not being able to procure a copy, I’m almost guaranteed that Impact will have enough to go around, so long as you get in the first day. They’re good like that. Then the staff, they’re all just awesome. They smile, sad "g’day", have a chat. Hell, they even know my name upon entry, and the name of my son. It’s a very cool environment to do your weekly shopping in. I certainly appreciate it.
I do this because I need to be organised, but I also need to know what’s available that I want to review for CBR. I’m triangulating websites just to make sure I get my comics. And I have my standard pull list at Impact but sometimes I’ll need to review something I don’t normally pull down so I shoot off an email and they make sure I have it. It’s golden.
One time, my first week on CBR in fact, I had to review Stumptown #4. I got to the store and there had been a problem with shipping, they’d only received half as many copies as they had ordered. The few they got were picked up by people quicker than me. I looked like I just found out my house had burnt down, and then quickly explained that I’m not THAT much of a nerd but rather I needed a copy to write a review, stat. One of the girls behind the counter, Naomi, then said I could have her copy and she’d take one of the ones that would come in after the weekend. Now if that’s not gold standard service then I don’t know what is. It was greatly appreciated, that’s for sure.
Impact are also really good at letting me know if stock will be delayed completely, or if certain boxes of issues got left behind in California. They keep you up to date and it’s something that helps me because I usually take the Friday comic trip with my son and I don’t really want to make the trip if there’s no new comics to be attained. It all helps me be more organised.
Once I get home, as mentioned previously, I have my new reading order. It helps me maximise the reading and reviewing of my comics. I have had to change my stripes but this has been mostly easy because of a few handy websites and one very great store.
Conclusion
Impact Comics is exactly what I need to be a father and a comic reader/reviewer. What’s your LCS like? Do they help you out, and if so, how? I would love to hear people’s stories of their LCS just to see how the market differs. Leave a comment in the box below, and thanks for reading.
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13 comments:
YAWN
seriously ryan I like you but the only ones that post positive comments about this feature are ass kissers
My shop: Dewey's in New Jersey is excellent.
They know their clients well enough to help out old and unknowing in-laws looking for Christmas gift ideas. What more could you look for from a retailer?
The store gets creators for signings, regular sales, including sales for box holders only. It's a great store with great people working there.
Well, now there's also you, dratsmouth. Thanks :) I'm glad me spending a little bit of time sharing myself urges you to write YAWN, that's really nice. Perhaps if I just posted some scans of the week's comics you'd flock to it. Such a shame...and they say journalism in comics is dying, NEVER ! Have a great day!
@brandon - awesome to hear you've got a good LCS experience, too - I hear some real horror stories and I know I'd hate to be a part of them.
I just believe you think this feature is intresting because your a dad , the feature gets usually less then 5 comments if any .
And this goes for your comics, too. I have upped my level of dedication to how I procure, read, and organise my comics so I’ll share these masterful tips after the jump.
...........why would people ant to read this , no offence Ryan but I think most of us want to read about comics
@Anon 4 (and everyone else, really): Most Covers of The Week only get a couple of comments too. So do the Trade Waitings, and most Crisis on Infinite Arts. We do those for the same reason Ryan does this, to add variety to the site. If you don't like it, that's fine, we have plenty of other features for you to enjoy.
And besides, there's a small but dedicated group that enjoys this feature. Surely, as a comic fan, you can appreciate why we would want to keep that going, right?
I suppose I should comment - it feels a tad redundant, though, but I'll try. You can always try.
@Anon4 - many features on here get very few comments - most of the time things only heat up if there's a contentious point of view. I could write about Millar or Land or Morrison and people would love to argue but I'm not out to write posts that purely provide fodder for arguments.
And I think this feature is interesting not because I'm a father but because I wrote it ha :)
@lucy harris - I do not think for one second that thousands of people want to read this post, or even this feature, it is merely provided to offer a diverse range of content. The site can't be just scans and quick shot reviews, sometimes we want something more - if all you want is the aforementioned scans and reviews then only read those posts, no one forces you into this one.
It seems as if you think my time writing this is taking away from something else the site could be doing. If I don't post this then nothing goes up in its place. If you would prefer nothing to this then that's fine (absolutely) and nothing you shall receive if you don't read this. It's pretty simple.
I am, however, honestly surprised that people would look at a personal post/feature and just want to trash it in the comments. Disagree with a point of view, sure, but to simply trash my time and effort in writing this is so extremely rude, I feel. It's entitled arrogance and in the end I'm surprised that I'm surprised. 'Eh, whattaya gonna do?
Awesome article, Ryan. I always like hearing about other peoples' comic shops. When I visited Family in Utah I found this amazing comic shop, the presentation and detail in it all just blew me away.
My own LCS is pretty cool though there's only 2 in my town. For the longest time I went to a shop that, truth be told isn't all that great. it was small and cramped and while there was some nice people there were 2 big jerks that worked there that I always hated dealing with because they acted like the world was going to end if they dare help the customer for 5 seconds.
Though I discovered the shop I go to now and have been going to for a couple of years now and they are awesome. the guys are all incredibly nice, its really big and there's tons of great stuff all along the walls from Action Figures to statues. Only complaint really is their back issue section, like the other place, has no organization. When I'm trying to find a specific back issue it can be a bit of a grueling hunt.
But they're really great guys. They know how much I like variants so whenever there's a variant for an issue of Witchblade or whatever else i'm buying they make sure to put the variant edition in my box. Its not something they have to do, they just do it because they're awesome. Also they put up with my constantly editing my pull list. I swear I've edited my pull list so many times they recognize my voice whenever I call.
This was a really fun read, Ryan. Your LCS sounds awesome and when I eventually hunt you down to kill you over liking the Dawn of the Dead remake more than the original, I'll stop by there sometime.
well there's one kiss ass already :L jokes but seriously it seems to me your making out we just want scans and reviews . Not at all , but we want to read about a wide a wide variety of topics about COMICS not how being a father has changed your view on comics .
Don't like it? Then don't read it or comment on it. It's a simple solution. They put their time into this and put it up for free. A small amount of respect for that fact can go a long way.
Just to offer a different viewpoint, I'm an avid comic reader and a recent Dad myself, and I always enjoy reading these columns because I share a similar situation. It's nice to know that others face similar hurdles. Thanks for posting them, Ryan.
My LCS is great as well. The staff is friendly and offers recommendations, there is always music playing, and the shelves are well stocked. I particularly like that they bag and board your comics free of charge if you have a pull list, and you can edit your pull list online, which is an incredible service and time saver.
@lucy - I see this post as being about LCS's actually, just through the lens of being a father.
I guess if this feature only appeals to fathers then don't read it if you're a father. It's no different to girl-centric comic posts or ones looking at other specific bias. I don't read it if I don't think it will interest me or pertain to me. Though, I usually read most things with an open mind.
Well for what's it worth, being neither a Dad or ass kisser, my experience with my LCS is probably a great deal different than most.
Maybe it's because I'm from the U.K. and LCS's don't have that air of geek cool as they do in America but quite frankly I try and get in and out of the shop as quickly as possible.
I get sent an email on the Wednesday telling me what's on my pull list to collect and then everything else that's managed to come across the water in a long list so I can check to see if there's anything new or interesting I might be interested in. Email sent back if I want anything adding and then come Friday after work I'm in, comics in bag, paid and then out the door before I get collared by some sad fanboy trying to engage me in conversation about the colour of Robin's tights this week.
Maybe it's because I'm English and we are all too polite to say but the one thing I hate the most about my LCS (and I know they are only trying to be helpful) is when they sneak a title onto your pull list like a one-shot or an annual just because you get that characters main title. I just feel obliged to buy it then despite it's potential crappiness.
On the positive side they do give some good recommendations which I usually ignore until I see it in TP at an introductory offer price and then they smile smugly with that 'I told you so face'!
Anyway Ryan, write whatever you want, from whatever perspective you like as long as it someway relates to comics I'm fine with it. No comments or 20 comments if you believe in what you're writing then why stop.
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