My Two Cents on Criticism:

You know what the best part of doing my Newsarama column is? I find myself with opinions on comic-related subjects I would never have considered before. Like this stuff.

I probably never would have noticed it once upon a time, but since this column has me trying to keep up with things that are going on in blogs and livejournals, I'm actually finding myself reacting!

So, I have my own little message to creators like Rikki Simons, even though I'm not a comics creator myself. Three actually.

1. For every online reviewer that gets paid or free things for review, there are a good number who do not. For example, me. I only review sporadically, I admit, but I have reviewed both positively and negatively. And aside from three people who cared enough to send me first issues of their indy publications, I've never recieved anything free for my trouble.

So before you throw around comments about how hard it is to find your hard work berated by someone who's actually getting benefits from doing so, stop and think, please.

I work for 7.25 an hour at a local toy store. I love my job but it's hectic. When I plunk almost three dollars on a comic, that's almost half an hour dealing with irate customers and screaming children and stupid upper management hinderances. Maybe that doesn't seem like a lot in comparison to the weeks/months you've put into your project, but it's a fair bit of time when added up. I'm not saying I expect everything I buy to be good, but I think I've definitely earned the right to express my opinion about it.

(And most OEL manga and other such publications tend to be a bit more than three dollars thank you)

Besides, most reviewers who do get free things get them because they're considered to be influential reviewers. Their opinions are heard by a lot of people. You'd do much better to conduct yourself with grace and dignity.

(Also, it's not EVER a good idea to defend yourself on a review. Even politely. Because your work should speak for itself. If someone missed what you consider to be the most glaringly obvious point of your work, it means that your point is NOT glaringly obvious. It's not the duty of the reader to dig through the work for any given easter eggs, it's the duty of the writer to make such things readily apparent)

2. Be careful! You are probably a few good steps above an indy creator in terms of job security, but you're still a writer. Your success depends on people buying your product.

Now you may see complaints about the cavalier and even callous manner in which comic companies like DC and Marvel treat their fans. But you are not DC or Marvel (usually). While fans continually bemoan the downfall of their favorite series or the decline of superhero comics in general, the truth is that neither company is in much danger of failing. Not when movies like Batman Begins, Spiderman or X-Men continue to do so well. Not when X-Men Evolution, Teen Titans or Justice League continue to reach new fans.

Batman and Superman are products that have existed since 1939 and 1938 respectively. The X-Men and Spiderman from the sixties. That's a long time to establish themselves in the public consciousness.

So what does that mean for you? Absolutely nothing. This has absolutely nothing to do with you.

So don't do like the big companies. If you see major writers getting cocky, don't for a moment think you can do the same. Because you do not have that level of security that those companies have.

Their products, in some sense, sell themselves. While many fans will drop a bad run of their favorite superhero comics, other completists will keep collecting them regardless. Many readers buy the comics solely to pick at them. In some cases, notoreity can help with that. Like watching a trainwreck, it's sometimes hard to look away at the batshit craziness befalling favorite characters. (*cough*AllStarBatmanAndRobin*cough*)

In general, you don't have that. Your product, for better or worse, stands on its own. This is great in some sense, you have more freedom most of the time. You have the pride of creating work that's your very own. But it also means that the only factors in your story's success are your work and you. So how you conduct publically could DRASTICALLY affect your further success.

3. Not every reader is going to like your work. And many of them are going to say so. Deal with it.

As a comic creator, you are an entertainer and an artist. Which means without an audience, you don't really have a job. Whereas there are always more people in the wings waiting breathlessly for the opportunity to show us what they can do instead.

You need us more than we need you. So suck it up, shrug it off, and focus on what you really love...creating your art.

Or find another line of work.