Secret Identity--What's New?

Revolutionary Drama With 'Turn'

4/30/2014

by Matman

A show that is getting some rave reviews (and not just from me) in AMC's American Revolution drama, 'Turn'. The series follows a farmer, his family and friends from Setauket, New York who form a group of unlikely spies who do their best to disrupt communications between the British armies occupying the region. In the midst of this there is family drama, love triangles,family division and dudes shooting each other with muskets!

The season is only few episodes in and if you have 'On Demand' on your cable system than you can catch up on the series.

Amazing sets, great music and incredible acting make this a must watch series. And for those who aren't watching AMC on Sunday evening until 'Walking Dead' returns, you are missing out on a spectacular show.

Come Celebrate Free Comic Book Day With Secret Identity!

4/29/2014

by Brian Letendre

This Saturday is Free Comic Book Day, and shops around the country will be celebrating with in-store events and free giveaways. Matt Herring and I will be hanging out at our local comic shop, along with some of our creator friends as well, including the Hebert brothers (Lazerman) and Keith Gleason (Hero Envy).

So, if you’re in the Western Mass or Hartford County areas on Saturday, head to Most Excellent Comics and Collectibles on 481 Enfield Street in Enfield, CT. We should be there from 10AM on, catching up with friends and talking comics.

We will also have copies of our books for sale! Matt will be selling copies of Pow, Bam Sell: The Guide to Comic Book Marketing, as well as Comicopolypse: How to Survive the comic Con Experience. I'll have copies of Making Ear Candy: The Audio Confectioner's Guide to Podcasting, and my horror novels as well.

We hope to see you there!

AWWWW YEAHHHH !

4/28/2014

www.awyeahcomics.com

Amazon Makes A BIG Change To ComiXology on iOS

4/27/2014

by Brian LeTendre

Ironically, just after we recorded an episode of Secret Identity where I was talking about the positive aspects of Amazon buying ComiXology, this weekend brought the first a decidedly negative result of that deal.

ComiXology announced changes to its iOS app that removes the ability for consumers to actually buy comics through in-app purchases on iOS devices. This means that in order to get new comics on your iPad or iPhone, you'll need to purchase them through www.comixology.com and then sync them to your device.

That may not sound like a huge deal, but here's why it is. first, most comics that are bought through ComiXology are purchased through the iOS app. Secondly, the ability to make in-app purchases fosters a lot of impulse buying--you see a comic on sale, or finish a book and are thinking of grabbing the next issue, and with one touch, it's yours. That functionality is gone now, and a lot of that impulse buying is gone now, too. This will very likely lead to people trying out fewer new books, and an overall decline in digital comics sales altogether. That's bad.

To ease the pain a little, ComiXology is giving users a $5 credit, and there is a tutorial over on the ComiXology tumblr that shows you how to add the web store to your iOS home screen for easier access. But at the end of the day, you'll still have to go outside the iOS app to purchase comics.

A change was made to the Android app as well, but you'll still be able to purchase comics through the app--it will just be going through the ComiXology website instead of Google Play, as Google also takes a cut of in-app purchases.

Now, there is a reason Amazon is doing this. Currently, Apple takes a 30% cut of any in-app purchases made on iOS devices. Now that Amazon owns ComiXology, they don't want to pay the "Apple Tax," and that makes perfect sense. It's a big cut that Apple takes because it can, but Amazon can avoid it by taking purchases outside the app.

This isn't a new tactic by Amazon, either. They do the same thing with their Kindle app for iOS, so it's not entirely surprising that they followed a similar route with ComiXology. It should also be noted that Amazon charges a similar percentage to those that put content out through its platform. For example, I get 70% of the sale when I sell one of my books on the Amazon Kindle, and Amazon gets 30%. But if my books were available to be purchased in the Kindle app on iPad, both Apple and Amazon would be taking a cut.

So while one less party is now taking a percentage of a comic sale when someone purchases through ComiXology, it will likely mean less sales overall. And that's bad news for both creators and readers.

Amazon will have to hope to make up the difference in lost sales by selling a ton more through the ComiXology website, the Kindle, and other Android devices.

I personally don't think they will. And the lack of impulse sales could really hurt independent comic creators, and the growth of digital comics overall.

Time will tell.

Why Drive Thru Comics?

4/26/2014

by Matman

You have heard Brian and I raving about our friends at Drive Thru Comics for a long time, but I have decided to take the plunge into (GULP) downloadable comics.

I can vouch for the publishing side of Drive Thru (also including Fiction, RPG, Cards as well as Comics) as far as their professionalism, speed and quality of product. While I was putting together 'Comicopolypse', Matt McElroy who is the Director of Publishing and his entire staff did everything to ensure a quality book at a great price. No matter when I had a problem and no matter what it was, someone was there to help me with whatever it was I was crying about.

Did you know you could get older episodes of Secret Identity at Drive Thru for free?

With their hosting; Brian and I have been able to host not only our books, but episodes of Secret Identity that we have found out recently has given us a much larger listening base and we are so thankful of that.

But last night I decided to download a comic, a free one called 'Achtung! Cthilhu' from Modiphius. The comic is based on the role playing game of the same name. Interesting that the books pages aren't drawn, but are photos of posed military figures in a battlefield setting.

It was easy to download; just click on the book,go to checkout and then download the file to your computer. it is that easy!

So check out everything that Drive Thru has to offer... because they offer a lot!

www.drivethrucomics.com

Captain Jack Comes To Boston!

4/25/2014

Press Release

John Barrowman is man of many talents with several roles on stage and screen. His most famous role is undoubtedly that of sci-fi hero Captain Jack Harkness, whose first appearance in the revamped Doctor Who created such an impact that he was given his own spinoff series, Torchwood.

He currently has a recurring role as the villainous Malcolm Merlyn (aka The Dark Archer) on the CW's superhero drama Arrow, based on the Green Arrow comics. Additionally he has appeared on television in Scandal and Desperate Housewives as well as films including Zero Dark Thirty, De-Lovely, and The Producers.

Boston Comic Con is excited to bring John to our show alongside Torchwood co-star Eve Myles to meet the fans!

http://www.johnbarrowman.com/

Tickets are on sale now at Boston Comic Con 2014 Tickets.

Dark Horse Digital Celebrates 3 years With A HUGE 50%-Off Sale

4/24/2014

Our friends over at Dark Horse are celebrating the third anniversary of Dark Horse Digital, their digital comics portal. Starting tomorrow morning and running through midnight Sunday, you can get 50% off of any comics you buy at dark Horse Digital. If you sign up for their newsletter, you'll get a coupon for an additional 10% of, for 60% total savings.

So, if there's a series out there you've been waiting to jump on, or you just want to fill out you digital back issues, this weekend would be a pretty darn good time to do it. If you're looking for suggestions outside of the big names you probably already know, here's a few series I would recommend checking out (just click the links):

Black Beetle
Grindhouse
Colder
Breath of Bones
Clown Fatale

Oh yeah, you will also be entered to win a free iPad loaded with Dark Horse comics just for downloading a comic through Dark Horse Digital. So in addition to getting some amazing comics, you might snag a new tablet to read them on as well.

Don't forget, this sale runs from Friday through Sunday, so jump on it before it's over.

New York Comic Fest In June

4/23/2014

by Matman

Another amazing comic show that may have been a bit overlooked is happening on Saturday, June 14th in White Plains, New York... and that is the New York Comic Fest!

This amazing line up not only features some of the biggest names in comics and is easy to get to by car, train or even bus!

How about folks like Mark Waid, Jim Steranko, Denny O'Neil, Scott Snyder, Luke McDonnell and Craig Yoe just to name a few.

Go to www.nycomicfest.com for a full list of those in attendance and plan to get to this show that promises to be something special!

Celebrate Earth Day With A Free Anthology From 7 Robots!

4/22/2014

Our friends over at 7 Robots (Super Corporate Heroes) have an awesome indie anthology to share with you in Celebration of Earth Day 2014.!

It's called Earth Dream, and it's a sci-fi and fantasy anthology featuring eleven stories from creators around the world. In keeping with the Earth Day theme, each of the eleven stories in Earth Dream centers around the environment, though the tales themselves range from post-apocalyptic to mystical.

You can find out more about the creators behind Earth Dream and download the entire anthology for free right now at www.7robots.com/earthdream.

Let's Talk Comics...The Witching Hour

4/21/2014

by Matman

As a young collector in the 1970's and 80's my staples of comic reading was war, western and of course the DC horror comics! One of the best of the DC titles was the 'Witching Hour'.

'The Witching Hour' was an anthology comic that featured some of the best creators in the industry including ER Cruz, Fred Carrillo, Luis Dominguez, George Kashdan to name but a few. These creators would also work on the other DC horror books as well as back up stories in the war line.

Each comic would be introduced by one of the three witches; Morded, Mildred and the beautiful Cynthia. The stories (usually three) in the book were unrelated from each other and led of by one of the witches who would help set up what we were about to read.

'The Witching Hour' lasted 85 issues (a pretty healthy run) and was cancelled following the 'DC Implosion' of 1978. Those not familiar with that event, it was when DC cancelled over 20 titles and laid off staff as a result of the nationwide recession and poor comic book sales. The three witches ended up in the DC series 'the Unexpected' until that book was cancelled a few years later.

The title has been revived here and there thru DC's Veritgo imprint and the first 19 issues were collected in a DC Showcase collection.

Probably the most underrated of the DC horror comics, The 'Witching Hour' certainly holds a special place for me and back issues can be found relatively cheap.

The cover above, my favorite of the series (issue # 52 from March 1975) is drawn by the late Nick Cardy.

<<Previous

Revolutionary Drama With 'Turn'

Come Celebrate Free Comic Book Day With Secret Identity!

AWWWW YEAHHHH !

Amazon Makes A BIG Change To ComiXology on iOS

Why Drive Thru Comics?

Captain Jack Comes To Boston!

Dark Horse Digital Celebrates 3 years With A HUGE 50%-Off Sale

New York Comic Fest In June

Celebrate Earth Day With A Free Anthology From 7 Robots!

Let's Talk Comics...The Witching Hour

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