Over the summer a friend expressed an interest in starting to read comics to me, however he seemed overwhelmed and eventually disheartened by the idea. Too many titles, too much history, and too expensive… it can be a little much for people on the outside. It’s become a somewhat accepted fact that actual reading of comic books is a subculture. Look into how this small readership (vs cinematic and televisions viewers) effects the industry. What can be done to make people more interested in picking up the titles? How do we help people with the interest start?
A good way to go about this piece could be to offer tips for people who want to get into the world of comic books. It could also work well in list format. – Marcie Waters9 years ago
If anyone should want to get into comic books eventually, as I do myself, it's perhaps best to look at what scholarly authorities on comic literature consider to be the finest examples of comic book stories, characters, or franchises; and then look to see what might interest you most. Personally I'm more into the independent comics, the unique comics, the ones that lie outside your typical Marvel and DC super-hero series (Judge Dredd, Tank Girl, Hellboy, Vampirella). Most of the main pantheons don't really interest me as much. But if I ever wanted to explore say... X-Men, or Batman, or Wonder Woman, I'd probably look to the compilation reprints that I can buy on Amazon Kindle, rather than picking up some hard copy that used to cost fifty cents. Buying comics digitally, what ever you can, makes for an easier price tag, and a smaller foot-print in the house. You can't collect them in quite the same way. But if you're just starting out and you want to read them rather than build up a stock pile of them, it's probably best to go digital and piece meal it out just to get a taste of a few things first, before you dive headlong into a particular franchise. – FilmmakerJ9 years ago