Spilled Milk® Update #19
Sent: Sun 4/8/2001 11:53 PM
What's
in this issue:
The New Update Format
I’ve been using HTML
formatted e-mail for quite some time now and I haven’t gotten many gripes.
I’ve checked the receiving end of Yahoo! and it looks OK there. How
about all you AOLers? And other web-based e-mail accounts? I
know Yahoo! will parse the format correctly so it looks nice, but I’m not sure
about the other services. It may just look like crap and if I get enough
complaints then I’ll stop. You can always click on the link above and
view it out on the site.
Well I’m not sure
what I’m more excited about getting, the national registration or receiving
the colors and letters back from Digital Chameleon.
Since I’ve been waiting for the registration the longest, I thought
I’d talk about that first. If
you’ve read the legal page you’re sort of familiar with the differences
between a trademark ™ and a registration ®.
You can trademark just about anything, but it doesn’t carry the weight
that a registration does. When you finally get that national registration that means
nobody else can use your name in the field you’re in.
Unfortunately that’s something that I will have to police on my own or
possibly other fans may do it, if a huge following builds.
There is a small greeting card company out there called Spilled Milk
(note I did not use the ® for them) that started up after me and they’ve
chose to ignore my requests for a name change (on their part).
Well it was painfully obvious that they started out after I did, because
I printed my first greeting card way back before they started up.
When they built their website, they must have noticed that the domain
name SpilledMilk.com was already taken by me.
But they still decided to move ahead with the name and in the same field
as me, publishing. The Crew drafted
up a few letters that still have not gotten any replies. Maybe they’ve actually shut down and their site is just an
artifact or a mirage. They could
still switch to Spilt Milk, which some people insist is the correct spelling.
I guess this is starting to turn into a rant, but since I don’t
have a good rant planned out for this issue.
This will have to do. So
just as my vow to use four digit years on this site…
I will have to use the ® whenever Spilled Milk ® is mentioned.
The reason this took so long is that I had to prove use and the preview
issue did just that. I should have
done that a long time ago so I didn’t have to pay for those extensions.
It would have saved a bundle in legal fees to print it for my first San Diego Convention.
The colors (and
letters) for issue one are IN THE CAN! Yeah! It HAS been a long time.
Sure, go ahead… Check back
in previous updates and see when I first contacted Digital Chameleon and see
when I first sent them the original pages, etc.
I believe it has been about two years since they started work on the
issue. The first set of proofs were
sent back rather quickly and I turned them around with my corrections a few days
later. So my fourth set of proofs
arrived with everything burned onto CD just a few days ago.
I’ll be sending out a copy of the CD to Beth Sotelo (the new colorist)
so she can take a look at it. I’ve
taken a look at it and there are some very tiny flecks in a few of the pages.
You can’t even see them in the proofs, so you shouldn’t see them in
the comic either. But I know
they’re there. It’s just like
the dust on the top of your kitchen cabinets…
You know it’s there, but you may not DO anything about it.
I could also tell that some of the title bars to the lettered
“windows” were only stretched vertically and not proportionally.
It’s just those minor little details that drive me crazy, but it will
probably go unnoticed in the final printing.
I guess I should cut some of this text out of this update and paste it
into the “Director’s Cut” of CiCi #1.
See?… More ranting… I’m
trying to make up for the lack of one at the end of this update.
I posted two full color
pages out to the site so you can look at CiCi up close.
Plus it’s kind of my way of giving back to all you patient people out
there. So you’ll be able to have
a FREE color page of CiCi before it even hits the stands.
I guess this is provided that you’ve got yourself a decent color
printer.
I guess it’s no
secret now… I’d like to formally introduce Beth Sotelo as the new
colorist. She is doing an awesome
job on issue #2. She sent me a
sample page via e-mail and I was able to look at it “under the scope” so to
speak. When you’re able to look
at a comic book at 300 DPI when the original pages that are scanned in at 11 x
17 inches… That’s 16,830,000
pixels that have got to be JUST right before YOU see it.
Seeing the actual page she’s working on is an AWESOME communication tool. I can see where
the little specks (due to scanning) and overruns (in the inks or pencils) are
when I pan the massive file around on my screaming 880MHz laptop. Yes it actually DOES scream.
I make a few pans and the fan kicks in.
She can also go in and correct some of the inks digitally.
If CiCi’s mouth, say on page 14 of issue 2, looks like she’s missing
teeth then that can be fixed. It’s
a lot easier than going to the dentist. Digital
Chameleon as a rule would not touch the inks at all, but when
something needs fixing Beth can get her drill out and go to work.
I look forward to working with Beth in the coming months.
I just wish I could be a fly on the wall and watch her work her magic,
but with regular e-mail updates I can see the progress take shape.
Way to go Beth! I’m glad
you’re on my team!!
There are a few new
pinups to join the ranks of the fan page. One
is by John A. Rhodes. If you go to
“What’s New”, you’ll find a handy link to his page.
I think there’s a new one on my page, but you’ll have to go
check. It still needs a little
work, but I really need to be lettering so that will have to wait.
I’ve
been assured by Alp that the inks will arrive on Monday… Hey that’s
tomorrow!
I’ll be on the lookout for them.
Once these inks are in I’ll be able to submit the first three issues to
Diamond Distributors (as per their request) and I’ll be able to get the ball
rolling there.
I already talked with somebody with Diamond at last year’s San Diego
Con
I’ve
FAXed my forms in and I’m awaiting confirmation.
I should get this by next week, but I’ll be calling them to verify and
make hotel reservations too. I’ll
make my flight reservations next week as well and then I’ll be all ready to
go… Oh wait.
Having a color comic to sell at the Con will be a MUST as well.
Whether I’m in Diamond Previews or not, I’ll have something there at
the Con. I’ve GOT to!!
I hope to have a great Power Point presentation too unless I can get my
hands on Director or something else that’ll give me a good Flash animation.
A large monitor would be nice to have out there as well.
I’ll be looking into renting one while I’m out there (unless Beth can
spare one of hers). Don’t worry
Beth, I won’t ask. There will be
more in this section in the coming updates.
These are the
funny little numbers that accompany the UPC barcode (and / or copyright) on most
printed material. The ten digits
have the format (0-0000000-0-0). You
really need one of these if you want to sell your publication in stores or on Amazon.com.
Once you get these numbers you still have to register your publication.
Where do you get these numbers? R.
R. Bowker doles them out at their site.
They’re definitely not cheap, but do serve a grand purpose allowing
people to actually find your book and also see if it’s still in print.
Typically comics, once they’re printed are already out of print.
But the number allows stores to track the publication and get an official
title from the registry. There are
all sorts of rules and regulations on how to use these numbers like you may
actually reuse them if you go to a second printing.
But if you change the formatting in ANY way (say paper, cloth,
braille, microfilm, etc.) then you need a new number.
… see above ®
section …
Thanks for all your support,
_______________________________
Parker D. Smart
President - Spilled Milk ®, Corp.
psmart@SpilledMilk.com
http://SpilledMilk.com
Copyright © 2001, Spilled Milk ® Corp., All rights
reserved.
The standard removal policy if you should ever need it.
Just reply to this message with the word remove in the subject and you'll be deleted from the mailing list.
You might make it in ALL CAPS or else I might not take you seriously J.
