Making (and Keeping) Money in Comics with Sean Gordon Murphy

[@empyreanvole]

5 MINUTES into this interview and this is the most important commentary being made on the comics industry Ive heard in at least 15 years.

[@DarkInception]

This was a gem of a conversation. SGM always keeps it real. Grateful to receive this content for free.

[@madmanga64]

A little bit of humility goes a long way, I wish more creators were like this guy, great interview

[@ferrarriohh]

One of the main reasons I love Marc Silvestri, besides his cool art and personality, was back in the day he posted up next to his Yellow Lambo with a vanity plate of “TOP COW”. And to me, thats some rockstar shit. Its ok to be proud of your success.

[@luxuriousmindset1906]

I think so too everyone wants successful people to be humble all the time cant be happy about your own success

[@Kooster69]

Great interview. This, at least to me, was an eye opener on what's going on in the comic book industry.

[@JV-vy8ke]

Excellent, thoughtful conversation! Thank you!

[@destro47]

Great interview guys, I could listen to these types of conversations all day. Money isn't just kryptonite to artists, a lot of younger people coming up now have that same attitude: capitalism bad. Sean, I'd love to see you do something in the Spawnverse, especially Gunslinger, some day!

[@Kane429]

If the Perch channel ends up going away (hoping that doesn't come close to happening), let it be replaced by Perch Team-Up (Starring SGM)...you guys are the most engaging duo in Comics today, period.

[@willexcel]

How can anyone not like Sean? The dude is the most chill and reasonable person working in mainstream comics. I wish he would open up the opportunity to have mentorships with him again.

[@drewtheunspoken3988]

I thought that was a Rick Grimes cosplay at first glance. I'm really enjoying the frequency of these interviews. SGM is definitely one of my favorites to see on here. I also like hearing his takes and insights into the industry.

[@taklovesart2421]

Good Interview!! I took a nap and woke back up and caught the tail end. I needed that nap lol

[@MisogynyMan]

Sean being his funny witty self as usual. Always asking the right questions. I have also been thinking about the balls a lot.

[@ChrisNoeth]

Sean did give me some advice early in my career and this did show me he is a good guy... so it matters what he is saying! Listen to him!

[@crimsondragon18]

Always enjoy SGM interviews/talks🍿

[@Nutz000]

Amazing interview. Thank you Sean, you have won yourself a new fan.

[@adamlamoureux1404]

This is my first listen to this podcast, & I just F'n love it!! SGM is the man, & has such a smart approach to this, & Perch is just funny as Hell!! Instant fan, & continue listener. 🤘💀

[@darioscomicschool1111]

Gonna check this one out later! Thank you for making this! "They dont obsesse over BS - They Work and put their work out there"

[@cliffwoodbury5319]

13:45 - that is ssssooooooo clean!!!!

[@kaspercole7]

Great interview! I've always enjoyed Sean Gordon Murphy's art. Nice to know he is successful as a comic creator. A lot of this advice is definitely relevant to success in non-comic industries. I love the conversion about the religion of poverty. Perch, what in the hell do you do for a living? You are like the Barney Stinson of comics!

[@lo1bo2]

I was first exposed to Sean's art with Joe the Barbarian at DC/Vertigo in 2010. Anyone else?

[@AmericanDischord]

Was either that or Punk Rock Jesus. I favor his Tokyo Ghost work, but Batverse stuff is fun.

[@SigmaComics]

Excellent interview. I've met Sean a couple of times on the road and he's a consummate professional. Common sense fellow, operating in an industry with very little. However, it's that deficiency that allows upstarts like us to participate.

[@ajboucher_art]

Such great insights into the backend of comics business. It would be amazing to get a drink with the both of you.

[@danielleister1]

Fantastic conversation. Thank you so much for getting into it.

[@StevenCavanaugh]

Thank you so much for the money part of this talk. Hearing realistic numbers and timelines is incredibly helpful. I don't know if a lot of people understand that making $80,000 a year in the arts is a SOLID living.

[@anthonyborrelli9936]

So glad I saw Sean's link to this on Instagram! Such a great interview and channel. Subscribed.

[@kendershot]

Great interview, amazing art. Advice applicable to really any career. As a fellow Mainer, I caught a bit of Sean's accent near the end with his inhaled "a'yuh". It is subtle, but it's there.

[@seangordonmurphy6912]

Nooooooooooo!!!!! ;)

[@ComicsPerch]

Ouch.

[@kendershot]

@@seangordonmurphy6912 Embrace your heritage!

[@alphefruin8999]

I love when you have Sean Murphy on your podcast. Besides him being amazing artist, he's intelligent

[@Goblingraphx]

Heritage getting into the comic business is really interesting. I don't know anything about the Whatnot company though. Viz doing western comics as tankobon volumes is just a smart idea.

[@jerr0.]

These are always great. Very informative too.

[@pecus05]

Great conversation. A lot of valuable information and good, genuine talk.

[@Baleandor]

5mins in and I'm already loving it!

[@joitwotheworld]

This was great conversation, adulting is not an easy thing to do, I never ever hear enough people from the comic book community talking about these issues.😎

[@ShellPrestoDiBaggio]

Great interview with even better insights. Practical and good motivating kick in the backside.

[@aznsketcher]

Sean's *religion of poverty* is fascinating. Great interview.🔥👍

[@indiecomicempire]

Super insightful, thank you both!

[@DJ-Storynexus]

James Tynion. Not sure that’s the writer I would wish to be like But. Wow. I really enjoy the wisdom given in this interview. And I am absolutely a Murphy fan for sure !

[@BrakSplash]

Interesting video. Didn't finish it, but I enjoyed the first half hour

[@rammisalami]

A Tynion/SGM book would be awesome.

[@drawslashplay7384]

I feel kinda lucky. When I went to university for art, we covered employment and taxes. The boring but important stuff.

[@garycannon4644]

The real question is how Sean hasn't gotten blacklisted lol. He comes on here and speaks his mind and the industry strikes me as very thin skinned lol.

[@earwigismadlove]

The beard. All answers lie within the beard.

[@RevRyukin7]

He has done more for Batman than anyone except literally like 3 other people (Frank, Scott and Greg, obvs). Thats why lol

[@tommydacomicguy741]

Because he imposes his will.

[@reginaldforthright805]

Because zhe is trans

[@kaspercole7]

Sean, when are we going to get a Murphyverse at DC outside of the Batman-centric characters? Just tell the execs at DC that you have a plan for a DC-character wide Murphyverse and you can make it happen in the next 2 years if they throw money at you. With your art style, I can see a lot of merchandising and DC animated spinoff movies for the Murphyverse in the works. Since the Dawn of the DC is apparently going to a "cleaned up" (Ha!) multiversal omniverse (Ha ha!), your Murphyverse should have its own Earth number (Earth-42?). Make it happen!

[@ComicsPerch]

Hm. 🤔

[@SigmaComics]

"This channel isn't moving the needle..." Strongly disagree. This channel was one that compelled me to realize a dream. I'm not alone. Fact. Thank you, Perch. - H.H.

[@BrettRBooth]

Interesting. Nice to hear some business shop talk! Also, sign me up for Viz!

[@jawnsushi]

Regarding the religion of poverty, add in the victim complex affinity that's popular nowadays and it compounds the problem.

[@tbynlogan]

6:00 Isn't Perch's real job being a male escort? That's why he's in his car and has time to record videos when he's driving from location to location.

[@illithidlore]

How many days do I have to rent one of Sean's properties where he throws in a commission?

[@millernumber1]

I'm still very salty about Doomsday Clock, Hawkeye, and Astonishing X-Men.

[@earwigismadlove]

This interview nearly tops the sex guy you interviewed a moon ago.

[@oldmandavid7944]

Looking forward to this video

[@kaspercole7]

Perch, you should do a video on the comics publishing company Bad Idea. How in the heck do they make a profit with their business model? Can you get an interview with Dinesh Shamdasani or Warren Simons (who I've met once at my LCS)? Please ask them why in the heck don't they try to develop a shared universe with the comics they produce at Bad Idea? They obviously have several of the creators working with them that collaborated on their amazing Valiant Universe run! In my opinion, their Valiant universe was the epitome of what a shared superhero universe should be. Marvel, DC, nobody has done it as well as they did with the number of IP characters they were dealing with.

[@megadeuce2350]

MORE!

[@walkingenmity]

What was the prompt at 8:22? I couldn't hear the tail end because they were talking at the same time. "....don't fundamentally understand why _______"

[@millernumber1]

"we're upset"

[@ahmedbinbakr2198]

Improving the work conditions in the industry has to come with many expectations that must be met, including but not limited to fulfilling deadlines. No doubt comic book writing has evolved from the rigid dull writing of the golden age and the silliness of all the POWs and BIFFs of the sci-fi engulfed silver age, but since the copper age, writing has been plagued with uninspired tropes such as constant death and resurrection, alternate earths and universes, clones, exaggerated use of pseudoscience and reboots; all to maintain a fictitious incoherent continuity and meeting oversaturated monthly schedules. and more recently, identity politics and virtue signaling have been injected into writing just in case you haven't had enough!! Just as art enthusiasts want the highest standards in drawing with respect to anatomy, action , symmetry, environment, and creativity, I want better writing; whether its ideas and themes , composition, suspense, drama, wit ,or what have you. These graphic novels must compete in both art and story quality with video games, films , shows ,and books/novels... to solidify comics as a serious contender in mainstream entertainment. note to the big two: quality over quantity.

[@bc4315]

Would like to hear a follow-up discussion on the religion of greed.

[@tomteacher5885]

what's Sasha's channel?

[@crimsondragon18]

casually comics

[@DrLynch2009]

The most based man in the comic industry.

[@aznsketcher]

I'm gonna tell my oldest girl 10 years from now to go to a tech school and become an HVAC tech rather than to a liberal arts school to study *"lesbian dance theory"* 🤣🤣🤣.

[@BlakeNorthcott]

HEY! I've heard of this guy! 🤔

[@DIOBrando-ij2bp]

Really wouldn’t be surprised if in the very near future Viz became the de facto publisher of Marvel Comics new output. They’d probably just do it with their own new talent too. Shueisha and Shogakukan have these people like Tasuku Karasuma, Ryuhei Tamura, and Yuki Kawaguch that do these series that people seem to like but don’t become hits over there; Viz could probably put them on some X-Men, Spider-Man, or Avengers titles and get huge numbers with them. Now if Marvel and DC were smart they’d just be headhunting these manga artist that pop, but never the less get their series cancelled, and be giving them work on whatever. But for whatever reason they don’t seem to do that with Japan...despite wanting the manga audience for like the last 22 years.

[@reginaldforthright805]

How do artists compete with ai?

[@ArucardPL]

No mention of AI art in predictions? Wonder what you think about that now since at the moment of this interview it was just emerging and now it feels like it's everywhere. And that's barely in one year's time.

[@spaceknight793]

Art school: definitely do NOT get a regular 4-year college degree to learn how to make COMICS. You will spend too much money and time on classes that do not help you be a comic artist. You will learn how to make art in general, but not specific to comics (unless they have a specific class for that). The drawing and design classes can help you, artwise, but not the 3-D class, sculpting class, etc (you can learn art history on your own). And you can take business classes that might help you. But you don't need the degree. The degree won't help you in any way. Nobody cares about a 4 year art degree, they only care about the quality of the work you can do. So if you go, take only the classes that help you and skip the rest. Believe me, I made this mistake and don't wish it on anyone else.

[@spaceknight793]

Kathleen Colon Kennedy did NOT grab any balls on her way "up." She was "identity privileged" the ENTIRE WAY. Started as someone famous's relative. Got her first job as a camera person as part of a push to hire more females (identity hire), then failed at that and became Spielberg's secretary, failed at that, and then Spielberg brought her into the producer meetings ONLY BECAUSE SHE WAS FEMALE. And she rode his coattails for DECADES getting her name on movies she had NOTHING to do with creating. And then Lucas hired her away (god knows why, it wasn't talent), and then got BEQUEATHED Lucasfilm because in Lucas's own words she was the "last person he could think of" because nobody else wanted it. I don't see any balls being grabbed in her ascent. Nothing but privilege.

[@s9yadvent]

If that's true, then good for her. Not everyone is as lucky.

[@spaceknight793]

Other than the Image boys, which comic creators (writers, artists) have had that 3rd stage of snowballing wealth? Nobody before or after the Image Boys that I know of. Of that Image crew, only McFarlane seems to have reached the 3rd stage--where you don't make the money but people make it for you. I just don't think Perch's wealth concept works for non-business type jobs. As the owner of a lemaode stand I can go through all the stages and become a legit millionaire because the quality of product is not specifically based on ME. But comic art? Bob Kane kind of did what Perch is saying, he set it up and then hired ghost artists for decades. But was Kane the kind of 3rd stage rich guy that Perch is talking about? I don't know. Sure looks like it's extremely hard to do with an artist kind of job.

[@phattsamurai4929]

50 to 80 in New York?

[@Ryan_Gutz]

I love the interview, but I have to say, Gabe didn’t come over to fight Mark Brooks. He came to challenge some of his ideas on the CG situation, and Mark was so petrified of confrontation that he ran away. Then quickly went online to salvage his image. I’m not even into the whole CG thing, but dear god what a fucking coward Mark is.

[@idee8or]

Has SGM decided yo nope out, yet? He seems as if he has a good head on his shoulders - too good to be associated with the industry terrorists living in poverty. His work speaks for itself, he can crowd-fund his fortune, and he has a following. Who the hell cares what people think of you when they themselves don't really matter?

[@phattsamurai4929]

Mark Brooks is totally justified in his issues. Thanks.

[@Mr.VonStoogle]

Im not a fan of Sean but want to root for him anyway. The thing keeping me from doing so is he has shown to have the spine of a jellyfish once his "buddies" start circling him for reasonable ideas and walks them back. Plus listening to him speak is kind of insufferable almost like a less arrogant Doug TenNapel in the way he talks about stuff.

[@AlucardNoir]

White Knight Holly Terror you say? That's one way to announce he's leaving DC. And now he can't use it because of a stupid joke from Perch.