This post will be in slight relation to a post I made about 2 months ago so I might be repeating some stuff. To read that post go Here.
-----------
On the occasion that I do go out into the real world social scene, when I live my house to interact with other people most of the time the topic of comic books does come up. Partly because it's one of my main hobbies (because people will ask me what my hobbies are) & partly because I've actually been introduced as liking comic books (This Brian & he likes Comic Books) so the conversation goes right to that topic. Now I don't mind talking to people about comic books. I can & will ramble on for hours regarding that topic but I try to make a conscious effort to not do so. There is an old quote that I think was by Mark Twain of "Stop talking before they stop listening" & I have been present in a number conversation where that some people don't realize this. I'm sure I have. I know that comic books aren't for everyone so I tend to not go all that in depth with the topic.
BUT.... If I was going to talk about Comic Books I would like to talk Comic Books. I have been in more then a dozen conversation that only revolve around a small subsection of the comic book fandom: The Comic Book Movie. I get why the conversation goes there. It's easier & way more accessible for people to goes to a 90 minute plus movie about a comic book character that is maybe only tied up in only a movie or two's worth of story then to find a place that sells comic books & read a 30 page plus comic book that might be tied up in decades worth of stories.
I don't mind making some small talk regarding the movie(s). I've had some quite nice conversations regarding how the movie was different from the comics or providing some extra info on a character/item/situation from the movie. But when I do that I try to keep it short & to the point. It can easily turn into 30 minute oral report & I doubt any of the non-readers would listen to the full 30 minutes.
I sometimes find it hard to keep it to the point when I'm asked certain questions about comic books. Like "What's your favorite comic book?" There are a number of way to answer that. Do they mean my all-time favorite comic book or just my current favorite comic book? Are they asking what my favorite series is or what individual issue is? All-Time favorite series? All-Time favorite individual issue?
All these questions are running through my head & need to come up with answer fast. If I don't then they are going to go onto another topic or another person completely. If I do come up with answer there is good chance that they won't know what comic book I'm talking about which could lead into another lengthly conversation they might not what to have. Another problem with choose favorites is I like different series for different things. So I could easily run down a list of 5 to 10 series I like & why but that might be more then they want to to know. I don't want to share them off. I know they are just trying to be friendly.
This is sort of a problem I've finding with the rise of comic book movies. People who have never read a comic book in their lives are being exposed to a subculture in a very friendly fashion (The Movie) but when if they want to get to know more about sometimes they won't find it so new person friendly. Partly because the thing you liked so much in the movie might not be the thing in the comic book (Wait a minute... Why isn't Nick Fury black?)
This has been a topic I've talked about with people before & made a few posts on the Internet about. I don't mind that the movies & comic books don't match up. They shouldn't. They are 2 different things & should be tried as such. Yeah, they are connected & have similar source material but are different things. Some people on both sides (Comic Book Reader & Comic Book Movie Watcher) just don't seem to get.
There is a saying "A little knowledge a is dangerous thing" and I find that it applies to people who want to get into comic books. They have their small knowledge base, culled together from a dozen or so movies & some stuff they have read online or gotten from friends. But when they try to find things that match to that knowledge: they get discouraged, disgusted, annoyed with what they do or don't find. Getting into comics can be a hard thing to do. Partly as I've found many people assume there is one set way of doing that. There is this mystical one formula to getting into comics. Let me say this now: there isn't. You talk to 10 people about how they got into comics & you'll get 10 different answers which can be confusing to people. I have a rather long story about how I got into comics. I'll make a post about it sometime.
I think that both sides have problems with each other. But when you've devoted a large chunk of your time/life to a certain topic. Then you have someone who knows very little about the topic comes into your special place (A Comic Book Store): it's can be kind of annoying. But then we all that person at one. If you don't let anyone new in, you won't have anyone "in" after awhile.
The best thing I could say to a person who wants to "get into" comics is find something you like & start there. It's that easy. Find something you like, read that. If you liked the writer of that book, read other stuff by them. You like the art in the book, pick up other books by that artist. You liked a character in the book, pick up more books with that character in it. Liked a setting from the book, see if there are other book with that setting. You liked the tone of the book, pick up other books with that tone. Also, don't be afraid to try something new & don't be afraid to stop reading something you don't like anymore.
Another thing is if you don't want to spent a whole mess of money on something your not sure you'll like. Try picking up some stuff from your local library. Most libraries should have some comic books in them. They are free to borrow & they got a lot of different things. You could research things on the Internet, there are lots of different websites out there discussing comics but know that almost all of them are reflective of the writer's view on comics. This is similar to borrow comics from friends, you'll only get books they like if you borrow from them & you might not like what they like.
yeah... I think I'm rambled on long enough for now & that's enough for now. Until next time Stay Jazzy everyone!
- Brian
-----------
On the occasion that I do go out into the real world social scene, when I live my house to interact with other people most of the time the topic of comic books does come up. Partly because it's one of my main hobbies (because people will ask me what my hobbies are) & partly because I've actually been introduced as liking comic books (This Brian & he likes Comic Books) so the conversation goes right to that topic. Now I don't mind talking to people about comic books. I can & will ramble on for hours regarding that topic but I try to make a conscious effort to not do so. There is an old quote that I think was by Mark Twain of "Stop talking before they stop listening" & I have been present in a number conversation where that some people don't realize this. I'm sure I have. I know that comic books aren't for everyone so I tend to not go all that in depth with the topic.
BUT.... If I was going to talk about Comic Books I would like to talk Comic Books. I have been in more then a dozen conversation that only revolve around a small subsection of the comic book fandom: The Comic Book Movie. I get why the conversation goes there. It's easier & way more accessible for people to goes to a 90 minute plus movie about a comic book character that is maybe only tied up in only a movie or two's worth of story then to find a place that sells comic books & read a 30 page plus comic book that might be tied up in decades worth of stories.
I don't mind making some small talk regarding the movie(s). I've had some quite nice conversations regarding how the movie was different from the comics or providing some extra info on a character/item/situation from the movie. But when I do that I try to keep it short & to the point. It can easily turn into 30 minute oral report & I doubt any of the non-readers would listen to the full 30 minutes.
I sometimes find it hard to keep it to the point when I'm asked certain questions about comic books. Like "What's your favorite comic book?" There are a number of way to answer that. Do they mean my all-time favorite comic book or just my current favorite comic book? Are they asking what my favorite series is or what individual issue is? All-Time favorite series? All-Time favorite individual issue?
All these questions are running through my head & need to come up with answer fast. If I don't then they are going to go onto another topic or another person completely. If I do come up with answer there is good chance that they won't know what comic book I'm talking about which could lead into another lengthly conversation they might not what to have. Another problem with choose favorites is I like different series for different things. So I could easily run down a list of 5 to 10 series I like & why but that might be more then they want to to know. I don't want to share them off. I know they are just trying to be friendly.
This is sort of a problem I've finding with the rise of comic book movies. People who have never read a comic book in their lives are being exposed to a subculture in a very friendly fashion (The Movie) but when if they want to get to know more about sometimes they won't find it so new person friendly. Partly because the thing you liked so much in the movie might not be the thing in the comic book (Wait a minute... Why isn't Nick Fury black?)
This has been a topic I've talked about with people before & made a few posts on the Internet about. I don't mind that the movies & comic books don't match up. They shouldn't. They are 2 different things & should be tried as such. Yeah, they are connected & have similar source material but are different things. Some people on both sides (Comic Book Reader & Comic Book Movie Watcher) just don't seem to get.
There is a saying "A little knowledge a is dangerous thing" and I find that it applies to people who want to get into comic books. They have their small knowledge base, culled together from a dozen or so movies & some stuff they have read online or gotten from friends. But when they try to find things that match to that knowledge: they get discouraged, disgusted, annoyed with what they do or don't find. Getting into comics can be a hard thing to do. Partly as I've found many people assume there is one set way of doing that. There is this mystical one formula to getting into comics. Let me say this now: there isn't. You talk to 10 people about how they got into comics & you'll get 10 different answers which can be confusing to people. I have a rather long story about how I got into comics. I'll make a post about it sometime.
I think that both sides have problems with each other. But when you've devoted a large chunk of your time/life to a certain topic. Then you have someone who knows very little about the topic comes into your special place (A Comic Book Store): it's can be kind of annoying. But then we all that person at one. If you don't let anyone new in, you won't have anyone "in" after awhile.
The best thing I could say to a person who wants to "get into" comics is find something you like & start there. It's that easy. Find something you like, read that. If you liked the writer of that book, read other stuff by them. You like the art in the book, pick up other books by that artist. You liked a character in the book, pick up more books with that character in it. Liked a setting from the book, see if there are other book with that setting. You liked the tone of the book, pick up other books with that tone. Also, don't be afraid to try something new & don't be afraid to stop reading something you don't like anymore.
Another thing is if you don't want to spent a whole mess of money on something your not sure you'll like. Try picking up some stuff from your local library. Most libraries should have some comic books in them. They are free to borrow & they got a lot of different things. You could research things on the Internet, there are lots of different websites out there discussing comics but know that almost all of them are reflective of the writer's view on comics. This is similar to borrow comics from friends, you'll only get books they like if you borrow from them & you might not like what they like.
yeah... I think I'm rambled on long enough for now & that's enough for now. Until next time Stay Jazzy everyone!
- Brian
