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/cgl/ - Cosplay & EGL

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>> No.9781786

So who's making merch of the new Overwatch lunar skins?

>> No.9781887

>>9781786
Not here. I'm kind of the opinion this year's LNY skins seem a little too cluttered. Also since I mainly do chibis, it'd be kind of hard to translate all the little details. But I'm excited to see what merchandise other artists decide to produce for the skins.

>> No.9782032

Can anyone tell me anything about what styles/brands of phone charm straps are the strongest? I have some new charms that are quite a bit heavier than my others, and I worry that my usual straps won't be up to the task.

>> No.9782083

Do you think I'd catch much flack for having a "4chan meme" sticker?

I do mostly shoujo/magical girl stuff, but a few friends have been suggesting I do a kawaii version of this "meme". It would just be one sticker among many "normal" ones, and I think I disguised it well enough. Table mate is worried we might get negative attention over it...but I think its cute and will make anyone that gets it happy. Thoughts or experiences from anyone that's done similar?

>> No.9782086

>>9782083
It depends on your meme? Is it something offensive or like... is it just harmless? If it's just your regular meme fare, memes end up on Tumblr and Reddit too so depending on what it is people won't even make the 4chan connection.

>> No.9782095

>>9781786
thinking about it for genji and mercy. maybe just stickers or something though.

Really waiting for the anniversary event for new skins that aren't tied to a holiday tho.

>> No.9782112
File: 463 KB, 500x281, anime-shrug-gif.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9782112

>>9782086
It's a pepe. Actually very harmless but table mate is worried about the whole Hillary saying they're for white supremacists or whatever. I think most people at a con understand that was all hilarious bullshit, but they're still worried. I think we'd be fine. They'll just be tiny $1 things.

>> No.9782131

>>9782112
Depends on your audience
I know mine wouldn't give a shit and I doubt any of my customers would be put off by it.
If you tend to sell a lot to tumblr type crowd it's possible that it might make or break a sale. Like it wouldn't fly at the tables that are entirely centered on feminist/bodyposi/pro-lgbt themes. It'd probably do fine at a table that mostly targets young males and and/or who's art would put off a lot of people who would be offended by Pepe in the first place.
You sound like you fall inbetween, but you should be able to have a decent idea of what your following/audience is like if you've done more than a few cons. Some artists' followings are more prone to outrage than others.

>> No.9782156
File: 69 KB, 603x606, 20cef910563cb4b25767dd8a29f59b56.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9782156

am i the only one weirded out by this thread getting traction when the tweet they're bitching about is just "zines are expensive, don't start them if you don't have cash"?

like yeah zines used to mean cheapo saddlestitched books with comics or sketches, but most zines these days are full-coolor illustrations? i don't get the point of encouraging the idea that zines are cheap to make when you're referring to a definition of "zine" that isn't as mainstream these days and intentionally giving people the wrong idea because you're pedantic

i'm just sick of people who try to push that merch is easy to make because you get organizers who don't understand anything they're doing. it's put me off from applying from zines entirely.

>> No.9782286

>>9782083
If there is one thing teens are anime conventions absolutely hate, it is memes /s

>> No.9782299

>>9782156
This whole argument is so annoying. The fact is that if fan artists were to go through all the trouble of organizing and making their illustrations, and then just print it as a photocopy zine, absolutely no one would buy it. One of my table partners did something like this before and people wouldn't even take it for free.

>> No.9782353

>>9781786
I was thinking of making a montage of new skins.

>> No.9782377

>>9782156
"It can even be free"
??????

>> No.9782378

>>9782083
No, because you're asking those of us who browse 4chan.

try asking a normie, who might have an opinion about these things.

>> No.9782432

>>9782156
Yeah, this is dumb. Every comics person I know thought this was dumb. They're derailing a helpful post over semantics.

>> No.9782442

>>9782377
>i.e. you print it home.

The 'cheapest' way would probably be photocopying at a local library or print shop and stapling it yourself.

>> No.9782474

>>9782112
Oh Pepe is associated with Twitch streamers more than anything else at this point. You'll be fine.

>> No.9782574

So those furry cons that have different artists in the AA each day at random, how much can you usually pull in at them for a day with little prints, stickers, and commissions?

There's a small one with maybe about 1k people or less, but I'm thinking about doing it, because it's always been flurries who have paid the most for commissions with me. Yet I don't know if it would be worth going out of state for.

>> No.9782698

>>9782574
out of state? no. You'll make a couple hundreds dollars at most. enough to cover costs, but not more.

>> No.9782703

>>9782574
>>9782698
Yeah, seconding. I made $200 at one last year, having gotten pulled by the lottery multiple days, but I wasn't as prepared as other people.

>> No.9782737

>>9782377
I was assuming a digital zine/print on demand service.

>> No.9782786

>>9782574
I wouldn't go out of state for that. There's no guarantee you'll even get a spot and if you do you'll likely not cover more than the cost of going. If there's one relatively close to you go for it but be sure you offer on the spot commissions you can complete during the con because that's the biggest seller with fur cons.

>> No.9782833

>>9782112

If someone gives you shit over it, you can explain the actual backstory of Pepe and the fact that the character was actually appropriated by the alt-right from an independent artist who has done nothing but beg people to let his character represent something good again. Tell them to google Matt Furie. The guy murdered his character in his own comics because nazis loved him so much.

>> No.9782878

>>9782833
If you really think this is all the meaning that Pepe holds you really are >new and don’t belong here.

Feelsbadman and feelsgoodman existed for far longer than anything Furie intended or even political use of Pepe

>> No.9782986

>>9782878
but normies will be >new too, anon

>> No.9783079

Anyone applied for AnimeCTX? Their AA app page has been open for ages, but haven't heard shit from them

>> No.9783169

>>9782878

I don't see your point? My point is that the original creator of the character and the art doesn't support nazis, which should count for something. If you're arguing that the meme's previous life as the harmless FeelsBlankMan counts for more than it's association with Nazis, that hasn't been true since Richard Spencer showed it off on TV right before he got punched in the face. Normies and youths think it's a hate symbol. All I was offering was a defense.

>> No.9783237

Anybody knows what "magic star" lamination from Vograce charms looks like? Is it like Holographic or what?

>> No.9783241

>>9783237
I meant badges sorry.

>> No.9783504

>>9783079
lmao I applied a while back too, haven't heard from them either. Last year I got my acceptance email in May. Anyway this is the usual it's the same people who run Ikkicon.

>> No.9783505

>>9783237
It's a sparkly/glitery kind of surface not as obnoxious as the broken glass/hobby lobby lamination but a nice soft glitter finish.

>> No.9783515

>>9783237
Similar to their glitter charms but with a matte finish.

>> No.9783550

>>9782156
Where tf are they finding these free ones, I only even get $2 quotes at quantities of 500 or more

>> No.9783563

>>9783505
>>9783515
Thank you! That sounds interesting, I will try to grab some square ones next time they open.

>> No.9783572

>>9783550
Free zines are made at the library and hand stapled/folded or whatever, the commentary they are attaching to that tweet is blown out of proportion and context and it's really gross how those people were making fun of the OP for "not knowing what a zine is" and "not doing their research" when the OP OBVIOUSLY was not referring to hand made indie punk zines.

The OP deleted their whole thread and is taking a break from twitter because ~~~ HARD CORE PUNK ANARCHISTS ~~~ types wouldn't stop quote retweeting it and telling them they were stupid/ignorant. So annoying.

>> No.9783592

>>9783504
Is it? I thought it was a different group that started a con because they were sick of Ikki.

>> No.9783629

SoCal AA gulls - does anybody have any experience or knowledge about Anime Conji this year? If you've tabled there, what was it like?

I'm applying for a couple of the small single-day events that are on campus for universities but I'm pretty new to AA - if anybody's got any general advice regarding that, would be much appreciated.

>> No.9783714

>>9783572
it sucks because these indie zine snobs stated they knew that op was referring to fandom zines, which are just another word for indie artbook collabs, but they were so pissed that "zine" means something else in different circles they insisted on spreading misinformation

like for fuck's sake it's not that often that a decent twitter merch thread goes up (looking at that sad "merch 'secrets' artists won't tell you" thread)

>> No.9784139

Ive never made grabbags but always assumed people put slow-selling/ unpopular/ or discontinued merch inside to move it. However today on AANI people were talking about putting their flawed merch in grabbags. I think thats pretty shitty to do but is it common?

>> No.9784175

>>9784139
i don't think its shitty as long as its made obvious its your fuck-ups. maybe make them even cheaper than normal grab bags.

>> No.9784176

>>9784175
Call them oops bags or something cute

>> No.9784177

>>9784139
I don’t think it’s that common, that sounds pretty scummy. I think it’s fine if artists clearly mark them as flawed merch grab bags though.

>> No.9784202

>>9784139
I don't know how common it is, but I do think it's shitty. Customers aren't stupid, if they see other people opening your bags and finding garbage, they're not going to come try their own luck. I think dumping old/unpopular merch is fine, but including at least one hot/current goodie is both decent and better business.

>> No.9784227

>>9784139
I've sold specifically labelled seconds grab bags, as long as it's properly labelled / named it seems fine to me.

>> No.9784298

Does anyone know if people who got accepted first into Fanime will get table selection priority over people who get off the waitlist later on? Do we get an earlier date for selection and they get whatever is left?? I would hate to fight waitlistees once it comes to the table hunger games, I feel like it would be unfair to us.

>> No.9784315
File: 282 KB, 500x371, puzzled.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9784315

Sorry if this is asked a lot, I've never sold in AA and didn't see it in the FAQ.

How many different artworks should I have before I even consider selling in an artist's alley? For both a small con and a big con?

I haven't been to a convention in like 5+ years so I can't really remember what artist alleys are like in terms of what kind of prints sell (fanart ofc, but I mean more specific as in compositionally).

>> No.9784369

>>9784315
Enough that your table looks full, and that if you sold just a couple of everything you would break even your costs. That means different things depending on the kind and size of merch you're selling.

My first successful con where I made profit I had 10 prints (11x17), 5 mini prints (5x7), About 30 buttons and 5 acrylic charms. I split the booth with a friend.

I had significantly less than that at my first con and did poorly because of it - almost all my money for my first con came from commissions, because although what I had sold decently I just didn't have enough to sell.

>> No.9784427

I know little chibis of K-pop idols are popular, but is there an audience for J-pop chibis (like Perfume or BiSH)?

>> No.9784431

>>9784298
iirc people who got accepted first get first pick of tables when they go up. They're pretty bad at contacting waitlisted people if at all which is why there's always a good chunk of empty tables.

Speaking of, were you able to pay for the table? the site still says "completing testing on the back-end of the site" not sure if I should email them since we have until March 1 but I don't want to be lax if people have already secured their table and everything...

>> No.9784506

>>9784431
Table choices don't open until April according to the website, so you don't need to worry about that. Emailing them to push them along with the process probably isn't a bad idea, though.

>> No.9784560

>>9784506
I'll probably pop over an email then, hopefully with enough artists bugging them they'll get it done quicker!.

>> No.9784660

>>9784431
I thought it was just me. So no one has been able to pay yet? I wonder why more people didn't bring this up.

>> No.9784672

>>9783629
I tabled each year it existed and there were both decent and awful years. But, given the history of it and where it's moving forward, my past experiences in the artist alley aren't going to be useful for you to know. First it was run by SanSFiS, then SPJA (who fired everyone running it), now it's back with SanSFiS, however the staff is now almost entirely different from the original organization. I believe it's going to be being run by the hanadoki staff, so I'd expect it to be similar to hanadoki if you've been there before. Other than that, it's hard to say since they haven't gotten much together yet.

>> No.9784760

As a Canadian, is AN more worth it or Fanime?

>> No.9784869

>>9784660
because no one got in

>> No.9784886

>>9784431
Usually even if you pay for the table, you still have to play the waiting game for table selection to go up. Fanime is kinda slow with these things.

>> No.9784888

>>9784427
jpop seems pretty dead in the west, so i doubt it.

i'd say do it as a personal passion project if you're willing to potentially eat the cost

>> No.9784891

>>9784427
Perfume has a pretty cult following, however they're adamant about only purchasing official merch.

>> No.9785018

Feeling pretty undeserving of my spot at Fanime... I usually make in higher 4 digits but my art is really generic and moe, sigh

>> No.9785073

>>9785018
is it still a humblebrag if you're fishing at the same time

>> No.9785077

>>9785073
considering all my friends make 5 digits and are much more skilled than me, i am constantly feeling imposter syndrome and waiting for my bubble to burst. trust me the only reason I make anything is selling out to generic shiny moeshit which anyone can do if they can sacrifice dignity

>> No.9785084

>>9785077
this seems better suited for your priv than 4chan

>> No.9785087

AN's rules are so stupid, first charms not allowed in the Comic Market for being too bootleg but they're allowed in Dealers and Crafters Corner. Now they're allowed but no more art in Dealers because it's too bootleg.

>> No.9785088

>>9785018
I don't know how I got in either. I won't even say so on social media in case you bitches start making fun of my art lol.

>> No.9785155

>>9784760
do you live in the province? If so then AN is worth it. It's my biggest local con for sales.

>>9785087
maybe they'll finally just put the 2 sections back together if these shifts keep happening. It was so much easier back when everything was just in one section.

>> No.9785244

>>9785018
>>9785088
I don't know if you guys are being serious or making ironic jokes, but if you're being serious this is sad. You should never feel bad for getting in to a convention that's juried, especially because some salty ass fake bitches in the AA thread on 4chan said so. When I got my acceptance email, I too for a moment felt undeserving of my spot because most of my friends were rejected. Then I thought, if I don't feel deserving of it now, then I'm going to work my ass off so that I DO feel deserving. And I sure as hell won't feel bad for people who are sore losers that put others down to justify their own lack of acceptance. You didn't get in? Oh fanime judges are just blind/don't know anything about art. Or they're homophobic. Or its nepotism. These are ALL excuses that have been thrown around in these threads. At the end of the day, everyone here masks it as some concern for the system, but really it's just the product of a bunch of toxic people who throw temper tantrums when they don't get their way.

Anyway, both those accepted and rejected should seriously let it go at this point. You got in and don't feel deserving? Work hard so you can at least use it as an excuse to improve your skill and merch. You got waitlisted but feel deserving? Go through accepted artists and see what they did that may be missing in your own artwork and adapt. Fanime was looking for a specific style this year and it's easy to see if you just go through social media to see who posted their acceptance.

>> No.9785320
File: 1.62 MB, 2000x1154, fanime.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9785320

>>9785244
I agree that people shouldn't feel guilty for getting in because it's not their fault (the jury's problem is not your proble) but your defense of the jury is laughable. Again, what should someone like Kidchan do to not be waitlisted? What are you doing better than them? What is this easy specific style you refer to?

>>9784660
Because it literally happens every year and everyone who's done fanime before knows its never on time and they just wait. Everyone asking has never done it before.

>> No.9785351

lets create our own artist alley with blackjack and hookers

>> No.9785390

>>9785244
I mean, your way is one way to think of it. While I agree that anon shouldn't feel bad about getting in, my reasoning is based on the fact that the jury system doesn't function based on 'who deserves it'. It's luck. You might not have deserved to get in, but you got in, so just thank your lucky stars for it. You can't change or control the jury's decisions, so why waste too much energy fretting over it y'know. Those who are higher in skill who didn't get in are right to be salty, and those who are lower in skill who did get in are right to feel guilty. But you can both acknowledge the unfairness and thank your blessings.

>> No.9785425

>>9785320
NAYRT and I understand why people are annoyed but whenever people keep posting this comparison I feel like it only... makes you seem petty as fuck? There are some artists who got in that I've seen on Twitter who are comparable to the artists on the right in terms of skill so your image just seems cherrypicked.

Honestly, Fanime should just come out and tell people their jury is by tiers (beginner artists grouped together, intermediate grouped together, higher level artists grouped together, etc) because that's what it seems like with specific quotas for certain skill tiers.

>> No.9785466

>>9785425
Nayrt, but
>so your image seems cherrypicked
I'm pretty sure they’re not arguing that great artists didn’t get in, just that you shouldn’t call it juried if you can find even one artist like the left one when the ones on the right were rejected, that’s all. The skill gap in that pic is insane. I agree with them, and I didn’t even apply.

I also agree w/ you that if they said they had a tiered jury then no one could complain, that seems like the fairest way to go especially to have a diverse AA.

>> No.9785505 [DELETED] 

>>9785244
Lol Anon you are pretty naive if you think the lazy ass people that "jury" fanime actually go through all the apps. They just grab a handful each, speed run through the images they see, and accept/decline on first whim. You think a bunch of unpaid volunteers are gonna care enough? Especially for a con like fanime that gets 100s of apps. I agree that people should belittle those that got in, but saying that we are deserving of our spots due to merit is laughable. We were just lucky some idiot decided to give us a pass. If you take fanime's opinion of your art seriously, that's sad.

>> No.9785517

>>9785244
>criticizes people's theories about fanime and why they rejected certain artists/artstyles
>comes up with own theory to justify why they got in ("they were looking for a *~specific style~* uwu you would see it if you looked harder owo")

Sit your ass down, we got in by luck and you know it lmao.

>> No.9785572

>>9785351
sounds like you’re describing SnafuCon

>> No.9785593

>>9785517
Thanks for proving my point! It's a shame someone with such a shitty attitude like you got a table over someone who might have cared more.

>> No.9785605

>>9785517
>>9785593
Is it possible that there's a middle ground instead of these two extremes?

>"lmao Fanime results are random and everyone who got in just did so because of luck/no one who got into Fanime this year is talented"
This makes you sound like a petty asshole who's just mad that they didn't get accepted. I actually saw someone on Twitter tell their followers to email Fanime and complain because they personally didn't get accepted? That kind of shit is ridiculous and spits in the face of your fellow artists.

>"Try harder/get better next time if you didn't get in this year!"
This makes you sound like a pretentious asshole who's ignoring the fact that Fanime has had a history of inconsistent judging despite releasing their rubric publicly. It's not just a matter of trying harder when Fanime keeps changing their own rubric rules.

As other anons have pointed out, it seems likely that Fanime either sets tables aside for newbies or does jury via skill level. We should be pushing for Fanime to be more transparent with their jury process (i.e. - admit that it's not the rubric score alone that decides acceptance) instead of fighting each other. At the end of the day, Fanime gets to choose who gets to come because it's their con and they can be selective in any way they want - even if it means setting aside tables for newbies that could have gone to veteran artists. BUT - they should be making this stuff public knowledge so when artists apply, they're aware from the start and not blindsided by the huge skill gap when the results are announced.

>> No.9785780

>>9785244

This honestly sounds like a load of shit you've come up with to justify your presence at the con. At the end of the day you know something is up with the jury system, but it benefited you in the end, so why question it?

Your ending statement is ridiculous. You can't possibly think it's actually as easy as just choosing to emulate the artists who got in. What a terrible fucking strategy. The point everyone is making is that it's become clearer each year that no amount of work, improvement, or careful tailoring of portfolios can actually improve your chances of getting into this con. Everyone rejected feels helpless. They don't feel like they've been given a fair chance. If there was anything to indicate the judging was actually fair on some level then most of them would shut up.

Your entitled attitude isn't helping at all. You're not actually better than everyone who got rejected, and on some level you know it, because you're making up these excuses for it. Accept that you got lucky.

>> No.9785812

Some of you are thinking 2 or 3k profit is good and are salty you didn't get in I'm sure

>> No.9785817

>>9785605
I agree with you although due to the sheer number of applicants it's pretty hard to ensure everyone who "deserves" it gets in, so I guess lottery would be a fairer choice. But lotteries are rigged to get friends in as well because then there's absolutely no form of transparency so go figure...

>> No.9785825

>>9783592
anime overload was created some years back and was taken over by the same people as ikkicon then turned into animectx afaik

>> No.9785829

I wonder if the fanime people continue to do this every year just because they enjoy watching the delicious drama unfold online

>> No.9785843

>>9785817
I remember ALA used to hold lotteries at their staff meetings and invite anyone to attend for transparency's sake. So they would physically draw the names onsite and and of the artists could attend to witness it themselves. Afterwards, they'd post a list of the names in drawn order for the accepted artists and the waitlist artists.

This probably is too much to ask of Fanime though.

>> No.9785905
File: 195 KB, 417x578, 1506988465425.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9785905

>>9785780

>> No.9785980

>>9785843
Oh, that's a cool idea. I wish other cons would do it too (or even just stream it lol) but yeah, not holding my breath.

>> No.9786005

The fanime talk is getting old

>> No.9786083

Which girl characters are popular/trending right now? I feel like my interests don't align well with most people these days. I'm guessing the BNHA ones, DDLC,...?

>> No.9786141

Speaking of girls, does anyone know if fanservice prints do well compared to regular ones?

>> No.9786166

Who else got off waitlist for AB? Seems like they accepted a lot of tables.

Maybe they opened up more tables without saying?

>> No.9786258

Mailing tubes through paypal shipping. Is this fine as long as you weigh it properly and click "irregular package"?

>> No.9786381

>>9786258
yes

>> No.9786405

>>9786166
I got in, I'm sorta afraid that they are just loading the alley up to make up for not accepting people with earlier timestamps but there was no way I was passing it up. Hopefully my fear is just a worst case bullshit scenario my crazy brain cooked up and the alley is going to be normal sized. -_-

>> No.9786426

>>9786405
that's how I feel as well. with the way they dropped the ball this year I wouldn't be surprised if they're doing some shady shit.

>> No.9786475

>>9786405
Someone was saying that they had to get fire marshal approval for something (most likely adding more tables in) before sending out the emails to people who sent in timestamp proof.

>> No.9786685

>>9786405
>>9786426
>>9786475
They emailed me to let me know they couldn't give me my exact seating requests because they're redoing the floor plan after approval from the fire marshal to add in everyone from the timestamp fiasco. I'm not looking forward to how much bigger this AA might be.

>> No.9786732

>>9786685
>>>9786405 (You)
>>>9786426
>>>9786475
ugh, my worst fears are seeming validated. this is going to make the whole alley suffer. great.

>> No.9786761
File: 53 KB, 580x329, AA.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9786761

Wait. WHAT. People feel BAD for getting into AAs now? Oooooooooooooo fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck them. I can see it now.

>>Twitter Post: Oh man, guys I'm so not worthy. I mean, thanks so much, but really, I'm not that good. I really hope everyone can get in next year.

>>All the replies: OMG, NO YOU ARE AMAZING. Can I plllllease suck your super humble dick? Can that giant thing please choke me as I pay you $20 for your bootleg fan art of FOTM characters that I love?

Fuck everyone. Get AAs shut down. For real.

>> No.9786780

What do you do when you discover another artist has already done a really similar idea to something you've already committed a decent amount of time to?
Maybe I'm paranoid about being called out for art/intellectual theft, but this really sucks.

>> No.9786782

>>9786761
Imagine being this stupid.

>> No.9786790

>>9786782
Shh, don't feed the troll.

>>9786780
That really depends on what the concept is! It really sucks when you notice it after the fact but are there things you can do to differentiate your idea? How different is your art style from that artists'?

For example, let's say an artist did tarot-card themed keychains for a fandom. If this was say something like Persona - it wouldn't matter if you also did tarot-themed keychains for the same fandom as tarot cards are an integral part of the game's aesthetic. But if the original artist did tarot keychains for a completely different piece of media and you were also thinking about doing the same for the same fandom, you could switch it up enough to be different from the other artist. For example if they did fullbody, you could do portrait busts, etc etc all while keeping to the theme you originally wanted.

If it's the case of similar poses - ask yourself if it's something that's already present within the work itself. (Sailor Moon's victory pose, Saitama punching, etc) If so then feel free to make your own version as they're all takes of the same iconic pose. But if it's something a little more loose/open to interpretation, I'd try a different composition so I wouldn't get accused of copying.

>> No.9786836

>>9786790
It's not fandom or character specific but rather a really unfortunately similar theme/item.
I just logged into Twitter for the first time in months to see that someone I follow RTed another artist who did a crane-machine charm after I finally sent in my designs of a similar thing (different art style obviously, as well as different prizes).
I spent a lot of time thinking of unique ways to make charms, and now I just feel like I heard the news a week late.

>> No.9786876

>>9786836

As long as you genuinely didn't copy them, it'll show. The art would be completely different. People can't claim ownership of general concepts like that. If they do try to start shit, just be honest and say it's coincidence, and leave it at that.

>> No.9786881

>>9786836
I've seen a bunch of crane machine themed stuff, I wouldn't worry about it. But in future I would always post early WIPs and sketches just so there's solid proof you came up with the idea longer ago, that's my paranoid ass though

>> No.9786900

>>9786881
NYART but sometimes I'm too afraid to post WIPs in case someone else sees mine and decides to make something similar before I finish.

>> No.9786915

Is Acorn Press still alive?

Wondering since I did an order with them a while back and loved the charms, but this was before the whole shit storm with them happened. They haven't updated their tumblr since...

>> No.9786917

>>9786900
Yeah, I don't post WIPs for this reason (and also because I'm chicken shit when it comes to putting myself out there with incomplete work) but I guess it's a good habit to get into.
>>9786876
Hopefully you're right. The art is very different, I just feel deflated and nervous I guess.

>> No.9786921

>>9786915
Search twitter for acorn press, there are a bunch of recent complaints within the last month about them still having deadline and communication issues. I'd love to use them again, but I don't think I can handle it a second time.

>> No.9786972

>>9786780
This actually JUST happened to me, but like other's said i knew my style and execution was extremely different even if the ideas the same. As a bonus, i was an acquaintance with the other artist so I ran it by them just in case and they agreed and appreciated my message in case any non artists start stupid drama.

So in conclusion, you do you. Unless both of you are very generic artists, there's almost no way it would be the same especially now you know what to avoid.

>> No.9787055

How do you guys handle customers with "annoying" questions/comments? I just saw an AA apparel vendor on Twitter respond pretty rudely to a customer who made an innocuous comment about their fandom-themed hats.

Not sure if they meant to be publicly dismissive of their customer base when they could have just stated that they do custom orders if the customer wanted something changed and left it at that.

>> No.9787066

>>9786780
I had this happen with a fan piece. Another artist and I were selling similar parody piece at the same con. Another artist mentioned it and I really didn't sweat it because it's a commonly done idea. I figured unless our art was super close in style most people would figure we just got the same idea.

>> No.9787073

>>9786780
Do it better than them. My biggest pet peeve is ‘ no idea is original ‘ which apparently can excuse people’s shitty excuse to not come up other ideas.

>> No.9787090

>>9787055

Personally, I try very hard to remember that the person is most likely not trying to be an asshole, they probably just did not see the dozen other times I answered the same question already, and that me being shitty to them as part of my clear public de-evolution into an animal with no desire to function in human society anymore due to the amount of dumb shit I have to answer on a daily basis will not be apparent to them through this single interaction, and they will form a permanent negative opinion of me as a result.

I try very very hard.

>> No.9787211

This "artist" started popping up on my IG search and this person sells official anime art on his "hypebeast brand" stickers and clothing. Is there a way to quietly report him to cons?

>> No.9787251
File: 58 KB, 598x487, j f c.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9787251

>>9787055
Is this what you're talking about

>> No.9787314

>>9787251
Yikes.

>> No.9787318

>>9787251
Sounds like they have a typical mansplainer operating their twitter account sadly

>> No.9787330

>>9787251
Thats a massive over reaction.

>> No.9787341

How do you feel about people using kickstarters to fund a project such as pins or charms vs using a storefront to accept pre-orders?

>> No.9787345

>>9787341
Personally I find it very off putting when they're based on exisiting IP.

>> No.9787387

>>9787318
The owner is a girl but everyone’s right in that she overreacted really badly. Seeing this and other shady shit people have mentioned about her in these threads makes me cringe whenever I see her shitty hats at cons.

>> No.9787398

>>9787387
Who's the owner?
I feel bad for admitting this but I think I've had arsenic and animetrashswag mixed up for years....

>> No.9787440

>>9787251
I actually considered a print like this (The wrong names for everyone in BNHA) so if someone said this to me i'd just explain the joke to them. That is already embarrassing enough for most poeple, rubbing it in with "why would it make more sense?" is a one step too snarky.

>> No.9787452

>>9787440
Actually i went to check the actual item and now I don't even think the asker was that out of line, each hat will be seen alone no one will get the on going joke. In this case I would have just explained the reasoning and say maybe i'll do froppy in the future (which is how to handle any kind of merch suggestion), the "joke" wasn't apparent in the first place.

>> No.9787514

>>9787398
Some girl named Rei? If you check the /cgl/ archives, her and her brand has been brought up multiple times before. When she first started her hats she tried to claim ATS gave her “permission” or something? I remember some anon asking ATS about it and finding out she lied.

>> No.9787534

>>9787452
She does custom-made hats. A fantastic way to have dealt with the situation would have just been:

>We decided to go with Froggy to keep with the theme of the other hats, but if you're interested in the Froppy hats, then feel free to message us about a custom order!

But no instead she had to go and be a jackass about it

>> No.9788009

pretty sure they're just trying to avoid copyright and don't want to admit that.

>> No.9788029

As a non-American who wants to start doing American cons, will I be losing a good number of sales if I don't take credit card payments at my table? Is it worth looking into?

>> No.9788053

>>9788029
Just get Square

>> No.9788059

>>9788053
Square only works in the country you sign up in. For them to process American cards you need a US mailing address and SSN, neither of which Canadian anon has, probably

>> No.9788068

>>9788029
How do you even plan to get a sales permit?

>> No.9788079

>>9788068
...by applying for one

>> No.9788095

>>9788029
yes. I was once at a con where the credit card processing service went down for an entire day and I lost a few sales.

>> No.9788104

>>9788079
Without a SSN or employee number?

>> No.9788107

>>9788104
If you're outside of the US you can use other forms of ID. The CA seller's permit application wouldn't allow you to choose any country as your home address if this weren't the case.

>> No.9788153

>>9788029
Depending on where you hail from, look into SumUp. I travel all over Europe with it and it looks like they're in the US as well.
If they don't have a good discount going on atm, see if you can get a referral from someone. You shouldn't pay more than 40 bucks for the reader.

>> No.9788428

>>9787341

I think it's a smart business decision, fandom related or not. KS advertising doubled my profits the last time I ran one vs if I would've just ran it through my shop and usual advertising means.

>> No.9788546

>>9787341
as a consumer I've come to have a distrust of kickstarters because I've heard of so many of them being scams and taking forever.. I'd rather buy preorders through a storefront, at least that way I have a general timeframe.

>>9788029
Yes. Get a CC reader for sure. Maybe ask an American friend you trust to help you with it and set it up.

>> No.9788554

>>9787341
Kickstarters are a smart idea because the start up and production costs of stuff like enamel pins can be pretty high. So at least with a kick starter you get a goid feel for if people want your product along with the production costs covered. I'd rather see a failed kickstarter then somebody dump all their money into something and it sell like shit.

>> No.9788572

>>9788546
As a consumer I treat most Kickstarters like gambling. I don't expect to get anything back for my investment, but if I do I'm going to be surprised and happy.

>> No.9788575

>>9788029
Some people I know resort to Paypal. I don't know if that's normal practice or not though. Aren't there fees?

>> No.9788595

>>9787514
I asked her about it a long time ago when she started selling the hats and posted them on AANI (she's since deleted the post though, and I didn't think to save caps). When I asked her about the similarity to ATS, she said it was kinda influenced by them, but that the idea wasn't even that original anyway and that it's already common in Asian fashion. When I asked ATS, they sounded pretty frustrated, mentioning that they knew about AxC but that there really wasn't much they could do.

At this point, the two sellers have diversified their inventory so it doesn't really matter. AxC still a bigger bitch, though

>> No.9788606

>>9787341
idk if anyone else feels this way but i generally only like kickstarters when they stick to the original concept of funding a novel idea that solves a problem / fills a niche that can't get funded through traditional investor means and not a way to pay your business costs. pin kickstarters seem like wow, you can't even save up $150 to get this made? same with kickstarters for people to buy artist alley tables or something, it's just tacky to me.

>> No.9788700

>>9788606
this is how i feel lol. while it's totally reasonable from the seller's side (not paying out of pocket for a product you're not 100% from sell), as a buyer, it lowers my opinion of the artist. you're making the buyer take on the risks and costs of production because you can't be bothered to save it up yourself, or, even more sketchy, can't actually afford this $150 or whatever product without funding? (If you can't afford it and you end up short on funds or there's trouble with the company, you won't be able to cover any extra yourself.)

as someone who's both a creator and customer, i feel like kickstarters communicate to the customer that you can't be assed to take the full risk required to be a merchandise creator and you want the customer to handhold you through the process. as a creator i know that's not the case, but as a customer that's how it feels ... and if a customer feels that way, they're going to be turned off from buying from you in the future.

tl;dr kickstarters may be successful but your rep takes a big hit, especially since i've seen similar sentiments expressed around various customer bases. if you're a big enough artist it won't matter if you lose some buyers, but if you're smaller i'd suggest against it (also if you're smaller, running a successful kickstarter would be much harder)

>> No.9788701

>>9788606
I can understand pin kickstarters especially when they want to get a lot of designs made, those mold fees and 100 pcs add up, but kickstarters for funding artist alley tables?? At most those tables should be like $250 tops

>> No.9788702

>>9788700
*not 100% sure will sell

also in case it weren't obvious, i'm still referring to kickstarters that are basically preorders for enamel pins or other common merchandise that most creators can cover the cost of themselves. i'm obviously not talking about normal things that benefit from crowdfunding or can only happen through crowdfunding.

>> No.9788826

>>9788595
Given that this is what she said when people pointed out the similarities, it’s hilarious that now she accuses any acrylic hat vendor of “bootlegging” her merchandise. She gets pissed at that one kpop booth that’s been doing acrylic hats for longer than her and at last Fanime she tried to get people to report other acrylic booths to the con for copying her.

>> No.9788952

>>9787251
Shit, offtopic but, I bought a hat from this girl. And the hat said SHOTA. Thinking about it now, this was a impulse buy and I'm a weeb shit but how much would this word trigger you.

I got some shit online recently from SJWs for using it to describe things. Thoughts on wearing this hat to anime cons?

>> No.9788958

>>9788952
I'm sure a billion different things trigger SJWs at anime cons. They're not going to harass you for it irl (I did have someone complain at my table for contributing to the sexualization of women before though so idk).

If your personal circle doesn't care/the people you want to make friends with don't care, then you should be totally fine at a con. It's not nearly as problematic as the "loli bitch" or "shota shit" shirts with actual drawings, or like actual shota porn that people have on hand at cons.

>> No.9789030

>>9788952
You’re going to an anime con. You’ll be fine. Being an oversensitive bitch about “sjws” makes you sound like an unpleasant person to be around though.

>> No.9789050

>>9788606
>>9788700
This is exactly how I feel about it. I kind of hate KS, gofundme, etc. in general, and think less of the people that ask for them in most cases, especially business ones (unless it's like what >>9788606 said, not your merch, machines etc). Business is kind of risky and it's a tacky move imo to have people fund your shit for you to make money for you instead of being going through the risks yourself.

>> No.9789177

>anons complaining about mansplaining
>"complaining about sjws makes you seem like an oversensitive bitch"

why the fuck are you guys even on 4chan?

>> No.9789223

>>9788952
The word shota took a hit a few years ago with the concept being linked to CP by the tumblr crowd, and now it's considered much more skeevy than it used to be. A friend of mine had to rebrand because her handle used the word shota because she made it back when that was the default word for the young/cute character archetype, and she was receiving a lot of flack for it.

If you're just attending and not running an event, you might get some eyebrow raises but I doubt anyone would say anything to you. If you're selling in AA or have an unrelated panel or something... I wouldn't, personally.

>> No.9789341

>>9789223
ditto this anon. if you're just an attendee, honestly don't worry about it. remember, anime cons is where people run around in hentai t-shirts and other socially unacceptable things, so you'll blend right in

if you're representing your art or your brand though, then yeah it's considered a creepy word due to misinformation/vendetta. i remember no one gave a fuck about the word shota until specifically when people wanted to discredit omocat's kickstarter and decided to use her shota shirt for some reason as opposed to anything else about her. tumblrites are idiots

>> No.9789501

>>9788958
>(I did have someone complain at my table for contributing to the sexualization of women before though so idk).
Story?

>> No.9789900

>>9789177
Because 4chan isn't some edgy 'omg so dark and crazy' place people thought it was in 2006, you fucking idiot. It's just an anonymous forum.

>> No.9790280

>>9788572
Yeah, that is a fair way of looking at it. Mostly, I was referring to how some kickstarters do receive full funding so you end up getting charged for it. But by getting charged, you are expecting a product by that point. There were a couple of kickstarters I've seen or that my friends have been in where they never saw any rewards. (example if anybody remembers Vensy?)

>> No.9790295

>>9790280
I have backed 43 kickstarters, and of those I'm still waiting on 11 for rewards. The ones I'm still waiting on I fully expect to never see a finished project on maybe half of them. It's a gambling game but it's one I'm willing to bet on because the pay off is the kind of innovation or
media I want to see more of in the world. But I mostly back for comic books and video games and technology - backing for something like enamel pins seems weird to me.

>> No.9790386

I'm making buttons for the first time and unfortunately a character with a darker complexion came out a lot lighter than expected.

What should I do with this set of character buttons? Sell them normally, at a discount, or not sell them at all? I'm afraid I'll get flack for trying to "whitewash" a character for a printing mistake.

>> No.9790415

>>9790386
contact the printer and reprint them ?

>> No.9790417

How was Katsu for everyone?

>> No.9790526

>>9790280
>vensy
deets?

>> No.9790681

>>9790417
v good, profits blew my mind

>> No.9790688

>>9790681
I keep hearing this ! I am so glad everyone is rolling in it! I wonder if this means a good year for AA or if Katsu is just an outlier AA heaven.

>> No.9790945

I feel like im just missing the right search terms, but I can’t finding a manufacturer for enamel rings like the style of Automatic Honey, but simpler. I could order the enamel pins and cut and dremel the backs but it’d be much nicer if they weren’t just glued on to ring backs and actually made that way.

The only thing I found on alibaba was extremely cheap and simple, I’m not looking for crazy design but just something nice to get as a ring or even an enamel pendant.

My fear is that I’d have to make the pins by scratch, which is beyond my little crafting space. No idea how to handle the metal either, besides wire.

>> No.9790961

>>9790681
was it better compared to last year or was it good because it was your first time getting in since the last aa jury head was ousted so actually good artists are finally making money?

>> No.9791102

>>9790681
Everyone I’ve talked to said it was worse than last year

>> No.9791111

I made less than last year, but only because a shipment of merch came in late and I sold out of everything. People were not hesitant to spend at all. It was still one of my top 5 cons in terms of sales - would have easily been #1 if I'd been fully stocked.

>> No.9791217

>>9790417
I beat my last year's gross sales from katsu, which was my previous record, by about $1500. It's always been a good con for me but the past two years have been especially ridiculously profitable. Felt like people were crawling over each other to fling money at me all weekend.

>> No.9791223
File: 55 KB, 1202x756, anger.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9791223

Can someone who's dealt with the texas sales tax id shit PLEASE tell me where I can find someone to hire and do my shit for me? I'm beyond frustrated with trying to figure out the comptroller site. There's no clear guide on how to get a temporary id number for a convention or craft show and google has failed me.

>> No.9791258

Anyone else having problem with usps shipping? I had one order take 4 weeks to get to Australia, with another STILL not there yet after almost 5 weeks. Another package going to Puerto Rico still hasn't arrived after almost a month. This stuff normally takes about 10 days.

>> No.9791387

>>9791258
Like 75% of Puerto Rico still has no power. Depending on the region, they might not have postal service unless it's a PO box.

>> No.9791398

>>9791387
meh, I sent something in December and it got there just fine.

>> No.9791403

>>9791258

The USPS is in a constant decline, you can't count on any past experience to be the norm anymore because each day they get more terrible. They charge five times as much for int'l shipping than they did five years ago and it's about five times worse also.

>> No.9791459

>>9790526
Just that she did a kickstarter promising things and never went through with it after delaying it. Don't really remember the details, just that people were asking about updates and she never delivered on them. That's like a ton of kickstarters though. People just run off with the money while posting fake updates on things.

>> No.9791609

>>9791258
Packages coming in AND out have been taking 1-3 days longer this year, regardless of the method. It's shit.

>> No.9791612

>>9790961
better compared to last year, but I think it's more of a personal thing since I have way more stuff this time around and improved a bit too. But you're right, I did notice the quality of the AA this year was so much better than last year's, I actually wanted to get other people's stuff

>>9791102
oh, well that sucks for them, sorry to hear. I thought the general opinion of katsu AA this year was pretty good, according to the artists I know

>> No.9791617

>>9791223
There is no 'temporary' one available for Texas.

>> No.9791645

>>9791609
Noticed this too! Last year a good majority of my packages made it in about 3 days no matter how far the recipient was from me, now they take like 3 days to get to the processing facility...-_- I seriously don't understand what it is they need an annual rate increase for, and how the heck they can get so much worse with such little change to stimulate it.

>> No.9791703

>>9791645
>>9791609
>>9791258
Have some family friends who work with USPS who told me this, and I trust them, although I'm sure there are other factors. Basically USPS cannot handle the amount of mail it receives in the time it's supposed to.
Normally this was only really an issue around Christmas, but then with the advent of online shopping, things started to change. The Amazon contract they picked up a few years ago is what's supposedly doing them in now. It's why there have been so many stories about USPS falsely claiming Amazon packages were delivered on time when they weren't.

Personally even things like Priority seem to be taking at least twice as long to get to me. Even a letter I sent took over a week to travel in-state, when that same delivery used to take 2-3 days tops.

Sage for OT.

>> No.9791801

>>9791645
>>9791703
But that's been the case for years- everyone knows the immense loss USPS operates at. It doesn't really explain why it's been a sudden drop-off this month across the board. But I guess if it's really this concerted effort by USPS on the whole, it makes sense that all carriers are pulling the same shit.
I'm just glad I'm not the only one, I live in an area with notoriously bad mail so I just assumed my carrier was giving up completely.

>> No.9791914

>>9791801
It's become way worse, is what I'm getting at. The issues with undelivered packages that were "delivered" is a relatively recent phenomenon, and their load continues to increase exponentially. Workers in my area were working like 70 hour weeks before and after the holiday season trying to deliver everything, and the backlog supposedly took my local office over two weeks to totally deliver. Obviously during that time more shit piled up. I ordered new shoes, shipped through USPS. Order was processed Jan 6, shipped the 9th, and didn't get to me until the 22nd. The package sat around in a USPS sorting facility for way too long, then slowly traveled to me and sat in my post for almost a week.

I fucking hate USPS.

>> No.9791916

>>9791612
My theory is that since Katsu is such a big cosplay con, the crowd leans more female and artistically inclined, and tends to favor illustrative/aesthetic artists over those whose work is more traditional pure anime. This conclusion is based on my own experience and a small pool of other artists I talked to, so I could be totally wrong, but it makes sense to me.

>> No.9792264
File: 1020 KB, 500x281, wtf chase.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9792264

I don't want to associate with 4chan on my social media accounts because of its extremely poor reputation. However, I cannot stress how important this place has been in motivating me to pick up a pencil again, teaching me the best ways to improve, and the kindness I've received from artists who took the time out of their day to critique my work and show me the proper way in /ic/'s /beg/ threads.

How do you go about this? Do you vaguely refer to this place ("someone told me", "I heard through the grapevine that", etc.), not mention it at all, or clearly state your connection to 4chan?

>> No.9792285

>>9792264
>I don't want to associate with 4chan on my social media accounts because of its extremely poor reputation.

Do it anyways. I don't understand this board's fear of mentioning /cgl/. I tell everyone that I frequent this board and have even posted about it on social media. I've never had any negative comments other than people asking what is was, and I tell them its the cosplay and lolita section of 4chan.

>> No.9792287

>>9792264

My experience with 4chan is that you can feel embraced right up to about the point you drop anon, and then it kinda turns to shit. If I were you I would just reference critique threads/sessions and leave it at that.

>> No.9792295

>>9792285

They're talking about /ic/, which is not a terrible board, but not as innocent as /cgll. They regularly have drawporn threads.

>> No.9792374

What is a good taobao agent to use when getting custom made items? I was thinking of Buynosaur since they have supposedly good English but I've also heard they are pretty slow.

>> No.9792390
File: 181 KB, 1280x1280, 1510500097294.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9792390

>>9792295
>/ic/
>not a terrible board

I mean there's probably 3 or 4 good threads that pop up but for the most part it's pretty shit, the shitposting gets old really fast

>> No.9792504

>>9792264
If I’ve been talking to someone a decent amount I can usually tell if they’re going to be put off by mentioning 4chan. If I read them wrong, I’ll just explain that I just visit the cosplay and conventions board. It’s usually fine, but I haven’t really talked about it to anyone new since the elections and increase in alt right dumbasses on here so ymmv.

>> No.9792637

bubble wrapped my charms and paid extra for large package shipping and usps shattered 12/20 of them.
I'm losing my mind, is it worth using a different service like UPS or should i just stop offering goods outside of cons because, coupled with the inflated shipping costs, USPS is fucking me over this year big time.

>> No.9792714

how quick has everyones vograce shipping been (I'm canadian, but i expect US times are similar)? I've got a couple spring cons coming up and while it's not the end of the world if the order doesn't arrive in time for the first one, it would still be nice to not have to shell out an arm and a leg for zap and still manage new charms.

>> No.9792729

>>9792637
UPS is slightly more to much more expensive depending on the items, but the service is better.
Do you sell your charms with any sort of paper backing? And were they all individually bubble wrapped?

>> No.9792734

>>9792714
I can usually get my keychains in about a month to Toronto, from sending artwork to having them in my hands. I go with DHL because it's the fastest (maybe a week max?) and most reliable but the customs does suck.

Just make sure to let vograce know your deadlines and they're pretty good about getting it done.

>> No.9792784

>>9792637
Please don’t tell us your shipped in an envelope instead of a sturdy box....

>> No.9792824

>>9792637
>>9792784
I don't think a box is necessary. I ship my acrylic charms via USPS First Class in small bubble mailers with additional bubble wrap, as well as a piece of cardboard wrapped with the charm- I've only had one break in my many years of shipping charms, and it was one I forgot to insert the cardboard into. Idk what anon means by "large package shipping" since I never pay more than $3~4 for my charm orders to ship.

>> No.9792896

>>9792784
I never ship with a box, I use bubble envelope + bubble wrap (2 charms per wrap at most, so an order with 6 charms gets 3 wraps) and i've only had like.. 2 or 3 charms break over thousands of sales. No cardboard. >>9792637 has a weird situation, are they particularly big or something? I have 1.5 from inkit and they would never shatter like that, but maybe yours are larger and need a box or more protection?

>> No.9792942

Does anyone have advice on making backing cards for pins? I used Zap before and had them make the cards for me, but I plan on making pins from other suppliers. I'm debating on either printing and cutting the backing cards myself or maybe getting them custom printed from Catprint or other printers.

>> No.9792961

>>9792942
I got mine through catprint using their custom sizing. Depending on your pin size, you could also just use a business card printing service. Cutting them yourself isn’t really worth the trouble.

>> No.9793017

>>9792390

Clearly you weren't on /b/ when caturday stopped being a thing because trolls would come in and dump cat gore. Clearly you have not been to the boards where anons greentext stories of fucking their family members. /ic/ is bad but not terrible. I've had decent interactions with anons there, which is difficult to say about most boards on this hell website.

>> No.9793081

>>9792264
While I don't publically post anything about 4chan at random, if it comes up in conversation I'm pretty open about which threads I go on in 4chan and what I do. If you're not doing anything sketchy, there's nothing to hide.

>> No.9793083

>>9787251
Side note though, I don't think this artist is a native English speaker, and tone is hard to convey over text. It may just be a case of over-explaining plus not knowing the language enough for nuance

>> No.9793095
File: 333 KB, 503x908, arsenicxcyanide.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9793095

>>9793083
This person is Asian-American. They speak English just fine. It's just a case of them being an asshole.

>> No.9793110
File: 6 KB, 261x142, 1490929608743.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9793110

>>9793017
There's no need to go so hard anon, I stick to /ic/ and /cgl/ for a reason.
Bad or terrible it's all still annoying and I can understand why that anon didn't really want to associate with it

>> No.9793273

>>9792637
I worked in a fedex warehouse for a year, and, sorry, but 99.99% of things that break are due to the shipper having no clue how packaging works.

>> No.9793609

Long wall ahead, but I have a few questions pertaining selling (specifically to Texas cons). I’m a Japanese citizen who used to live in America w a green card, and am living in Japan atm. At the moment, my green card is still valid and I can do business in the states as usual. This can continue till around 2021, since I can apply for a reentry permit (green cards become invalid if you’re out of the country for...a year? I believe. But this can be waived for up to two years with a reentry permit, and you can apply for said permit more than once). Unfortunately my green card expires in 2021 and I’m still on the fence about renewing it, and that would mean I need to get a business visa for selling in the states. I checked how getting a b1/b2 visa is like, and honestly it’s really confusing :( I need proof I’m going for business, but that proof needs to be from an employer? But artist alley means I’m self employed, right? Unless I’m getting everything mixed up (if anyone has applied for a visa to sell in the states, advice is greatly appreciated as well).
I currently have an active green card, SSN, Texas tax ID, bank account, phone number (kinda, it’s my moms) and address in the states, as well as a sibling that will most likely naturalize and remain in states. I’m also low key worried my ssn (and tax id?) will become invalidated when my greencard expires, and force close my bank account. Maybe this is the wrong thread, but I’m really at a loss and don’t know where to start, and not sure if this is a serious enough question to email govt agencies (or if I’ll be taken seriously). Also it’s really hard to find ppl in the same boat as me....

>> No.9793624

>>9793609
Well if you don’t want to stay in America, then go back to where you came from and dont worry about it.

>> No.9793635

>>9793624
I mean...sorry I enjoy American cons and selling at them I guess

>> No.9793644

>>9793609
Get married.

>> No.9793710

>>9793609
Talk to an immigration/business lawyer about it - they'll know best. I have a green card too and plan on naturalizing this year. You can also see what Canadian artists do about it because there's a fair number of them that do U.S. cons.

>> No.9793966

>>9793635
don't feed the troll friend.

>>9793710
But in all honesty, this. Your best bet is to talk to an immigration lawyer, even if anons on /cgl/ have experience or well-meaning advice, we aren't lawyers and you don't want to get fucked by some misinformation.

>> No.9794170

>>9793609
I hope you get this figured out, but I really don't think this is the best place to get the answers you need!

>> No.9794352

>>9793710
>You can also see what Canadian artists do about it because there's a fair number of them that do U.S. cons

As an American who has tried looking into selling at Canadian cons, all I have learned is that most of them cheat and do it illegally. Almost all the advice I found was "get a canadian/american on the other side of the border to ship your merch to and let them handle the money then say you are going for vacation when you cross the border" like, it is crazy. Alternatively I've heard of people picking up work visas at the airport/border when they come in and I can't even imagine having to do something so stressful while traveling in for an event. But so far nothing about applying and getting set up online before you travel so you can be sure you're going to actually be able to sell at the event before traveling to it.

>> No.9794367

>>9792264
Depends on the person I’m talking to. Personally, I won’t hide it but I also will not specify unless asked to. I’m pretty good at speaking in a roundabout way, so instead of saying “X told me Y”, I would say “I was told Y”.

>> No.9794443

>>9794352
Canadian here, can confirm a lot of artists I know from here cheat the system. It's very easy to do. Some don't even travel into the US, they just send their proxies to multiple cons.

>> No.9794451

>>9790945
Has anyone else ever made these? You don’t have to share your secrets but just curious

>> No.9794615

>>9793609
I don't have a good answer, but good luck anon!

>> No.9794660

>>9794443
Where do they hide all the cash when they travel back? I always assumed everyone had a US bank account, but clearly that isn't the case.

>> No.9794672

>>9794660
Paypal, and our banks exchange USD steady without actually using your account. So as long as you buy your groceries and shit in cash, and only make a few smaller deposits, you're pretty safe.

Personally, my girlfriend is american and we table together since we're both artists. It works really well, and its a way we get to see each other without border patrol/customs hassling us for spending any sizable amount of time together. And I don't have to ship anything down- she prints it herself and brings it with her, which is super helpful.

>> No.9794720

>>9794672
How does Paypal work in this case? Don't you need to deposit it straight into your bank account? I've been considering going for a while now but I could never figure out the cash part.

>> No.9794753

>>9794720
if you make sales at con through paypal[ vs using a card reader. You dont HAVE to deposit it to your bank account, many places like Zap and even airlines will allow you to pay for things with paypal.

>> No.9794793

>>9794753
I see. I still think the mass majority will choose to pay by cash though. That's where I wonder how you can transfer funds from the US.

>> No.9795427

>>9788029
A lot of my friends just borrow a well trusted US friend's Square account, charging extra for processing fees, etc (though it may mess with taxes if they're making a large sum of money but it's usually within just a few hundred so it's eh)

>> No.9795998
File: 20 KB, 353x355, 41zcCSZcaLL._SY355_.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9795998

I'm going to be doing a convention on Easter weekend and I thought it might be fun to sell easter eggs for $1 each, which have buttons inside, and other goodies like free print certificates (if they win they can pick out any print they want from the booth) and even a free commission maybe.

Has anyone ever done something like this? how did it go? (Not with eggs exactly) but how well to grab-bag type items do at your booth? Is it a smart idea to do?

>> No.9796009

>>9795998
Do you want to throw your profits down the drain?
I don't know what you charge for prints, but I sure as hell wouldn't sell an egg for $1 that has merch value of over $3.

>> No.9796039

>>9796009
I would obviously make it like, 1 in 10 eggs have a print voucher in it, then the buttons that are sold in there are clearance button designs that haven't sold well

>> No.9796080

>>9795998
$1 is way too cheap. At least charge production price per print, per egg. So if a print costs you $3 total to make including printing and shipping, then price your egg at that.

>>9796009 is right. You'd be sabotaging yourself at $1 per egg, even if you sell clearance items.

>> No.9796097

>>9796080
Would $2.50 or $3 be asking a lot?

>> No.9796255

>>9795998

If the buttons are already made, go for it. Selling at a loss when the product isn't moving otherwise is not a stupid thing, as other anons are saying. I had some merch that sat on my shelves for years because no one wanted to buy it. Finally just literally gave it away for free because it was just taking up space I could be using for other things. Sitting on it and hoping I could eventually move it for full price felt more shameful than just giving it away or selling it at steep discounts. The money was already spent.

Honestly I don't think people will buy a plastic egg grab bag for $3, the $1 price point would be much more appealing and probably net you more sales, particularly from the younger kids that parents are always dragging around at these cons. I find it unlikely you would sell out at $3 a piece, unless the con is extremely healthy and everyone's loose with their wallets.

>> No.9796292

>>9795998
>>9796255

do a happy medium: $2 each or 3 for $5 (if anyone wants to up their chances at a print coupon or if a group of friends wants to get them). i agree with the anon above that if the product is already created and isn't selling, making $1-2 on it is better than 0.

>> No.9796365

Ya'll are probably gonna call me stupid for this (cuz I am)

But what is the chance of wrestling into a spot after accidentally missing the payment deadline for a table?

I got into a con for the first time and was really excited, but I misread the payment deadline and thought I had enough time to wait for my next paycheck to pay for it. I was wrong and it was 2 days before when I thought it was and now I am beating myself up over it for missing the deadline.

I emailed the head of the artist alley and have yet to hear back but the response wait is killing me.

I know I now deserve no right over all the eager artists on the waitlist, but I really hope it is possible.

Either way, I am just very disappointed in myself for not being more thorough. Had a lot of plans for stuff and I don't know how to break it to my tablemate that it's my fault we didn't get it.

I know 4chan isn't the place for pity but I don't know any other anonymous artist alley communities online who might actually have experience about this kinda thing.

Have any of you ever went through something similar?

>> No.9796377

>>9796365
If you cant afford the table, you dont deserve the spot anon.

>> No.9796381

>>9796377
I could afford it np when I got in.

I just thought it'd be nice to have the buffer money.

But you're right, stupid to not pay for it immediately if I really wanted it.

>> No.9796384

>>9796365
I think it really depends on how large the con is and how many applicants they had. Is it a large in-demand AA?

>> No.9796386

>>9796384
attendance about 14,000 I think

>> No.9796428

>>9796365
Chances are pretty low. Especially if it’s a popular con and they have a long waitlist.

>> No.9796484

>>9796381
The most expensive AA table I've seen wasn't even $400. You are a grown adult. You need to not be living paycheck to paycheck like this. This isn't even about not being able to afford AA. What if you get in an accident? How are you even functioning living like this?

>> No.9796487

>>9796365
It depends on the con, what con is it?

>> No.9796494

>>9796487
AnimeNEXT

>> No.9796506

>>9796484
NAYRT - As nice as it would be to not live paycheck to paycheck, when you're working minimum wage it's not always possible. I didn't start AA until after I already had a full time salaried career elsewhere and could afford a couple thousand dollars in start up capital, but I routinely front the table cost & hotel down payment for my table partner. She's always good for it post con and actually makes more than I do, but her paychecks and profits go fast to medical bills.

AA is a business and to engage in it responsibly means having money cushioning in the form of savings and credit lines, but I understand why that's a hard bar to craw up to. The vast majority of my friends working full time (psuedo, 38 hours with no FT benefits) retail or food service have less than $500 in the bank at any given time and for the most part that's not due to financial irresponsibility, it's due to $7.25 not being a living wage. Add on to that any kind of chronic illness without insurance or student loans and you're fucked.

I've got a lot of sympathy for the plight after working at Walmart for four years before I graduated from college. It's a shit deal all around.

>> No.9796507

>>9796484
I agree. I don't feel bad for anon.

>> No.9796515

Guys, it's really not money that's the issue. I am not financially hurting and I watch my funds. Me waiting for the paycheck was more a kind of habit I developed from years of living cheaply.

The issue is more me making a shitty, easily avoidable mistake.

>> No.9796526

>>9796515
Next time set a calendar reminder on your phone for the due date that's set to display all day. Then even if you math out the days wrong, your phone will remember.

>> No.9796530

>>9796515
I feel sad for you but I don’t feel pity. You made a totally avoidable mistake and everyone’s done that before out of laziness, habit, incompetence, or ill will. I’ve never fucked up an AA table like that before. I guess it’s just live and learn. You seem mature enough to expect nothing from the organizers while also naturally hoping for the best. Either way you know something new.

>> No.9796532

>>9796526
Yes, I did this but got the deadline wrong so I went to go pay when my alarm went off and I was a day late.

This is good advice in general tho.

>> No.9796537

>>9796530
Yeah, that's the mood right now

>> No.9796540

>>9796532

Next time pay for the table immediately. Every artist I know who does AA pays for the table as soon as they're able, because a lot of the time you are not truly locked in until money has exchanged hands. Learn from this mistake and move on. They've more than likely already contacted waitlisters and offered up your space to someone else. Although some cons are slow about management stuff so there is a slim chance someone will take pity on you and let you pay, don't let it make you complacent next time. Always pay immediately.

>> No.9796545

>>9796532
As an AA head if you told me that in a matter of fact way that wasn't annoying, I'd let it slide and give you the table, mostly because adding someone from waitlist is more difficult than just taking your money 24 hours later. But we're habitually understaffed at my con so no idea what a different AA head would do.

>> No.9796571

>>9796494
NAYRT but I was going to ask if it was ANEXT. I’m on the waitlist so I’m lowkey glad that there may be openings but that seriously sucks. I hope they at least respond to you soon. Most bigger cons are pretty strict about deadlines, next time just triple check dates and definitely follow the convention social media, they tend to post about deadlines multiple times.

>> No.9796580

>>9796571
Lol, small world

Well I hope if it's not to me, it's to some other gull!

>> No.9796581

>>9796580
I know a few other gulls waiting too, maybe we’ll get lucky! Seriously tho I hope they try to help you out, the staff last year seemed pretty nice. Try messaging their Facebook page if they’re unresponsive by email, good luck!

>> No.9796703

>>9788029
I've noticed that a lot of canadian artists tend to add a credit card fee to any purchase

>>9787341
Kickstarter also has a section for certain kinds of projects so it's free advertising too. I know that this works well for comics as I've sometimes browsed the comics or anthology section when I'm bored. Storefronts tend to not show preorder amounts & get erased, while kickstarter shows your "success" history. Artists who don't do preorders for enamel pins on Etsy or something might be losing more money via KS fees ~8-10%? (5% taken by KS + 3-5% taken by Amazon payments)

>> No.9796823
File: 160 KB, 378x402, 1483111214554.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9796823

Quick question (I cant seem to find anything about it in the OP). Does anyone have recommended places for making washitape? also preferably maybe 50pc minimum order. Thanks in advance!

>> No.9796830

>>9796365
It honestly depends on the con. The bigger the con the less they need you. I've sent my payment in 2 weeks late for a small con, and they still let me vend.

>> No.9796847

>>9796080
>$1 is way too cheap. At least charge production price per print
>So if a print costs you $3 total to make including printing and shipping

Anon I know you're just throwing out numbers and I do agree that their original pricing is far too cheap, but if you're paying $1 or more, much less $3, for the production and shipping of a print, then you need to find new sources like asap.

>> No.9796849

Fanime pls just let me pay for my table already
I want to go to your stupidly unorganized con and make stupid amounts of money

>> No.9796851

>>9796849
Hey, the upside of it being unorganized is they dont put AA in the tent again and triple the number of AA tables. Be glad for all of those of us that complained years ago.

>> No.9796978

>>9796506
what is a credit card?

>> No.9797003

Akon acceptances when...seriously flights are starting to get expensive for that weekend.

>> No.9797147

>>9796847
Yeah, just throwing numbers out. Thanks for the concern tho anon.

>> No.9797207

>>9796506
I completely understand, but AA is not something you need to be concerned about if you're living your life like this. Start with an online store if you really want to sell your artwork.

>> No.9797209

Wait, when did ANext even send out acceptances? I haven't gotten any sort of waitlist or rejection email.

>> No.9797255

>>9797209
They aren't sending out rejection/waitlist emails, the payment deadline was the 23rd. They'll be sending out a second round sometime soon. Their facebook has more info iirc

>> No.9797270

>>9797255
Thank you! Would be nice not to have to track down every social media account of a con to get basic info, but here we are. Crossing my fingers...

>> No.9797297

>>9797003
Yell at them if they're not out on March 1st, it was on the application that that'd be when they post results.

>> No.9797299

Do you guys think it's worth it to fly out for ANext?
I'm in California and flights+hotel are pretty pricey

>> No.9797307

>>9797297
Sweet, will do!

>>9797299
I had a half table last year and made about 2-3k net. I had a ton of charms, buttons, and stickers (some prints), mostly video game related if that helps at all. A few friends said they didn’t do well though. It was my first year tabling though so ymmv.

>> No.9797482

>>9797299
I'd be hesitant to recommend flying... it's not terrible by any means, but it's on the lower end for me. I think I grossed about 2/3 my 2017 average last year. Nice location though.

>> No.9797560

>>9796292
Not the seller you replied to but I think your idea is a good balance.

>> No.9797699

>>9797307
A friend offered half a table actually! Charms and buttons would be my main merch as well, I tried looking for some reviews and AANI had some people say it was okay but not great. I think I'll turn it down maybe next year if I can snag a full table

>>9797482
I saw a lot of people say it's worth it locally. Good to know it's more on the lower end profit wise, with the attendance numbers I'd expect it to be okay.

>> No.9797766
File: 1.06 MB, 1920x1920, IMG_20160827_114114.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9797766

>>9795998
Man, I've been doing the egg thing since 2009.
Lemme help you out-

$1 per egg is what most people will pay if they're just eggs. If you have shapes (cupcakes, pandas, chickens, etc) you can charge $2 or $3

Speaking of shaped eggs, theme that shit out. Get white eggs and red/blue sharpies-Now you got Togepi eggs and Professor Birch's mystery egg. Get some chickens, now you got a Chocobo ranch. Get some cupcake shaped ones for a decora or loli table.

The print vouchers/prize tickets? Put them in WITH a button. You'll get smartass kids blocking your table to shake 30 eggs looking for that ticket (btw get the money first, always, before they start shaking) Stab the prize ticket through the pin on the back so it still sounds like a button rattling around in there.

Eggs pop open in the bowl/bucket. You can tape them closed, but you'll get a better reaction if you use some kawaii af stickers to keep them closed. Because, hey, free sticker! It works. You'll also get smartass kids popping eggs open 'accidentally on purpose' without paying.

>> No.9797853
File: 2.17 MB, 2560x1920, IMG_20161119_174850.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9797853

>>9797766
Continued

Keep the prize tickets/tear them up. There's always that one guy who thinks he's clever who'll come back 2-3 times with the same ticket to keep getting free stuff.

Keep track of what you're giving away. I keep a separate box of 'egg prizes' under the table to pull from. Better for inventory.

Don't spend money on the prizes. Use deadstock or items that have been shelf-warming and taking up overhead. Use those C-grade enamel pins or charms that are printed a bit off-center.

Eggs are cheaper online. Orientaltrading.com is your friend for display supplies and buying 2000 eggs at a time.

>> No.9797890

>>9795998
riding on the advice of >>9797766

if you're putting multiple fandom items in the eggs. I had a better time selling my mystery eggs when I hinted at maybe 2/5 series in the egg. (I put a label on the egg that said "kill la kill/assassins creed/?/?/?") I used that label with to help keep the egg closed.

Customers felt like they had a better chance getting something they liked and were more inclined to buy.

>> No.9797956
File: 257 KB, 523x527, 1511317174410.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9797956

Question since I'm interested in starting AA type stuff,
how many of you have full time jobs? How do you balance keeping up with your artwork and/or commissions without burning out on either end?
I work closing as a vet tech so I basically go to work and then stay up all night and draw, but if I get sick or get in a rut of feeling too tired to stay up and draw I end up not drawing for a couple days and feel like a failure. How do you do it?

>> No.9797958

Anyone know if Crunchyroll Expo is worth it for those out of state?

>> No.9798020

>>9797956
It's okay to not draw for a couple days. It's totally normal to go through waves of artistic productivity followed by slumps. Your brain can't be at 100% all the time.

To answer your question more directly, I recommend looking at your commissions and asking yourself if you really need to be offering them at all. I know it's satisfying to get paid for your art, but if you're making enough to live on from your day job, my advice is to save all your drawing energy for your own work that you're really passionate about. That's the work that will take you places.

>> No.9798029

What cons are you guys waiting for apps to go up for?
Personally I’m waiting on otakuthon, youmacon, kumoricon and daishocon.

Also does anyone on here do any December cons? Are any of them worth it becouse I’ve had nothing but bad experiences personally.

>> No.9798032

>>9798029
>Also does anyone on here do any December cons?
Yama-con is OK. Its smallish, but is in a fun/interesting place and has extremely cheap hotels and free parking.

>> No.9798038

>>9797956
If you have a full time job, treat AA as a hobby. Don’t feel like you have to put out finished pieces constantly (so you avoid burnout), work at your own pace with reasonable goals. It may take you a year or more to put together a full table of merch, but at least you won’t be exhausted. Also if you want to start sooner, find cheap local cons to test the waters so even if you don’t have a full table of merch, your break even point is very low.

I had to shift over to this mindset after getting a ft job because I was getting so tired balancing it all.

>> No.9798046

>>9797956
Fellow vet tech but working at an aquarium because more $$, less sads. Basically same as you. I use my days off wisely, and try not to force myself to finish something each night- it's a real fast way to burn yourself out. I sometimes go a week or so without drawing if I'm having a hard week at work. You can't effectively sell shit, or draw your best, if you're already exhausted. Be gentle with yourself.

I'm lucky that my workplace encourages me to do both my passions, art and work with animals, so they don't mind me taking 4 days off every few months or so to go sell my stuff at cons. They even said they'd be happy to keep me part time and only a few days a week if my art picked up even more. So, talk to your clinic. Would you be alright supporting yourself part time? Can you afford the days off for tabling at cons?

>> No.9798123

>>9797958
How about you not be lazy and check the archive from last year when we said how we did?

>> No.9798128

>>9797958
No

>> No.9798225

Hey, anon here from the last thread who talked about a con costing $750+ with my dad paying for it all.

It was terrible. No one came. They had around 200 artists. It got to the point where people were doing $1-$3 commissions...everyone looked bored and miserable. People were watching anime on their phones at the tables. People were playing their 3DS. The only people buying were the other artists from one another.

I made a total of $59 and the table itself was $60. I didn't hear of anyone who made it back. The worst part was that it was in a highly populated city, yet there were more people attending "cons" in my farmland county bumpkin area on 1-day shows.

I feel absolutely horrible for my father spending around 900 total on this trip. It's made me want to give up, because I continue to not get into any real/big cons, if that is by jury or lottery. I've been trying for a year, and I'm tired of only being able to get into pieces of shit shows where I've never brought in more than $175 for 2 days.

I have a lot of stock left over consisting of everything from prints, stickers, pins, and acrylic charms. I really don't want to deal with making an online store bc nothing I have is over $10...and because I can't get to the post office easily from not being able to drive from medical/disability problems.

So what should I do with my stock? It feels like a big waste to throw it all. In the trash, but it's taking up a lot of space in two huge bins in my small apartment. I also don't have many friends/family who I can give it to.

>> No.9798232

>>9798225
>.and because I can't get to the post office easily from not being able to drive from medical/disability problems.
Maybe you could do preorders? That way you'd only have to make 1-2 trips rather than several.

>> No.9798236

>>9798225
Which con was this at anon?

>> No.9798238

>>9798225
You can just give your packaged orders to the postal workers that deliver mail to your house, anon. Just pay for the shipping online and print out the label at home. All you have to do is hand your packages off to them when they come to deliver your mail every day. I've done this a couple of times when I didn't want to go to the post office. And I have friends who leave outgoing orders in their mailbox with the flag up because they have jobs and can't take time out of their day to take things to the PO. You can even schedule USPS pickups through the website if you have a lot of items to send out.

>> No.9798242

>>9798232
Possibly. That is a good idea, thank you. It's just that most of my stuff is $3-$5...if I used etsy, I feel like getting $3/$5 print isn't worth the effort, especially because I'm not a big name, so I think my pre orders would probably only be about 3 people/month if I'm lucky?

Another thing I thought about doing is is marking everything down to $1 PLUS buy 1 get 1 free for my next (and final so far of this year) con..... But I'm afraid doing that with hurt the other artists there.

However next con is infamous for having only high school kids who don't want to spend over $3 because said con is a 1 day con at a high school.

>> No.9798250

>>9798238
I've tried... I live in a bad area. Even though it's farmland, the area I'm in is all section 8 (as I'm on it), and all the houses on this st are bad news (drug dealers, sex offenders, racists, etc.).

The marked package either doesn't move, disappears, or never makes it when I've personally asked the mail man to take it. Stuff goes missing and is vandalized all the time here.

>> No.9798258

>>9798225
I would really encourage you to open an online store. I have expensive merchandise listed, but my post popular items are buttons and charms which are priced at $5-12 USD. Selling charms online this month alone funded my cost expenses to table across the country. If you don't want the burden of self advertising, set up a storefront on etsy. People in the threads and discord frequently mention the traffic is worth the small listing fee. And like >>9798238 said, you can schedule pick ups from USPS if you are unable to go to the post office.

Don't take this as a huge blow to your confidence anon. We all have had shit tier con experiences. I just think you had a lot of factors working against you, which you acknowledged when you first posted about your situation a while back. Be smarter next time and just work harder on your craft.

>> No.9798299

>>9798250
That sucks but you gotta follow up when stuff like that happens. You can call your PO and ask why your tracking isn't moving. If you schedule a pick up through the website, you can have a paper trail that your stuff was picked up because carriers have to scan the items when they receive them. Make the mail man scan all your packages in front of you so it's in the system.

Have you also considered staying with your dad for a bit? I don't know the full extent of your situation (although I think you're the one anon who's posted in these threads before about AA advice) but if your dad was willing to help you with con costs, maybe you can move in with him for a bit just to get back on your feet. It'd solve the issue of mail theft/bad mail service as well if your dad lives in a better area.

>> No.9798311
File: 191 KB, 1680x943, 1500056420730.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
9798311

>>9798020
>>9798038
>>9798046
Thank you for the replies, anons.
Recently started repaying my student loans and it's got me feeling like I need to treat my art as a serious side hustle but I think it's just making me feel more stressed. I'll try to just enjoy it more.

>> No.9798317

>>9798250
I live in a mostly section 8 neighborhood where there are shootings on the reg and the postal service is garbage so I understand how shitty this has to be for you.

One thing to consider is how many etsy shops will only mail things out once a week. Where do you go to buy your groceries? Is there a decent post office nearby? Can you bum a ride with a friend once a week to drop off your mail somewhere safe? The post office nearest me has a very bad reputation but there is another one a mile away that's just fine. Just make a note of your shipping policies on your website so that buyers are aware.

You can also go right up to the counter at the post office and get a receipt for every piece of mail that shows they've taken possession of it. If your stuff goes missing you and you have a tracking number you can call the national contact numbers listed on their website and skip the crappy people working in your town.

We've all had shitty cons - I can pull $2k in a day at some cons, and then there are some crappy cons where I only walk out with $15. You just have to roll with the punches and try to be strategic.

>> No.9798332

>>9798317
Actually I was unaware of there being etsy shops that only do shipping once per week, so thank you. It was always my understanding that people foam at the mouth for their items *now* and waiting it asap from what I've seen.

I can't get out much like I said (and mostly live off delivery lol), but when I can I go to the good post office and always get receipts and tracking.

I know people can have good and bad cons too (I do read AANI a lot), but my issue is starting to become extremely discouraging bc I've been applying to cons since Feb. 2017 up until 4 days ago, and I've gotten in nothing but the shitty ones no one wants to do that are no-names and don't bring in people. I've been applying all the way up to the east coast, down to FL, and over to Ohio and Minnesota. So I'm starting to feel like I'm not good enough if no con will accept me (and I have no luck with lottery), and I should maybe use all the time I'm spending on art to try to get myself ob my feet some other way.

>> No.9798344

>>9798332
Sorry to be very blunt, but yeah - if you've been rejected from that many juries, you really need to be looking at your portfolio and seeing what you can do to improve. Have you been updating your portfolio as you apply? Or are you using the same portfolio each time after you've been rejected. Do you cater portfolios to match each con? (For example, putting your anime pieces up front for anime cons, superhero/pop culture stuff up front for comic cons, etc)

Are you posting your art on social media regularly? I engage my followers constantly to get their feedback on WIPS and to gauge what works for my following. The internet is your biggest tool. You should be looking at other artists' shops and seeing what they do. The fact that you didn't even know that online sellers will ship once a week is a little telling that you haven't really done the research.

And what about FCFS cons? You have an equal chance of getting those tables as anyone else unless you have really shitty internet. Even if your art is bad, you just have to be fast at filling out your info.

If you hang out on AANI often, have you tried posting about table shares after con sign-ups? If you know you didn't get in, you could actively post about wanting to share a table with someone who did. I've had friends who were able to table this way and it helps build networking with your peers as well.

You can always get a job and do your art on the side as mentioned upthread. I don't mean to discourage you but you need to prioritize and take care of yourself financially first if your art isn't panning out at the moment.

>> No.9798351

>>9798344
It's okay. I think I already made the choice to stop because it's obvious I'm shit lol (and I do have bad internet and a 10 year old computer since I'm that poor), which is why I am wondering if there's any good way to get rid of my stock other than dealing with the online store thing. Maybe it really might just be best if I suck it up and throw it all in the dumpster and move on haha

>> No.9798392

>>9798351
You’ll never make it in life with that kind of attitude...
what state are you located in if you don’t mind sharing, it can’t be that all the cons near you are that bad.

>> No.9798413

>>9798351
If you are just going to do that, not only is it kind of insulting to your dad that put so much money to help you, but it is just wasteful overall. You said that you had one more con, didn't you? If you are SURE you want to quit, become the grab-bag booth. People love that shit. Have different tiers of grab bags to reach different budgets of people. Have only the best for normal sale if you want. Hell you can try the egg thing people were just talking about. At least put in a better effort to make your costs back, damn.

The only other suggestion I have is maybe someone be your online "proxy" and you give them a decent percent of the profits to hold and ship. Sounds a little shitty for both sides, but if you have the right type of friend, they might consider it. For example, I'm super close to a post office, so I wouldn't mind watching someone's online store and take 10 minutes every once in a while to ship something off for a chunk of profits, and for you it's better than throwing it away, considering your situation

>> No.9798444

>>9798332

Anon, part of the issue is also that artist alley's in general are an extremely bad scene right now; there are way too many people trying to get in the market, applying to every con in the country no matter their location, and so every decent con will have applications from the same massive pool of AA regulars. You're literally up against the whole country plus many internationals. Since artists started sharing their numbers and everyone found out you can make thousands of dollars in a weekened every single fanartist is applying to them. I've been doing artist alleys for over a decade, I'm professional and working as an artist, and the past few years I'm getting rejected by many juries. The circumstances right now aren't great for anyone, so it'll make it a thousand times tougher for younger and more inexperienced artists. Don't let it get you down.

Online would really be the best option for you until you improve your skill and make back your money. At the very least try it out. Quitting before you try won't accomplish anything and will only continue to make you feel worse. Many online shops only ship once a week, so make sure you put up a notice about that in your shipping section and you'll be fine. You will probably get a few shitheads anyway complaining about it not being there right away but this is really common, you can offer the best and fastest service and there will still always be some asshole ruining your day. It sounds like you are coming up with excuses not to try, rather than explaining why it won't work. There is always a solution.

>> No.9798500

>>9798444
Not that anon but do you think artist alley as a scene would become less competitive over time as people start to realize how much work it is to do aa or will it continue to get worse...

>> No.9798518

>>9798500
It will get worse because there will always be people that hear "AA artists make 2,000 in a weekend!" without the context. The only way I see it slowing down is if IP get wind of it and being cracking down on fanart.

>> No.9798569

>>9793609
Canadian artist here! I can usually get all of my permits using an EIN number which is free to get! Americans can fill out paperwork but as an international resident I had to call in. The process took 15 minutes but I was on hold for an hour so just be warned about potential international fees! However, I don't file for business visas, I say I'm going for pleasure - due to the current political climate it is VERY difficult and much too complicated to get business visas.

>>9788029
The process to take credit cards in america without an SSN is VERY difficult so I genuinely considered foregoing it until I saw how much money I was losing after I took it at a con. Depending on the con it can range up to 50% of my total sales. A lot of attendees are very understanding about my international status and keep cash on them just for this reason but you also miss out on the last day I'm out of cash but I want to buy this on a whim impulse sales!

For workarounds for taking CC without an SSN:
- have the customer paypal you - a lot more clunky but it gets the job done
- use a friend's square account and have them give you cash after - I used to do this but be sure it's A) someone you trust with your money and B) you pay the fees/taxes you're responsible for because they ARE doing you a favor
- you can technically get an American square account without an SSN as long as you have an ITIN. If you file US taxes you'll probably have an ITIN.

>> No.9798575

Is kawaiikon any good to sell at? I missed sign ups this year but a lot of people I follow seem to be going this year

>> No.9798580

>>9798569
Oh, sorry, I should add since you were interested in the Texas permit in particular. When I applied for one last year, I couldn't use my EIN with their online service since they asked for a US Driver's ID or some sort of ID I couldn't produce. I had to print and mail out the paperwork in question and this takes time to process so if you want to do a Texas con, I would suggest applying for your permit at least a month in advance. It took me three weeks to get my permit and this was after I paid for the fastest priority mail from Canada. As earlier mentioned in the thread, Texas does not have a 'temporary' sales permit, only a permanent one that you apply for and have until you decided to deactivate it so maybe consider getting it while you still have your residency/green card. Even if you don't use your permit, all you have to do is go online every 3-4 months and tell them you made no money.

>> No.9798584

>>9798580
>>9793609 oops I tagged myself

>> No.9798590

>>9798575
No

>> No.9798592

>>9798444
>>9798500
>>9798518
I recently found out a girl I went to high school with is on jury for a few AAs... This kind of really irritated because she doesn't do any kind of art, and never did. She also told me that her shows give preference to people who have been in them before.
I kind of rolled my eyes because I always see artists here and on AANI bitching about how they make less and less every year and can't figure out why. Maybe if they actually let more new people in?????
Even if you make new prints every year, attendees may be getting tired of only having to choose from the same styles every year.

Then just last night I was rejected by my local high school's lame ass comicon, and when I asked why, the head told me because they were only letting a total of 2 new artists in this year. Like why even have applications up on the site then if you've already filled every spot but 2.

>> No.9798613

>>9798592
This is so depressing to read.
I’m sorry anon, maybe you can befriend her so she can help you get accepted?

>> No.9798641

>>9797890
Definitely let the customer's know if they're fandom items in the eggs. People get irked at mystery eggs/bags/boxes that have fandoms or themes they don't like or haven't heard of.

>> No.9798642

>>9798575
It's... not super great. Most artists I know go to it as an excuse to visit Hawaii. Like I made enough to cover the cost of the flight + lodgings + food + souvenirs for me and a helper last year so it was just basically a work-cation.

They added a new rule where if you have non 2D merch, you have to pay extra for a premium space? So if you're not a print artist, you have to pay more.

I'm skipping out on it this year but I might go back next year! I've also heard it's good to apply every other year if you don't wanna see your profits tank. I had a friend do it two years in a row and she said the first year she did decently well because a lot of people don't get off the island to go to other cons. But the second year her sales stagnated because people weren't as excited to see her again and she didn't have a big update to her inventory.

>>9798592
It makes sense for smaller cons to do this because they're trying to build brand loyalty with their returning artists/vendors. But they should really set a cap on how many returning artists are guaranteed a spot (probably like 50%) so they can keep the AA pool fresh. Even bigger cons like Denver Comic Con and WonderCon used to do this.

>> No.9798655

>>9798580
how do you know what you are suppose to get? I've tried looking into it before, but was overwhelmed and no one knew how to help me.

>> No.9798668

>>9798642
does charms apply to this?

>> No.9798697

>>9798668
They said it was a case by case basis but basically yes. Charms do count if you have a lot of charms.

>>9798655
Oh my god, anon. Just call the fucking Comptroller's office. If you're this clueless, just call them.

>> No.9798703

>>9797956

Full time graphic artist in anime and it can kinda be exhausting to be surrounded by anime so much (and design in general). I'm not that great at keeping up with commissions but during con season I try to draw Monday through Thursday, then I give myself Friday night as a day off, draw Saturday or Sunday during the day (depending on my chore and meetup schedule). Saturday and Sunday nights are anime club meet and/or panel prep for me. I used to bring my tablet and draw at lunch, too, but since I got a Cintiq that isn't happening anymore.

So my best advice is set a schedule and draw in any spare time you have beyond that, too. Enlist help when you can. That's been a hard thing for me to ask for and learn, but last season my gf was an angel and helped pack out my charms and buttons and it helped so much. Anything that saves even a few hours is worth it!

>> No.9798723

>>9798697
I called my state's tax office and they literally had no idea what I was suppose to do and just kinda guessed suggestions.

>> No.9798734

>>9798518
I feel like a big crackdown storm is coming. Maybe not immediately, but within the next few to several years. Too many people have figured out how to have merch mass produced in China and blurred the line between fan art and bootlegging. It's gonna collapse at some point. I'm trying to shift gradually to all-original work and get out of the game before that happens.

>> No.9798738

>>9798734
it will be interesting to see who survives if fan art is completely banned from artist alley. so many artists actually suck at original stuff, just look at all the food+animal hybrids that pop up on aani.

>> No.9798743

>>9798723
which state are you in

>> No.9798757

>>9798723
Call the TEXAS Comptroller. Why is this so hard for you? You need help with the TEXAS permit? Try calling the actual state's tax department, maybe?

>> No.9798789

>>9798351
This is why poor people stay poor. Your dad invested all of this money and you won't even try to get a ROI on it.

>>9798734
Me too. It's been long overdue. I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet, but with things like Patreon, you have solid proof on how much money fanartists are bringing in.

>> No.9798797

More online zine venting than AA but I'm so frustrated by this after having 3-4 zines that went really well

>for-profit zine in a popular if saturated fandom
>well organized, deadlines met, go to open pre-orders
>$25 zine, reasonable for the pages
>see they've put up a bundle with four 3" charms some postcards and sticker sheets all for $45 including the book

Couple days go by
>"we're not getting as many sales as we'd hoped and might have trouble breaking even"
>suggestions come in, couple people chime in saying to sell merch separately, and that $8-10 is reasonable per charm
>next day they put the pack of four charms up for $12

I feel like the postcards and stickers sheets are under priced too but the acrylic charms are the more extreme ones. I know me chiming in with 'hey this stuff is under priced' isn't going to be welcomed, especially after I've literally not talked in the zine discord at all. Lesson learned, move on, but damn, its like you're trying to not make a profit.

>> No.9798829

>>9798734
>>9798738
Can't happen soon enough. I'm tired of being told I didn't get into an AA because I have "too much original" art. Shit pisses me off beyond belief, because on apps cons act all fake in trying to make it out to appear like they prefer original over fandom but it's rly just to cover them from being sued.
>>9798789
Stop acting like you know shit about poverty life. My dad brings in 10k/month because he works for the government, and yet I still feel guilt from him giving me 900 for this one trip. I'm in such a fucked up situation, but this isn't reddit so I'm not going to go into back story that doesn't have any relevance to AA.

>> No.9798844

>>9798829
Are you the BDSM cat art anon? I swear to god you sound almost exactly like them.

If you are them, it really isn't just because you have original art. It's because your art skills are subpar. I know plenty of people who have majority original art who get into juried cons regularly. Also... a lot of conventions ARE fandom-centric and encourage fanart in AAs because they're essentially large fan gatherings. If you want attention for your original work, try comic conventions (AAs are geared toward indie comic/zine creators) or indie zine/art fests. Don't get mad just because people who have APPROPRIATE art for a con get accepted over you.

>> No.9798862

>>9798844
Did you just call me a furry? I don't know who them is. You're probably the same anon from last thread that was trying so hard to get me to post my art when I first started talking about the con, and you couldn't grasp the concept as to why someone wouldn't want to share their art on 4chan.

I don't get mad that people get accepted over me. I get mad that cons aren't more upfront and transparent about what they actually want on their apps. It's the Fanime discussion all over again on how they actually grade and what they don't tell you up front.

>> No.9798871

>>9798862
I'm not the anon you're talking about from the past thread. I was actually one of the ones defending your choice not to post. Your situation just almost exactly sounded like another anon who did cat BDSM art in previous threads. (Hence me prefacing with "are you cat art anon")

>> No.9798892

>>9798829
Not the anon you're replying to, but when they said "poor people stay poor" they probably meant how stupid some people are when it comes to making financial decisions. This applies heavily to you alone, not your dad or anyone else. By yourself, you would never make it in this world. You just have one sad excuse after another and it seems like you're so willing to throw in the towel already. Oh but hey, thanks for showing us just how much more privileged you are to have a dad that rakes in 10k/month, willing to invest in you, and yet you still manage to fuck it up with your lack of foresight and talent. With $900 you could've flown out to a good out of state con. Or would your conditions hinder you from that too? Get better and don't waste people's money until you do.

>> No.9798900

Just curious. How many of you gulls here are male? Or is it heavily female dominated her too since it's in cgl?

>> No.9798959

>>9798862

Why would you be offended to be called a furry? Suspicious that you brought it up. And suddenly awfully defensive.

>> No.9798969 [DELETED] 

>>9798900
AA

>> No.9798970

>>9798900
AA is a pretty female dominated field, even in the context of /cgl/ being one of the most female boards. I know a couple of males that go on here, but the majority of 4chan male AAers I've met, I've met through /ic/.

>> No.9799063

new thread >>9799061

>> No.9799462

>>9798892

I don't really wanna drag this into the new thread so I'll just put it here.

Gotta agree with this anon. Lots of people suggested you should wait until you're confident you could make back the money, but you went forward anyway, and then came back expecting pity or consolation. You're not listening to anyone's advice, just raising new excuses. You should have researched the con, or at least mentioned the name of it so other anons here could have warned you if it had a bad rep (with those sales numbers it almost certainly would have). You won't even mention your state so anons can suggest other cons to you. You can still learn from this experience but instead you are being a sadsack and complaining about how bad you feel. In the end you will do whatever you want despite anyone's advice. Stop wasting our time if you don't actually want our input.

>> No.9802457

>>9797766
I'm the original anon, sorry for replying late but THANK YOU! these are great and i'm going to use all these tips.