The last ShortBox

A blog post! It's been a while...

I'm here to herald the news of ShortBox #13, coming to kickstarter later this month (5 freshly-published comics, a gorgeous A4 print, some sweets- the usual), but also news that this box will be our last box. 

There are a few reasons for this, the main ones being insane, ever-increasing international shipping prices, and the rising costs of Brexit. We've shipped worldwide from the outset, and have been lucky to build a network of readers that stretch across the globe. In fact, the bulk of our readership is internationally-based and shipping costs for them over the last 5 years have just climbed and climbed. To provide an example, international shipping on our last box cost £22 per box (that's the cost for shipping alone, not including any labour, packaging, materials or payment processing fees). The most I've previously charged for this was £14. 

The price of a ShortBox is £35: it's been that since we began and stayed £35 over the past 5 years. However, costs of ~everything~ have risen: a rise further compounded by Brexit. It affects us considerably as we always print our books, packaging, stickers, prints- whatever was needed- here in the UK to support local small businesses similar to ShortBox, and to maintain quality control and quick turnarounds. Keeping the box at £35 is simply no longer feasible.

Essentially, we've come to a point where growing costs mean we need to adjust the price of a box, and growing shipping costs mean we also need to charge accordingly for shipping. Sadly, I think this makes the box model no longer viable. Even if the box price were raised to £38 (as a minimum), for the vast majority of our readers, the shipping would be £22, bringing the total to £60 for a box. Although when broken down this still works out cheaper than if you were to buy and ship the 5 comics individually, it's still a large sum. The idea of ShortBox is that people trust that they're going to get a selection of comic books that are of value to them in some way. I think the more you start paying for something, the greater the expectation of receiving 'sure things' - work that fits what a person wants more closely. It becomes less of a space for interesting, inventive, fresh work. My instinct is that with the rising costs, people would prefer to choose individual books they want.

So, the kickstarter for ShortBox #13 later this month will be our final box. The price will remain £35. From 2022 forwards, we'll simply be publishing short and long comics individually, in the more traditional way. Scary and exciting!

It feels like the right thing to do: there's a sense of sadness, of course, but I think it's important to recognise when something is no longer working -for either us or readers- and to not detrimentally persist with it due to stubbornness or sentiment. It's a familiar refrain, but I had no idea I'd be doing this as a job, or even a year on when I started ShortBox, and it has evolved constantly (initially we were supposed to be a distro platform for mini-comics!), so changing and adapting has always been part of our DNA, which makes it easier to accept - on an emotional level, at least!

I'm incredibly grateful for all your support through this chapter of ShortBox, and hope you'll continue with us in the next. Thank you so much.

Zainab.

ShortBox # 12: coming this April on Kickstarter

Good news: a new ShortBox will be available this April! As usual, the box will contain 5 new comic books, a limited edition fabric screen print by Jillian Tamaki, and some sweets! The one difference: it'll be available via Kickstarter. I wanted to write a little bit about this decision both to reassure readers and explain the thinking behind it.

The first thing to know: the box will be priced exactly the same. It's been £35 since we launched in 2016, and it remains that price. Shipping costs will also be the same. The main difference is, instead of placing an order via our Big Cartel webshop, orders will be placed through kickstarter. You do not need a kickstarter account in order to place an order, there is an option to do so as a guest, which means there isn't any additional signing up involved. 

So, why Kickstarter? As many of you may know, this is our 12th ShortBox. For the past 4 years, I've been making these boxes, and spreading the word about them with what limited resources I have available: largely social media, and with super-helpful word of mouth from our community of supporters. What makes Kickstarter an incredibly useful platform is its reach: lots of people visit Kickstarter specifically to check out comics and art projects. I know this is a bit of a gamble; I'm hoping people will follow us over to Kickstarter, but I also understand it may seem like an extra hassle compared to ordering the regular way.  I'm incredibly grateful to our loyal supporters without whom ShortBox wouldn't exist.  I also think this box thing we do is pretty unique and fantastic, and want more, more, more people to know about it! I work really, really hard on these books and boxes, as do all the artists involved. It's up to me to think about how best to get that hard work -and these excellent books- into as many people's hands as possible, which is why I want to test the box on this platform.

Another thing I've been wanting to do for a while is printed custom packaging: hire an artist to come up with some nifty ShortBox illustrations and designs that we can have printed on tape and on the boxes/packaging itself- this will be a stretch goal. At the moment, we still individually stamp each and every box with our logo before assembling the boxes! And those printed tapes everyone loves? They've been discontinued! Which has been an incentive to finally put this goal into gear.

The kickstarter will also have bonuses for all the box artists as a stretch goal.

I try my best to be as up front with our readers as possible, so I wanted to lay all this out in writing and let you know about the coming change and the reasons for it, instead of simply springing it upon you.

You can sign up to the ShortBox mailing list here, to be notified when the new box arrives.

ShortBox #7(th) heaven

Good day! I'm delighted to announce ShortBox #7 is here! For the first box of 2018, we're publishing 5 brand new comics in  a mouthwatering line-up. As ever, a few salient points to go over for readers new and old before we get to the juicy bits:

• ShortBox is an independent comics box. It is not a subscription service. There is no signing up. It's simply a (pretty special) box of comics we publish and put together every 3 months. The comics are brand new releases created especially for the box that you won't find anywhere else. You buy  a box, and that's that- there's no further commitment to anything else. 
• Pre-orders run for a 10-day period. That begins today and ends at midnight on 31st January. This is the only way to get the box.
• You purchase an order, we put you down for a box. It's a system that lets us know exactly how many boxes to make, without waste. You can pre-order ShortBox #7 right now, right here. We don't remake boxes.  
• The box will ship in March. Depending on where you live in the world, and also on the mercy of the postal system, your box can take anything from 2 days to 5-6 weeks to get to you. After that period, if you still haven't received it, please get in touch with us via the 'contact' tab at the top of the site, and we'll take things from there. 
• We ship worldwide!

And now, to the good stuff! ShortBox #7 will contain the following:

'Beneath the Dead Oak Tree' by Emily Carroll, 28pp, full colour. 

'Murder, decadence, cowardice, guilt, and aristocratic foxes in wigs all combine in this gorgeously poignant poem/folksong from Emily Carroll, about the futility and heartbreak one can run into when dealing with vengeance. '

'Wizard and Soft Pig' by Rosie Brand, 100pp, full colour, perfect-bound.
'Roll around in the gentle visual felts of Wizard and Soft Pig, wander aimlessly through the forest, smile at a flower. Lie face down in the mud.'

'Navel Gazing' by Gyimah Gariba, 60pp, full colour, perfect-bound.

" 'A cool evening finds Gyimah Garbia's protagonist in introspective mood. But what happens when being wrapped inside your thoughts finds you quite literally inside yourself...! ' Navel Gazing follows an engaging, reflective journey of self exploration, doppelgangers, and an infuriatingly monosyllabic wise old sage. "

'Cat & Bag' by Viv Schwarz, 56pp, black and white, perfect-bound.

" 'Cat and Bag are constant companions. Cat is an artist who makes picture books and comics, and Bag is, well... there. There to remind Cat of each and every worry, there to undermine Cat's decisions, there to roll-call all the embarrassing things Cat's done at a moment's notice. Can the unlikely duo ever make it work?' Viv Schwarz chronicles her relationship with anxiety disorder in this collection of warm, funny, and moving strips."

'Paradise' by Matthew Pettit, 40pp, risograph printed.

'Having defected from their bandit gang, 'Paradise' follows the journey of two boys, their circumstantial relationship and the inevitable circle of violence and anger that permeates their actions.'

'Colossal Tussle' exclusive A4 print by Alexis Deacon.

Order ShortBox #7 here.

ShortBox high #5

ShortBox #5 is here! And it's an absolute corker. I'm incredibly proud and excited about this one -and I know I say that about each one, but only because it's true!-, and I think you'll be thrilled with it, too.

But first, an important run-through of salient ShortBox points, for new and old:

• ShortBox is a curated, commissioned independent comics box. It is not a subscription service. There is no signing up. It's simply a (pretty special) box of comics we put together every 3 months. You buy it, and that's it- there's no further commitment to anything else.
• Orders run for a 10-day period. That begins today and ends at midnight on 30th June. This is the only way to get the box. You purchase an order, we put you down for a box. It's a system that lets us know exactly how many boxes to make, without waste. You can pre-order ShortBox #5 right now, right here: http://shortbox.bigcartel.com/product/shortbox-5 We don't remake boxes. 
• The box will ship in August. Depending on where you live in the world, and also on the mercy of the postal system, your box can take anything from 2 days to 5-6 weeks to get to you. After that period, if you still haven't received it, please get in touch with us via the 'contact' tab at the top of the site, and we'll take things from there. 
• We ship worldwide!
• 10% of all ShortBox #5 profits will go to this Grenfell Tower fund. 

Below you'll find further information on everything inside the box, as well as cover and interior page images for all the books. I've linked artists names to their respective website/blogs, and as ever, I really recommend clicking through and becoming more acquainted with the excellent work on display.

Hot Summer Nights by Freddy Carrasco, published by Peow, 40pp, black and white. Our very first publisher collaboration, with the superb Peow Studio brings you Toronto artist Freddy Carrasco's debut comic book not only before anyone else, but it'll also be a special edition with an exclusive cover. 'A group of friends eke out the most they can from the last day of summer before high school begins.'

Barbara by Nicole Miles, 28pp full colour. When Jayda begins to have strange thoughts about food, her friend Barbara suggests a change of diet which leaves Jayda feeling out of her depth and more than a little isolated. But Barbara’s life is so uncomplicated and calm. She probably knows best.

What is Left by Rosemary Valero-O'Connell, 36pp, colour. A ship that runs on the memories of one of its occupants malfunctions and collapses in on itself in the dead of space. Alive but trapped, an engineer who survives the wreckage finds herself inside the reservoir of memories, alone and stranded in a patchwork dream of someone else's life.

The Tar Pit by Jeremy Sorese, 60pp, black and white, with a full colour section. Perfect bound, A4.  A young woman in Old Hollywood struggles to protect the identities of two closeted male actors because of her growing homophobia.

Musings of a Muslim Hipster by Areeba Siddique, 52pp, full colour (cover to be finalised). A collection of Pakistani teen superstar artist Areeba Siddique's comics and collage art on faith, spirituality, fashion, family, culture, and more.

A ShortBox murder mystery, A4 limited-edition print by Afu Chan.

I did tell you it was an amazing line-up. You can order ShortBox #5 here. 

ShortBox #4: it's alive!

Hello, good day, and the best of the best to you! We're really excited to share the new ShortBox and its amazing line-up of artists with you today, with new books from Richie Pope, Dilraj Mann, Shivana Sookdeo, Becca Tobin, Sloane Leong, and Molly Fairhurst -not to mention a gorgeous, mousy, bibliophile-adventurer print from Nicolas Delort. Below you'll find further information on each item, as well as cover and interior page images for all the books. I've linked artists names to their respective website/blogs, and as ever, I really recommend clicking through and becoming more acquainted with the superb work on display.

Our small community has been growing slowly and steadily, so I thought it'd be worth going over a few things about ShortBox before we get into the heady stuff. 

1: ShortBox is not a subscription service. It's simply a (pretty special) box of comics we put together every 3 months. You buy it, and that's it- there's no further commitment to anything else, you've not signed up to anything. 

2: Pre-orders are now the only way to get a box; we won't be making any extra to go on general sale. Beginning today, until midnight on 31st of March, there's a 10-day window in which we take orders for the box. You purchase one, we put you down for one. And that system lets us know exactly how many boxes to make. You can pre-order ShortBox #4 here.

3: Pre-orders will ship around the second week of May. Depending on where you live in the world, and also on the mercy of the postal system, your box can take anything from 2 days to 5-6 weeks to get to you. After that period, if you still haven't received it, please get in touch with us via the 'contact' tab at the top of the site, and we'll take things from there.

4: We don't remake boxes. This is it. They're limited, we have a long list of excellent artists we want to work and we want to keep moving forward. Some books will go on individual sale at later points, either from us or available from the artists themselves, but other items are exclusive to the box only. Not to sound like a broken record, but we regularly receive emails asking if there's a way to get hold of a box. But we're a small independent outfit, and making extra boxes on the off-chance that they'll sell isn't something we can afford. This is why we bang on about pre-orders so much: if you want a box, grab it now!

5: We ship worldwide!

6: 10% of all ShortBox #4 profits will go to Islamic Relief's East Africa Crisis campaign.

I think that covers everything, but if you have any further questions, just let us know. Without further ado, here's our fantastic line-up for ShortBox #4:

Super Itis by Richie Pope, 24pp full colour. A tired construction worker gets stuck in a dream made entirely of the soulfood he ate for lunch. Waking up becomes more complicated when he meets a mysterious boy made of mac-n-cheese.

404 by Dilraj Mann, 28pp, two-colour.  Robert hates immigrants. He hates Kim Kardashian. He hates Jeremy Corbyn, David Cameron, animal cruelty, diesel cars, eco warriors, vaping, cyclists, Nostradamus, Spongebob Squarepants, DC superhero films, the number nine and magenta. Sitting at his laptop he warns the world. But on one tumultuous day his cruel anonymous commenting bites back.

Write, Write, Kill by Shivana Sookdeo, 40pp, full colour. A struggling author with a deficit of ideas faces a mountain of rejections. But then a strange thing happens: he discovers he can 'see' peoples speech, and begins stealing it for his manuscripts. Stealing soon leads to killing, and killing leads somewhere else... 

Ready Salted by Becca Tobin, 52 pp, full-colour. A fun, rambling, beautiful journey into the imagination of one of Britain's best cartoonists. Daily thoughts and happenings; animal and food creatures galore; full page paintings and corner page sketches, all make up this delightful compendium of art.

A Hollowing by Sloane Leong, exclusive ShortBox cover, 56pp, black and white. A quiet young girl is gifted a gentle black mare by her father but both horse and girl are not all that they seem. Dark memories bubble up, bitterness churns and dread seeps.

Kick, Don't Twist zine by Molly Fairhurst, 16pp, full colour. A study of form, gesture and the co-existence of emotion and the delight of the human body. A collection of paintings examining physical expressions of anger and feeling in a time that is raw to many.

'The adventure of books' A4 print by Nicolas Delort. Exclusive to the box.

Pre-order ShortBox #4.

ShortBox 2: pre-orders now live

We are thrilled to announce we're back with ShortBox #2, the finest independent comics box in the land. It's honestly very exciting (and quite a bit of a relief!) to finally be able to share with you what we've been working away on the past few months. For box 2, we have 4 *brand new* comics making their debut: books that will be available first only in ShortBox, before going on general release at a later date. There's also a new printing of a sold-out comic, an exclusive A4 print, and a limited edition handmade, felt pin.

Beginning today, we are opening pre-orders for ShortBox #2, containing all the items listed below (and some sweets- we got you). Pre-orders will run for 10 days, until midnight on July 27th, and buying one guarantees you'll receive a box. We had quite a few people disappointed at not being able to snag themselves a box, so this allows us to overcome that, and better gauge the quantities needed. We will be fulfilling all pre-orders placed, and then producing a limited number of boxes in addition, to go on 'first come, first served' sale in September. Finally, we're pleased to now offer shipping to anywhere in the world (read more about this on the 'where do you ship to?' section on the 'About' page)- the abysmal value of the pound should help mitigate matters quite a bit, so take advantage!

Without further ado, here's what you'll find in ShortBox #2:

• Diana's Electric Tongue  by Carolyn Novak. 70 pages. Full colour. ShortBox special cover. Set in a lush, cosy future, Diana makes a bold attempt to move on after a difficult break-up. View preview pages here.
• Your Black Friend by Ben Passmore. 24 pages. Black and white. Landscape. Sharp, informed social commentary in the form of  an open letter on race and being black in America. View preview pages here.
• Food Baby by Lucie Bryon. 42 pages. Full colour. A compilation of comics about food, illustrated recipes, and tips about cooking, from someone who once made a potato catch on fire. View preview pages here.
• Heavy Air by Lizzy Stewart. 30 pages. Full colour. Summer is drawing to a close and a storm hangs low in the air. The estate seems electric, there's something foreboding in the alleyway and a fox lays dying in the park. Sometimes it feels like the end of the world and sometimes it doesn't. View preview pages here.
• 'T' by Bailey Sharp. 44 pages. Black and white. An ambiguous text message ruins a high school girl's lunch period. View preview pages here.
• Lisa Hanawalt A4 print. Full colour.  Exclusive to ShortBox.
• Pak choi pal by Honey Parast. Individually handmade felt pak choi pins- limited edition design produced for the box.

Pre-order ShortBox 2 here.

Cover designs shown are not necessarily final. We'll be sharing in-progress shots of Lisa's print  over the next few days, before revealing it in full, as well as glimpses of interior pages and other snippets; the best way to keep up with those updates is to follow the ShortBox Twitter.

More information on ShortBox can be found on the 'about' page up top. For any queries, you can contact us at shortbox.comic@gmail.com