This week, Brad and Dave talk about the best business model for longform webcomics — and why putting your comic online for free is still the strongest way to build a sustainable career. Also: Kickstarter’s late-pledge and pledge-manager tools, the difference between market research and mirror research, and how to keep going when your first posts get nothing but crickets.

ON THIS WEEK’S SHOW…

• Dave’s backyard skunk problem may or may not require Super Soakers
• What’s the best business model for longform webcomics?
• Why fear of theft can stop creators from building an audience
• Why free-to-read comics remain the best foundation for a comics business
• “First comes the crowd, then comes the funding”
• Why readers who enjoy your work online are often first in line to buy the book
• How delayed access and early-access posts fit into a Patreon strategy
• Why exclusive side stories can work better than paywalling your main archive
• Avoiding physical rewards on Patreon and Substack
• Dave will be at San Diego Comic-Con booth 1228 with free ComicLab pins (use the super-easy mnemonic: 1BAT) 
• Kickstarter late pledges and Pledge Manager are bringing in real money
• Why charging shipping closer to fulfillment can be safer
• Market research vs. mirror research
• How to estimate Kickstarter shipping more accurately
• What to do when you start posting online and get “crickets”
• Why seven posts is not enough time to expect traction
• Reframing early work as building an archive for future fans
• Social-media advice for giving readers a reason to engage
• Why success in comics is a marathon, not a sprint