Comics! Reader census! ...for SCIENCE!!
Augh, I didn't know where to put this, but someone's actually doing research on comics demographics. This is SUPER keen, particularly the webcomics part. It was linked on quantz.com today, but after tracking down the original source, I think it was originally intended to be only for Toronto. It's leaked to the internet via Ryan, tho', so I guess it may be larger...? Worth a looksee! I mean: Comics! SCIENCE!! Huzzah, indeed!
found through quantz.com wrote:comics questionnaire!
howdy all. thanks for checking this out.
i'm a master's student at u. of t. and i am working on a wicked cool project with the collaborative program of book history and print culture. basically, this means that we like to look at things like publishing and authorship, how and why and where books get created and printed and distributed and read. it is very very cool. consider how the printed word affects your life!
in particular, i'm interested in comic books. yes, comics! for a long time i felt that they weren't really suitable subjects for literary study. how wrong i was. there is so much that can be said and done in the medium, from subtle character development to sensory engagement to non-linear plotting to exquisite storytelling. i'm hooked.
i want to take a close look at how and where and why we read comics in this city. i want to explode the stereotype that comics are for little boys and socially-inept fanboys, because that's simply not true. but i need your help. do you read comics? have you ever read a comic? take my survey! cut and paste it into a word document, complete it and email it to me. i will be oh so grateful and i will publish my results here!
thank you so much in advance. please feel free to forward this to your friends and acquaintances.
***survey begins here ***
TWELVE SIMPLE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOU AND COMICS
1. Name (can be a pseudonym or just your first name – full names will not be published):
2. Age:
3. Sex/Gender:
4. Highest level of education achieved or in progress:
5. What kind of comic books do you read? Tick off any that apply:
DC
Vertigo
Marvel
Independent
Web comics (please specify):
Other (please specify):
6. Where do you get your comic books?
Buy them (where?):
Borrow them (from who?):
Read them online (where?):
Other:
7. When did you start reading comic books? And why? If there’s an awesome story here, I want to hear it!
8. How much of your reading material is made up of comics?
Lady, that’s all I ever read.
Mostly comic books but I read other stuff too. (Like what?)
I have some comics but I generally read other forms of fiction/non-fiction. (Or anything else - what?)
I read a few comics once because my friend made me and I was curious. (What do you usually read?)
9. How often do you read comics?
Every day
Every week
Every month
Every once in a while.
10. What titles do you read/enjoy the most?
11. Why do you like comics?
12. Okay, that’s it. Technically I don’t have 12 questions – but twelve sounded better than eleven. If you have anything you’d like to say about comics, here’s your forum – tell me anything about how and why and where you read comics!
Thank you kindly! Please email this document as an attachment to me at we.read.comics@gmail.com by end of June 2007.
Angela Guardiani
Comments
1. Agentcel
2. 14
3. Male
4. 8th Grade Education
5. Webcomics (Zelda Comic, f@Nb0Y$, Vgcats)
Other (Viz Graphic Novels)
6. I read them online (Zeldacomic.net, fanboys-online.com, vgcats.com).
I buy them (Barnes and Nobles).
7. I started reading comics in 5th grade. No awesome story.
8. Lady, that's all I ever read! (Other than school assigned books).
9. Every week.
10. Zelda Comic, Death Note, erm....too many.
11. They're fun to try to draw and read at the same time!
12. Huzzah!
2. 23
3. Male
4. College: a diploma at one and nearly an Associates Degree at another
5. Web comics (please specify):
More than 20 of varying types. Many video game based, some manga-style, some other types. Many humorous, some dramatic, some story-driven, some gag-a-day types.
6. Read them online (where?):
At their respective homepages.
7. Started reading later in High school. Found links to a few webcomics from a gaming site. Liked them, expanded from there.
8. Mostly comic books but I read other stuff too. (Like what?)
I do enjoy a good novel now and then.
9. Every day
10. Tough One...Order of the Stick, Flipside, 6:35, 8-bit Theater, Tami No Tainai, Penny-Arcade...the list goes on.
11. I love a good story. I like a good joke. I like drawings and art. Comics can do all this at once in a smooth mix. It's not unlike the reason I like video games I guess.
12. I should add that webcomics in particular are often accompanied by a small blog from the author. These make webcomics more of a personal experience. You get to know them and they become more like a friend than a faceless person on the internet. In this way their is a social component to this breed of comic.