At Comic-Con I met a writer named Caleb Monroe whose work I've enjoyed. Caleb's got a marketing idea that I like too. I don't know if I'm bold enough to adopt it myself, but I like how he's thinking. He's considering creating a logo for his name that would go not only on his website and business cards, but also on the credits page of any comic he writes.What I dig about this is that Caleb's figuring out ways to turn himself into a brand. Newsarama had an article about this recently. A logo is one way to do it, but the Newsarama columnist, Eric (Lackluster World) Adams, focuses on the way you present yourself in public. How you build your reputation. Mention Alan Moore, for example, and people will think of the long-haired, scary-looking mage before they've picked out a single, definitive work to associate with him. Grant Morrison is the rock star. Todd McFarlane, the abrasive sports fanatic. I doubt that McFarlane intended for "abrasive" to become part of his brand, but that's the point of Adams' article: you have to be aware of how you're presenting yourself or you risk acquiring a negative brand.
This is something I need to work on. Not that I struggle with being a jerk; I'm a pretty nice guy. But "nice guy" isn't a strong brand, and I need to give more thought to developing my brand without becoming fake or something I'm not in the process.
