 First of all I want to thank anyone who takes the time to read this, it really means a lot. It's been a minute since I've posted... anything really and there's no excuse other than I was feeling burned out. As indie comics creators we understand that any small win comes with a few losses, but lately I've felt like I've gotten very few wins. Let's start with my printer, Kablam! I always knew that "Print On Demand" wasn't the best way to publish my comics but it was the only way I had, so I bit my tongue and "took it" cause it was the only option I had... or so I thought. As of today it's been more six months since I uploaded the third issue of my creator owned series Project: New Wave to IndyPlanet.com so I could sell the book online and it still isn't available for purchase. I've reached out to them on multiple occasions and in my last email I was firm. I explained to them that their incompetence is costing me money. Their response? They blamed it on the Pandemic, they blamed it on other indie creators uploading their books wrong; they blamed everyone except for themselves and they finished the email with this: So. There ya go. Sorry, I know it's frustrating for you and sorry you find it "ridiculous". You've been in queue for a while (obviously) and at the time we gave you the best information available. There are lots of books to get live (some that have been in queue more than you) and we are trying to list as fast as we can. I am happy to remove your books from the listing queue and IndyPlanet. You are also more than welcome to wait for your book to go live. I am no longer giving estimates when books will go live other than you'll get a bot notification when it's live. Yeah... this is why I still haven't been able to sell my book online, because it's been in the IndyPlanet queue since JANUARY!!! The craziest part is that they won't even give me a timeframe for when my book will be available. So yeah, because of this I kind of lost my will to create more comics because what's the point of making them if the fans can't buy them and/or read them? So that whole situation killed any desire I had to make comics until I stumbled upon a video on YouTube. Shocker I know! In this video a comic book creator talks all about mini comics! How to make them, how many different types of mini comics there are, his experience with selling them at conventions, the whole nine; and it made me realize something. Maybe I'm doing myself a disservice by trying to follow mainstream comics, maybe I should fully embrace the indie part of making comics and just do whatever the heck I want to do, if I want to print comics from my home studio then so be it, if I want to put out a crazy sketch version of my comic, so be it; the point is to do whatever I feel is best for me and my vision without having to fit in anyone's vision of what a comic book should look like or be. With that said, here's my first attempt at a mini comic printed from my home studio! This is Project: New Wave #3 and I only printed around twenty five copies just to test the waters at a small indie comics event I was invited to and I have to say... the reception was fantastic!
So, what I'm trying to say is that from now on I'm going to print my own comics, from my home studio and I won't be using Kablam or IndyPlanet anymore. I don't need them to reach my audience especially since it takes them six months to upload a single issue in their database! If I have to sell each book and ship each one myself, so be it! I hope you all keep supporting me and Truthful Comics like you've done in the past.
As always... keep it Truthful! -Manuel
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THINK INDIE PODCAST EP. 2
Hang out with the @ThinkIndiePod team for a brand new episode sharing the love of ALL things #IndieComics and more! Join hosts:
@Dodgy86inthemix @truthfulcomics @reikiwithtracy @paulgomez790 as they discuss and review King Spawn #1, Gunslinger Spawn #1, The Scorched #1 and the Spawn Universe as a whole. What did they expect when it was announced? Did it meet their expectations? Did it surpassed them? Join in the conversation by leaving your comment on their YouTube channel. Also, they also discuss and review two more indie titles: first is the fantastic web comic Those Who Sleep by Kelley Leanne Harris, the second title the cover is Megatomic Battle Rabbit by Stu Perrins and Israel Huertas. Those Who Sleep is available on Webtoons and Megatomic Battle Rabbit is published by Fair Spark Books. You can find the episode HERE! PRAYER VIGIL FOR UKRAINE
Tonight a group of random people from different Nationalities gathered together in support for the people of Ukraine. I have no friends or family in or from Ukraine and neither does my wife, but our hearts are breaking just the same because of what's happening to the people of Ukraine. Innocent people being hurt, killed even for no reason other than the ambition of a twisted man.
As a father, as a brother, as a son and as a Christian I stand in support of Ukraine, my wife and my family do as well. Earlier this week we sat down with our boys and explained the situation the people of Ukraine are having to deal with, how kids their age are having to flee their Country and why we must not only stand with them, but we must ALWAYS stand against tyranny. This was a night of prayer but know that we'll be supporting Ukraine with a lot more than prayer. BUY INDIE COMICS DAY 22'
The most important day of the year for independent publishers like ours is back! On Saturday, October 1st, 2022 indie creators and fans Worldwide will join in unison, both in person and online as well; to celebrate independent comics and their creators.
Buy Indie Comics Day was created so that independent comic book, zines, mini-comics, graphic novels and comics strip creators around the World could synergize on a single day designed exclusively to celebrate their work. It is our hope that all comic book retailers across the Globe will take this as an opportunity to stock up on indie comics, that consumers will take a chance on new titles and creators they've probably never heard of and that creators have an event created specifically to showcase their work to a much larger audience than a normal comic book convention ever could. If you're a comic book shop owner/manager or if you're an indie comics creator and you're wondering how you can be a part of this global event, here are some easy to follow graphics that show what you can do on such a glorious occasion as Buy Indie Comics Day! The guys over at Buy Indie Comics Day want this year top be their biggest ever and we feel it might just be if we all join forces and start early, hence us pushing it in February! 
THE SUNDER KATZ EP.13
On this episode "The Katz" explore the range of comics from Albatross Funnybooks! And why you should check out their amazing books. Their range of titles can be found in your Local Comic Book Store, Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=albatross+... Their trades & graphic novels can be found in Good Book Stores and also check out their official website: https://shop.albatrossfunnybooks.com/ Thanks for listening / watching!
The Sunder Katz is hosted by: Dodgy: @Dodgy86inthemix / @tyda1wave / @ComicCrusaders Manny: @truthfulcomics / truthfulcomics.com / theartofmanuelcarmona.com Tracy: @reikiwithtracy Paul G: @paulgomez790 Make sure to Like/Share/Subscribe if you haven’t yet. https://www.youtube.com/c/comiccrusad… Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/comiccrusaders Visit the official Comic Crusaders Comics Shop! Get all your new comics by going to comiccrusaders.shop Visit the OFFICIAL CC Swag Shop at: comiccrusaders.us Watch Ep.13 of The Sunder Katz HERE!
PROJECT: NEW WAVE #3 IS HERE!!!
Today, after months waiting for them; my copies of Project: New Wave # 3 finally arrived! I could tell they rushed them to me because they were sent via USPS Priority Mail which they never do, which tells me they took the books hot of the press and sent them immediately to me.
There had been a communication problem between PayPal and Kablam and they didn't received notification that I had paid the full amount back in December 2021, so I kept waiting for my books and they kept waiting for a notification from PayPal; and this went on for more than a month! Thankfully I got my books today and they look fantastic! As soon as the books are available for purchase through indyplanet.com I'll inform all of you so stay tuned. NOICE 2022!!!
First was how the organizers handled everything. On point, not stressing the vendors OR the fans, always checking on the vendors to see if they needed anything; gave clear instructions on what to do and everything went smooth as a result. The Smartmouth Brewing Company's staff was also on point, going around making sure there wasn't any trash laying around like half empty glasses of beer for example, and they were very courteous; even though I'm sure it must've been stressful to have a couple hundred people at any particular moment in a location that usually hosts a dozen or so clients at a time. They deserve some praise as well as the organizers who kicked it out of the park. Noice 2022 is amongst the best events I've been a part of. Great job guys!
The attendance was exceeded what I expected and more importantly, they weren't there because they wanted to showoff their newest Cosplay or because they wanted an autograph from their favorite actor; they were there because they loved comic books! Granted, the location was perfect in the sense that it was spacious enough for people to look around without bumping into one another, the vendors had plenty of space to put their things, everything was well organized and they sold booze, yet nobody got drunk or belligerent; everyone had a great time from what I saw and heard from other vendors. 
For me specifically, it went great! Made a bunch of sales, made some great contacts, had a chance to chat with some amazing creators and colleagues, finally met a few creators I only knew from social media and interacted with the fans after such a long time; this was truly a great event for me. Some people came to our table and told me "I follow you on Instagram and wanted to buy your book in person and have you sign it", others said "I follow you on Instagram and saw that you were here so I wanted to meet you"; it felt great to know that there are people who really love your work and are interested in what we do; it makes the long hours behind a drawing board and a computer worthwhile.
Sometimes as creators we feel like we're just talking to ourselves on the internet because maybe we don't get a bunch of interactions, we don't get a thousand Likes or comments but what days like yesterday tell me is that there are people looking at what we do and are genuinely interested in our work; so we must keep on doing what we love and trust that your fans will show up like they did for me at NOICE. I have to say, I was a bit hesitant about my decision to print Project: New Wave No.3 as a Mini-Comic although I loved how they turned out, but after seeing the fans reactions and even casual people who stopped by our table out of curiosity; I know I made the right choice! So, I'll be changing the format of my comics to Mini-Comics size and they'll be printed on newsprint paper like in the old days; if I'm going to stay indie then I'm not going to contrive our product to the rules of mainstream comics. We'll pave our own way and whatever happens, happens. I'd like to give a huge shoutout to my table mate Miguel Dominado for not only being extremely professional in his approach, but also for being a genuinely good person, being aware of the fact that I was handicapped since I couldn't use my left arm, making sure I wasn't having anxiety or was in too much pain; that means a lot and I'll never forget that. I'll share a table with you anytime my friend! I also want to send a huge shoutout to the amazing @yokaniii @saberdog.art @micah_myers and @lionbyrd for showing love and being awesome, you made the day even better for me by just showing up; it meant a lot. So what can I say, amazing show and I can't wait for NOICE 2023! 
My Thoughts & Ramblings
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