I've invested about $30 to make Hanged Doll.(To buy the book to translate more faster)
And I've spend $3.60 to make Pink Lady by far(Music price)and I'm planningto buy the book so I'll spend about $60 more.

What about you guys???

Back in the day when I used real media, it was the cost of supplies (ink, markers, paper, etc).... now that I do it almost all digitally, the only investment is my time. Works out nicer that way. :] I did buy a bigger tablet, but that's something I probably would have done anyway. It wasn't specifically for my comics. I guess there's also that webspace I bought which I don't use yet.


Some people invest huge amounts in their comics, because it's something they want to do. I'm not really sure it's an 'investment' if there's no intention of it paying off, though- then, it's just spending! I'm more of a 'make the money first, then put it back into the project' kind of person. Or I would be, if I made any money.

Well the only money I invest is on pens and paper, and pencils. But I think time is a little more valuable in some cases (To me, at least), and time is usually the only thing I spend when making my comics. I only have to buy pens and pencils every few months or so, and as for paper that lasts ages so hardly ever lol

Tablet,graphics program,pens,pencils, and a years worth of Bristol Board? around 200 bucks since July counting the Project Wonderful Ads.

Pen,Paper and scanner, pretty much around 5 pounds a month

Pencils, paper, electricity, my precious, precious time...
The biggest cost is $5 a week on advertising!

I wouldn't say it's an investment for me.
Different people waste money on all sorts of things. I'm sure I could have wasted it on something worse like alcohol, cigarettes, and/or drugs among other things. Or I could have used it for better things like charities or anything that wouldn't just be for me.

But my comic is my addiction. It is my vice and I am happy to put money into it as long as I can afford to do so without it putting me in a bind.

I'll just start by a few things I can recall and only since restarting to post on DD

Buying a Cintiq $2500
Needing a new more powerful computer for my work $1600
Probably another $300-$400 on extra hard drives. After a few near losses I can never have enough XD
IIRC about $300 for justnopoint.com for a 2 year period. About to have to renew
DD was nice enough to let me be at their table at WWTexas in 2007 I probably gave away $200 worth of comics or more =p and paid $300 for the hotel room
Got a new convention I am about to go to: DWEX
Room cost was about $200 this time. I have $240 worth of comics that I tell myself I will try to sell but I am sure I'll just give them to my fellow Drunk Duckers XD
And I bought an IPod to keep up with story notes better than actual paper/pen for $120
About $50 was spent on advertising while I was updating DLP give or take.

I'm sure I am forgetting stuff. I guess you can count a lot of that stuff as useful for more than just comic making. But really, that's about all I use my computer for other that downloading tv shows that I rarely ever get to watch. Since I always need to work on comics :P

That right there is near $6000 in just 3 years O_O
Heh, I could have put that on my house. Then again my house is mostly just here for me to make my comics too, so that adds $65,000 more XD Okay, maybe that one's taking it too far.

Either this proves how passionate I am or how sad of a person I must be LOL
*goes back to scripting for comic... (today I had to spend another $150 on a power supply to get my art computer back running again ahhhhhh)

Seeing my comic completed? Priceless. Some things in life you can't buy, for everything else there's .... screw that. I don't run up credit cards much either =p

I never did a tally. It's a hobby. I pour money into my hobbies. The most tangible stuff is the paper, pencils, and TONS of erasers and replacement lead. There's the money from my ProjectWonderful account that I put back into advertising. There's "research materials" which double as entertainment (my DVDs, mangas, and drawing books). I've bought wooden models and other visual aids too. My scanner was bought before I started drawing, but I use it exclusively to scan comic pages now. The same is true of my graphics programs. The ink refills in the last couple years have been primarily for printing comic pages or references. My digital camera is used quite often for taking photo references. Batteries, etc. are required for that too. My most recent expenses are in the $500+ range for plane tickets, hotel reservations, and supplies for a convention.

I am sure it's hundreds of dollars at least, if not thousands. But it's a hobby, not an "investment." Investments are something you expect to pay off in some kind of monetary fashion. Hobbies are things you pour time and money into for the sake of your own happiness.

I'm with 'Justnopoint' and Used Books. Making my comic is my avocation, not my vocation. My avocation relaxes and inspires me! Naturally, the 6 or 7 thousand dollars I have spent, cumulative, really isn't any big thing. Lets see, two laptops, several external drives. Poser, Bryce, Photoshop and a plethora of other programs which not only cost, but cost to keep up with! Website, domain name, publishing set ups. Copies of comics to have and give out. And that doesn't count my time which I estimate at going on 3000 hours. Figure 20-30 dollars an hour (not telling the actual) that comes to $60,000 dollars conservatively. Not bad. And yes, time is the commodity by which we measure all things--and we have only what our lives bestow, so yes--it is the most precious commodity of all!

But it's a hobby, not an "investment." Investments are something you expect to pay off in some kind of monetary fashion. Hobbies are things you pour time and money into for the sake of your own happiness.
Wait, we didn't all think we would be filthy rich enough to combine our $$$ and stop 2012?!!!!

And that doesn't count my time which I estimate at going on 3000 hours. Figure 20-30 dollars an hourHow did you come up with your hourly figure? Base it off your real job's wage? Or what you think your time is worth?

I think my time is worth 3xinfinite no taksies backsies B)

Well,Pink Lady need music and I can't find any free one.so I have to pay $0.60 per each.

Hmmmm...between pens, pencils, erasers and having to purchase a stack of printer paper once every year or so, I'd say this thing costs me about ten to fifteen dollars a month.

JustNoPoint
And that doesn't count my time which I estimate at going on 3000 hours. Figure 20-30 dollars an hour

How did you come up with your hourly figure? Base it off your real job's wage? Or what you think your time is worth?

I think my time is worth 3xinfinite no taksies backsies B)


Yes, the hourly figure is based on my base+comp+OT+bonus...ect wage, which floats between those two numbers...more or less. :)

I've invested most in honing my skills. I used to go through 3-5 sketchbooks a year until I went on an art course (When I needed to draw the most) and completely lost it. I didn't even get through one sketchbook a year. I'm slowly working my way back up for my new course but it's difficult after such a massive crash to get back into the pace of things.

Anyway, I still have materials I had five years ago but I have new ones too. Rubbers and are the most I have to purchase. Followed by rulers, fine line pens, paintbrushes and coloured markers (Mostly copic since I use the letrasets for my brighter colour schemes). Pencils I can get left, right and centre and I've not even completely worn out stuff from SEVEN years ago let alone five. So I'm pretty lucky there.

I also get things for birthdays and christmas so I don't have to pay for those.
I'm happy in that I have a mum that appreciates creativity (She did art at school) and is occasionally willing to get me new sketchbooks and stuff without charging me. However, I like going out and bringing the interesting stuff home to show the family sometimes.

Necromancing this thread!

I spent about $4 on the notebook I use, about $12 for the pens, $.80 for each pencil and I spent $120 for a copy of Photoshop Elements. Elements, though, is a program I use for this unrelated to my comic, so that was very much worth the cost.