Secret Episode: Diminished, Part 1 PRE-ORDER NOW!!

[Prof_Sai]

Big fish little fish swimming in the water.
Come back here and give me my daughter.

[Captain Ash]

If this comic has no diapers or something like this, this slowly shrinking comic looks like something I would enjoy reading.
Judging from the drawings, it looks awesome!

Greetings
Captain Ash

[Mercurius]

Originally Posted by Captain Ash

If this comic has no diapers or something like this, this slowly shrinking comic looks like something I would enjoy reading.
Judging from the drawings, it looks awesome!

Greetings
Captain Ash

So, since there's a few who would consider getting it, and question what it contains, I will implement a content icon system. So, if a content has Diapers, it would say that under the MerComix/Adults Only logo.

Anyways, for those who did pre-order the Special Edition, I am delaying the bonus artwork, since the artist won't finish those on time. You will be notified when those art pieces are uploaded and ready.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

[Doll-Elf]

You are the only one who seeks pre-orders of a fetish based comic in which may not come to intuition. I get it for major companies that have the power and resources like WoW or Assassin's Creed, but this is just a single comic. I do not understand why you would want a pre-order unless you cannot afford to fund it yourself. Then I would consider renaming this to crowdfunding.

[Mercurius]

Originally Posted by Doll-Elf

You are the only one who seeks pre-orders of a fetish based comic in which may not come to intuition. I get it for major companies that have the power and resources like WoW or Assassin's Creed, but this is just a single comic. I do not understand why you would want a pre-order unless you cannot afford to fund it yourself. Then I would consider renaming this to crowdfunding.

With Gumroad, all pre-orders won't be charged until the product is released, as stated here: https://help.gumroad.com/11163-produ...t-card-charges

The purpose of a pre-order is a double-edged sword, to be honest. Some may take that chance and not have to worry until it's out, while others don't use it and wait until release day to get it.

I get that some say put up the pre-order, while others say don't, like you. I can't go both ways, can't I? *sigh* Right now, half of the funds from previous comics sold are used to make the comic, while the other half is from my own, since I have a part-time job.

Another reason is that if it were a crowdfunded comic, it would possibly get shut down by Square Enix. Just look at what happened when fans tried to crowdfund a Final Fantasy VII web series back in 2013: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/sq.../1100-6412449/

Notice that Square Enix may regret that decision, but the damage was already done and the project was dead, a month later: https://joezieja.com/2013/09/19/the-...he-web-series/

In short, crowdfunding has it's faults that I cannot risk, just for a comic.

[bigjoo12]

I'm excited to see this comic .. but I haven't preordered a comic before. Is there a current amount raised number and a goal number ?



I see a few other comics there... are they finished ? and which ones would have the most process and slow shrinking.. I'll pick them up to help you out

[Mercurius]

Originally Posted by bigjoo12

I'm excited to see this comic .. but I haven't preordered a comic before. Is there a current amount raised number and a goal number ?

The page isn't a crowdfunded, so you can pre-order it, and it'll be charged and you'll get a copy once it's released.

Originally Posted by bigjoo12

I see a few other comics there... are they finished ? and which ones would have the most process and slow shrinking.. I'll pick them up to help you out

All other comics are finished works. Senshi Dolls 1 & 2 have the most process and slow shrinking.

[Silver Spoon]

The idea of something like a "season pass" for a fetish comic is perhaps the most insane pay comic concept I've heard for in the near 12 years I've been on this forum.

It's hard for me to also get excited for pay comics involving characters you don't own the copyright of.

[Mercurius]

Originally Posted by Silver Spoon

The idea of something like a "season pass" for a fetish comic is perhaps the most insane pay comic concept I've heard for in the near 12 years I've been on this forum.

Insane? Or genius?

Originally Posted by Silver Spoon

It's hard for me to also get excited for pay comics involving characters you don't own the copyright of.

Jeez, if you're concerned about that, ask J Yubari on his Growth Materia comics, when it first came out.

[ShrinkingOne]

Originally Posted by Mercurius

Insane? Or genius?

How about a "Thank you for the feedback" and don't be so damn cocky. Your sales are tied up in your brand, and as far as most are concerned, you are your brand. Do you want me, the person purchasing your products, to be more encouraged to buy from you, or pirate you?

[Silver Spoon]

Originally Posted by Mercurius

Jeez, if you're concerned about that, ask J Yubari on his Growth Materia comics, when it first came out.

Yeah, I didn't care for that one either. Which is a shame, since it had some nice art.

I once bought comics with licensed properties, but have long since abandoned that practice. Parodies or satires of various IPs is one thing. Using them for a quick buck for the fetish community is another.

[ShrinkingOne]

Originally Posted by Silver Spoon

The idea of something like a "season pass" for a fetish comic is perhaps the most insane pay comic concept I've heard for in the near 12 years I've been on this forum.

It's hard for me to also get excited for pay comics involving characters you don't own the copyright of.

Fully agree on the former, it's like the only marketing strategy Mercomix uses are ones handed down from mainstream large-scale crowd-funding and video games that do this to bypass traditional financing barriers or build hype. These and other tactics from Mercomix are totally mismatched to the audience.

You have to have a brand people trust too. Mercomix has a lack of self-awareness about how much trust was lost and how their brand has been poisoned from the Sailor Moon series of comics; the creator made core elements out of their personal, hyper-niche kinks (diapers, scat) and exacting fantasy of shrinking characters from a notable 1980s manga/anime property and babying these characters rather than sticking to size differences and the interesting dynamics that can play out there when you aren't preoccupied with infantilizing. Something very rigid about their obsession. To their credit, at least Mercomix is not obsessed with something like Ranma.

Need to push back a little on the latter. Fair use allows the sale of those images. What pornographers don't do is slap a label on their product implying it is a branded product endorsed by the property owners, which Mercomix initially did.

Also, most people have moved on to more contemporary properties and characters like Overwatch or other video games for Western audiences and more recent anime characters (stopped paying attention years ago to what the zeitgeist is) or generic anime girls in Asian garb rendered in an Eastern art style for the rest. They stay on top of what's new. Sailor Moon has been dead near-on a decade.

I plan to buy the first comic based on the shrinking process alone; any excitement I might have is purely benefit of the doubt, but there is an element that is thankful that it isn't Yet Another Sailor Moon Comic (#YASMC). The recent preview showing hints of the shrinking cemented that decision, though I won't preorder. I will absolutely not get Chapter II or any subsequent chapter, but I could see myself commissioning the artist.

So, here's some constructive criticism, because I know Mercomix isn't going to stop: I would drop the preorder gimmicks and just release the damn comic when its done. If you release quality products, people will buy it and you don't have to work so hard to convince us with the money that what you have to offer is worth what you're charging. If you want to let people know ahead of time, fine, but months in advance isn't the way to go. A week tops. You aren't a pay site who has to cultivate a sense of the subscription website as a going concern and worry about subscriber retention.

Focus on the fundamentals and leave the advanced tactics to the experts who are trying to capture sales from demographics on gigantic marketing platforms that have more than a couple hundred people in it.