Universal Uclick Launches Phoebe And Her Unicorn In 100+ Publications



I don't cover as many of the strip launches as I might have once upon a time. It seems there are far fewer now, particuarly after the newspaper industry shudder and heave the marked the end of the last decade. My guess is that most syndicates moved from 2-3 launches a year at the beginning of the 2000s to one every 18-24 months, but I could be super-wrong about that. Much of the action in recent years has been in syndicates working with the creative properties to develop opportunities for them in a variety of media, with the occasional solid performer being launched like Dustin.

That Universal Uclick found more than 100 publications to carry Dana Simpson's Phoebe And Her Unicorn marks me as worth noting for a few reasons. One, that's an excellent launch, just by sheer numbers one of the best in that company's history. Two, I believe there's an historical aspect that hasn't been made part of how the strip has been presented, and I'll respect that here, although I'm thrilled by what that represents. Three, the strip has been carried for a long time on GoComics.com under its original name Heavenly Nostrils, and the ability to move it to a more profitable tier must be really exciting for that company in terms of executing that digital strategy. Something that may not be a factor considered with the frequency it deserves is that the ability to work in a space with syndication demands before syndication buyers get to see the strip -- that really has to be a gift to those creators. It's a nearly three-year running start for Simpson, and a chance to work in markets where you already have fans that might defend the specific work if dropped. It seems to be working in this case, certainly.

I note that Simpson is in the Seattle area, which at least in terms of idiosyncratic small-press comics people has enjoyed a significant resurgence and remains one of the great comics communities. Previous works from Simpson stretching back to the early 2000s have adhered much more closely to approaches enjoyed in furry culture, but syndication was an end result long in mind. Now she's there, with much aplomb. Our congratulations to the cartoonist.
 
posted 12:55 am PST | Permalink
 

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