Where to put the price?

[Josh Blair]

In the last issue of Candy or Medicine (seen below at left), I forgot to include the "$1" price on the cover. While not too big of a deal when I sell them via the mail or a show, it does present a problem for the stores that stock it. I had to send an e-mail to Quimby's asking them if they could write "$1" on the cover, which is kind of a pain in the ass for them.

Anyway, the one thing I like about the cover is that the price doesn't detract from the cover/artwork. In the fifth issue (seen below at right), after the artist sent me the cover, I asked if he could come up with a "$1" for it. While he did a great job incorporating the price into the cover, it still detracts from the overall artwork.

So I began thinking that I might just leave the price off the cover and when I send copies to stores/distros, I can write "$1" on the margin of the cover real small. The problem with this, however, is if I forget, which was the case with Quimby's. So when I went to Staples yesterday to pick up some paper, I perused the price tag section to find a better solution. I was looking for really small round price tags (Candy or Medicine is quarter-sized), but the best think I found were these small rounded rectangle price tags (the package showed them on a key). They're still a little too big, so what I'll do is write "$1" twice on each one, then cut it in half. The nice thing about them is that they're removable, so once someone purchases my comic, they can peel the price tag off if the so choose.

So how do you handle pricing? Any clever solution?

[Josh Blair]

Sorry about the images. I thought they would be displayed in the post.

[Sabrina]

once or twice i've put the price (like, "two dollars or trade") on the cover but usually i put it on the first inside page i write on, along with my introduction and contact info.

[Melanie]

I used to put mine on the cover too (way back when) but then started to just list the price either in the intro page or on the last page with the contact info.

[Jeff Somers]

I've always put the price on the cover right below the title, but I'm lazy and like templates that get used over and over again. I always get irritated when the price isn't on the cover; I want to know without having to hunt for it. But that's me.

[Rick Bradford]

Some folks put the price on the back cover. I'd imagine most people browsing zines would check the back cover next if the price wasn't on the front. Like books, don'tcha know.

[NicoleIntrovert]

I've never put the price ON my zines. I don't think it's too terribly necessary. If you sell them in a store you can always write it on with pencil or use a small sticker.

When purchasing from my distro in person.. i have a little price list displayed in an acrylic sign for people to look at.