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December 10, 2025

Acquiring and publishing graphic novels

In May 2025, Lucas Wetzel, Senior Editor at Andrews McMeel Publishing (USA), participated in Creative Australia’s Visiting International Publishers (VIPs) program. During the VIPs program Lucas sat down with participants from Papercuts Comics Festival and Perth Comic Arts Festival to answer questions from early-career comic creators about publishing illustrated work. The transcript of this discussion – which has been edited for clarity and length – has been made available thanks to Creative Australia.

Andrews McMeel Publishing is the home of beloved comic features such as The Far Side by Gary Larson, Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson, Cathy by Cathy Guisewite, Doonesbury by G. B Trudeau, and The Oatmeal by Matthew Inman. Lucas edits and acquires illustrated humour and graphic novel titles, including New York Times bestsellers The Mysteries by Bill Watterson, Fangs by Sarah Andersen, Bad Dreams in the Night by Adam Ellis, and middle-grade children’s series including Big Nate by Lincoln Peirce and Phoebe and Her Unicorn by Dana Simpson. In 2020, he was named a Star Watch honouree by Publisher’s Weekly.

Lucas Wetzel - photo credit Jennifer Wetzel
Photo credit: Jennifer Wetzel

How do you acquire graphic novels? Do you go to conventions and discover creators, read cold submissions, search online, etc.?

All of the above. I spend a lot of time on the internet, like everybody else, looking at what people are doing. I try to go beyond Instagram and the obvious places. I like to follow the cartoonists who I work with, see who they’re following, who they champion. I’ll sometimes just ask them ‘who do you like?’

Word-of-mouth is really big in the cartooning community because, as we’re seeing here today, people like to advocate for the talent that they know and that they think is maybe underrepresented or hasn’t been discovered yet. I do enjoy going to comics festivals like the Small Press Expo or Toronto Comics Arts Festival… I haven’t been to it yet, but CAKE, Chicago Alternative Comics Expo is really great. Or even just the smaller zine fests. I visit bookstores when I visit other cities and ask people who they enjoy in their local comic scene. Because it seems like to one degree or another, there’s a comic scene in every city. Not always as well developed as what you’re doing in Australia… The concentration of people in Perth, for example, is astounding.

I also get submissions from agents. There are a few agents I know who specialise in representing graphic novelists and cartoonists. And a lot of the talent in our company at Andrews McMeel comes from our backlist or from syndicated newspaper cartoonists, or through Go Comics, which is a popular destination for comics, though more so before Instagram.

You mentioned you look at some early-career zines. Does that mean that you acquire books directly from un-agented illustrators? Is that common or is it rare?

It’s probably more common for me than some of the people at the Big Five publishing companies, as we are independently owned. I will often reach out to cartoonists directly. I’ll first look and see if they have published anything. If so, I’ll usually order it, maybe drop them a line, let them know who I am and what I like about their work, or just pick it up, check it out and share it with my team. I work with about eight other editors. Three or four of them really specialise in graphic novels and comics, or at least it’s part of what they do.

So, I’ll share it with other people, and I’ll try to find people who are thinking about publishing a book, or who have been asked by their readers and fans to publish a book or told that they should do it. Often I’ll write [to] somebody, and they’ll say they were already thinking about publishing a book. Sometimes they will go on to get an agent, and there’s pros and cons to both. I mean, it’s fun just to work with somebody directly and develop it from the very beginning. But an agent can help them navigate the contractual process, they’re likely to get more money and the proposal will get shopped around other places. So it’s a combination of agented submissions and un-agented for me. 

And when you receive a pitch submission, what kind of materials do you generally expect to receive?

I like to see as much as possible. It’s nice to see at least one completed chapter, or maybe 10-12 pages of completely coloured and finished art, and then another chapter or two in rough form. Or several dozen comics if they’re independent pages or self-contained comics. I like to learn a little bit about the background of the artist and what they’ve done, what they’re interested in, a synopsis of the story itself, and what they want to do.

An agented submission will have a more thorough pitch packet. They’ll talk about comparative titles, about what makes it unique and what hole in the market it’s going to fill – what about the story is unique and hasn’t been told before. But, typically, the great thing about comics and graphic novels is you can take a look at it and quickly understand if you want to see more or not. And if I’m not interested in something, it doesn’t mean it’s not fantastic. It’s just maybe not for us. ‘There’s room for everyone’ is what I always say. 

And do you ever pair authors and illustrators for graphic novels, or do you expect the project to come to you with a team already attached?

I would like to do more of that in the future. Sometimes I will pair people, or I’ll think of a good combination. Sometimes it only works in my head, and they either don’t get along or it’s just not the right fit.

I do get pitches for graphic novels that don’t have illustrations attached, and I have to admit, for me, it’s harder to envision what it can be. Because I’m just one stage of the publishing process. If I like something I have to pitch it to the rest of my team and convince them that it’s a good investment, that it’s something we can sell, where I think we can sell it. And if there’s no illustrations attached for a graphic project, you kinda get some blank looks… people don’t know what it is. But, it’s certainly possible. I think it’s done more at other publishers, especially if it’s somebody with a big name, an artist who’s written for television or movies or, you know, just has a good story to tell but isn’t an illustrator. I think it’s nice to have an early look at visuals, but if a project doesn’t have an artist attached, I’ll sometimes make a few suggestions or I’ll ask them to look around and think what styles they like, and who they could see themselves working with. 

What's the average advance for a graphic novel?

The lowest I’ve ever paid for something is $4,000 (USD), for a local author with no social media presence and who had never published before… The book did well and so for the next book we paid more than that. Another author started out with a four-figure advance for their first book and got a six-figure deal from us later in their career, after establishing a strong sales track record. 

For an original graphic novel, I think it’s hard to pay less than $15,000 (USD), though realistically an artist might need twice that amount to really dedicate their time to a graphic novel instead of taking on other work. There are a lot of factors involved, including a publisher’s sales projection, whether the author has an agent who has shopped the proposal around and received bids from multiple publishers, and how much interest there is in the market for the author or the subject.

An advance is probably the most important figure, since it’s guaranteed money and shows a commitment from a publisher that they believe in something. But the advance is not the only important thing. A royalty rate is very significant, whether it’s based on net receipts or retail price. If our internal sales projections don’t warrant a large advance, one option the publisher might offer is a royalty escalator where the author’s share of royalties increases as the book sells more copies. 

I’ve been outbid on things a lot of times. It’s just part of the business, and we’ve all been through it.

The next set of questions are about the publishing process. What's the typical time between signing a book and its release?

The average is a year. That’s for somebody who’s already published a lot of comics, or they’ve run something in serial form on their website or on Patreon. But for a recent project I signed up, the on-sale date is not until September 2027. So, it sometimes takes two or three years.

After publication, how much promotion does the publisher do and what is expected of the author?

We do a lot as a publisher, but we also ask a lot of authors. We ask them to reach out via social media or through their newsletter. We like them to do events, and we help them set those up and make sure that they have opportunities to be on panels at different events.

Instead of throwing money at things like advertising in big magazines, we try to be strategic, run influencer campaigns, pursue trade advertising through different newsletters and things like that. We’ll advertise on Meta, and once there’s a certain number of reviews on Amazon and verified purchases, we can advertise on Amazon. So, there’s a lot of different ways, but it’s a multifaceted approach and we try to get creative with promotions, giveaways, and signed prints. But it takes a lot of creativity and luck, I think, to stand out and to reach people.

TikTok is big but hard to control. Fortunately, there’s people half my age to run those campaigns. It can be a frustrating thing because there are definitely times where authors feel like we’re not doing enough, and then there’s times when they are very grateful and think we’re doing a lot. We don’t always know what will work.

And just to return to that question of what is expected of the author...

To not say anything scandalous online [laughs]. Just kidding. 99% of all authors are great. Honestly, the main thing we expect is to meet deadlines or to be realistic about them. I think having honest conversations early on in the process is helpful, like when do we realistically think this book can be done? When can you turn things in? Every situation’s different. Some authors like a lot of feedback and collaboration, and some just kind of want to be left on their own. I think you do have to create a situation of mutual trust. Some authors I text with a lot, and for some it’s a regular Zoom call. Sometimes the agent is really involved.

But what’s expected is that they will deliver and that they’ll advocate for their book and that they’ll make appearances or do interviews if the opportunities arise. I worked with a couple of authors who wanted to stay anonymous for whatever reason, and that was a challenge because you couldn’t go out and promote them as the author as much as you could with somebody who really is willing to physically get out there.

Do you ever sign up an author for a book and it never comes out? If so, what tend to be the reasons, and how often does it happen?

Rarely. I was talking with some of the other visiting publishers, and they’ve had folks who take a decade to deliver or never come in. But the longest it’s been for me was seven or eight years. It happens sometimes if people have health issues, if there’s something in their life that comes up or maybe they’re not quite ready to tell the story that they thought they were. If there wasn’t a huge advance involved, the company’s maybe not too worried about it. And you just have to be patient, you can’t force creative work to happen overnight. But you also don’t want to miss your opportunity. 

I think an important part of my role is to apply a little bit of pressure, but not too much, and to give space for the creative process to happen, but not so much space that they get lost in it.

How long do you keep a book in print?

Ideally, we keep it in print indefinitely. There are some books on our backlist that have been in print for decades. The Calvin and Hobbes books and The Far Side collections, specifically, are two of the biggest sellers from the nineties. But managing inventory is a very tricky thing for a publisher, because after a while, if we got overaggressive and printed too many copies, we’re paying for warehouse space. And then other times, you don’t print enough.

Most of the time, I’d say a book stays in print for about ten years, and the copyright stays good until we either decide to reprint it or revert rights to the author so they can do something else with it. Realistically, you can’t keep everything in stock. You just try to keep enough on hand to meet the demand. We try to print a years’ worth of demand at a time.

Are there any specific styles or themes that you're most interested in?

I’m interested in really original and unique points of view, and really sharp voices, whether it’s intensely funny, or just a unique perspective on life or a story that just grips you right away. I think it’s similar to other genres of publishing: you want a story that draws you in and makes you curious. I don’t know that I have a specific thing I’m looking for as much as just knowing it when I see it or instantly wanting to know more about it. I think it starts with curiosity.

There’s a lot of things that my company does not publish. We’ve published some graphic novels about serious subjects like sexual abuse and trauma — beautiful books that I’m very proud of, and I hope that they continue to find an audience of people who are looking for those stories — but, those are not titles that we expect to sell a lot of and tend to be more of an exception. There are limitations for a commercial trade publisher. Fortunately, there are a lot of great graphic publishers out there that will champion things that are maybe less commercial in nature, but are still powerfully told and beautifully illustrated stories.

I’ll also say that I think the writing is more important than the artwork, as far as the quality goes. I think you can have pretty good art and a really great voice, but just an okay writing style with wonderful art isn’t as compelling a combination.

Are there any particular gaps in the market or your catalogue that you're interested in addressing?

I struggle with this question. I think there are, but I can’t say there’s one particular thing I’m out there looking for. I think maybe I’m looking for a bit of dark humour right now. There’s another question about the times that we’re in, and how that’s reflected in what we publish. And just talking with people here, I think the Australian sense of humour is very sharp and dry, and I would like to see more of that in what we do.

I think for a while, there were a lot of comics with an emphasis on self-care because the pandemic was so disorienting and concerning, and we were all craving comfort. And right now, I think we could use voices that challenge the way we’re living our life, that question our use of AI, that question the way we do business and government. So, I’m looking for radical reimagination of society, in a hilarious fashion, with wonderful artwork and jokes and punch lines and people falling over. 

You're not asking for much!

No, not much. Just the best possible combination of everything. [Laughs]

You kind of answered our question about current events influencing your business, but I guess people might want to know from a commercial standpoint if it's affecting your acquisitions or the big picture.

Yeah. Like some of the other panellists talked about this morning… The swirl of uncertainty is real. For us, as a graphic publisher who does a lot of hardcover books, we rely heavily on overseas printers. We have great printing partners throughout Asia, Mexico, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Eastern Europe, and the threat of tariffs affecting books, while not in effect right now, is an existential question. Can we continue to publish books and make them affordable for people? We publish a lot of books for kids, and they were $9.99 seven years ago, and now they’re $12.99. 

As other children’s publishers have pointed out this week, there are a lot of concerns about the rates of child literacy. And I think there’s an opportunity with graphic publishing to draw people in, especially so-called ‘reluctant readers’. I hear from teachers or parents that their kids – often boys — aren’t reading, but they picked up a Big Nate comic and loved it. So, I think there’s some ways that we can address issues and respond to them. But in general… Some days I feel like we’re trying to publish as many good things as we can, while we can, because who knows what the future holds.

What kinds of comics pitches are popular/desirable right now? Are there any types of stories you anticipate will get bigger over the next few years?

That’s a great question, and I think it’s the question that we’re all asking ourselves as publishers. We don’t know what’s going to happen. There are families being separated in our country, there are people whose jobs or industries are subject to upheaval, and the strain that that will have on the culture and on families and individuals is very real. I think there are stories that will come out of that but I don’t know what to expect yet. I talked to a publisher in New York, who said they were looking for more upbeat, uplifting stories, which I think is always true. 

But as far as specific trends, horror comics are big. Adam Ellis is an author I work with who published a book called Bad Dreams in the Night. He’s got a sequel coming out titled Let Me in Your Window. Those are kind of more psychological. Sarah Anderson, who creates the bestselling comic Sarah’s Scribbles, is now working on a book of horror comics and dark fairy tales. I think comics can address modern dystopian or political issues, but they do it through storytelling or allegory rather than directly. I think whatever the theme or subject matter is, it’s got to be a compelling story at the end of the day. That is what people are looking for, and that’s going to grab readers. As far as what the next big thing is, I probably won’t know what it is until it hits.

What advice would you give a mid-career illustrator/author interested in publishing their first graphic novel?

Maybe don’t try to do a graphic novel right off the bat. Start small, grow incrementally. It’s so funny to me, because I want to write books too, but I have no idea how to do it. I just help everybody else do it. And what I’ve learned is that they do it bit by bit. It’s chunk by chunk, day by day and it builds up over time. One of my favourite comic creators, Jackie Davis of Underpants and Overbites, drew a comic where she’s trying and failing to grow something in her garden. It’s just not working, and when she sees that nothing is growing, she passes out from exhaustion and defeat. And then at eye level on the ground, she sees this tiny little sprout. 

So, sticking with it is the main thing. But start small. Maybe publish a short story or a mini-comic or a first chapter of something, and bring it to a festival. You know, that’s why these festivals are so valuable, Papercuts and PCAF, and the others I mentioned in the States… because it gives you a deadline. Make something to sell or give away. You’re not going to get a graphic novel published out of nowhere, but people like me will walk around these festivals and pick things up. Doing something, even if it’s a mini-comic, shows that you’re capable of finishing what you start. If you prove it to yourself, then you can prove it to others. And you find your voice in the process.

Some other advice is to develop a recognisable style. Make a font out of your own lettering or find a typeface that you really like. Show it to your friends, share it with others. Find other people either in your community who make comics who’ve had a little bit of success or, who you look up to… find somebody else who’s doing what you would like to be doing and ask their advice. 

Because it is a community, and I think wherever you go, you’re going to find that. And not just in one geographical region – the comics community is very supportive and sharing in general.

What advice would you have for Australia-based comic creators who are seeking to pitch to/work with publishers like yours, given our geographical distance and the lack of networking opportunities?

Fortunately, the internet kind of localises everything. But I think an up-and-coming person might need to honestly ask themselves, do I have an audience outside of Australia at this point? And if not, would it be better just to focus on starting here and then growing that? Ask if the story translates well; is there a universal conflict that might appeal to anyone? And if you’ve got any friends or readers or family in the US, you can ask their opinion. Because sometimes there’s little nuances of language or design that aren’t going to scan as well for the US, and then the UK is completely different too.

When it comes to publishers, do your homework. Seek out publishers who specialise in graphic titles. Cast a wide net. I love graphic novels, but we’re (Andrews McMeel Publishing) not as literary as Drawn and Quarterly, and don’t have the same reputation as Fantagraphics. Top Shelf does a lot of visually stunning, innovative projects. Uncivilized Books in Minnesota may be open to more difficult or serious stories. So, I think it’s helpful to look at other publishers’ catalogues and ask, ‘would my book fit on the shelf with the rest of these? Is this someone who’s going to give me time and attention, versus just the prestige of a bigger house?’ I think it’s about finding the right fit and being realistic about what that may be. 

I try to do the same thing when I reach out to somebody. I let them know who I am and what we publish that is successful and similar to what they do, and I try to read enough of what they’ve done. I point out a few things that I liked in particular about their work. The mutual interest and respect shown by doing your homework can go a long way.

What suggestions would you give future graphic novelists in regards to growing and maintaining an online following, as well as improving their relationship with their readers?

Well, as a 44-year-old with 252 followers on Instagram, I would say, don’t listen to me. A lot of cartoonists use Patreon, others use Substack. Jason Chatfield, an Australian cartoonist I work with who was the head of the Australian Cartoonists Association and head of the National Cartoonists Society in the US for a while, did a great presentation about using Substack to build up contacts because you can keep the email list. You own the content a lot more than other platforms. That’s not for everyone; it does take some time to maintain. 

What works for one person isn’t necessarily going to work for you, but you can try similar things. Maybe find someone in your author or cartoonist community who’s doing a good job engaging with readers or building up a following and ask them what works for them if they’re open to having that conversation.

I think even once you get situated somewhere, the algorithm’s going to change. I’ve seen people surf the algorithms and find success, and then have those things get kind of squashed and buried. It’s tricky. I think turning your nose up and being like, ‘I’m too good for social media’ or ‘I just don’t have time’ isn’t helpful. We all have to do it, but you also have to do it in a way that’s authentic for you. Finding a friend or someone who’s enthusiastic about it and can help you is good. 

If you have a publisher, they should be able to help you as well. Ask them for assets that you can use. For example, we have some talented people on our marketing team who produce TikTok videos or take beautiful lifestyle photos of the artwork. We have very talented animators who make little clips or book trailers, and sometimes those will generate some buzz. 

What about Webtoon? Do you look there for something that you might publish?

We’ve partnered with Webtoon and with Tapas before and published things that were serialised there, and that’s nice because there’s already a story being told. But sometimes it’s deceptive because they’re designed for scrolling and formatting them in a book, so it doesn’t always work… or you think it’s going to take one year, and it takes two years. It drives designers crazy, because it’s a challenge. You’re switching formats.

But again, there’s really no substitute for putting comics and stories up that are going to grab people’s attention. Adam Ellis would post excerpts from the stories in his book on Instagram and then leave you hanging. You didn’t know what was going to happen, and people would have to buy the book or the ebook to find out. So, yeah, just finding ways to generate interest. It’s a hard thing to do no matter what technology or what platform, but it’s good practice because you get feedback. Just don’t get discouraged if it doesn’t take off. You have to pay attention to what people like but you also have to stick with your gut if it’s something that you really believe in. Don’t give up on it just because you didn’t get a lot of likes that day.

Do you have any advice for someone with a graphic-novel in development that has a more reflective/poetic side than plot-based narrative? Would you be interested in considering a project like this?

I would definitely be interested in seeing it and considering it, but it might be harder for a commercial trade publisher to do it. I think I would want to know what the message is. Is it someone telling their story that’s very personal and meaningful, or does it also transcend one person’s story and give readers a moment of inspiration or reflection? That’s the question. I would say that’s where it can be important to research the publisher, because there are publishers that publish beautiful, more poetic books. But I would absolutely want to see a proposal. I hope that’s what becomes popular in the future, especially in times of conflict and uncertainty and nastiness, so that as we continue to look inward, we’re able to produce more beautiful work.

I’d say, first and foremost, just tune everything out and tell the story. If it’s something that you feel like you need to tell, tell that story and don’t be dissuaded. And then share it with a publisher later, and it’ll find its way. Even if you publish it yourself. I’ve published things myself, so I advocate for that path as well. Sometimes you’ll get it out through a small press. Sometimes you’ll make your own press to do it. Sometimes you’ll do a Kickstarter or use crowdsourcing, but just get it out there. Make the thing! 

For more information for illustrators on how to use social media and Patreon, check out our on-demand video resource Social media and Patreon for illustrators with illustrator Li Chen, which can be found in our Resources hub. Graphic novelists may also wish to keep an eye out for our Virtual Literary Speed Dating pitch events, while there are opportunities for illustrators to pitch at our Picture Book Matchmaker event.

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