Why bother with [newspaper] syndication at all?
Bill replies : Good question! The answer is that the syndicates take on many tasks that would be difficult for an individual cartoonist, and allow creators to focus on what they do best. The syndicates handle accounting, collections, distribution and sales, among others. If the Atlanta paper were to call me and ask to run “Kevin and Kell”, it would be relatively simple. I’d just send them the strips (before Terrence colors them) and invoice them regularly. However, if more newspapers asked for it, or if I decided to aggressively sell it to the newspaper market, a syndicate is the only solution. I have no plans of doing that, though. [Note : the Atlanta paper is now running “Kevin and Kell”, so we must assume that Bill’s providing them the B&W artwork, but still has no plans to syndicate.
