Hi everyone! The deadline for the big 200th issue of the Alpha-Omega APA-zine is coming up soon, so as a reminder for anyone interested in participating, here’s an updated F.A.Q. list:

ALPHA-OMEGA #200: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (v2)

What is Alpha-Omega?

Alpha-Omega is the Amateur Press Association of the Christian Comic Arts Society, and is the ink-and-paper-through-the-mail counterpart to the electronic forums and social media fellowship we have online.

What’s the plan?

Alpha-Omega #200 will be a special issue featuring content from our past and current members, as well as from friends and supporters within the Christian comics movement. We envision the book as a “best of” tribute to our past 33+ years of Christian comics fellowship, and a celebration of both Christian comics and Christian comics fandom.

If you haven't already done so, please RSVP to alphaomega@crosshatchery.com if you want to participate.

What are we looking for?

The length of your submission is up to you. You can submit anything from essays and short stories to a single pinup page of art. It can be new content, or “best of” reprints. Possible ideas include…

• Essays about your own personal memories, experiences or lessons learned within the Christian comics movement during your time as a fan, amateur or pro.
• Artwork in the “Congratulations on 200 issues!” tradition of those Comic-Con Souvenir Books. Our official theme for this issue is “Celebrating Christian Comics Fandom”.
• Self-contained short comic stories.
• Also, feel free to share and promote your own Christian comics work. Members and friends of Alpha-Omega and the Christian Comic Arts Society have produced a lot of content over the years, but much of it was in the form of small-press indie comics from the pre-internet era and so many of our comics may still be largely unknown to wider audiences. Give us a look back on what you’ve worked on, and how to find it!

What should we NOT include?

• Personal contact info. If you’re a creator who wants to promote your website, social media or email, great! Go for it! But it’s probably not a good idea to share your home address and phone number, since extra copies of this “best of” book will eventually be available for sale to the general public.
• Mailing comments to other members. These are usually the lifeblood of an APA, but this issue will have many new one-time readers, so mailing comments referencing any specific back issue content will be needlessly confusing. Save it for next time, regulars!
• Serialized stories. Like above, don’t share “Chapter 2 of 5” or start a teaser cliffhanger that will never be resolved for our guest readers. Let’s stick to standalone stories this issue.
• Copyrighted material. Feel free to share any of your own art and writing, but avoid photocopying articles or artwork from elsewhere.
• All our usual AO content restrictions apply: no graphic sex/violence/objectionable content, no personal insults, no inter-denominational arguments, no political flame-wars.

Who owns the copyright?

You will retain all copyright ownership of your individual work. By submitting your work for this issue, you are granting Alpha-Omega/CCAS a nonexclusive right to publish it as part of this 200th issue compilation.

This standard disclaimer will be included in the front page of the book: “The views and opinions expressed here are those of the individual creators, and do not necessarily reflect the Christian Comic Arts Society or the Alpha-Omega Amateur Press Association as a whole. The copyrights for all contents of this compilation are the property of their respective creators, and are printed here with permission.”

How should we send our pages?

• The printed book will be 8.5” x 11”, B&W. Try to design your pages accordingly.
• Have your submission clearly labeled with your name somewhere on the front page. (Also please include your own copyright notices if you want to be more specific than our generic AO disclaimer listed above.)
• If you can send your ‘trib digitally, send it to Kevin Yong via alphaomega@crosshatchery.com or by using a file sharing upload site like Dropbox. TIFF, JPEG or PNG accepted for artwork, while PDF is the preferred file format for documents.
• If you prefer to create your ‘trib in hardcopy form, you can mail us ONE clean set of B&W pages for your ‘trib, and we will scan it as needed for the final book. You can mail your printed pages to:
  Kevin Yong, P.O. Box 254, Temple City, CA 91780

Deadline?

The 200th issue will be dated May/June 2018. The deadline for contributing for the issue will be May 7th, and the printed issue will be sent out (Lord willing) by late May.

What will this cost?

As an all-volunteer APAzine, the costs of printing this issue will be paid for out of pocket by the participants. We estimate a printed copy will cost around $4 or $5, plus postage.

The book will be printed as a squarebound trade paperback using Createspace print-on-demand. In addition to copies being printed for participants, the book will later be available for sale at Amazon.com to the general public. (Any money eventually raised from sales of the book will go back towards funding Alpha-Omega and the Christian Comic Arts Society.)

For those who want to be a part of AO #200 but who don’t want to purchase a physical copy, a free digital PDF version will also be made available to all participants.

Who do I contact with more questions?

Ralph Miley is our main contact person & coordinator for this project. Kevin Yong is the Central Mailer who is compiling all the ‘tribs and will be formatting the book for print. If you don't already have our contact info, you can send us an email at alphaomega@crosshatchery.com and one of us will follow-up.

Thanks, and God bless you all!