Because that last item was a little gloomy, here’s Anita Olin’s story of how she got into reading comics, from tis month’s Sequential Tart:
My late entry into college was armed with comic books and Star Wars, and when I could get away with it, that’s what my papers and essays were about: comics as literature, Star Wars and the Hero’s Journey, comics and censorship, literary criticism of comics …. Of course, I became a Buffy fanatic too. That one is my sister’s fault; she insisted on showing me James Marsters as Spike when there was talk of Nicolas Cage playing John Constantine. Finally, the depth of the show hit me, and, really, vampires and a superpowered heroine — what better combination could there be? Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore and Joss Whedon are my own personal Holy Literary Trinity.
See. There are always entry points. And new people.
Now there is something you don’t see every day.
A female comic reader who was really into G.I. Joe.
You’re quite right Heidi. There are always entry points. And entry points you might not even consider.
A fan of G.I. Joe and Wolverine. And then some of the stuff you might figure (stereotypically) a female comic fan might be into (Buffy, Sandman, Hellblazer, and other Vertigo titles).
Just goes to prove that if publishers make something that can appeal across various demographics, they can attract all sorts of readers. Just as long as they don’t do stupid stuff to alienate those potential readers, they can open up the market in all sorts of ways.