 |
Shipping
FAQ
What, where, when, why? Why???
Questions. We all have them! Hopefully here you will find our answers to some of yours...
-
Who or what exactly is Plan Nine?
-
- Plan
Nine Publishing is a small company dedicated to printing the funniest
web comic strips on the web today. We want to help nurture this brand
new medium and allow it to avoid the pitfalls that have almost killed
off the comic strip as an art form. Mostly though, we like the idea of
a job that requires us to read the funnies every day.
-
-
How and when did Plan Nine get started?
-
- Plan Nine was started in 1996 with the publication of Kevin & Kell
- The
Quest for Content. In the course of researching topics for a weekly
computer column, I stumbled across Bill Holbrook's delightful strip and
wanted a printed version. When I contacted Bill about whether a printed
collection was in the offing, he said probably not, since publishers
felt that once some appeared on the Internet, "it no longer had any
commercial value". Amused by this cluelessness, I continued to follow
the strip, but began entertaining the idea of printing a book myself. I
approached Bill with a contract, he agreed, and thus Plan Nine was
born. You can find more details in this article from the April 14th Business Journal.
-
I need to change my password/address/billing info, how do I do that?
-
- You can change that info
here.
-
I kind of forgot my password, how do retrieve it?
-
- You can change retrieve your password
here.
-
-
I have a question about my order, who do I contact?
-
- You can contact the Frietag the Order Troll at orders@plan9.org or phone the office at (336) 454.7766.
I'm confused about how shipping works, can you explain things in more
detail?
-
Certainly. Check out our shipping FAQ, and if
you still have questions, drop us a line or give us a call.
-
-
What are your hours?
-
- We
are open 10:00-18:00, Monday through Friday, though it is highly likely
you can catch someone at the office after these hours or on the
weekend.
-
-
Where did the Plan Nine logo come from?
-
- The logo was drawn by Bill Holbrook, but was updated recently with a font change. The
new design harkens back to the web site's cheezy 1950's feel.
-
-
Will you print my strip?
-
- Maybe, but first you need to read our submissions criteria .
-
-
Can I pay to get my book printed?
-
- Plan
Nine is not a vanity press, so we don't take money to print books. We
print what we like and what is funny. Does that mean that if we turn
you down, your work is no good? Not at all, we turn down stuff for a
lot of reasons. It may not be our cup of tea, it may not meet our
criteria, or we just may not have room on the production schedule. We
have to pick titles we think has a reasonable chance of selling, so
don't take a rejection personally. The hardest part of this job is
telling people "no".
-
-
How come [insert your favorite book here] costs more than my copy of Dilbert?
-
- Simple
answer, the economies of scale. Even the most popular book at Plan Nine
only has a print run of 2-3,000. Compare this to the 100,000+ print run
for Dilbert and you can see why our books will cost more.
-
-
How come your books are not available in my local book store?
-
- Actually,
they are. Any book store (or on-line retailer) can order our books,
they just don't choose stock them because the demand is not there. We
do not concentrate on getting our books in stores because it is pretty
much an inefficient way to sell books. 98% of our sales go directly to
you, the reader. This means you get the books much faster than if you
order them from a book store.
- Do you ship outside the United States?
-
Yes. Plan Nine titles have shipped to 29 countries and are available wherever
there is mail service. We can't vouch for your postal system, but we will try
and get you the books. The only country we have had major trouble with is South
Africa, which has returned books with no reason stated and taken months to
deliver to even businesses.
-
Gee, the shipping to my country is expensive. Any plans to get the books
distributed locally?
-
- E.U. fans can get our books at Plan
Nine Europe, based in the UK. At the moment our Canadian site is off-line,
but will be up as soon as we can manage it. Keep your eyes peeled on the new
Canadian site for news.
-
-
Is there any real difference between ordering from Plan Nine as opposed to ordering from my local book store?
-
- Ordering
from us usually gets your books to you much faster since we process
your order and ship the next day. Ordering from your book stores can
take 6-8 weeks to get a book. Most importantly, the artist is paid a
higher royalty when the books are bought direct, since we don't have to
discount the book to the book store. So, if you really want to support
your favorite artist, buy from us directly.
-
-
I've never heard of you, how do I know you are legit?
-
- Always wise to be skeptical on-line... We have been in business since 1996. You can check our rating with
Square
Trade
or simply check with the artists themselves. Also, a query to any of
the mail lists discussing your favorite strips will tell you all you
want to know about us.
-
-
Where is the Links Page?
-
- Right here.
-
I will be in your area, can I get a tour?
-
- Sure, we'd love to meet you. Just give us a week's notice so we can put out the clean hand towels.
-
-
Can I invest in Plan Nine?
-
- Not at the moment, but possibly in the future. If you are interested, send us a note.
-
- You didn't answer my question in this FAQ.
-
- Drop me a line at david@plan9.org
and I'll be happy to answer your questions.
|
|
