A group of comic creators is organizing a massive effort to raise money for Binc, a non-profit supporting comic stores affected by the coronavirus crisis.  The organizing creators are Kami Garcia, Brian Michael Bendis, Gwenda Bond, Sam Humphries, and Phil Jimenez, who have put up a website at creators4comics.com explaining the fundraising campaign. 

The simple mechanism uses Twitter auctions: creators (and others) are urged to post items for bid on Twitter using the hashtag #CreatorsforComics, and bidders are urged to bid by replying to the Tweets.  Bidders can follow their auction by following the hashtag and bookmarking the auction Tweet.  Winning bidders (as notified by the creator) will donate the amount of the bid directly to Binc, and show a donation receipt to the creator, who will then send out the item won.  The suggested end time for all of the auctions is April 20, 2020 at 12 PM ET. 

In addition to following the hashtag, potential bidders will also be able to see a list of auction items, with links, on the creators4comics.com website. 

The creators4comics website offers suggestions for items to auction for comic creators and authors (some virtual and interactive, instead of tangible), retailers, readers, fans, and everyone else, along with guidelines for participants on both sides of the auctions. 

The cumulative Twitter throw-weight of the organizing accounts and of the creators listed on the nascent list of auction items is going to be substantial, so likely to bring together a lot of eyeballs.

DC CCO and Publisher Jim Lee started auctioning sketches to support Binc, promising 60 sketches, earlier this month (see “Jim Lee Donating Art to Help Comic Retailers Via Binc”).  DC also donated $150,000 to Binc.  Writer/artist Rob Liefeld has also been auctioning sketches and donating money directly to comic stores (see “Rob Liefeld Auctioning Sketches for Comic Store Relief”).

It’s great to see this kind of support rallying around comic stores, the centers of comics community. Auctions will go up Wednesday, April 15, creating a #creator4comics Tweetstorm culminating in the deadline next Monday, April 20, at noon ET.