For funded & in-prelaunch crowdfunding creators
Your campaign funded. Your files still aren’t ready.
Your art is done. Your script is final. Your print date is public. PanelReady Press letters your issue, formats it to your printer’s spec, and hands back every file your campaign owes — print-ready PDF, backer digital edition, and POD file — with your approval on every page.
Get a free Sample Page + Spec AuditFree. Async. No call. For Kickstarter / BackerKit comics creators — funded, or in prelaunch with a named print date — with finished art and a final script. Human production on your own art only — no AI-generated art. You keep all rights to your work — always.
From the free Substack Drawn, Not Done — spec teaching for creators between “funded” and “files done.”
The comic is finished. The files aren’t — and backers are waiting.
Your campaign has funded, or you’re in prelaunch with a named print date. This stretch may feel familiar:
- The printer’s portal bounces your PDF, and you don’t know what bleed you’re missing.
- You lettered at midnight and the balloons cover her face on page nine.
- Backers are waiting, the date is public, and you’re learning CMYK.
- The print file, the backer file, and the POD file are three different jobs — and all three are yours.
That isn’t the creative work you set out to do. It’s production — a desk job. It’s ours.
From
The issue is drawn, but nothing is ready to print, send to backers, or upload — and you’re the production department, at midnight, before a public deadline.
To
The issue is done: one file for the printer, one for backers, one for the store — all matching the spec sheet. Production has an owner, a date in writing, and a checklist you can see.
One issue in. One complete pack out.
Send the finished art and final script for one issue. Get back:
- Your issue, lettered — dialogue, captions, and sound effects placed to protect the art and reading order, in one consistent style across the book.
- A print-ready PDF — built to your printer’s published spec: trim, bleed, safe area, resolution, and colour set to the template you name at intake.
- A digital edition — screen PDF and CBZ, ready for the stores and backers you deliver to yourself.
- A Series Spec Sheet — every font, size, and setting used on your issue, written down so the next issue matches.
- Included in the export pack: vertical-scroll slices at the width of the platform you name.
- Two approval rounds — you approve the lettered pages, then the assembled book. Nothing is final without your approval.
Three steps. All in writing. No calls.
Sample Page + Spec Audit
Send one finished page and its final script. Get that page back lettered, plus a one-page audit of your files — bleed, trim, safe area, resolution, colour — each marked Pass or Fix. Free, within 3 business days.
Issue Sprint — $545 one-time
One issue, up to 24 story pages plus cover assembly. Full lettering (or a cleanup pass on your existing lettering), formatting to your printer’s spec, and the full export pack. Two approval rounds. Delivered in 10 business days from receipt of complete, final files, with the date confirmed in writing before payment.
Fulfilment File Pack — $745 one-time
The Sprint plus the funded-campaign delivery set: a backer digital edition packaged for pledge-manager delivery (Kickstarter native / BackerKit), a print-on-demand file to the POD spec you name at intake, and a written backer-update asset (file checklist + delivery note draft you send yourself).
Series Desk — $349/month
One sprint slot a month, priority 7-business-day turnaround, your spec sheet maintained, and a 60-day corrections window on files we delivered. Month-to-month. Cancel by email. Available after one Sprint or Pack.
Additional pages are $18/page, a second print spec is $95 — always confirmed in writing before work starts, never added after.
Pricing, in the open
| Offer | Price | What’s included | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sample Page + Spec Audit | Free | One page lettered + one-page Spec Audit (Pass / Fix) + fixed written Sprint price and date. Within 3 business days. | Request the free Sample Page + Spec Audit |
| Issue Sprint | $545 one-time | Up to 24 story pages + cover/back assembly. Lettering or cleanup pass, one named print spec, print PDF + digital PDF/CBZ + scroll slices, Series Spec Sheet, 2 approval rounds, 10 business days. | https://buy.stripe.com/14A4gy7c6aWR5o05Pe33W2l |
| Fulfilment File Pack | $745 one-time | Everything in the Sprint, plus pledge-manager backer edition, POD file to your named spec, and a backer-update asset draft. | https://buy.stripe.com/4gMbJ0fIC9SNg2E2D233W2m |
| Series Desk | $349 /month | One Sprint slot/month, 7-day priority turnaround, maintained spec sheet, 60-day corrections window, up to 3 single-page fixes/month. After one Sprint or Pack. | https://buy.stripe.com/3cI14m53Y9SN8AcgtS33W2n |
Overages, named in advance: pages beyond 24 — $18/page · second full print spec — $95 · rush (5 business days, when capacity allows) — +$150 · script changes after Round 1 approval — $18/page, quoted before work. Typos we introduce are always fixed free.
A process guarantee, in plain words
If a printer or platform rejects your file for a defect in our delivered file — measured against the spec recorded on your job sheet — we fix it and re-deliver it free until it matches that spec.
We don’t guarantee a printer’s decisions, a platform’s policies, campaign results, or sales. Anyone who promises you those is selling you something else.
This is for you if
- You are a Kickstarter / BackerKit comics creator — funded, or in prelaunch with a named print date — with finished art and a final script. Production is what’s left.
- Backers, a printer, or a POD service are waiting on files that have to match a named spec.
- You’ve already hired artists, colourists, or editors, and want production handled like the rest of the book: professionally, and off your desk.
- For ongoing series / small-press teams that meet these requirements, Series Desk is available after one Sprint or Pack.
This is not for you if
- Your script is still being rewritten or your pages are still being drawn. Finish those first — then request the free audit.
- You want someone to run your campaign, sell your book, or manage your platforms. We make files. You publish them.
- You need us to log into your accounts. We never hold client passwords or credentials — you upload, we hand you a checklist.
- Your project depends on AI-generated art or needs its AI use left undisclosed. We do human production on the creator’s own finished art only.
FAQ
Who owns my comic?
You do — 100% of the rights and IP, always. PanelReady Press is a production vendor, not a publisher. We take no ownership or royalty, and we won’t use your pages in our portfolio without your separate written permission.
What do you need from me to start?
Finished art files, the final script, and your printer’s name. If you haven’t named a printer, we work to US standard comic specs and record that on your job sheet. The intake form covers everything in one pass, including how much time production has already cost you, so we can prioritise honestly.
What if my issue is more than 24 pages?
$18 per additional page, confirmed in writing in your quote before any work begins. Graphic novels and longer books for these campaigns are quoted the same way: base sprint + per-page, in writing, up front.
My issue is already lettered. Is the Sprint still useful?
Yes — choose the cleanup pass at intake. We standardise fonts, sizes and styles, fix balloons, tails and sound effects, then do the same formatting and export pack.
What formats are in the export pack?
A print-ready PDF to your named printer’s spec; a digital PDF and CBZ; and vertical-scroll slices at the width of the platform you name. All are included in the Sprint price. The $745 Fulfilment File Pack adds the pledge-manager backer edition, a POD file to the spec you name, and a backer-update asset.
How long does it take?
10 business days from receipt of complete, final files; a 7-business-day priority slot for Series Desk members. Your calendar date is confirmed in writing before payment.
What if the printer still rejects the file?
If the rejection is for a defect in our file against your recorded spec, we fix and re-deliver free until it matches the spec (see the guarantee above). If the printer changed its spec, or the recorded spec was a different printer’s, that’s a new formatting job. We’ll quote it in writing; the second-spec price is $95 when ordered with a Sprint.
Do you get my Kickstarter / printer / platform logins to upload for me?
No — never. We deliver files plus a written upload checklist. Your accounts stay yours.
Will this help my campaign fund or my book sell?
We make no such promise, and you shouldn’t buy production services expecting one. We sell lettered pages, files that match your recorded spec, and production handled for you.
Can you write, draw, or edit my comic?
No. We do production only — lettering, formatting, and exports. That’s the desk’s focus.
Send one page. See the work on your own art.
The Sample Page + Spec Audit is free and in writing. It ends with a fixed price and a date for your issue — or an honest note on what your files still need.
Start with the free Sample Page + Spec AuditAsync only — no calls, no pressure sequence. You keep all rights. We never hold your credentials.
Also free: the Print-Ready Preflight checklist (9 checks, ~15 minutes) and Drawn, Not Done on Substack.
Intake is by email for now: chiticohq+panelreadypress@zohomail.com — send one finished page + its final script for the Audit, or ask for the free Preflight checklist.