I take it that the book includes more material than the pages you just told everybody a day or two ago to download for free from whatever site that was?

Absinthe's writer here. :) There are extras in the book, including some early sketches of the characters. But the main perk of buying the softcover book from Lulu is that monitors really don't do the colors of the comic justice. I thought Egypt was crazy when she said there'd be a big difference between the print and electronic versions, until I held the test copy in my hand. The comic's been optimized for print since the start (apparently -- all I do is write the words!) and it really is a lot easier to make out little details in the book, not to mention it's just absurdly vivid in print.

It's probably also a little easier to flip back and forth and sort out little plot points, with the book in your hand. Like many of the comics that inspired us, we've hidden a few subtle hints about the plot -- nothing crucial to following the story, but often a snippet of dialogue or background art will foretell something that comes up later. Also, we don't make any money off of the web site unless people donate, so this is one more way to support our efforts!

Also, if you happen to be at Rainfurrest, you can pick up a copy direct from the artist and she'll write something indecent in it for you. :D

Heee! I want something indecent written in mine! ^.^

I've always believed in the superiority of the print medium. But one can't buy everything.

It's got a title page, some sketchbook excerpts, and that nice warm feeling of supporting people who're making comics you enjoy. And it's in 300DPI rather than 75. And you can read it when the power's off.

If you don't want to pay seventeen bucks for those few things, or you can't afford to, then that's totally cool. We'll keep doing it and posting it online even if nobody buys the books. Most people say that you get about 5% of your readership buying stuff, and that's if you're lucky.

The material has staying power -- and with Lulu you don't have to pay $5,000 to have 1,000 copies printed up all at once. You're bound to make some money.

*Puts on wish list for the holidays*

That's crazy awesome, peggy