Under New Management

[XIII]

I don't know if you have noticed, Alan, but "your" unofficial facebook fan page, started in 2008 and mostly inactive for the past four years, has been totally revamped in the last month:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alan-Davis/42774461630

That's how a healthy, active FB page looks like. A new design, daily updates, and lots of positive feedback from its followers.

The explanation for this sudden overhaul is simple. Your total lack of interest didn't deter me and I finally managed to contact the creator of the page. Turns out he was just looking for someone to take care of it and he accepted my offer to volunteer for the position. So he named me co-administrator and in the last 30 days I've been managing the page on my own.

I took over the operations on March 11 with 2,290 likes. Now the page has 2565 followers, which means it's getting an average of 8 new likes every single day, and has seen also a significant increase in all the feedback indicators: views, comments, comment likes, shares, messages, etc. Of course, this was the best possible moment to revamp the page, coinciding with the launch of your Wolverine story-arc. I've been following closely the reaction to this latest work of yours (over 60 online reviews of the first issue alone) and keeping all the followers informed about it.

I'm having a lot of fun and so seem to be hundreds of your fans, so I plan to continue doing this for the foreseeable future, unless of course you have any objections. It wouldn't make any sense to keep this going against your will, or even without at least your merest acquiescence.

P.S.: Among the 2500+ facebook users that like the page, there are a few artists, writers, inkers, colorists and editors in the international comic industry:

Paul Cornell, Dan Slott, Terry Kavanagh, Jim Krueger, Chris Weston, Doug Braithwaite, Jerome Opeña, Nick Bradshaw, Rags Morales, Mike Perkins, Peter Doherty, Norm Breyfogle, Paul Renaud, Darryl Banks, Neil Vokes, Mahmud Asrar, Mirco Pierfederici, Jeff Johnson, Chris Batista, Brian Denham, Andy Smith, Josef Rubinstein, Cory Hamscher, Andrea Mutti, Emma Ríos, Jesús Merino, Vincenzo Acunzo, Ibraim Roberson, Cafu (Carlos Alberto Fernandez Urbano), Bruno Redondo, Julián López, Mike S. Miller, Cliff Robinson, Mick Gray, Lee Townsend, James Pascoe, Robin Riggs, Dana Moreshead, Javier Rodríguez, Norberto Fernández, Yves Rodier, Alain Henriet, Giancarlo Olivares, Nicolas Guenet, Marco Foderá, Mikael Bergkvist, Jonas Trindade, Julio Ferreira, David Williams, David Enebral, Italo Mattone, Jed Alexander, Dave Beaty, Tim Perkins, Chris Bennet, Ken Haeser, Benjamin Basso, Chris Rafferty, Federico Memola, Andrew Farago, Wendell Cavalcanti, Alessandro Nespolino...

[Ilke]

I commented earlier today on a post found on that FB fan page that's under new management, and the administrator(s) of that fan page saw it fit to promptly delete my comment. My comment went something like this, in reference to a scan of Alan's pencils that was posted on that page:

I would suggest that the administrators of this fan page, whenever possible, cite the sources of the art they're posting here. For instance, something like this would be appropriate for this art from Wolverine #2: 'Scan of Wolverine #2 pencilled pages is from Marvel NOW! Previews #7.' Here's what I posted on January 31st on the Alan Davis Forum (which is still, by the way, the go-to site for contacting and asking questions of Alan Davis): "Marvel NOW! Previews #7, out January 30th, includes three pages of uninked pencil art for Wolverine #2."
http://www.alandavis-forum.com/

I made the reference to the Alan Davis Forum being the go-to site for contacting Alan and also provided the link, because FB users had been commenting on that Wolverine #2 art post as though Alan posted the art himself.

As of this post (the one I'm writing right now), the art has not been cited as being from Marvel NOW! Previews #7. (I don't expect it to be -- I'm just pointing this out in case the FB post featuring the art is suddenly cited after the administrators of that fan page see what I'm writing now.)

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater

[Alan Davis]

I'm having a lot of fun and so seem to be hundreds of your fans, so I plan to continue doing this for the foreseeable future, unless of course you have any objections. It wouldn't make any sense to keep this going against your will, or even without at least your merest acquiescence.

Xiii, I made it clear in my response to your post ‘facebook’ on 22 February 2013 that I have no interest in Facebook and that I choose to limit my online presence to this Forum.
I would have been prepared to support a facebook page IF it worked with this Forum. Directing folk with questions to the 'Ask Alan' section and advertising the availability of information in Ilke’s Update and the archives.
If you were involved with the deletion of Ilke’s post you have not only set yourself up in competition to this Forum, which is my stated preference, but also acted in an extremely hostile manner.
Were you responsible for the deletion of Ilke’s post on your Facebook page?
Alan

[XIII]

Yes, I was the sole responsible and I stand by that decision.

I get your message of "no interest in Facebook" loud and clear, so I suspend definitely any activity whatsoever on the page. The page returns, effect immediate, to its prior status of abandonment.

Furthermore, if you wish the page to be deleted, just tell me so and I will communicate your desire to the creator of the page, as he's the only one who can delete the page. What I can actually do is deleting all the posts I made in the last month, and if that's your desire I'll comply at once.

Finally, I apologize for causing you any distress. It wasn't my intention.

[Alan Davis]

Your apology sounds entirely false in light of the declaration that you stand by your decision to edit a post that might divert Facebook followers to this Forum. Why would you be frightened of the competition if your true goal was to support open and easy communication? Perhaps your motives are more egocentric.

If you had accepted my lack of interest when I responded to your first post in February this unpleasantness could have been avoided.

Alan

[XIII]

Perhaps your motives are more egocentric.

You are right. I have to admit it was a power trip to manage a page with thousands of followers who ate up everything I posted with unbriddled enthusiasm. Naturally I got carried away and it all ended up in this mess.

I'd like to extend my apologies to Ilke for my reaction to his post, and anyone else who I might have offended. He's free to post any message on the page and I won't touch it.

I've made a final post directing all the fans towards this board. Let me know if there's anything more I can do to try to make amends for this situation.

[Alan Davis]

Thank you, XIII. I could ask for no more. Your Facebook post directing folk to this site is both thoughtful and gracious.

Alan

[Ilke]

Thank you, XIII, apology accepted.

Also, I would suggest changing (if possible) the name of that "Alan Davis" page to "Alan Davis Fan Page."

[XIII]

Sorry, that idea already occurred to me, but it can not be done. Facebook only allows name changes until a page gets 200 likes, and in this case that ship set sail long ago so it's set in stone.

As far as I'm concerned, the page will remain unused with the link to this forum at the top for ever. However, I remind Alan the whole page can be deleted by the person who created it 4 years ago. I've had no communication with him since he named me manager over a month ago, but I can transmit to him any request in that regard. Otherwise, it will remain frozen in its current state.

[Alan Davis]

XIII, you have actually placed me in a dilemma. My initial response would have been to close the site ASAP, no hesitation. The problem is, you also posted queries from the FB site on the Forum so I am no longer ignorant of their existence and feel obliged to reply.
I have already begun to consider responses and will post them here on the Forum. Then, I hope a link can be placed on the FB page(s) along with a note that any further communication will only be accepted at the Forum as the FB site may soon be terminated—or left in its ‘prior state of abandonment’.
Alan