David Steinberger, the co-founder and former chief executive officer of comiXology and Chip Mosher, the former head of content at comiXology, announced DSTLRY on April 13, 2023 in The New York Times.1
David Steinberger said that DSTLRY will focus on ethics, creator empowerment, and equity. Along with up-front participation by the founding creators, DSTLRY sets aside an additional 3% of company equity to be distributed among the creators who have projects released within the first three years. This equity will be distributed based of performance of titles.2
As reported by Forbes, David Steinberger stated, "One of the biggest things that made comiXology successful was our understanding of the industry pain points. Obviously we want to correct the situation with creator rights by giving them real equity and ownership. If they contribute to the success of our brand, they get to benefit from that. When you align the interests of the creator and the publisher, we all share in the rewards." Further more Steinberger continued, "We want to avoid all the scams and issues associated with crypto, so there are no wallets, no NFTs, no cryptocurrency components. At the same time, we recognize that collectability is a fundamental part of the comics community. When we did straight digital distribution, we were only able to get about 15% of the total market. With DSTLRY, rather than fighting against the collector aspect, we are playing into it."3
DSTLRY's debut publication, The Devil's Cut, received 50,000 orders from comic book retailers and sales made from San Diego Comic-Con. The Devil's Cut contains 11 different stories, all from the founding creators. This initial issue is never to be re-printed in its initial 88-page format. Many of the stories in The Devil's Cut expanded into comic book series in the fourth quarter of 2023. DSTLRY co-founders Chip Mosher and David Steinberger said in a joint statement, "We're overjoyed by The Devil's Cut's reception... Our goal is to provide the most nurturing environment for creators to craft their best work and package that into premium formats. We couldn't be happier that retailers are as excited by The Devil's Cut as we are."4
In October 2023 DSTLRY launched its first title, Gone, a 48-page science fiction adventure written, drawn and colored by Jock as a continuation of his eight-page story, "The Stowaway" from The Devil's Cut.5
In November 2023, the company published Somna: A Bedtime Story, which was written and drawn by Becky Cloonan and Tula Lotay. The series is described as "an intoxicating blend of horror, eroticism, and the supernatural."6 Somna: A Bedtime Story was the recipient of the 2024 Eisner Award for Best New Series.78
Source:9
Salkowitz, Rob. "Ex-Amazon Execs Announce New Comics And Collectibles Venture DSTLRY". Forbes. Retrieved August 25, 2023. https://www.forbes.com/sites/robsalkowitz/2023/04/13/ex-amazon-execs-announce-new-comics-and-collectibles-venture-dstlry/ ↩
Johnston, Rich (August 19, 2023). "The Devil's Cut From Dstlry Got Over 50,000 Orders". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved August 25, 2023. /wiki/Rich_Johnston ↩
Johnston, Rich (July 20, 2023). "Gone by Jock From Dstlry Will Cover Diamond's Previews". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved August 2, 2023. /wiki/Rich_Johnston ↩
Johnston, Rich (August 21, 2023). "Becky Cloonan & Tula Lotay's Somna #1 in Dstlry November 2023 Solicits". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved August 25, 2023. /wiki/Rich_Johnston ↩
"Women Dominate 2024 Eisner Awards". Comic-Con International. July 26, 2024. Archived from the original on January 13, 2025. Retrieved January 13, 2025. https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/ ↩
Puc, Samantha (July 26, 2024). "SDCC '24: Announcing the 2024 Eisner Award winners". Comics Beat. Archived from the original on January 13, 2025. Retrieved January 13, 2025. https://archive.today/20250113182643/https://www.comicsbeat.com/2024-eisner-award-winners/ ↩
Arrant, Chris (May 15, 2023). "DSTLRY: Everything to know about the new publisher from the men behind Comixology". Popverse. Retrieved January 19, 2025. https://www.thepopverse.com/dstlry-digital-comics-creator-owned ↩
Johnston, Rich (April 13, 2023). "From The Ashes Of ComiXology Rises DSTLRY – Full Creator List". Bleeding Cool. https://bleedingcool.com/comics/from-the-ashes-of-comixology-rises-dstlry/ ↩
Brooke, David (July 20, 2023). "New details emerge for DSTLRY series 'Gone' by Jock". Adventures in Poor Taste. Retrieved August 21, 2023. https://aiptcomics.com/2023/07/20/jock-dstlry-series-gone/ ↩
Johnston, Rich (August 21, 2023). "Becky Cloonan & Tula Lotay's Somna #1 in Dstlry November 2023 Solicits". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved August 21, 2023. https://bleedingcool.com/comics/becky-cloonan-tula-lotays-somna-1-in-dstlry-november-2023-solicits/ ↩
Johnston, Rich (September 16, 2023). "Mirka Andolfo Launches Blasfamous #1 in Dstlry December 2023 Solicits". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved September 18, 2023. https://bleedingcool.com/comics/mirka-andolfo-launches-blasfamous-1-in-dstlry-december-2023-solicits/ ↩
Johnston, Rich (December 17, 2023). "Snyder, Tynion IV & Azzarello New Comics in Dstlry March 2024 Solicits". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved December 18, 2023. https://bleedingcool.com/comics/snyder-tynion-iv-azzarello-new-comics-in-dstlry-march-2024-solicits/ ↩
Johnston, Rich (May 23, 2024). "Life #1, Missionary #1 & Time Waits #1 in Dstlry August 2024 Solicits". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved May 23, 2024. https://bleedingcool.com/comics/life-missionary-time-waits-in-dstlry-august-2024-solicits/ ↩
"JAMIE MCKELVIE Q&A: MYSTERY, MURDER, AND GOTHIC VICTORIAN SPLENDOR OF ONE FOR SORROW". DSTLRY. September 23, 2024. Retrieved November 12, 2024. https://dstlry.co/blogs/news/jamie-mckelvie-q-a-mystery-murder-and-gothic-victorian-splendor-of-one-for-sorrow ↩
Brooke, David (May 22, 2023). "DSTLRY sheds light on first title 'The Devil's Cut' out August 2023". Adventures in Poor Taste. Retrieved August 21, 2023. https://aiptcomics.com/2023/05/22/dstlry-the-devils-cut-august-2023/ ↩