Floating World Comics is a shop for readers, for artists, for book lovers of all ages. As inviting and accessible as an independent bookstore, we specialize in the coolest books of all – comics! Check out a fresh batch of genre comics every Wednesday – superhero, drama, crime, horror, romance, humor, sci-fi, fantasy, action and adventure. Explore the literary section and find your new favorite auteur. Our all ages section has a wonderful selection of classic and contemporary children’s books and YA graphic novels. Browse the best selection of small press, self published, underground and international comics found anywhere. Feeling inspired? Bring in your own mini-comic or zine to sell on our shelves. We are also home to Gravy Toys, featuring toys and art by local designer Bwana Spoons.
Since 2006 we have been proud to be a part of Portland’s renowned art community. We have hosted hundreds of events, signings, readings, performances and exhibits at the shop over the years. As part of the Downtown First Thursday art walk, you can always find new art on our gallery walls each month. We curated a psychedelic animation festival from 2008-2014, showcasing experimental videos from all over the world. In 2012-2013 we helped organize The Projects international art festival, supported by the IPRC and RACC. After 16 years in Old Town Chinatown, we made a move across to the Lloyd Center. With our friends Musique Plastique and Dreem Street, we are the cornerstone of a new Lloyd Arts District, revitalizing the shopping center as an indie mall filled with local independent businesses.
Floating World is also an independent publisher, an exciting progression of our role in the comics community. Just as Floating World carries a unique, curated selection of the most interesting comics from around the world, our publications reflect this same comprehensive vision. Starting with tabloid newsprint comics and collaborations with Arthur Magazine, we have published over 60 comics, graphic novels and art monographs. Our books are distributed to the direct market through Diamond Comic Distributors and to the trade market through Consortium Book Sales. In 2011 we formed Press Gang, a publishing collective with Study Group Comics and Studio JFish. We attend multiple comic conventions a year under this banner, sharing our books with new audiences and meeting new artists wherever we go. Our entire combined inventory is available to order in our web shop. Retailers may contact us for wholesale terms.
Consignment – We generally start with 3 copies of your book, approximately a $15 value. Please email us first if you are sending books with a total retail value of more than $20. Check on your sales every month or so. When your book sells you get 50% of the cover price. The shelving period is 3 months. If you want unsold books returned, it’s your responsibility to pick them up within 3 months. Returns are possible, but not guaranteed after 3 months. After a year or so, unsold items are discounted or donated to a local zine library. We are not responsible for lost or stolen items. If you mail us books, provide contact and PayPal info. No returns on out-of-state zines.
Subscriptions – Set up a box in person or via email with a list of titles you’d like to subscribe to. Subscription customers on good terms receive a 10% discount (excludes purchases from Landfill Rescue Unit and Gravy Toys). Please buy everything in your box and if you need to cancel, try to give as much notice since we order in advance. Please clear out your box weekly if possible, or once a month at the very least. If we haven’t heard from you in over a month your box could be closed.
Floating World is also home to Gravy Toys.
Notable press:
“Favorite Portland Bookstores” Travel Portland, 11/28/19
“Floating World has proven itself as an artistic driving force in the world of creator owned/independent content.” For the Love of Indie, 8/28/19
“The Coolest Comic Stores in the USA” Raddison Red, 9/25/17
“Portland’s Floating World Is Celebrating its 10th Anniversary” Willamette Week, 8/17/16
“10 Best Comic Stores in the US” MiniTime, 4/13/16
“Portland’s 10 Best Bookstores” The Oregonian, 1/7/16
“Comic Shops Across America You Need To Visit” Geek and Sundry, 8/12/15
“Comic book writer Kelly Sue DeConnick and writer/husband Matt Fraction Reveal Their Favorite Spots in Portland” Fast Company, 6/24/15
“The 20 Coolest Comic Shops in America” Green-Label, 10/9/14
“America’s Best Comic Book Shops” Travel and Leisure, 5/28/14
“Basically the Powell’s of comic books…” Finder 2013, Willamette Week’s Guide to Portland
“Bearer of one of the more compelling track records for a micro-publisher…” The Comics Reporter, 7/20/13
“Top 10 Cultural Hotspots in Portland” The Guardian UK, 5/24/13
“A Counterculture Totem To Return as a Leaner Magazine” The New York Times, 11/15/12
“You can call it the new Old Town” Portland Business Journal, 11/16/12
“10 Noteworthy Things to Do in Portland’s Old Town-Chinatown” Neighborhood Notes, 11/10/12
“Absurdly wonderful” Boing Boing, 10/1/12
“Simply one of the best comic stores in the country…” Finder 2012, Willamette Week’s Guide to Portland
Featured business in “The New York Times, 36 Hours: 150 Weekends in the USA and Canada“, published by Taschen
“Favorite Comic Shop” Portland Mercury Readers Guide, 7/28/11
“America’s 10 Greatest Comics Stores” Flavorwire, 9/21/10
“Why Portland Is The Best Comic City In America” Multiversity Comics, 9/21/10
“Comics Shop Confidential” The Oregonian, 10/9/08
“Comic Shop Focus” Daily Crosshatch, 12/3/08
“Not Just For Geeks” Portland Tribune, 12/19/06
“Trash Days” Portland Mercury, 8/14/08
“All Rom, All The Time!” Broken Frontier, 11/30/07
“Ten Geeky Places to Visit in Portland” Wired, 3/10