November is National Novel Writing Month. Do you plan to participate? Do you know someone else who is? If so, will the project(s) be crowdfunded? Share your plans and goals for crowdfunding NaNoWriMo here.
Some people are more interested in sharing their work, and hopefully making at least a little money from it, than trying to pitch often-unusual ideas to mainstream publishers. Among the models I've seen in NaNoWriMo include:
* Just a virtual tip jar, with the fiction getting posted whether or not any donations arrive. There may or may not be perks for donating.
* Each chapter gets posted as donations reach a target threshold. There are usually perks for donating, such as speeding up the publishing of new material or getting bonus scenes. This seems to be the most popular approach.
* A Kickstarter or other fundraiser to cover self-publishing costs. Sometimes the manuscript is published in progress online, other times not, but the donors customarily get to see it before the official release date. Other perks include swag with the cover art on it. This option is favored by writers who have a smallish but devoted fan base willing to support modest print runs or POD.
Another advantage of crowdfunding in NaNoWriMo is moral support. There's more motivation to keep writing if you're making money and/or have fans not just reading your material but discussing it, giving you ideas, maybe helping you solve problems. Because this is a really tight project and authors usually run into snags during the writing period. You can use all the help you can get.
>>I tend to write scenes and chapters out of order,<<
*laugh* So do I! The consensus timespace continuum never has a really firm grip on me, and when I leave it to go watch things in another universe, it's always a challenge to unpack the souvenirs in order. I have to assemble them on the page as I go, and hope I get it right.
>> so I don't see this working for me. Otherwise it sounds like a good idea, and the extra motivation and moral support would be very helpful. <<
If the chapter-by-chapter model doesn't work for you, that's okay. There are other options. You could just put up a tip jar and post excerpts that stand alone well enough to be entertaining. You post the story in whatever order you get it, and let people tip if they want extra scenes added. You could start discussing this with your audience now and see if they have other ideas that might work for you. Crowdfunding has a zillion different methods because creative people don't all work the same way.
2) Go through the projects that other people post to this community. Visit them. Friend the people whose work you like. Comment on their stuff. Watch for other audience members who say interesting things and friend them too. Some will probably pick you up in return because many crowdfunding folks are gregarious and will follow each other around to find new projects.
3) You can post here about your project when it starts, and ask folks to come read it.
4) When you have a landing page or something else that describes your project, and you've started posting excerpts or something else, let me know. I'll boost the signal for you. I like encouraging new crowdfunded projects.
* Just a virtual tip jar, with the fiction getting posted whether or not any donations arrive. There may or may not be perks for donating.
* Each chapter gets posted as donations reach a target threshold. There are usually perks for donating, such as speeding up the publishing of new material or getting bonus scenes. This seems to be the most popular approach.
* A Kickstarter or other fundraiser to cover self-publishing costs. Sometimes the manuscript is published in progress online, other times not, but the donors customarily get to see it before the official release date. Other perks include swag with the cover art on it. This option is favored by writers who have a smallish but devoted fan base willing to support modest print runs or POD.
Another advantage of crowdfunding in NaNoWriMo is moral support. There's more motivation to keep writing if you're making money and/or have fans not just reading your material but discussing it, giving you ideas, maybe helping you solve problems. Because this is a really tight project and authors usually run into snags during the writing period. You can use all the help you can get.
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*laugh* So do I! The consensus timespace continuum never has a really firm grip on me, and when I leave it to go watch things in another universe, it's always a challenge to unpack the souvenirs in order. I have to assemble them on the page as I go, and hope I get it right.
>> so I don't see this working for me. Otherwise it sounds like a good idea, and the extra motivation and moral support would be very helpful. <<
If the chapter-by-chapter model doesn't work for you, that's okay. There are other options. You could just put up a tip jar and post excerpts that stand alone well enough to be entertaining. You post the story in whatever order you get it, and let people tip if they want extra scenes added. You could start discussing this with your audience now and see if they have other ideas that might work for you. Crowdfunding has a zillion different methods because creative people don't all work the same way.
Reply
(The comment has been removed)
*bow, flourish* Happy to be of service.
>> I might try a tip jar for stand alone pieces. <<
Go for it!
>> Um, do you have any suggestions on how to find an audience? I don't really have a social network online, and not many friends irl. <<
1) I have some essays you might find helpful:
http://penultimateproductions.weebly.com/how-to-begin-a-crowdfunded-project.html
http://penultimateproductions.weebly.com/5-steps-to-crowdfunding-success.html
http://penultimateproductions.weebly.com/how-to-boost-your-audience.html
2) Go through the projects that other people post to this community. Visit them. Friend the people whose work you like. Comment on their stuff. Watch for other audience members who say interesting things and friend them too. Some will probably pick you up in return because many crowdfunding folks are gregarious and will follow each other around to find new projects.
3) You can post here about your project when it starts, and ask folks to come read it.
4) When you have a landing page or something else that describes your project, and you've started posting excerpts or something else, let me know. I'll boost the signal for you. I like encouraging new crowdfunded projects.
Reply
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