Kickstarter Monday - Twisted: Tales to Rot Your Brain

Thought I'd try something a little different as well as introduce you to Kickstarter. For those of you who do not know Kickstarter, it's an organization that provides a forum for entrepreneurs and artists to advertise their project and ask for old-timey financial sponsors. I want to focus on writers, of course. Each week I'll "kickstart" the week with a project that hasn't earned all its funds yet, but looks strong, just so you can see how a passionate artist seeks support for his or her passion - a book.

This week, I'd like to introduce you to  Nora Thompson and her book proposal Twisted: Takes to Rot Your Brain.It's dark and cute, and she's established a voice that ought to prove successful in these little flash fiction horror pieces that are accompanied with great black and white illustrations. So I asked Nora to be my guest today. And after you read her thoughts, go to her Kickstarter page and check it out.

From Nora:

I started writing twisted little flash fiction stories a few years ago during a class I took on fiction writing. After a few months I realized many of the stories weren’t all that embarrassing to put my name on in public and decided to gather the best ones together, write even more, and create a book. But I’m an illustrator first, and some of the stories I wanted to tell needed a visual or two to make them work, so the stories began to unfold through both text and images. Some became illustrated text, some are told entirely through image, one is a graphic novel. Most of the stories are just words; get in, get out, turn the page.

I’m calling the collection Twisted: Tales to Rot Your Brain Vol. 1. The collection targets anybody who giggles when a story takes a surprising turn, from middle grade readers through their adult counterparts. The twists come in different forms: told from unexpected perspectives; not about what you thought they were; head off in a direction you weren't counting on. Those are the kinds of stories that make me get excited about storytelling. The kind that make me giggle.

But my sense of humor isn’t necessarily what you might consider mainstream, and I knew I would have an uphill climb trying to convince editors that there were other twisted people in the world who would be interested in my work, so I decided to forego the rejections (for now) and publish independently. Independence, though, comes with its own price tag, so I needed to come up with a plan. I knew about Kickstarter and had backed projects there myself. I thought it would be a great way to go straight to those twisted people who I suspected were out there, lurking.

And I think I’ve found them. My project raised 25% of its goal in just the first day! I do believe I’ve seriously underestimated the power of Kickstarter and the generosity of complete strangers. A week into my project, and my book was already 70% funded, mostly by people I’ve never met before. It’s been a scary, bizarre and mind-boggling ride—just the way I like them. I’ve decided if funding exceeds my initial goal, I’ll throw whatever is left toward Vol. 2, which is already in the shadows.

Book site: http://www.hairyeyeballs.com
Blog site: http://www.hairy-eyeballs.blogspot.com
Kickstarter project page: http://kck.st/r4W98F
Publishing site: http://www.hairyeyeballspress.com

 

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So there! How do you like Kickstarter so far? It's quite a cool concept, so don't discount it as a fundraising possibility for your own project. And remember, I'll be back each Monday with a new book project and its author.   ~Hope