Of all the platforms, Kickstarter is the one that can change the fate of a writer's career quickest, but there are specific strategies that will help you succeed depending on your ecosystem.
I don't know why I clicked into this with Kickstarter in the title. I never thought I would have a use for a fundraising platform. But you're making it sound like something completely different than what I've always thought it is. So you're saying people are actually able to get other people to give them money to write a book? This does not compute for me lol.
I would say you generally need to write the book and then use Kickstarter as a preorder once you have the elements of the book and just need to get them together. Nobody can realistically be paid to write a book from scratch unless you have a very successful career, but if you have a book, you can certainly raise funds to break even before you launch it. We wrote a book on it that I recommend reading. You can get it free here. https://dl.bookfunnel.com/zq9mk6drbh
If you have not listened to the interview I did with Ben Templesmith about how to set up a creative business, I still think it's one of the most powerful ways to set up a system to get paid to write and them publish.
Thanks for this, Russell. I’m hoping to launch a Kickstarter next year. Not for a book but a product. Are the resources still relevant? I’m hoping to dive into the planning and creation and over winter and probably launch in spring!
I don’t know if they are relevant to what you are launching. Most of Kickstarter is similar across categories but some categories require much more work than others
"The biggest challenge for a Grassland is asking for the sale" (that, and 100% everything else you mention).
THANK YOU for adding your take on the Author Ecosystems in relation to Kickstarter.
Yay! You're welcome :)
I don't know why I clicked into this with Kickstarter in the title. I never thought I would have a use for a fundraising platform. But you're making it sound like something completely different than what I've always thought it is. So you're saying people are actually able to get other people to give them money to write a book? This does not compute for me lol.
I would say you generally need to write the book and then use Kickstarter as a preorder once you have the elements of the book and just need to get them together. Nobody can realistically be paid to write a book from scratch unless you have a very successful career, but if you have a book, you can certainly raise funds to break even before you launch it. We wrote a book on it that I recommend reading. You can get it free here. https://dl.bookfunnel.com/zq9mk6drbh
Thanks for clearing that up Russell. I was like, wait a minute...that can't be right 😁
If you have not listened to the interview I did with Ben Templesmith about how to set up a creative business, I still think it's one of the most powerful ways to set up a system to get paid to write and them publish.
Do you have a link for that? I'd love to listen even though I have no thoughts of writing a book....yet.
here you go. https://authorstack.substack.com/p/special-archive-episode-how-to-build-64d#details
Thanks! It's on my list for this afternoon!
Thanks for this, Russell. I’m hoping to launch a Kickstarter next year. Not for a book but a product. Are the resources still relevant? I’m hoping to dive into the planning and creation and over winter and probably launch in spring!
I don’t know if they are relevant to what you are launching. Most of Kickstarter is similar across categories but some categories require much more work than others
Anything to give me a start! I’ve signed up for a couple of your resources.