$42 million from kickstarter?

how to fund your book [View in browser](=.uGLPOgTMAwrNxOE3PevRdcInoxgP_9PJWaJqs7k9TjM) I tried a Kickstarter campaign for my very first book, and haven't recommended it since. Basically, most authors think they need way too much money to publish and then ask all their friends and family to support their passion. My first project successfully funded but it was awful and left a bad taste of desperation in my mouth. However - more recently Brandon Sanderson raised $42 million for his Kickstarter campaign; which then came up as a reference during a high-profile anti-trust case where the DOJ argued The DOJ argued that a Penguin Random House-Simon & Schuster merger would cut the industry's so-called Big Five publishing houses down to four: hurting authors by limiting their leverage. Sanderson was an example of something new and difference. When Stephen King testified, he called himself a "freelance writer" and said something about how Sanderson is ruining the publishing industry (I couldn't find a source for this so it's anecdotal). So, what is Kickstarter? Kickstarter is a way to crowdfund your publishing (or anything else - but it's meant for creative projects). Typically, I would have said it's not worth it for most authors because you do not want to be begging for support from peers and need to connect with real readers who enjoy your genre; that Kickstarter isn't a discovery platform; that it's a lot of effort to presell some books and then more effort to send them out. But it's great for authors who already have a platform and want to do something fun. One of my friends has a picture of the 6000 books she got funded (specialty, beautiful hardcovers, ready to be shipped out from her garage). Mid-list indie authors are raising $10K to $25K without too much effort, and that's really exciting, especially while ad costs have gone higher and visibility is tougher than ever. I still think a brand new author with no visibility might be disappointed, but I've actually come around to the idea that Kickstarter isn't the worst idea even for new authors. If you set a smaller goal and reach it quickly ($500 or so maybe) then the project looks like a success; and you can use your kickstarter page to contact your backers with updates or link to your books and websites for an SEO boost. I'll probably start running them again but only for special stuff like completed, fancy boxset collections. 5 Day Kickstarter Challenge I'm not an expert on Kickstarter, but a friend of mine has written several great guest posts about it [on my blog](=.HgSS7t0gDJot5vLmiZEaYdpAnQfB7jZi25DcJhqoz8Y) (he's made six-figures for several years just through events and Kickstarters). And there's a Free "5-Day Challenge About Using Kickstarter For Your Publishing Project" going on right now, you can sign up here: [Free 5 Day Kickstarter Challenge.](=.4D-Ek1IxqYxP1GNKT7_srFS1JB6j0jMiT5aOrnQedB0) Full disclosure, I just got back from Thailand and am trying to publish a book before Halloween so I can start my nanowrimo project, and like always I've got the timing wrong - so I'm not sure exactly how the link above will work (since we've already missed the first 2 days of the challenge). But hopefully you can dig around and find all the great resources or read the blog posts to get up to speed. The Kickstarter Accelerator After having helped dozens of authors start out on Kickstarter, Monica and Russell are launching a course/mentorship around it called the Kickstarter Accelerator. They're good people, insanely competent and detail-oriented, so I know you'll get a ton of help and support. [Get the details or join here.](=.Y6ggvouLxpcIyW_3cfvlJ5jEoQysS14yQ1MyBWb9EEc) Disclaimer: - if you haven't published yet, or are working on launching, I don't think Kickstarter is the best route (though, who knows, maybe it is and I'm wrong...) - if you have a few books out and they aren't selling, it's probably your cover, blurb or lack of reviews. A Kickstarter campaign won't help with this. - but if you have some books out and they have sold before but it's getting very tricky to build engagement, visibility, or reach a new audience, then KS is definitely a strong contender, because it's something a little tricky to do well without help but can work great if you get everything right. - [Read the KS blog posts](=.Lcj5Ua2G8CXkbfVEFlWXz6OTVuQIRDkPXPnCBZmAMNE) - [Join the 5 day challenge](=._q3qgMI3_qXovk9zeZec_kCzf9XJqyWGN9WulVB92Ts) - [5 ways to make money with KS](=.cEh8PU1K04bB4ymxsO6I6T85YUOHmI2hU9SnXal5i38) - [Join the Kickstarter Accelerator](=.SM9XI2tEBOTnC97YIoGmhFIV9bWBooKaGfJ4teaCi4c) PS. I don't think the cart is even really open until November 2nd, and it should be available until the holidays, but I thought I'd put it on your radar early so you have some time to explore and muse before deciding if it's right for you. There's also a webinar on November 10th called "[5 Places You Make Money in a Kickstarter Campaign](=.rlP_HE4MABWTlCd9sHTxwWKHlewHEFOYtY-BP3br7YQ)" so that's an easy way to get involved; sign up now and get all the details later, I'm sure you'll learn a lot of valuable stuff about publishing even if you don't intend to KS your book. [facebook](=.AhuUuC6RxjBBNmcwJNgmkTdXOf6DMTAqFEqPJm6zcpM) [instagram](=.kJavV2HNgcZxxfvHJkDfvOasM97PfCzNpaNbEL83KQ4) [twitter](=.D_zs9ggMU2nMWyNTT9uHJ_NCOMKni8VjNcsY-tATGN4) [youtube](=.YIJDBZ-bO62hFkBYD-eh93YsdXgmYAzswN8S8tX3sP4) * I'm using affiliate links in this email so if you do join, I might get a little bonus - which I'll immediately spend on a new free 3D book cover mockup tool I've had my eye on that I think you'll love... I spend much more building resources for authors than I make, which is something I'll be working on next year as I finally finish some big long term projects. If you do join the Kickstarter program, let me know and I'll add you to my latest book marketing course I'll be launching soon. =.YyQ1NOsu33iucs9SMhmI9jMpeztomgqMW1pbVyLPKmU [Share to Facebook](=.lHrGH8IvvbwUTLqrmiZYFqQGomh9kBnj664hIk6tJao) =.E0h7VdDPLgIZQEqTXxH9G5y_jnbg2DO6lttyqMGAjRM [Share to Twitter](=.B2Te0FfPwDgmJ1Ir5unI57OcNOqVr3DzbEMNLF-Tpmk) =.6PYmyCmpiqBL_I6SuFdJ2iiX6I4vaDp1pUMfjwPZH6w [Forward email](=.WpNTWisuJgJqM0dRPpw7mQuilRbpe19ExGOmlZk8138) Do not want to see it again? [Unsubscribe](=.i6qB45fuo7AdeYr7SAnHAJirrDj0I6pZSiwa7yWiJEc) Derek Murphy [Creativindie.com](=.eKP3G_jgCiik_ik4AZ6wOYOIeZrqPRD4nR9I2C36yaM)Â | Portland, OR Location Independent - Usually in a castle or cabin.