R & R
I spend some—not all!—of my last day of my summer staycation researching a piece I’m currently writing on The Future of Publishing (or Something Equally Grave). Enter Kickstarter, the crowd-sourced microfinancing site I’ve considered before as a harbinger of good will (and resources!) for writers and creatives. Obviously, I’m interested in why some projects succeed more wildly than others—or rather, in what factors contribute to that prosperity; it’s a flawed, but hopeful system. I’ll save my notes for the narrative, but in the meantime, here’s a brief glimpse into the (wider-than-expected) range of projects I stumbled across in the course of mere minutes:
+ Punk Mathematics: Portland-based math prof, improv comedian, and co-host of the podcast Math For Primates, Tom Henderson is writing the math book that probably would have kept me at least marginally interested in the subject. One of the more popular initiatives I found on Kickstarter, 254 backers have contributed $8,622 with 15 more days remaining. (Goal: $2,400)
+ Eat Your Serial: Shawn Abraham’s website draws on the literary tradition of the serial novel by posting new chapters online each week; a “robust mobile experience” is in the works, too. Eat Your Serial currently has 10 backers for a total of $365 pledged with 82 more days to go in the campaign. (Goal: $7,000)
+ The Upper East Side Cookbook: Author Linda Ollie’s alter ego, Parsley Cresswell, dishes the recipes for this satirical “regional cookbook.” Given the amount of time I spend wading through white bread for a decent lunch on the UES, I firmly support this project. Just launched, 1 patron has backed The Upper East Side Cookbook; it has raised $30 with 75 days remaining in the campaign. (Goal: $3,700)
+ Send No, Dear to the Letterpress!: Brooklyn-based, poetry journal No, Dear would like to letterpress the cover of its next issue. Simple! As of today, this project has 24 backers, and has raised $383 with 17 days remaining. (Goal: $500)
+ Fierce Compassion: A history of San Francisco human rights activist Donaldina Cameron written by midwest mother-daughter writing team Kristin and Kathryn Wong, who will travel to SF’s Chinatown to conduct research for this project. This project successfully raised $4,265 on July 26. (Goal: $3,600)
