Countdown to Hungry as a Wolf: Kickstarter vs. Indiegogo

In this week's blog post I'm going to compare the two top contenders for crowdsourcing my third book, Hungry as a Wolf. It's a weird western novel and the sequel to my novella Sheep's Clothing, which seemed to be pretty popular(ish), and in any case it turned out Wolf Cowrie had another story in him.

Kickstarter and Indiegogo are the two biggest and most popular crowdsourcing sites I've been able to find, and the two best suited for a creative project like this. Since 2015 looks like it's going to be The Year That Everything Happens (between dental work and moving house) I need to save as much money as I can. Currently, I have a few hundred dollars in my business account--a tidy sum, but not quite enough to do what I need to, and I like to have a bit of a safety net just in case.

On to the comparison!

Popularity

Kickstarter

 Kickstarter is the most popular and best-known crowdfunding site out there. It curates its projects for applicability, meaning that not every project qualifies, so there's a higher chance that successful projects will be featured.

Indiegogo

Indiegogo is a distant second to Kickstarter in popularity, having only about a sixth of the fanbase. However, they have much looser guidelines, allowing you to fundraise for any kind of project or financial need. It doesn't curate projects for applicability, meaning anyone can try to raise funds for whatever.

Funding Models

Kickstarter

Kickstarter has an "all or nothing" model, which means that I only get the funds if I reach my funding goal. On the one hand, this cuts down on flexibility, but it can also spur potential backers to work harder to donate if they know that the project won't happen if they goal isn't reached.

Indiegogo

Indiegogo offers the option of flexible funding. What this means is that no matter what percentage of the goal is reached, the project gets to keep all of that. This allows for more flexibility in projects where the project can still be launched even if the whole amount is not reached. However, even if the goal is not reached, creators must still deliver all promised donation perks.

Fees

Kickstarter

Kickstarter applies a 5%  to all successful campaigns, while failed projects incur no fees.

Indiegogo

Indiegogo applies a 4% fee to successfully funded projects, making it a slightly cheaper alternative to Kickstarter. Like Kickstarter, failed Fixed Funding projects incur no fees.

Publicity

Kickstarter

Kickstarter is much more popular than Indiegogo in this regard. In the United States, where I am, Kickstarter is by far the best-known crowdfunding sites, and in many ways, it has become synonymous with crowdfunding itself.

Indiegogo

Indiegogo is better suited to smaller projects, but considering how much Kickstarter is dominating the crowdfunding market, their chances of viral marketing success drop off hard.

Conclusions

While I was thinking of doing Indiegogo due to their flexibility and their shallower learning curve, it's starting to look like I'll have a higher chance of success if I go with Kickstarter. I'll keep Indiegogo in mind in case Kickstarter isn't successful, though.

Next week: Working out my Kickstarter Campaign Pitch!

Heart of Steel Release Day!

As of 8:00 this morning, my SFR novel Heart of Steel is available for purchase! (WOOT!) Currently, it is only available via my CreateSpace estore here, but in 3-5 business days it will be available on Amazon.

To mark this happy occasion, I've also arranged a blog tour through Goddess Fish Promotions to get the word out. Here is the list of stops (starred entries include reviews):

• Susana's Morning Room
• Journey of a Bookseller*
• Brooke Blogs
• Booklover Sue
• Writer Wonderland
• Hope, Dreams, Life... Love
• Deal Sharing Aunt
• Beyond Romance
• Romance Novel Giveaways
• The Buttontapper
• From Me to You ...Video, Photography, & Book Reviews*
• Dena Garson - Real... Hot... Romance
• The Snarkology
• Two Ends of the Pen
• Wake Up Your Wild Side
• Romance That's 'Out of this World'*
• Linda Nightingale... Wordsmith
• Mixed Book Bag *
• 3 Partners in Shopping
• The Avid Reader
• Sexy Tales, Passionate Adventures
• Room With Books
• Long and Short Reviews
• Shooting Stars Reviews
• A Book Addict's Delight

Please pop by and comment on these blogs for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to Steampunk Emporium! I will post on Facebook as soon as Heart of Steel is available on Amazon, but I imagine the estore will work just as well. If you like quirky romance with a twist, I'm sure you'll enjoy my latest book!

Countdown to Hungry as a Wolf: The Budget

Next month, once I get the last of the feedback from my beta readers on my Weird Western sequel, Hungry as a Wolf, I plan to start a crowdfunding campaign to get this thing launched. In order to get that done in something approaching an organized fashion, I will, of course, need to outline what I will need and how much each element will cost.

I'm not going to ask anyone to fund my research or the time spent writing it, because it's already done. I'm also not going to ask anyone to fund an educational trip to South Dakota for last-minute fact-finding, because that will smack of greed, and I've heard what happens to people who try to get their writing entirely crowdsourced like that. (It isn't pretty).

Instead, I will focus on the concrete things that I still need that will definitely cost money: editing, proofreading, and cover design. These will be unavoidable expenses if I want my book to be polished and professional (even if I'm not, lol)

Editing

I always value a fresh perspective on my work, and if the red-pen approach leaves me with a better story on the other side, so much the better. I have too much pride to not edit, especially since I've seen what happens when others don't edit. (It's not pretty.) I've been fairly happy with Windy Hills editing with my previous novel, Heart of Steel. Their prices are decent, and I won't go bankrupt using them.
Price: $120.00

 Proofreading

This may seem like an extra step, but this is distinct from editing. Proofreading will give Hungry as a Wolf a good final polish and typo hunt before it sees the light of day. I've used Julia Proofreader in the past, and I plan to continue to use her here. She charges $5.50 US per thousand words, which also works for me.
Price: $300.00

Cover Design

I think this is  where I'll have to make the biggest investment, to judge by past experience. If I go with Fiverr, I might pay less, but I'll need to choose carefully. I've never used Fiverr before. On the other hand, if I go with Creative Digital Studios, the designer for the Heart of Steel cover, I'll pay more to go with a known quantity. I will do further research while I'm getting my polishing done, and I might have to see how my budget pans out on the other side of my crowdfunding campaign. I'm not planning to cheap out on this, so $125 will probably be my minimum.
Price: $125.00 to $500.00

Total:  $545.00 to $920.00

So, yeah. Looks like $920 will be my goal. There's a good chance I won't end up having to spend that whole amount (in which case, BONUS) but I want to make sure I have enough to fulfill all my needs. Next I'm going to compare the two top contenders for my crowdfunding campaign, Kickstarter and Indiegogo, so I choose the best forum to raise the money I'll need. If any of you have any self-publishing experience (good or bad) with either of these, let me know!

But First...

Next Tuesday is the scheduled release date for Heart of Steel, and I've been really excited about that since, oh, last August. Unfortunately, Createspace has been having technical difficulties, so there is a chance that at least the paperback release date will have to be postponed. Hopefully if that happens I can still release the ebook on time, but regardless of what happens I will put up a blog post telling you what's what, and hopefully include the relevant buy links.

UPDATE: The issue with Createspace appears to be resolved. Heart of Steel is back on track!

Website Updated! plus, Countdown to Heart of Steel and other Progress Reports

In honor of my upcoming SFR novel Heart of Steel's release this month, I've revamped several sections of my website, mainly the works page. Mainly I'm taking a page out of Ksenia Anske's book and have made a separate page for all my works, whether they are completed, in editing, in beta, or even unfinished works-in-progress. This will make things easier in the long run. I'm also going to start adding links to reviews to works that have been published, so that you will be able to find everything about a given book on one page. Cool, huh? Check it out here!

Of course, the event of this month that has me in a big ball of excitement is, of course, the Heart of Steel release on the 17th. I feel like I got more things right with the run-up for this, but of course this is likely to be a learning process for a long time. Hopefully I will continue to get more things right with each successive book release, until I'm an ace at this self-publishing thing. (This will probably never happen.) For this book release, I signed up for a blog tour with Goddess Fish Promotions, the people who did my cover reveal late last year, to do a big book blast on release day! Check out the details here!

In other news, I've been getting feedback from my beta readers on Hungry as a Wolf, the sequel to Sheep's Clothing, and I have a fair idea of where I'm going to go with the next round of rewrites. I'm also making good progress with rewriting Necromancy Will Kill Your Dating Life and hope to be done with Draft 2 by the end of this month, at which time I will open it to beta readers. Also this month I will be vetting crowdfunding websites for getting Hungry as a Wolf polished, edited and launched (I have it down to Kickstarter and Indiegogo) and getting my budget calculated for all that.

Short version: I've been busy already this year, and I don't see the pace letting up anytime soon. This is good for me and me readers, because it means I'll be hammering away at getting my work out as quickly as I can. Now I just need to find time to work on my WIPs and I'll be golden.

Writing Prompt #1: Sharks Swim in the Forest

Here is the first of my Writing Prompt articles, with thanks to "The 180 Prompts I Actually Use" on Tumblr. The prompt in question is "Sharks Swim on the Forest".

The first sign of trouble came about an hour into Jack's hike. He'd always loved hiking in the woods, particularly along this stretch of trail that wound through a particularly dense portion of the park. Even though it was coming up on noon, the shade offered by the trees kept him cool, allowing him to notice the exact moment when silence descended like a curtain.

The birds stopped singing. The insects stopped buzzing. Nothing moved around him. It felt like the entire forest was suddenly holding its breath, waiting for... something. Jack froze where he was, unnerved by the sudden silence. What was going on? He glanced around slowly, looking for any sort of danger.

Then he saw it--a gentle swelling of the loose turf like something was headed past just under the surface. The mass undulated past, and then sank into the soil.

Cold sweat broke out on Jack's brow, and he took a few cautious steps away from the spot. Then under his rear foot, the turf swelled again, and he jumped away. This time he saw something that at first his mind refused to believe. A triangular, back-swept fin pierced the soil, showing Jack a silhouette that nearly everyone could recognize, no matter where they were.

It was the fin of a shark. There were sharks in the forest.

Jack froze. The swell passed him. The fin vanished beneath  the soil.

Run, he told himself.

But where?

Get off the ground. Get up a tree. Just don't let them--

Another swell lifted the soil,  but this time it changed course and headed directly for Jack. There was no time to debate the possibilities of land sharks. Jack broke into a run, headed for the nearest tree with low branches. He wasn't exactly an expert tree-climber, but blind adrenaline would have to serve where experience failed him. He glanced back once, and saw the gray triangle of a fin slice its way through the soil, bearing down on him.

Jack hit the tree trunk at a sprint, trying to turn his forward momentum into upward momentum. He clawed his way up the trunk, scrambling from branch to branch like a terrified monkey--which, all things considered, wasn't all that far off.

He risked a glance down and saw the dirt and underbrush below him explode with the force of the emerging shark. It was definitely a shark, too--there was no mistaking the leathery gray skin fading to white on its underbelly, the gaping slit of a mouth lined with chainsaw teeth, and the soulless black button eyes that foretold death to anything that happened to be edible. The shark lurched upwards, jaws open to bite.

Jack pulled his foot up and out of its reach just in the nick of time, and its jagged teeth closed on empty air instead. He hooked his foot around a nearby tree branch and looked down at the thing as it belly-flopped onto the turf with a meaty sound of impact. A few moments later, the shark wiggled, writhed, and then dove back under the dirt, kicking up a few final clots of turf with the flukes of its tail.

Jack didn't dare relax, though, as the shark and its two apparent pack-mates started circling the tree where he'd lodged himself. How patient were hungry sharks? Jack didn't know, and even if he did there was no way to compare that to these things. He settled himself in for a long wait, hoping his snacks and water held out until these monsters got bored and wandered off.

He had a feeling it would be a long wait.

Heart of Steel Giveaway!

It's less than a month before I release my SFR novel Heart of Steel, and to prepare for February 17th, I am holding a giveaway on Goodreads! Come check it out for a chance to win your free copy of this quirky romance!

When reclusive cyborg Alistair Mechanus first sees ER doctor Julia Parker, it is love at first sight--for him. However, ten years of virtual solitude on Shark Reef Isle have left his social skills badly rusted, and his initial overtures confuse and horrify her. When his misguided act of kindness spirals out of control, Julia is forced to trust the mad genius with her life. She has the skills he needs to unlock his forgotten past, but learning who he used to be may come at the cost of his remaining sanity.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Heart of Steel

by Elizabeth Einspanier

Giveaway ends February 17, 2015.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Writing Progress Report: Jan 12, 2015

This week's blog post is going to be a Situation Report regarding all the writing projects I have in various stages of pending, both to give myself a chance to get all the information organized and to give you guys a free peek at what's coming up for me.

Title: Heart of Steel
Genre: Science Fiction Romance
Length: Novel 
Status: To be released February 17, 2015
Summary: When reclusive cyborg Alistair Mechanus meets ER doctor Julia Parker, it is love at first sight--for him. While he eagerly drops his plans for World Conquest to woo her, ten years of solitude have left his social skills badly rusted. When his misguided act of kindness spirals out of control, however, Julia is forced to trust the mad genius with her life, and discovers a more vulnerable side under his armored plating. She has the skills he needs to unlock his forgotten past, but will learning who he used to be come at the cost of his remaining sanity?
Notes: I'm really really excited about this one. Whereas with Sheep's Clothing   I was sort of acting on impulse, this time I planned everything out (...sort of) and actually got some pre-marketing stuff done in the last half of 2014. Now I just need to finish formatting it for publication, which shouldn't take too long. I also plan on having a Goodreads giveaway to further build the buzz starting next week and leading up to the actual release date.

Title: "The Fetch"
Genre: Dark Fantasy
Length: Short Story
Status: Under Consideration
Summary: A young man finds himself pursued by a terrifying monster who believed he has taken something form it. He might not be so happy to give it back once he discovers what it was...
Notes: I'm really hoping to get this one published in a magazine or something. Call me weird, but even as a self-pubbed author I feel like getting something I wrote chosen by a publisher will validate me.

Title: "Siren Song"
Genre: Diesel Punk
Length: Novelette
Status: Under Consideration.
Summary: Raymond Crowe, a Mage living in Manhattan in 1937, investigates reports that a Mundane nightclub owner might be using a dangerous potion to beef up his singing talent, at the risk of driving the singers insane. Crowe must not only get the potion out of the hands of a Mundane who doesn't understand the risks, but also rescue the sister of one of his Mage contacts and find out who was distributing the stuff in the first place.
Notes: This was my first diesel punk story, and I'm sending it off to magazines for the same reason I'm sending off "The Fetch". This one's quite a bit longer and more involved though, and I can easily see using its setting for further works. We'll see how it goes.

Title: Hungry as a Wolf
Genre: Weird Western
Length: Novel
Status: Beta Reading
Summary: In this sequel to last year's Sheep's Clothing, Wolf Cowrie is back, with a dangerous mission that will test him to the limits: the mayor of a mining town in the Dakota Territory has hired him to investigate the disappearance of the gold mine that the town relies upon for its income. First problem: The gold mine in question is in the Black Hills, right in the middle of Sioux country. Second problem: A lone survivor managed to escape whatever befell the mine, only to transform into something undead and craving human flesh. Third problem: The mayor's daughter seems to have taken a shine to Wolf, and Wolf is still recovering from the tragic end of his previous adventure. What's a gunslinger to do in a situation like this?
Notes: Once I finish getting beta reading feedback on this one and subsequently polish it a bit more, I'll be kicking it over to my editor for a thorough second eyeball check. I plan to start a crowdfunding campaign to finance the nuts and bolts, but I'm still vetting the different platforms.

Title: "One Spooky Case"
Genre: Fantasy Mystery
Length: Novella (for now)
Status: Rewriting
Summary: A by-the-books Watchman gets paired up with a Watch necromancer to investigate a girl's murder in the city of Port Vandalar.
Notes: I have a lot of rewriting to do with this, which might very well double its previous length in order to give the story the tension it deserves and a more satisfying climax. After that, it may well be novel-length. Who knows?

Title: Necromancy Will Kill Your Dating Life
Genre: Supernatural YA
Length: Novel
Status: Rewriting
Summary: Tiffany Blackheart is a perky, outgoing high school student who wants what every seventeen-year-old girl wants: good grades, friends, and a boyfriend. Especially a boyfriend. There's just one problem--she's a necromancer. Being able to talk to the dead hasn't done kind things for her social life, and neither will the buildup of spectral activity that's due to peak on Halloween. Finding herself on the eve of finally landing a boyfriend, Tiffany has only a week and a half to figure out what's going on before everything blows up in her face.
Notes: This was my NaNoWriMo novel, and I'm taking a heavy editorial chainsaw to the thing before I let anyone else see it, even my usual beta readers. This is my first YA novel, so I'll need to find some actual teenagers to help me get the details right. High school was a really long time ago...

Title: Heart of Ice
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Length: Novel
Status: Active WIP
Summary: Irina Zimaburya has spent the last six years as the Winter Princess, with her powers over ice and snow making her the ideal living weapon in a war that started when she was twelve. Now, on the eve of peace, Irina must try to remember what it is not to be a weapon, but a woman, and relearn what it is to not be feared during the course of peace negotiations. Prince Heinrich is determined to thaw the newly-crowned Winter Queen's frozen heart, but his true mission is not all that it seems...
Notes: I will freely admit that this was loosely inspired by Frozen, though my heroine has a more messed-up backstory and little to no emotional support. I'm making good progress with the rough draft, though, so I'm overall happy.

So this is the rundown of my current projects. It looks like a lot, but jotting them down like this helps me keep all this stuff straight in my head and make it look like I'm a lot better organized than I usually am. I hope to get them done this year, and I'm confident that I will.

How many projects do you typically have going on at a time? Which one mine are you most looking forward to seeing published? Let me know in the comments!