I’m stoked because aside from the looming Halloween season, we’re getting closer and closer to the first Up! Fair! I’m so excited to be a part of the organizational committee for this event as I really do believe that it’s going to help provide a much more positive experience for independent publishers than most artist alleys at the standard comics and zine conventions. We’re not just aiming to provide a fun tabling experience, but also a venue to learn and grow as a writer, artist, and designer.
Anyway, I’m putting up this post to put one last call out for help with out Kickstarter fundraising campaign. Though we’ve met our initial funding goal (and we can’t thank everyone who has pledged so far enough), we’re looking to bring our total up to $3,000 to help cover the costs associated with an event like this. Aside from the considerable cost of promotion (banners, flyers, postcards, etc.) and getting programs for the event printed, we’re also looking to secure a budget for keeping all of our volunteers, special guests, and tablers fed. One of our goals with the Up! Fair is to provide a very comfortable experience for the people tabling at the event where we can cut down on as much of the financial burden of attending. Aside from a very low fee for tabling ($50 vs the industry standard of between $100 to $300), we also want to feed our guests so that they can concentrate on recouping any travel and printing costs, making a profit, and finding the time to get out from behind the table to attend or lead workshops without having to worry about losing sales.
So, where do we currently stand? We’re currently at $1,645, which is only $1,355 away from our goal!
There are only three days left in the Kickstarter campaign, but we’re hoping to make it to $3,000. So what do you get for pledging besides the warm and fuzzy feeling of helping to support and celebrate independent publishing? Well, we’ve set up a tiered section of rewards that come with various pledge amounts including a hand-sewn and designed plush ink monster (designed by my talented wife), access to the various levels of the Art & Story Supreme podcasting and community content, inked sketches by the various artists putting the Up! Fair together, and a beautiful screen-printed event poster by the awesome Sara Turner (of cricket-press.com)!
Aside from a monetary donation, we could also use some help in spreading the word via Twitter, Facebook, or blog posts. Just getting the word out about the Kickstarter campaign would really help. Thanks in advance for any help in making the Up! Fair the best that it can be!
