I’m thinking of funding…

I'm thinking of funding a new book project through Kickstarter. Want to help me refine my Kickstarter prizes? If anything seems off / unappealing / inappropriately priced here, please let me know!

For a new collection of linked erotic short stories (probably mainstream or SF), written by me.


$5:
Name listed in the acknowledgements

$15:
Card and Bookmark: as above, plus signed thank-you card & sexy bookmark

$20:
eBook: as above, plus a DRM-free e-book of the finished book (.mobi, .epub, or .pdf format).

$75:
As above, plus copy of signed limited edition paperback (limit 250)

$100:
Spiced chai: as above, plus a mug featuring a sketch of the author, naked, drinking chai (by artist Kat Beyer)

$150:
Spicy treat: as above, plus homemade curry powder and signed copy of my Sri Lankan cookbook

$250:
As above, plus copy of signed limited edition illustrated hardcover (limit 100)

$500:
Wrapped in love: as above, plus hand-crocheted (by me) scarf or small stuffed creature, in color of your choice (limit 10)

$750:
As above, plus an original short story, dedicated to you, featuring a character name of your choice (limit 5)

$1000:
Create the audiobook: As above, plus I'll record myself reading the entire book as an audiobook; you get a copy, and the audiobook is dedicated to you! ($1000) (limit 1)

$2500 (more internationally):
Meet the author: fly you to author's city of Chicago, put you up for a night at a nearby hotel, and I'll take you to dinner; I can also come to you if preferred (limit 3)

$5000:
It's all yours: as above, and I'll dedicate the book to you (limit 1)

6 thoughts on “I’m thinking of funding…”

  1. Hey Mary Anne! Cool that you’re doing a kickstarter!

    Here are a few thoughts on your prizes (most of them look good, though):

    You might want to limit your short stories more? And maybe the knitting? At the very least, really think about when you’ll be able to deliver them. You’re a very busy person!

    I would personally rethink the $1k prize, or at least limit it! Also: what if the person lives outside the US? Or plane tix jump and it’s, like, $700 to fly inside the US? How much are you really making after airfare and dinner? Also, you don’t know who will by donating, and I personally wouldn’t want to offer up a spot in my home, where my child is, to just anyone with $1k. You know?

    The $2500 prize makes no sense to me, especially with respect to the $50 prize.

  2. Mary Anne Mohanraj

    Good points! I’m going to revise this entry to reflect some changes based on this (and also to make it look more like the Kickstarter set-up.)

  3. $75 and $250 for a paperback and hardcover book, respectively, seems kinda steep.

    (I realize that the hardcover includes the mug, paperback, curry powder, cookbook, etc., and I question that decision as well. This is ultimately about a book. Surely there’s a way of decoupling the three directly relevant products from the rest of the list?)

  4. Shmuel, usually the authors offer the books for sale after the project is finished as well, at more “normal” prices; the incentives/ prizes are just to encourage people to donate to/ fund the project.

  5. FYI: The cheapest tickets we could get this spring between Seattle and Bristol were $1500. I’d be careful with airfare.

  6. Mary Anne, I think the Kickstarter plan you have on is really exciting.

    However, I’d say be very careful with the airfares. And if you go ahead with that, you might want to impose a Conditions Apply clause like citing a passenger’s invidual responsibilty for extra costs ie. lost luggage…

    Also, the curry powder bit sounds sticky esp. if the person concerned is outside Chicago and esp. outside the US. There could be long delays or even bans (like Australia) by customs officials through the post. I’d steer away from anything to do with an innocent substance that shows up as powdery form. regards

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