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How to Plan a Successful Kickstarter Part 1of 2

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So what is Kickstarter?

Kickstarter is a reward based crowdfunding platform that helps you obtain the funds needed to bring your creative project to life. You present your project with a set time and goal, and backers can pledge money for one of your reward tiers. Kickstarter is all-or-nothing funding which means that if you don’t reach your goal in the set time, you will get nothing and the backers don’t lose anything.

When I first decided to use Kickstarter for one of my projects, I knew that I would have to do my homework if I wanted to be successful. My project hasn’t launched yet, but I feel I’ve done my best to help the Kickstarter succeed.

So what do you do if you feel that you have a project which might benefit from crowdfunding? Three Ps: Passion, patience, and a ton of planning.

I’m just going to assume if you’re interested in creating your own crowdfunding project that the passion is already there. Let’s hope so because the planning portion can be stressful and time consuming.

I haven’t discouraged you yet? Good!

The hardest part of this entire experience has been my lack of patience. I’ve never been a patient person, but this anxious need to launch the project NOW has really been a test of my willpower. So many times I’ve wanted to hurry and just launch my campaign. Bad idea. Hasty decisions and rushed work will only work against you. A sloppy job on your Kickstarter proposal just discredits everything that you’ve worked so hard on, so take your time and only launch the project once everything is in place. Accept now that there may be delays and bumps in the road.

My original launch date for my Sacrifice Kickstarter was sometime in May, and then delays pushed me back to June. It’s now July and I still don’t have a date. If I had said forget the extra work and just launched using what I had on hand, I’m pretty sure that my project would have failed already. The wait will be worth it.

Remember these are people coming to your page as potential backers. It’s your job to convince them why they should.

Like what you’ve read so far?

Subscribe to my blog so you don’t miss part two where I give an in depth explanation of all the planning details.

Meet the Muscle of Sacrifice

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Here’s the character reveal for this week that was also created by Jerry Buckholt! Today I am introducing another member of the Alpha team, Reggie, who acts as Kat’s second in command.

Reggie is the oldest member of the Alpha team at just twenty-eight years old. He provides the muscle for the team with both super strength and weapon knowledge. His most useful meta-human ability is that he is literally bullet proof, but he’s not completely invulnerable since he’s not resistant to poison or magic.

Don't waste your ammo!

Don’t waste your ammo!

Stay tuned for more character reveals and details on this upcoming Kickstarter project! And thank you for your support!

Introducing the Characters of Sacrifice

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I promised that I would reveal the characters of Sacrifice, and I didn’t want to leave my readers hanging! I’m kicking things off today by revealing an illustration of Sacrifice’s humble protagonist.

Here is an illustration of Katherine Reese that was created by Jerry Buckholt.

Kat Reese JB print

Kat is a meta-human who lives a double life, but her duplicity begins to fall apart when she investigates werewolf attacks across the country. Her family has no knowledge that Kat has meta-human abilities, or that she is part of secret supernatural military that protects the world. She also has a girlfriend—against the rules of her military contract—which becomes problematic when she finds rogue werewolves are hiding out in her girlfriend’s backyard. In her attempt to protect her significant other, Kat uncovers a startling plan that will disrupt the balance between the humans and the supernatural. She must find a way to protect her loved ones, and keep the peaceful balance of the world.

She has the ability to teleport, super strength, and healing powers, but her talents mean nothing if she can’t protect her loved ones. Kat discovers she might have to sacrifice everything to save them.

Stay tuned as more characters are revealed! And a big shout out to Jerry for creating such stunning illustrations for my Kickstarter!

My Methods for Avoiding Writer’s Block

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A friend recently asked how I fight writer’s block, and I realized that I don’t suffer from the dreaded condition often.

Why?

I’d like to pretend that I’m just fortunate, but the truth is that I’m always doing activities that allow for great brainstorming. I’m going to share my top methods for avoiding writer’s block, so grab a pen and take some notes!

ART- You can try to sketch your own characters, but this doesn’t have to be related to your writing at all. I enjoy both acrylic painting and sketching portraits which can act as great meditation. Art can really help you relax and free your mind for a brainstorming session.

MUSIC- I like to build a playlist of music for each of my projects. I do a lot of brainstorming when I’m in the early stages of a new writing project, and I try to consider what music would set a good tone for the story. I use the selected playlist shortly before I begin a writing session, and I let that set the mood for my writing.

I really like to implement this method when I am plotting out fight scenes too. I envision the scene with music that fits the mood, and then I ask myself one question. If this scene was turned into a live-action movie trailer, what would the scene look like? I let my mind really visualize the part.

I also love combining art and instrumental music to free my mind for ultimate creativity. I enjoy writing or painting while listening to video game soundtracks. You’ll find some really beautiful instrumental pieces inside Assassin’s Creed, Skyrim, and Dragon Age games.

DREAM JOURNAL- This is a fantastic way to spark ideas! I kept a journal by my bedside that pretty much held the inspiration behind my current work in progress. I haven’t used this method in a while, but I would wake up from some crazy dream and jot down as much detail as possible. When I decided I wanted to try writing a new story, I flipped through my journal for something that spoke to me. I’m not even exaggerating when I say that over half of the crazy events in Sacrifice actually spawned from my dreams.

EXERCISE- I saved this one for last because I’m sure it will receive several groans from my readers. Get off the couch you lazy bum! I’m kidding, it’s rude to call you that! In all seriousness though, I’ve had great brainstorming sessions during and after a workout. This is not only beneficial for your body, but also for your mind as well. Exercise doesn’t have to be some strenuous full body workout either. I spend a lot of time sitting down writing or sketching, and I find that it helps to walk away for some fresh air. I’ve spawned great ideas while taking my dog for a short walk.

So those are the methods I use to keep myself inspired, and I hope the information helps another writer! Want to know more writing tips? Send me a topic suggestion on Twitter or Facebook, and your topic may inspire my next blog!

Sacrifice Illustration Full Color Reveal

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I’m finally revealing the full-color art print created by P.R. Dedelis. This beautiful art print will be one of the many rewards in various tiers of my Kickstarter project. This piece showcases our humble protagonist, Kat Reese, as she defends her girlfriend from werewolves.

Sacrifice_A_jpg

Tomorrow I will begin releasing the concept art created by Jerry Buckholt. I’ll do a character reveal that will include a bio so that you can get introduced to the characters of the Sacrifice novel.