(Almost) halfway there!
about 2 years ago
– Tue, Mar 08, 2022 at 12:02:33 PM
I want to thank each and every one of you who has backed or helped spread the word. We're at 49% funded with 10 days to go.
I'll be honest, I'm worried that we won't reach the funding goal. Because the last eight campaigns have been successful and I have built up an arsenal of promotional know-how over the 14 years Birdcage Bottom Books has been in business, I wasn't too concerned when launching the campaign. I know that there's always a rush of backers at the beginning and at the end, but usually we're 50% funded within the first week.
I'm sort of at a cross-roads with BBB. I recently hired Daniel Whitfield, a fellow cartoonist, to take over shipping (although I'll still do the fulfillment of Kickstarter rewards). We have also recently partnered with Microcosm Publishing, and they'll be representing us in the book trade (we previously focused exclusively on comic book shops and individuals). As such, we have to ramp up production quite a bit, printing twice what we usually print in order to make sure we have enough on hand. This means much higher upfront printing cost, which is why our funding goal on this Kickstarter campaign is over twice what it's been in any previous campaigns.
We've always been a fairly small operation, which is why I'm able to lavish attention on all our customers. I love printing up comics and risograph prints specifically to give away free with orders to show our appreciation. I intend to keep that mentality, while sticking to the M.O. of getting lesser-known (but hugely talented) artists' work in front of more eyeballs.
I'm extremely excited about each and every book and comic we're (hopefully) publishing this year, but I feel like I may have hit a wall with getting the word out. I've even received a few messages or comments on social media recently of supporters who were unaware of the current campaign. If you have any suggestions or means of amplifying the Kickstarter, please do let me know.
I hope this doesn't come across as begging. I appreciate the comics community so much, and y'all have always been so supportive. I just want to be honest about my concerns in the hopes that together we can get these comics out into the world where they belong!
Lastly, here's a wonderful interview with Brother Malcolm, one of the artists we're publishing this year, conducted by one of our all-time favorite cartoonists, Noah Van Sciver. I think this interview may have been how I originally found Malcolm's work!
Thanks to all of ya!
J.T.
