Can You Crowdfund Your Writing?

Without a budget for your book, it can be challenging to find the time to keep going. If you are fitting in writing while trying to hold down a full-time job, it can be a massive challenge trying to get to the end. Even if you do, then having the capacity and budget to market your novel can also become problematic.

But what if you could get other people to fund your work? So you could actually pay yourself to do the research, writing, and promotion of your book to give it the best chance of success?

Many people think this is only possible if you find a publisher willing to give you an advance and take on the role of marketer themselves. However, there are alternatives, and many authors are looking to crowd fund their writing to make it possible for them to complete their work.

How does crowdfunding work?

Crowdfunding allows a person who wants to create something to pre-sell their product to raise the necessary funds to do so.

You as the author need to explain why it is essential for your book to come into existence. How will it benefit people? What’s it’s USP? Being able to explain this succinctly and make your project sound worthwhile is what will draw investors in.

When it comes to crowdfunding a book, authors tend to steer clear of offering equity in the project as this can get complicated. However, offering investors some incentive or reward is important. A mention in the foreword or a copy of the finished book works well.

Some authors have had fantastic success using crowdfunding platforms to help raise a budget to write their book. Some have made hundreds of thousands of dollars before they’ve had to print a single book - that sure beats waiting for sales to trickle in to try and make your money back, and is better than lots of publishers would offer too.

Crowdfunding your book also helps you to build buzz and excitement around it and creates a potential fanbase before your book hits the shelves. It also gives your book validation before you write it - if people are willing to part with their hard earned cash because they believe in your project, and you manage to hit your crowdfunding goals, then you know your book is worth writing - and having that kind of confidence is pretty awesome.

A successfully crowdfunded, self-published book is also going to be considered more credible than one that isn’t. Anyone can press publish and get their book out on Amazon these days. However, a book that has persuaded enough people to pre-buy it is social proof that can make all the difference when you come to launch day.

So if you are looking for a way to raise money and awareness for your next project, perhaps crowdfunding is the way to go? Have you considered crowdfunding your novel? Let us know!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

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