We'v got your "moderately frightening folklore-based fantasy"
In the endless discussions swirling around the litblogosphere (and twitter) about books and bloggers and publishers and authors, one thing has been very clear to me: authors need to take control of their marketing online and off if they really want to see their books succeed. This is not to suggest that publishers aren't willing to pony up time and money to usher books into the world - some are doing this big time as well all know. But for most authors, you have to wade into the increasingly confusing blogger/publisher world and into the bookseller world and in the library world and, if you are lucky, into the radio and newspaper and magazine world* if you want your book to make it. The tough part about all this (other then the doing of it) is that you have to find a way to stand out from the zillions of others who are doing the same thing. That's where Kate Milford's Kickstarter project comes in.
Milford wrote a very fun and original MG fantasy called The Boneshaker (an urban fantasy/steampunk hybrid that took place in a rural setting influenced by American folklore and some Bradburyesque moments), that I enjoyed very much (along with a ton of other people). A companion novel, The Broken Lands, is due out this fall (set in Coney Island!!!) but Milford wanted to do something a little extra, both for her readers and to generate a bit more excitement about the upcoming release. So she initiated a Kickstarter project to self publish a novella about the characters in The Boneshaker that also relates to The Broken Lands. The project winds down this week and it is funded but Milford has plans for extra dollars so be sure to support her if you can (and you get to read The Kairos Mechanism!)
What intrigues me so much about Milford's project is that it's out-the-box. It's all about writing something new (good for authors), providing something tangible to supporters (good for readers) and also does bring some attention to her upcoming book. But rather than blog "I have a book coming out! I have a book coming out! I have a book coming out!", she's telling everyone about a new story and inviting them into the creation process. As all of her books/stories are interrelated, this project also allows fans to learn more about the world they have only seen the smallest bit of in The Boneshaker. It's a long view Milford is sharing, and a firm promise to keep writing that she is making.
I love big picture people; they give me hope for the future.
I'll be talking to Kate Milford next week during the Summer Blog Blast Tour but wanted to give her a shout out now so there is still time for her Kickstarter. Very very cool!
*And if you wrote a narrative nonfiction title about aviation in Alaska then you are also talking to aviation museums. Really.
[Post title is quote from the Kickstarter!]
