Dispatches from the Final Week of My Kickstarter Campaign

search-1Before I started this Kickstarter campaign, I was counseled by a generous acquaintance who had been through the crowdfunding process before. Two things that he said stuck with me: “It really boils down to relying on family and friends.” And “Go to your comfort zone — and then move about a mile beyond it.”

I’m getting there.

Pride goeth before… a failure to meet your goal

I had coffee with a friend — let’s call her Susan — on Sunday. It took a while for our conversation to get around to my Kickstarter campaign, the subject foremost on my mind, which made me antsy.  Ordinarily, I am interested in what my friends have to say, but I am not myself these days.

When we did get around to the topic, however, it was a bit awkward. Susan and her partner had already contributed, generously. So it was a delicate balancing act to explain what was stressing me out so much about the process — the fact that it was all or nothing, which they didn’t know — and to assure Susan I wasn’t asking them to do anything further to help me, that I wasn’t telling the story of how someone I barely knew gave me $500 so she would feel like they had to contribute more than they already did. By the end of the afternoon, I’m pretty sure I talked Susan out of offering to give me more money. I probably made it sound like they would be insulting me if they tried.

Of my various personality flaws, pride is probably the one that most interferes most with my success. I can’t bear the idea of people feeling sorry for me; I like to reserve that pleasure for myself.

I’m going to write Susan right after I finish this and disabuse her of the notion that any extra money would be unwelcome.

There’s no crying in Kickstarter

I’m a wallower, a self-flagellator. I have a tendency to beat myself up for my mistakes, real or imagined. I have no time for that now. If something I do in the campaign doesn’t work, I need to move on and try something else. To keep my eyes on the prize.

Here is what I’m learning, day after day.

  • You’ve got to ask for what you need and be clear. Some people will turn you down or ignore you.  I’m happy to take “No, I can’t afford to give anything” for an answer. Most people say yes or offer to help in another way. I’m blown away by the generosity I’ve encountered.
  •  You’ve got to be persistent. People are busy, and for some reason, they don’t have your campaign deadline foremost on their minds. That’s why I’m suggesting that everyone support the campaign right away, to get it out of the way, to get me off their backs, to alleviate the guilt of keeping me on tenterhooks
  • Don’t give in to fear. The worst that can happen is that a lot of people now know about my book.
  • The perfect is the enemy of the good. I’m going to stop writing and revising now, slap up a picture, and get back to pitching.

Please give. Here’s the link.

 

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About the Author

Edie Jarolim is a writer and editor living in Tucson, Arizona. Sign up on this blog to get updates about her humorous tell-all/memoir, GETTING NAKED FOR MONEY: An Accidental Travel Writer Reveals All.

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