Over the last few years I’ve seen a growth in the amount of authors using Kickstarter to produce higher quality independently published novels. The trailblazer in this trend is Michael J. Sullivan. Michael has done exceptionally well, with his latest campaign funding to over $135,000. He started using Kickstarter in 2013 with his independently published novel, Hollow World which raised over $30,000 to help offset the cost of producing the novel (editing and cover design). His initial goal was only $3,000, so the campaign left him with a sizable profit.
Funding a novel on Kickstarter can be quite powerful for an independent author. Michael is not the only author to leverage the power of Kickstarter. Matthew Wolf, another fantasy author, has launched several successful campaigns. Fantasy author J.T. Williams recently launched a successful Kickstarter for the audiobook production of his Stormborn series. Last year in 2019 I launched a successful campaign for my novel, A Prince’s Errand, earning $5,613.
But there are so many authors who fail to fund their Kickstarter campaigns. Over the last year I’ve seen so many projects fail to fund, and their funding goals are not high—many of them are less than $2,000.
So what sets these two groups of authors apart?
Well, I’m going to let you in on a little secret I’ve discovered. And the answer is coming to Kickstarter with a viable product, a finished product with a top notch cover and superb editing.
You’re probably thinking, That’s ridiculous! Isn’t Kickstarter for people who can’t afford to fund a project themselves? Maybe ten years ago, but not today. Kickstarter has become more of an advanced sales platform where authors can take in huge profit margins, up to 90% for eBooks and other digital content and around 50%-75% for physical products.
Now you don’t have to have everything finished with your novel. I launched my first Kickstarter having only paid for the cover art. Of course, I had the novel finished, so I could offer a sample of my writing pre-edited. But I had enough to show potential backers that I had a viable product. I had even printed beta-copies of my novel that I featured in my Kickstarter video and on the campaign description page.
If you look at every single successful fiction campaign that has funded in the last two years, every one of them has had a finished product.
Another area where I think many authors fail is driving sufficient traffic to their campaign. True, Kickstarter will send some traffic to campaigns, but that usually isn’t enough. In order to fund a project an author is going to need to send not only their target audience, but specific people willing to back their campaign within that audience to their Kickstarter. One way of doing this is by building a list prior to launching a campaign, either giving away sample chapters in exchange for an email address, or something else of value that is related to an upcoming novel that appeals to the target audience.
Six months prior to launching my campaign I began building my list, offering a companion novella to anyone who backed the project AND signed up on my Kickstarter specific mailing list. Yes, I have two lists, one is a general mailing list and the other is for Kickstarter backers. I see the Kickstarter list as my potential “superfans”. These guys are devoted beyond the readers who go out and pre-order on the first day a novel is listed at retailers—they are the collectors. They’re the readers that want the “collector’s edition” and are willing to pay whatever it costs to obtain it. So, authors need to sweeten the pot for these collectors and offer things on their Kickstarter that backers can’t buy anywhere else. If collectables are promised, they will back the project.
Prior to launching my campaign I emailed the Kickstarter specific list 48 hours before the launch letting them know that we had special early bird discounts and I was letting them know FIRST. A few hours after I launched I sent an email to my main mailing list informing them of the campaign. I also made it clear to them that if they wanted to be updated before they needed to join the other list, and some did.
Another way to drive traffic is through advertising. When I launched my first campaign I spent around $300 in Facebook advertising. From what I can tell from my backer report, those ads generated around $3,000 in pledges and were responsible for bringing in half of my backers. I don’t suggest any services that offer marketing. It is far cheaper to advertise on yourself.
Now to change the topic toward the future. I think in the next few years we will see more and more independent authors utilizing Kickstarter to make higher quality books that rival traditional publishing. The amount of new independent authors is growing daily, and in order to stand out in the crowd a higher level of professionalism is required. Readers will notice the higher quality, and they’ll remember the books that aren’t a slap-dash mess.
I for one intend to use Kickstarter for each of the novels in my epic fantasy series. My goal for my campaigns are to help offset the cost of production (after I’ve invested my own money) while getting my backers some exclusive rewards. There are twelve novels in the main series and four prequels, so that’s at least sixteen campaigns with sixteen unique rewards. But there is a potential for more. Right now, I have a live campaign for the Audiobook of my novel, A Prince’s Errand, read by Michael Kramer. I might launch future Audiobook campaigns, but that all depends on how the Audiobook sells and if we decide to do a royalty share with Michael for future projects.
You can visit my campaigns on Kickstarter in the links below.
A Prince’s Errand, Book One of Tales of the Amulet: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lokpublishing/a-princes-errand-book-one-of-tales-of-the-amulet?ref=creator_nav
Audiobook of A Prince’s Errand, Read by Michael Kramer: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lokpublishing/audiobook-of-a-princes-errand?ref=7rflwi
Robert Zangari is an independent fantasy author and co-creator of the Legends of Kalda universe. He has written five novels, six novellas, and six short stories. His novel A Prince’s Errand was a #1 New Release on Amazon.com and was a semi-finalist for the 2018 Watty Awards, and is currently a semi-finalist for the 2019 Chanticleer International Book Awards.
