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The Top Ten Worst Ways To Miraculously Kickstart Your Comic Book


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Passion, by tenacious puppy studios. Daniel, Maria & Doc. Close date: June 22. Publish date: #0 July 14, Collected October 14. Unabashedly & unapologetically the book of Matthew – fully illustrated and unabridged.

Daniel Carpenter writes,

#10. Choose a completely unrealistic target.

Like one over 25K. This ensures that everyone will feel that their contribution accomplishes nothing, and that most people will conclude that you're either arrogant, ignorant or naive (why not all three?). Add to that a decision making moment in which a trusted advisor says of your potential goal of 18K that it 'would be a miracle' needing of God's direct endorsement – leading you to conclude  "well, if 18K requires requires a miracle why not go for 28?" – and you'll be well on your way.

#9. Begin building a fan base AFTER your launch.

If you hold tight to the idea that pushing the kickstarter 'launch' button is a bit of a miracle moment theres a really good chance that you might not ever realize that when you do so… nothing happens. Well. Wait. That's not true. Your pulse rate will increase. Your blood pressure may spike. But traffic? Throughput? Well. It may be that one has to pick ones miracles.  After all – the miracle of people participating in your kickstarter usually follows the miracle of them knowing it exists.

#8. Launch your whole 'thing' the week AFTER your campaign.

When you do so – launching your website, twitter, instagram, and facebook pages – you make it really clear to everyone who understands what you're doing that you – in point of fact – don't. Which – for the record – is operating on the internet for fundraising. Which is why it is just so, so, so very brave that you ignore that whole mobile 'thing' in the website build.  Because mobile is unimportant.  In 1997… wait. Are you saying it's NOT 1997?

#7. Be really clear in not knowing what you're never saying as you communicate. 

Also – add in regular & regimented reductions in consistency, awkward use of social media as you try to connect flickerer to instawhacka and the big two (that's twitter and facebook – wink!)… In a scattered and unpredictable manner -oh!- and of course, drive yourself and your wife nuts by allowing the number of 'likes' you've received to dominate your emotional and spiritual life.

#6. Do it all anonymously… sorta.

But not really. At all. Start with a clear idea of anonymity as a practical spiritual principle and then slowly cave towards the social paradigm of personality. Do so obviously and publicly so that it's really clear you just aren't sure at all. As you do so, leave a trail of awkward pseudo – anonymous moments in which you create a shell production company and repeatedly refer to yourself by your first name only (which is common and not at all mysterious)… concluding by linking direct to your personal facebook. Yeah.

#5. Set reward levels that most Americans simply cannot afford.

By choosing reward options that small countries will have a hard time subsidizing, the direct intervention of God becomes more and more needed – perceptually. You and I both know it was needed all the while, but it's amazing my capacity to forget that. The best way to do this is by making decisions without ever considering what you would be inclined to do from the other side of the fence – after all, 10K isn't much is it? Anyone? Guys? Hey – where'd everyone go?

#4. Be counterintuitive – make money unimportant to your fundraising campaign.

Say things like "Oh, I dont need to hit the goal," or, "The money isnt important," or even, "All I need is a pencil, paper, and the bible." Seriously. It's a really effective tool. People will walk away really impressed with how impressive you are and most likely – FYI – NOT participate with your kickstarter campaign. But – you can feel really good about how little you worry about money, and your kickstarter, all night long. And then again when you wake up. And when you sit down at the computer. And then again…

#3. Do something that's never been done before.

Do something, say, like… illustrating a book of the bible, fully, unabridged in volumes (of which you're only doing one to start with… which you're actually rethinking now and leaning towards a monthly issue format right from the start). Something that combines two worlds that don't have much love for one another, historically. Make it both entirely a comic book and entirely scripture – entirely in pencil. Doing so, call it passion – only realizing after you title it thus that 'Passion' comes from the Latin 'Pati' which means "to suffer," a definition that becomes more and more clear as the kickstarter begins and you move further from HIs passion and closer to your own; as paltry as it may be.

#2. Make entirely irrational decisions as you go.

Like choosing a 40 days time period for the campaign. Because – and this was the thought – it 'borrows authenticity.'  Yeah. More like it evidences a need for it via superstitious & irrational decision making. Well folks, let's hope I was wrong and that I didn't manage it – because as poorly thought out as that was here's what comes to mind for the number 40 and the Bible: 1) Israel wandered the desert for 40 YEARS while looking for the promised land. They found it, but everyone – mostly – who started the journey DIED before they got it. 2) Noah and kin watched as 40 days of rain drowned EVERYONE on the planet except him & his. 3) Christ walked in the wilderness for 40 days – all while fasting & resisting temptation. Which – for the record – is a non-starter combination. Seems clear – 40 day time periods aren't really a recipe for fun. My thinking here… not so clear.

#1. When the moment comes to toot your horn, do the opposite.

So, seeing all that, when bleeding cool says 'you're on' – what to do with your very FIRST publicity? What to say in what could be your only publicity? The truth. And the truth is, I didn't do all this to see me do anything – though i may have gotten confused about that here and there. I'm here for the miracle.

"What miracle?" You ask?

Well, I don't know yet. I've never gotten more than a few seconds advance notice. And it's never quite what i'd expect. But I can tell you that it was as I pondered rebooting my campaign and aiming for more modest goals that I recieved the email from bleeding cool about this article and that a question occurred to me:

"How can a miracle happen if you quit?"

And that's a mighty good question. Does that mean one will happen? I think so, yeah. Does it mean it will happen with the kickstarter? Oh, heck no. Though it could – and that's the hard part. The part that takes faith. To keep on, knowing that what comes has NOTHING to do with anything good, or smart, or wise that came from me.

After all, my best intentions crafted the recipe above. A good recipie for a miracle. 'Cause that's the only way this happens.

So we're inviting you to participate in our miracle today. Right now. I've added a $7.00 reward to the kickstarter and titled it "Bloody Miraculous" because, well, that's my fun 'lil way of capturing this moment. If I fund (which will take a few of you – so dont flinch, throw in!) this reward will net you an otherwise unpublished Passion: #0 standalone issue. One printing – and limited to you and you alone. Ever.

Look – we're not in this for the money – but we'll take it, & we'll use it, and we'll share the gospel as a comic book called Passion. We'll put heart and soul into it and publish some pencils that are our aim at 'bleeding cool. And in the end  – we're in this for the miracles – so come with us.

Come with us and see what's next.

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KICKSTARTER: http://kck.st/RHBZxQ

Web: http://tenaciouspuppy.com/
Facebook(s): https://www.facebook.com/passion.storybook, https://www.facebook.com/carpenter.222

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tenacious_puppy
Email: carpenter.222@gmail.com


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Rich JohnstonAbout Rich Johnston

Founder of Bleeding Cool. The longest-serving digital news reporter in the world, since 1992. Author of The Flying Friar, Holed Up, The Avengefuls, Doctor Who: Room With A Deja Vu, The Many Murders Of Miss Cranbourne, Chase Variant. Lives in South-West London, works from Blacks on Dean Street, shops at Piranha Comics. Father of two. Political cartoonist.
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