What is a poor, queer, black artist to do? Beg for money, of course.
After months of constant, disappointing rejections based entirely upon the perceived popularity of the subject matter, I’ve come to the conclusion that my urban, ethnic transgender literary fiction romance novel will have to be self-published.
Publisher: “It’s too niche.” “It’s too urban.”
Agent: “People are sick of identity politics.” “The trans moment has passed.”
I’ve even had a firm deny to publish my novel and then ask if I could write gay cowboy romance or trans-fetish erotica instead. It was incredibly audacious and insulting, and I saved the email so that I could use it in the future for one of those inspirational “never give up on your dreams” posts.
It’s all been really discouraging as an artist. The only way forward that I can see is through personal production using a self-publishing house like Barnes & Noble Press.
That shit is expensive though, especially for an inner-city minority artist who lives in relative poverty. I wrote about the foreseeable expenses in the fundraiser campaign but I don’t think that I really got the point across.
- Editor: $1500 – $2500
- Cover Designer: $250 – $1000
- Marketing: $1000 – $5000
- Print-On-Demand: $???
I set up a Twitter account to promote the campaign (@TLOA2022) and pushed it in Facebook groups and on Tumblr.
In 24 hours, that pinned post got about 80 retweets and fifty likes. I also got my first $100 donation from an anonymous source. It seemed like things were going to go well, but I lost a bit of momentum. It’s been five days since launch and at this moment (2:30PM 4/25/2022) I have still only received the one donation and an additional ninety retweets on a few different threads.
I haven’t shared the campaign with friends or family because of existing stigmas about crowdfunding, but I’ve since meditated on the artistic value of the work and the reasonable amount that I’m seeking, and I’m over that feeling.
I’m going to give this GoFundMe campaign some time to gather support. I don’t know if it would have been a better idea to create a Kickstarter campaign, but the fact that I would need to get the project COMPLETELY funded or risk getting none of the funding money at all kind of scares me.
I’ve still got a few queries floating around out there in the world, but, at this point, I am so over the trappings of the traditional publishing industry that I wouldn’t accept an offer if it was slipped to me in a golden envelope. I have to do this on my own. This story deserves that kind of effort.
Wish me luck! π€
Transgender characters in literary fiction that are relatable, authentic, urban, and ethnic are far and few between. There are some fantastic stories out there that meet that criteria but not nearly enough to satisfy a hungry, marginalized community. There is a furious yearning in the transgender and non-binary communities for representation in sophisticated literary fiction where the characters and settings are contemporary, relevant, urban, and ethnic.
If you read this and are interested in checking out the campaign, you can find the link below!
The Life Of Alma | Crowdfunding Campaign
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If you are unable to donate, please share the campaign on social media! Tag me on twitter (@TLOA2022 & @Atickysteel) and Instagram (oldxanadu)!
Thanks for reading!
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