Noticed by Kickstarter - and Emily's little backstory about community.
almost 5 years ago – Wed, Jul 10, 2019 at 02:36:00 PM

This is Emily here (aka E.D.E. Bell), executive editor of Atthis Arts, and I was just...thrilled and humbled today to see that Kickstarter shared out our project on their primary social media. (Check out Kickstarter on Facebook and Twitter to like and repost!) I mean, wow.

We've had a great relationship with the Kickstarter community over the years (that means you!), and one reason we're still here is we know the deep importance of community, both in life and especially in art.

See, without Silence in Library Publishing, who published the orignal Icarus book, there might not be an Atthis Arts. Here's my little story.

It was the Fourth of July, 2014. Five months after the completion of the initial Icarus campaign.

Our first Kickstarter, for my own first novel, had succeeded in 2013 with an ambitious goal, but other than my WoW guildies (Remember Darnassus!), pledges were largely from friends and family, including a few that were overly generous. We knew we’d only get one shot at people we knew pitching in like that. And it was a little disappointing that we didn’t get to too many new people. I was very naïve at the time (and honestly, very depressed), had no idea how many people were out there writing, and didn’t know how tough it was to reach people. I also had no idea how to write (really) which makes that first novel a strangely unique creature, that I'm glad people still read and love. But even so, I knew if we were going to succeed, we needed to reach more people.

So for my next novel, The Banished Craft, we set what we thought was a more achievable goal, and I began working really hard to contact other people and business. Oh, it was embarrassing, in retrospect. I contacted celebrities, and authors, and I was just a big passionate, clueless mess. Finally I got a note back from someone. Ron, at Silence in the Library, said he appreciated what I was trying to do, and he’d send out a note.

So his next update to HEROES! A diverse superhero anthology included the following:

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Another Great Project

The Banished Craft: A Fantasy Tale of Dragons and Wizards

One of our regular Silence in the Library backers, E.D.E. Bell, has a Kickstarter running right now for what looks to be a really cool epic fantasy novel. If you like dragons, wizards, and adventure, you need to take a look at this Kickstarter.

As much as this looks like a great book, we're just as excited about the fact that E.D.E. Bell consistently promotes diverse protagonists in fantasy. This book will continue that trend. It also addresses some important LGBT equality issues. 

And, this is just the first book in a trilogy, so if we make it happen now, there will be more epic fantasy greatness to come. Please go check it out at this link.

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A note on the wording, which is dated: 2014 was actually a different time than now. Same-sex marriage hadn't been made legal most places, and a lot of the social justice movements that are prominent now were just emerging into broader discourse. Looking back, most of us weren't nuanced, as privileged writers, in describing what we then called diversity. We really just meant that we cared and were trying to be inclusive and break prejudices and have important conversations through our writing. Personally, I was immersed in a deeply repressive culture, working on an Air Force Base for almost exclusively deeply conservative, religious men. I felt helpless watching people be repressed for who they were, and I wanted to do something to help. Art was my best attempt. And so I felt like talking about oppression and repression through fiction, representing the beautiful and true diversity of the world, and reflecting on the ways that we judge and treat people was all really important. And I’ve especially always felt strongly about exploring gender and gender roles, stemming from my own complex history with gender issues. Silence in the Library was feeling these same things, and we connected on that. 

So back to the Fourth of July. The campaign seemed to have tapped out at 27%. And I was like, if I can’t get people’s attention, can I really do this? It was a really sinking feeling. But it was a holiday, and at the time we lived in the midst of one of the biggest Fourth of July festivals out there. And we’d never been to it. So we gathered the kids and walked to downtown Centerville, Ohio, for the Americana Festival. I had my phone with me, I think still a BlackBerry. And I don’t think I had a Kickstarter app then, but as we stopped back up at the top of the huge hill and gazed out over thousands of people decked in red, white, and blue, I decided to check the campaign. Just in case. Since I knew Ron said he’d mention us.

What I saw was Ron himself had bought a hardcover copy. Wow, that’s awesome, I thought. I checked again. Then Danielle. Then Shael. I checked again to see a huge pledge from Scout. James. Joie. Karl. And before I knew it, I’d jumped, just in that day, from 27% to 56% funded. I’ll never forget how that felt, this wave of hope and relief and people care and maybe I can do this. And that wave of pledges caused the campaign to start showing up in search results, or people are interested in results, or whatever—and we ended up 149% funded, with $4,485 for a little novel by a clueless engineer who had previously only written a really bizarre and occasionally problematic elf book.

That trilogy, which qualified me for SFWA, went on to be something I’m really proud of and continue to sell today at events. And some of those same backers continue to support me, through my Diamondsong serial, and all the other great projects from a growing set of amazing authors and artists. Like this one!

Atthis Arts still hasn’t “made it” yet, not financially. But we still believe. I believe. I think the quality of our work, the consistency of our ethics, and the talent of the authors wanting to work with us will get us there. I couldn’t be prouder of our new releases, including Five Minutes at Hotel Stormcove, A Spatial Surprise and The Traveling Triple-C Incorporeal Circus. And these graphic novels...look at these graphic novels!

Those moments, when you reach out a hand, can be so critical. And so my deepest gratitude to Ron and Silence in the Library. Who, by the way, did a great job with the original book. Reading that book made me fall in love with this project—and see it's potential. And that one kind note changed the course of my publishing future. The course of my life.

This story is very personal to me—I hope that you enjoyed it and I hope that you will love these great graphic novels. I’m so proud to have our name, and our little Atthis Ellioti hummingbird, who is almost the smallest bird in the world, on this project.

Emily. 

P.S. I am seeing every single pledge. Please know I see you all, individually. Thank you so much. I really hope you'll love the books.

From the letterer: Kris Siuda
almost 5 years ago – Mon, Jul 08, 2019 at 11:08:15 AM

[Hello! This lovely update from Kris Siuda includes completed project pages. If you want to avoid spoilers completely, you can skip the images, but either way we really love Kris' descriptions of how he approached the lettering and layout. Have a great day and thanks so much for your support. We believe in this project and believe we can hit that funding goal and get Áthila and Kris paid! Please send people to https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/atthisarts/icarus-0/ or (a more simplified link) atthisarts.com/kickstarter/. Thank you!]

Hello, Kris Siuda here, and I want to start off by thanking all the backers for your support. We’re working hard to bring these books to you and I think you will be very pleased with the end product.

My journey into the world of Icarus began many years ago when I read Greg’s novel The Third Sign, and I immediately knew that Greg had an amazing ability to create rich, vibrant and interesting worlds. His words spurred vivid imagery in my mind and I always wondered what it would be like to bring his stories to a visual medium. When the opportunity came to help with the graphic novel adaptation of his manuscript of Icarus, I jumped on board immediately. 

As the letterer, my job is fairly simple largely due to the fact that Keith adapted Icarus and Jellinek with a really tight script. It falls to me to balance Áthila’s beautiful artwork with the dialogue and thought bubbles, but because Áthila is a professional comic artist, he made sure I have plenty of room in which to work. My goal for the reader is to experience the story and imagery as smoothly as possible - the balance of the art and the positioning of the text is paramount. 

Icarus is filled with very unique characters, and we try to make sure this comes across in their graphic novel depictions as well. Here are a couple of scenes in Jellinek where I think Áthila really nailed the tension from the novel and where the script fits the art perfectly.

Jellinek is our narrator, and my favorite character because of his Western style of speaking. I often will add variety to the dialogue boxes to distinguish characters’ voices, such as seen above with Jellinek and the guard.

In the case of our antagonist, Jarvis, I make the speech bubbles even more unstable. Icarus’s bubbles are always the most symmetrically shaped in the scenes. 

As we head into the final stretch, I would like to thank you again and ask that you share the campaign with your friends and family. I can’t wait for you to experience Icarus and Jellinek very soon!

See you in Vol,

-Kris

From the scriptwriter: Keith R.A. DeCandido
almost 5 years ago – Thu, Jul 04, 2019 at 01:47:02 PM

Hey folks! Keith R.A. DeCandido here, and I wanted to thank those of you who've pledged to support this Kickstarter. It was a great pleasure writing the script, as Greg gave me some amazing material to work with. The thing that makes science fiction and fantasy unique among all the various types of fiction is that it's the only genre in which the setting isn't real. Part of the magic of SF/F is the creation of a new world, even if it's something as simple as "It's Seattle, but there are vampires!" or as complex as an entirely new world with an entirely new set of rules governing it.

Greg's world of Vol is one of the more fascinating ones you're likely to see, with the added bonus of some truly compelling characters in the regal Icarus and especially the hardscrabble Jellinek. One of the challenges of adapting work from another medium is to capture the voices of the characters, and one of the things that made scripting these graphic novels such a joy is that Greg has given all his characters, but especially those two, their own unique voice. 

I also am very much looking forward to seeing the artwork of Áthila Fabbio. With graphic novels, the scripting is only a portion of the job, and I can't wait to see how Áthila completes the work.

If you want to find out more about me, go to www.DeCandido.net, which has links to my blog, my Facebook page, my Twitter feed, my Instagram, and more. You can find more comics work from me in MINE!, the Ringo Award-winning Planned Parenthood anthology, and in Farscape Omnibus Volume 1, continuing the story of the cult TV series in comic book form. I've also got three novels out this year: Mermaid Precinct, the latest in my fantasy police procedural series, A Furnace Sealed, kicking off a new urban fantasy series, and Alien: Isolation, a new novel based on the classic movie series and the hit videogame. Plus I've got stories in the anthologies Thrilling Adventure Yarns, Unearthed, Brave New Girls: Adventures of Gals & Gizmos, Footprints in the Stars, Across the Universe, and Release the Virgins! And I also write about pop culture for Tor.com and on my Patreon.

Thanks again for your support! 

---Keith

Feedback and Financials
almost 5 years ago – Sat, Jun 29, 2019 at 12:38:56 PM

[A — personal and open — update from Chris Bell, Managing Editor, Atthis Arts.]

Asking for Feedback

So we're a bit past the halfway point, and we're not yet anywhere near where we'd like to be. Everyone's help in sharing the project has been UNBELIEVABLE. The project is getting visibility, but not backers. So what could we be doing better? If you have any comments, thoughts, suggestions—please comment below or send us a private message via Kickstarter or email. If there are any changes we can make to help the project a success, now is the time to make them. We still have two weeks and are committing to doing what we need to do to help this project succeed. As we've said from the start, we believe in these books.

Are the price points turning people away?

Yes, an $8 e-book and $18 paperback ($16/$36 for two) is a high price compared to many commercial titles. But this is what we need to produce high-quality, color indie art and writing. We believe indie art is important: it allows new ideas, new artists, and fresh takes that are different than what the big publishers will produce. By supporting indie art, you are supporting that idea — and help keeping indie presses in business. (This is a real concern, as more are shutting down than are being created.)

We also made the initial decision to only offer the books together, as we viewed the story as a set. In order to offer a lower-priced reward level and increase our chances of funding, we're adding an Icarus-only reward. 

Is the minimum goal too high? 

See the financials below. 

Was the video not engaging?

We shouldn't have focused so much on the history of the project. It was just really relevant in all the extensive efforts we've taken to revive this project, so it got in our head a little too much. We just uploaded a new video that features a time-lapse of Áthila creating the actual art for one of the books along with Greg discussing his motivation. 

What else?

Please let us know. Comments, emails — but also Greg will be streaming the entire day on his Twitch channel. Seriously: a Stream-A-Thon! Drop in and we'll all chat about your comments and suggestions. We expect the stream to go live about 1pm EDT today (Friday) and go through midnight. We hope you'll hop in and say hi, if only for a few minutes. We're planning to have some fun today, along with some fun surprises.

Financials - How did we set our goal?

I'd like to share with you how we came up with our goal and where the money will be spent if this Kickstarter is successful. As you may know, many projects (especially the more commercial ones) set artificially low goals to ensure the campaign is successful. This is a dangerous practice, if the funds really aren't there. If the minimum goal is met but not exceeded, the project creator is at a huge risk of not delivering on the promised rewards, or must sacrifice the quality of the end product. That is something that we simply will not do.

In our past projects, it's been our personal finances on the line, so if we fell a little short of our true goal, we said "who needs to retire" and pressed on. This time, it's the ability to pay the artist, and it's simply more than we have available.

So - you might ask - why is the artist working if he might not get paid?

• The artist believes in the project. He chose to continue with this approach. We are all hoping to get his art out into the world so people can see how talented he is.
• We all got boxed in on some after-the-fact discoveries that we simply can't get into. These were hard hits to the finances that none of us caused. (Hint: We didn't initially plan to redraw Book 1.) The whole team believes in this project and chose to press, rather than letting it die, when so much work had already been done on Book 2, and so much love poured into it. This wasn't an easy decision, but in the end we feel these books deserve to be made. Every member of the team was willing to take the risk. For art!

This resulted in a minimum goal much higher than we wanted it to be, and yet one that is still very, very tight. The entire Icarus team believes so much in this project that they structured their contracts around the bare minimum they would need to see it through and do it right.

And if your question is, but isn't Atthis Arts dedicated to paying artists?, the answer is yes, we are. That's why we've spent months and months on this project for no pay, and why we're accepting no margin for this project as it now stands.

Overhead costs:

• Kickstarter and Credit Card Processing: 13%
• Shipping (collected shipping counts toward the goal): 10%
• Printer/Paper/Binding (cost to produce the physical books): 20%
• Royalties: 10%

So for every dollar we need to spend on fixed rate items (artwork, script, lettering, advertising, video production, etc), we need to raise $2.12 in crowdfunding.

Fair rates for indie graphic novels: 

• Script: $25-50/pg (the script was already complete, not covered by this campaign)
• Line Art: $75-$200/pg
• Coloring: $35-$100/pg
• Lettering: $10-$20/pg

Using the lowest end number above (and without script writing), a fair rate for comic art is $120 per page. Icarus & Jellinek combined are 119 pages. This would require $14,280 to pay a low-end fair rate, and our Kickstarter would need a minimum goal of $31,733.

So how did we get our goal down to $13,500?

• Greg is accepting half-royalties on the Kickstarter copies sold. At the minimum goal, this will only cover his out-of-pocket costs for his personal expenses with the project. 
• Áthila is doing all phases of the artwork at a discounted rate (pencil, ink, colors), and is accepting a base rate that is less than half the fair rates above if the Kickstarter minimally funds, plus a percentage of any funds over the minimum until a solid fair rate is earned.
• Kris similarly is accepting a rate below the minimum for lettering plus a percentage of the campaign.
• Finally, Atthis Arts set a zero (0) net margin for this project. If the campaign funds at our minimum goal, we expect to have zero net income on the Kickstarter. We believe in the long-term value of Greg's and Áthila's work.

Bottom line—neither the author nor publisher expects to make money on this Kickstarter (unless we significantly overachieve). All of our funding is focused on trying to achieve a fair rate for this incredible artwork.

You should still feel great about supporting this project. Why?

• If we can fund the minimum, we can get everyone paid to contract, then continue to enrich them through royalties and future efforts.
• Emily and I would really love a successful campaign out of this - we put our brand against our belief in this project. And again, we can't get into all the details, but I think our ethics (and our commitment to stand by them, even when silently) are well known.
• We think there is huge potential for the creators to rise to greater success. Your investment now will help them in a general sense, but if you invest in the higher-level rewards of Áthila's original art, it may literally be a good investment later on. If we could afford it, Emily and I would buy that original Icarus cover. We think it's that stellar.

I really appreciate your time, your consideration, and your support to indie art. Now, go check out that Stream-A-Thon. (And I hope you have a great weekend.) Contact me anytime with your feedback, questions, needs, or even a friendly fist bump. Really appreciate you all.

- Chris

From the author: Gregory A. Wilson
almost 5 years ago – Wed, Jun 26, 2019 at 02:12:16 PM

[Today we've got a personal note from author Gregory A. Wilson, followed by a sample of the fully lettered pages. Thank you again for your support, for staying with us, and for spreading the word. We are so going to do this.]

Stream-a-Thon:

We believe in this project and we're not letting up one touch! Join Greg all day Friday for a Stream-a-Thon on his Twitch channel to spread the word about Icarus and Jellinek? How many "raids" do you think Greg can get into his channel? We'll find out! Join us Friday at https://www.twitch.tv/arvaneleron

From Greg:

I wrote some of this for Jennifer Brozek’s blog, but I wanted to reiterate my thoughts here—because I think the question of why we write a particular piece is an important one, even if we can’t always articulate it at first.

I first sat down to write Icarus at a time when it felt like compassion and community was in short supply—and with my first child just about to arrive (my daughter was born about a week after I finished the manuscript), that sort of thing was really on my mind. Originally this story was told from alternating perspectives, Icarus's (kind of the Queen's English, I guess) and Jellinek's (kind of a Gabby Hayes, Old West type). As you can tell from the two covers, on the surface the two characters seem as different from each other in demeanor, language, and outward appearance as one could imagine, but internally, they're much more similar than either of them realize. A lot of the story, which involves them running from the magisters who dominate the land of Vol and desire Icarus's powers for themselves, focuses on Icarus trying to regain his memory, with Jellinek trying to understand what the hell has just happened. But the heart of the story remains friendship and community: creatures coming together in common purpose, determined to stand with each other come what may. 

When the graphic novel finally had its first iteration in 2016, a lot of this came through in the visual images and the script done by Keith DeCandido. But as we’ve talked about elsewhere, for a variety of reasons we were only able to tell part of the story. Much of the rest of it—the ways in which Icarus, Jellinek, and Rig try to escape their pursuers and unlock more of Icarus's mystery—was still to be revealed. When Áthila came on board to do the art for the entire story, it wasn't so much his attention to detail and masterful grasp of color and shading which grabbed me, although those were awesome things too! But it was his ability to capture the characters' emotions, their care for each other, their generosity of spirit, which was most stunning…and moving. For the first time, I can see Icarus's sense of loss, his sadness and concern for his friends, the weight of Jellinek's decision to help Icarus in spite of every bit of history telling him you can't trust "others." A picture might be worth a thousand words, but these ones are worth a couple of deeply powerful emotions too.

My daughter is now eleven, and once again we're in a difficult, contentious time. And now my son, only three years old, has also joined the world. I think a lot about them in my writing; I wonder if they'll understand what it means to pull together, even when some around them are trying to push them apart. Part of that is my job as a parent…but part of it is also my job as a writer, and it's one I'm trying to take seriously. So really, Icarus and Jellinek is a story of hope; along with Áthila's art, I'm doing everything I can to help that hope come across. And by backing this, so are you. Thanks—and please spread the word, and the hope, to others too!

--Greg

First look at lettering, from the beginning of Book 2, Jellinek: