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Support Burlesque Press!

Greetings all! I hope you are doing well this spring. I wanted to take a minute and update you on how things are going at Burlesque Press. This month we will be opening up registration for the second annual Hands On Literary Festival and Masquerade Ball.  Stay tuned for more information on speakers, agents, and writers who will be attending! We're very excited about this year's festival, and have a few surprises in store for you!

As a reminder, The Burlesque Press Variety Show opened up to public submissions last year. The Variety Show has already become a thriving online journal, publishing new fiction, poetry, reviews, and essays 3-5 times a week.  We are always looking for new work, though, and at present we charge no submission fees.  So get your work in!

Though registration is now closed for this summer's writing retreat, we'll be opening up registration very soon for next year's summer writing retreats, so please stay tuned for more info, and in the meantime, let me know if you have any questions! We have future retreats planned for Iceland, Edinburgh, Italy, and more.




In other words, it's been a great first year for Burlesque Press, and we're excited to expand the press even further. A year ago, I started this company to help build a sense of community among writers, and to provide opportunities at home and abroad for writers to meet, share ideas, and work on their craft. I wanted to combine the best elements of literary festivals, writing retreats, and literary publishing in one place, and to break down some of the barriers that currently stand between aspiring authors and the publishing industry, between writers and readers, and between writers and other writers. We've already got the press off to a great start, and I'm thankful for all the writers, readers, and presenters who have helped to build this wonderful community.

Now we would like to expand our reach, and to do that, we are looking to raise some extra funds. For this, we need your help. We're launching this Go Fund Me campaign to enable us to offer writers more opportunities to publish their work and connect with each other professionally, at home and abroad. I'm very excited for this campaign. Please take a look at the cool incentives and giveaways we've put together, and whether or not something catches your eye, please consider sharing the campaign on Facebook, Twitter, or whatever new and incredible social media platform has just been invented!


Please let me know if you have any questions.

And thanks again to everyone who has helped make Burlesque Press what it is, and for your continued support as we grow!

Jennifer Stewart
Director, Burlesque Press
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BurlesquePress
Twitter: @1burlesquepress


What we need to cover:

Publishing: ISBNs, Software and fees assorted with preparing books for print and online publication. $1000

Festival:  While we endeavor to fund the festival primarily through registration fees, we also want to make the festival accessible for all who wish to attend.  Which means any extra money we can raise towards bringing in agents, writers, and editors helps enormously!  $2000

Marketing: So far, we have had a lot of success with advertising on a small budget, combining print and online/social media advertising, and we would like to further grow these campaigns. $1000

T-Shirts: We aim to re-stock T-shirts and Tote Bags and other swag for the festival, for the retreat in Krakow, for AWP, and for this campaign. If you haven't already checked out our t-shirts, please do: they have been a real hit. $1000

Assorted Operating Costs: Logo Design, Cost of the Go Fund Me campaign itself, and various giveaways, website and other administrative fees, etc. $1000


Goal: $6000

Incentives! Please read these carefully as the descriptions here contain more details than we could fit in the 160 character limit description tabs!

Incentives: Tier 1

$15 - A handwritten thank you note from Jeni Stewart. Or, if you would prefer to actually be able to read your note, a typed note signed by me :)

$25 - A handwritten thank you note AND a snazzy, highly durable Burlesque Press tote bag.

$40 - A handwritten thank you note from me, AND a soft, stylish Burlesque Press T-Shirt.

$55 - Cover Letter Edits - Submitting to lit mags or agents? Let one of our staff members look over your letter and offer advice. PLUS a handwritten thank you note from me.

$60 - Stuck with a story or essay? Ten pages of proofreading / copyediting by a member of the Burlesque Press staff and a handwritten thank you note from me.

$65 - Your choice of either a t-shirt or a tote bag, and a sonnet or poem written especially for you by a member of our Burlesque Press staff.

$70 Writing Prompts and a Deadline: Deadlines often come in handy, and we've designed this option to help combat the dreaded writer's block. We'll send you up to 3 prompts for either a poem or a short prose piece, and give you a deadline to submit the work back to us. We'll read it, make editing suggestions, and also suggest some places you might submit to for publication. Hey, we might even consider it for The Variety Show! And we'll also give you a snazzy Burlesque Press tote bag to carry your notes in to the coffee shop so you can meet that deadline. Limit: 10

$75 - A handwritten note from me, a Burlesque Press T-Shirt and Tote Bag, and a copy of our first published book, Siren Song by Tawni Waters.

$100 - Almost all of the Above: a t-shirt, a tote bag, a copy of our first book, Siren Song, by Tawni Waters, a handwritten thank you note, and a limerick or other rhyming poem written especially for you by a member of our staff.


$125 - Dance with Tawni, author of Siren Song! For this incentive level, we are offering a midnight dance with Tawni Vee Waters at midnight at our Hands On Festival Masquerade Ball in New Orleans. Must be present at ball to choose this selection. Additionally, Tawni promises to have two left feet. However, Tawni also promises to be wearing an awesome dress and to be a super fun, if uncoordinated, dance partner. You also get a copy of Siren Song, signed by Tawni. So lock in your midnight dance fun, and help Burlesque Press out at the same time! ONLY ONE AVAILABLE. No transportation or lodging included. Must be present in New Orleans and at the Masquerade Ball.

Incentives: Tier 2


Manuscript Consultations

$200 - Manuscript Consultation with Dinty W. Moore. Dinty will read one prose selection of 10-15 pages. He will then provide 1-2 pages of written feedback, or, alternatively, you can arrange a brief, up to 15 minutes, phone call or Skype conversation with him to discuss the piece. Once the campaign has concluded, Burlesque Press will put you in touch with Dinty and you can then work out a schedule for submission of materials and receipt of feedback. LIMIT - 3 manuscript consultations in total

$150 - Manuscript Consultation with Shelley Puhak, who was recently selected as the winner of the Hecht Prize by Charles Simic. Shelley will read a selection of up to 10 poems or no more than 15 pages. She will then provide 1-2 pages of written feedback, or, alternatively, you can arrange a brief, up to 15 minutes, phone call or Skype conversation with her to discuss the piece. Once the campaign has concluded, Burlesque Press will put you in touch with Shelley and you can then work out a schedule for submission of materials and receipt of feedback. LIMIT - 3 manuscript consultations in total

$145 - Manuscript Consultation with Tawni Waters. Check out Tawni's bio here. Tawni will read one prose selection of 10-15 pages. She will then provide 1-2 pages of written feedback, or, alternatively, you can arrange a brief, up to 15 minutes, phone call or Skype conversation with her to discuss the piece. Once the campaign has concluded, Burlesque Press will put you in touch with Tawni and you can then work out a schedule for submission of materials and receipt of feedback. LIMIT - 3 manuscript consultations in total

$160 - Manuscript Consultation with Jen Violi. Jen will read one prose selection of 10-15 pages. She will then provide 1-2 pages of written feedback, or, alternatively, you can arrange a brief, up to 15 minutes, phone call or Skype conversation with her to discuss the piece. Once the campaign has concluded, Burlesque Press will put you in touch with Jen and you can then work out a schedule for submission of materials and receipt of feedback. LIMIT - 3 manuscript consultations in total


Incentives Tier 3:

$110 - This Includes a Registration to attend the New Year's Eve Masquerade Ball during our Hands On Literary Festival and Masquerade Ball this December 30, 2013 to January 1, 2014. The ball will feature live music and dancing, a champagne toast at midnight, and other light nibbles. This incentive ALSO includes a t-shirt, and a thank you note. Please note - no transportation to or lodging within New Orleans will be provided. Must be present to take part.

$115 - This includes a Registration to attend our keynote reception during our Hands on Festival and Masquerade Ball this December 29, 2014. The keynote will feature a reception with light snacks and drinks before the address. It ALSO includes a thank you note and a t-shirt. Please note - no transportation to or lodging within New Orleans will be provided. Must be present to take part.

$350 - This includes a full registration for the Hands On Literary Festival and Masquerade Ball taking place in New Orleans this December 29 to December 31, 2014. It includes full access to the panels and readings, the ball, and the keynote. It also includes a t-shirt. Please note - no transportation or lodging is being offered. Must be present to take part, and all travel expenses belong to the individual and not Burlesque Press.

$500 - This includes a full registration to the festival as noted above, a t-shirt, a tote bag, a copy of the first Burlesque Press book, and a handwritten thank you note.

$600 - This includes not only a full registration to the Hands On Literary Festival as noted above, a thank you note, but also an invite to attend dinner with the keynote and a few other festival presenters on December 29th, the night of the keynote. Please note: Must be present to attend. No transportation or lodging in New Orleans will be provided. Does not cover purchase of alcohol at dinner. ONLY ONE AVAILABLE!

Incentives Tier 4:

$1000 - A registration for two to the Hands On Literary Festival and Masquerade Ball, two t-shirts, two tote bags, two copies of the first Burlesque Press book Siren Song, and a handwritten thank you note. NO transportation, lodging, or meals provided.


$2500 "“ Join us for an intense, productive, and fun writing retreat to the heart of medieval Poland! This includes one full registration for the first Burlesque Press Retreat in Krakow, Poland this coming July 1 through July 10, as well as a thank you note, a t-shirt, and a tote bag. This option also provides for a reading during our retreat in Krakow. Please note - this does not include airfare, housing, or meals. May be purchased for another person (ie, you can donate the registration to someone else). Only valid for the Krakow retreat, however, if for any reason Burlesque Press does not run the Krakow retreat in 2014 it will be valid for the next retreat in 2015. For more information about this option, please contact Jennifer Stewart.

Organizer

Jeni Wallace
Organizer
New Orleans, LA

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