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Indie Publishing in Flint, Michigan!
0% complete
$1,800 raised of $2.5K
22 donations
Hello friends,
In a nutshell: I'm an independent publisher based in Flint, and I want to continue publishing and community engagement projects!
In 2010 I established Gothic Funk Press to self-publish my debut novel Hungry Rats. It didn't take long for the Press to take on a life of its own!
In the last 13 years, Gothic Funk Press, a Flint, Michigan-based sole-proprietorship, has published three anthologies of teen writing in partnership with the Flint Public Library, an anthology of experimental writing by Flint residents, a streamed literary salon series, an arts journal , and the debut collection of Canadian poet Sarah-Jean Krahn in addition to my own work.
Gothic Funk Press has also been heavily involved in community engagement projects including, but not limited to, the Flint Festival of Writers , the Flint Order of Orpheus , the Flint Area Scavenger Hunt , and (in partnership with the Flint Public Library) the Flint Teen Writers Workshop, the Flint Adult Writers Workshop, and the Flint Teen Writers Summer Intensive.
GFP is registered as a business for branding and tax reasons, but I want to be clear that so far it has not been a money-maker for me. I make a few hundred dollars each year in royalties on books sold and occasional readings and speaking gigs.
Running the press has cost considerably more, in both money and time. This is paid out of pocket by myself and by friends and investors who have supported our worthy work.
Of course, anthologies, published work by other authors, and community engagement projects are not intended or designed to turn a profit but to provide Flint and the world at large with a fully-engaged publisher of Gothic Funk work: experimental work featuring degrees of romanticism, darkness, depth, and swagger.
Unfortunately, I cannot infinitely or indefinitely support independent publishing on my own dime. I continue to support the Press when and how I can, but if friends, allies, and supporters chip in I can to continue and even expand the work the Press does.
This fundraiser is an invitation to support the valuable work we are doing through Gothic Funk Press.
I would like to tell you what your donation will fund and what it will not fund.
This GoFundMe will support:
- Fees paid to graphic designers, editors, and other professionals who help bring written work to completion.
- Stipends paid to authors and other creative folk participating in Gothic Funk projects including both published and unpublished work.
- Advertising for activities in support of writers' workshops and other community engagement events or projects.
- Expenses associated Gothic Funk events including food, drink, space use, advertising, and associated other expenses.
- Nominal administrative and clerical expenses (fees, paper, printing, etc.)
- Inventory of books and anthologies.
- Web hosting fees.
This GoFundMe will not support:
- The editing, design, publication, or advertising of my own writing.
- The writers' workshops and their anthologies, which are subsidized by the Flint Public Library
Finally, a few notes on Gothic Funk Press publications and Gothic Funk Press community engagement events:
- Most events are open to the public, and all are either free to attend or are supported by donations.
- Authors retain all rights to their own work, and earn 100% of any royalties collected on that work.
- Anthologies are not sold, but are printed in limited numbers and distributed to contributors, local libraries, and archived by Gothic Funk Press.
- Some published work, such as The Paramanu Pentaquark arts journal, is published online.
- To date, printing and distribution needs have been met by Kindle Direct Publishing, a subsidiary of Amazon.com. (In the future I hope to explore Lightning Source as an alternative, but I cannot commit to that at this time.)
If you have any other questions about this determinedly informal publisher, please let me know.
And thank you for supporting independent publishing in Flint, Michigan!