The novel

The main character found himself among painters, musicians, photographers; creative people of all sorts. All they needed was a public space, a forum, a gallery. This is a story about a collection of artists that are brought together through this one common purpose and the public space to make it happen. They were determined to open an art gallery. They acquired a raw, unfinished storefront and made a deal with the landlord to trade work on the building in exchange for use of the space. Endless nights were spent producing art or playing music or just hanging out with other artists. Everything was happening all at once, a lot of highs, a lot of lows, but one thing they struggled with most was how to actually keep the doors open in the one place that meant the most to them all, the gallery that became a second home for any artist that passed through the doors.

This book tells all about that struggle, and about what it means to be an artist today. It deals with the triumphs and the failures they encounter with opening a gallery, with their art, and with each other.

The gallery

If you are any type of artist you will find something in this novel that speaks to you. It was called Artless because to be artless is to be genuine. No matter what anyone was trying to do, held above all else was the idea that as long as you are genuine in your approach, you can never fail. The gallery--and novel--isn't just about these characters, it's about anyone who considers themselves an artist. This is a microcosm of everyone out there who is putting forth a genuine approach. That's what makes the novel great, because it speaks to what it means to be an artist or musician or photographer, when there is so much information and so much art out there that we're hanging it on the wall before the paint can even dry. When you have the influx of information and the ability to reach the ends of the earth, you realize that the moment surrounding you is the most real and genuine experience you could ever want. And this is happening everywhere, in all places. What Artless did was bring people together under one roof with the idea to open a public venue. But the space wasn't the real story, it was what happened along the way. The greatest thing possible is to bring like-minded people together. Not to have a place to sell art, but a place to create it, a place to live it.

Funding

I want to avoid the pitfalls of self-publishing by hiring quality people to do the editing, proofing, layout, etc. The novel is already written, with 300 pages of manuscript needing one more revision before it's fully completed. Your help will produce a quality novel without having to go through a traditional publisher. 

Here are the specifics of what the funding will pay for: 

• editing
• proofreading
• design and layout for the cover and hard copy
• formatting for each type of ebook reader
• bulk printing to reduce the per-book cost (this will be one of the biggest expenses)
• website design for the novel
• purchasing ISBN numbers
• paying registration fees to self-publish
• printing postcards
• printing the cover art
• printing photography
• packing and postage

Thank you

I've spent a lot of time working on this novel and now it's almost there. This is the push needed to finally make this happen. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Thank you for your pledges.

If you have any questions or want to know more, please feel free to contact me.