About this project
For the next six weeks I am going to write a short story each week. And you're going to tell me what to write.
Why would I do such a thing? This past year I wrote my first novel. It's called The Collective. As I was casting about for ways to distribute it, I watched my friend Robin's wildly successful Annabel Scheme project and I was inspired. My plan is a little different from most Kickstarter projects because the book itself is already finished. But, it does take money and backers to give this book as wide a distribution as possible. I just thought I'd make it fun for all of us.
So what's the project? It's called Andrew vs. The Collective and it's sort of like live writing. For six weeks, the duration of the project, I'm going to write a short story every week. Six in total. But here's the catch (for me): each story is going to include a piece of input from every single one of the backers (that's you). That's my challenge. And your challenge, as a backer, is to try to stump me. Give me your most difficult words, sentences, characters, etc. and I will be forced to weave them into that week's story.
What do you get out of backing this project? First off, a copy of The Collective. Which has garnered very high reviews from my mother and three close friends. I'm going to make it available for sale after the project - but you'll get the first edition. Perhaps more importantly, though, you'll get access to Andrew vs. The Collective. You get to be a part of the process every week and have your input in six different stories.
How will it work? Each Wednesday I'll ask for your input in a Kickstarter update. You can respond in the comments there, or you can send me an email, or a Twitter DM, whatever you want to do. At noon on Friday I'll stop taking suggestions for that week's story. And then Friday evening I'll do a new post with all the suggestions. I'll write over the weekend and then Tuesday the story will be published. Don't worry about sending your first input in yet - I'l post an update asking for it next week. The first round of suggestions are due Friday, February 5. You'll read the first story on Tuesday, February 9!
A few caveats and clarifications: I reserve the right to ask you for another suggestion. This will never be because something is too difficult, I promise you that. I just don't want to have to write anything horribly offensive!
Also, if you want to submit a lower level of input than what you've pledged, that's fine. Like if you signed up to submit settings but all you wanted to submit was sentences? Don't lower your pledge! Just let me know. I'll let you suggest multiple inputs from lower levels (we'll work out an exact number when it comes up).
Also, if this is your first time to Kickstarter, you should know - your pledge is one amount for the whole project. It's not going to cost you the amount you pledge for each of the six stories!
UPDATE: Amazingly, the project hit 100% funding in about a day. Now, while that's really exciting it doesn't mean pledging is all wrapped up. A hundred percent is just the beginning. I set the deadline for pledging all the way at the end of the six stories so that more people could get involved even as the project was underway. Here's a handy guide. You should sign up if:
- You want a copy of The Collective
- You're want to torment me personally.
- You're interested in a fun new experiment in writing.
FAQ
Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.
98
Backers
$2,913
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Funding Successful
This project successfully raised its funding goal on March 12, 2010.
Pledge $1 or more
CHALLENGER: You get to submit one adjective per story. // You'll receive: You get to follow along with the project with all of the emails and digital PDFs backers receive. (But that's it. No novel.)
Pledge $7 or more
ADVERSARY: You get to submit one noun per story. // You'll receive: All the emails and digital PDFs AND a copy of my very first novel The Collective.
Pledge $15 or more
FOE: You get to submit one sentence per story. (Think about the power you'll wield!) // You'll receive: Emails and PDFs, obviously. And I will mail you a SIGNED copy of my book.
Pledge $25 or more
ENEMY: You get to submit a character. Give me a name and as much or as little of a description as you want. (You can have some fun with this one: Your friends or family, historical figures, even yourself!) // You'll receive: Emails and PDFs and the signed copy of The Collective.
Pledge $50 or more
NEMESIS: You get to submit a setting in which some of the action has to take place. As with the character you can give me as much or as little as you want. // You'll receive: Everything above AND (here's the big one) a signed printed book of the six stories making up Andrew vs. The Collective! I'm not planning on making this one available for sale - so this will be a very rare commodity (that you helped to write!).
Pledge $100 or more
EVIL DOPPLEGANGER: Send me an email. No, seriously. You can give me any direction you want. Anything you can come up with. Just send me an email. // You'll receive: Everything above and I will include your name in the acknowledgments of The Collective as you are truly a giving benefactor for my writing career.
Project By
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I'm a media-creator and journalist. I've been trying to write novels since I was five years old (Hardy Boys: Case of the Pirate Treasure) but I just finished my very first one (The Collective). When I'm not excitedly hammering out first drafts or slogging through re-writes, I do online news for San Francisco-based Current TV.
