Writing Away
Hi! I wanted to let you know the status of the book project.
The "Afghan Notebook" book for Farrar, Straus & Giroux is moving along nicely. It's going to be a fairly long (about 350 pp.) collection of prose, photos and cartoons about the trip to Afghanistan, framing it as one more example of US foreign policy running amok. Why do we always get ourselves into these quagmires?
The title was always a working title. Now I'm leaning more toward "The Beginning of the End: The US War in Afghanistan in Words and Pictures" or somesuch. If you have a better idea, now would be the time to speak up.
I've written the prose. I owe the publisher captions for the photos and then a 30-page comix-format history of the war from 2001 to 2011. That should all be done within two months. We're looking at a pub date of Spring 2012, partly because it is felt that Afghanistan may be a topic of discussion during the presidential primaries.
In related news, I'm also considering doing a series of documentaries and books about revolutions in practice on the ground, beginning with the Naxalite movement in Nepal and the Niger Delta insurgency.
211
Backers
$25,999
pledged of $25,000 goal
0
seconds to go
Funding period
Jan 5, 2010 -
Apr 5, 2010
Pledge $10 or more
54 backers
Receive blog updates about the project, dispatches from Afghanistan in real time, plus updates about the book and resulting articles after I return (this applies to all larger awards)
Pledge $30 or more
13 backers
Receive a PDF download of the book
Pledge $30 or more
1 backer
Receive a PDF download of the book
Pledge $50 or more
61 backers
Get a copy of the book when it comes out
Pledge $100 or more
51 backers
Get a copy of the book, personally signed with a sketch
Pledge $500 or more
11 backers
You'll be personally thanked in the Acknowledgments section of the book, plus signed copies of the new book as well as To Afghanistan and Back and Silk Road to Ruin
Pledge $1,000 or more
2 backers
You get the signed book, the thank-you in said book, plus an original piece of artwork from the book, plus signed copies of the new book as well as To Afghanistan and Back and Silk Road to Ruin
Pledge $5,000 or more
1 backer
Pledge $5000 or more and I will meet you for dinner or drinks (and pick up the tab) anywhere in the New York City metropolitan area. Plus the books, thank-you, and original artwork!
Pledge $10,000 or more
0 backers
Pledge $10,000 or more and I will travel anywhere within the continental United States to meet you for dinner or drinks. If you'd like, I'll present a talk and show about my experiences in Afghanistan to you, your friends and/or a local organization. Plus the books, thank-you, and original artwork.
Featured!
- This Week in Kickstarter: Where They Are Now
- 10 Project Tips from Ted Rall of Comix Journalism
- KSR @ The Brooklyn Book Festival This Sunday, 9/18
- Best in Show: Reward (Experience)
- Best Journalism Project
- Kickstarter Conversations
- Getting Funded and Discovered
- Kickstarter Podcast #2: Ted Rall Goes Back to Afghanistan
- The Kickstarter Podcast
Comments
Creator Michael Carens-Nedelsky on April 13, 2011
Also not a fan of the title, my 12 bucks (I think) going along way. I actually like Afghan Notebook. Of the above, Wasted is good, or Wasteland, playing on the above - maybe Wastedland?
Also, because Afghanistan was the "good" war, maybe "This Is What Freedom Looks Like"? or "This Is What Victory Looks Like"
Creator Lhotze on April 5, 2011
Great...did you ever get to SE Afghanistan?
Creator William Brown on April 5, 2011
As a major backer of this project, I feel my $20 investment entitles (heh) me to an opinion about the title. It IS a bit dry. How about something like: "Drive or DIE! An Excursion in War-Torn Afghanistan." Or - "Beards, Bombs, and Bullets." How about "Wasted" - which sums up the war - waste of lives, money, effort, etc. Remember, the point of a title isn't to give an overview of the book, it's to get people to pick it up.