The Final Countdown: 18 Hours to Go on Kickstarter!

Hello, dear readers! It is that time–we have just under 19 hours left in our first ever Kickstarter campaign. HOLY RUSTED METAL, BATMAN. Here’s a rundown of everything that has happened so far–and what’s still on the table for these last few hours.

Our Mission and Kickstarter Goals

In 2018, The Book Smugglers turns 10 years old, which inspired us to level up our game. We decided to embark on this Kickstarter campaign because we want to: 

• Pay our short fiction authors more (from $0.06 per word to $0.08), starting with our “Awakenings” season of short stories, publishing in summer 2018
• Commission new paid contributors to our website, producing thought pieces and essays ($80 an essay), starting VERY soon
• Upgrade our website from both a front and back end perspective
• Improve our administrative, marketing and operational processes (aka hire awesome freelancers and pay for their help)

All of this so that we can make more cool stuff and continue to discover and publish new, diverse, exciting voices in SFF.

So far we have accomplished the following:

$16,500 – LEVEL CLEARED! Original funding goals met include “Awakenings” short stories and nonfiction contributors

$18,100 – LEVEL CLEARED! Increased pay for nonfiction contributors from $50 to $80

$20,000 – LEVEL CLEARED! Serialized short story series from JY Yang (a secondary-world fantasy about a romance between two gods, set in an occupied city where being a god is illegal. It’s beautiful, challenging, queer, slightly experimental and 100% awesome)

$24,000 – Tenth Anniversary Mega Anthology (limited print edition), collecting all of our short stories from past seasons: Fairy Tales, First Contact, Superheroes and Gods and Monsters, available summer 2018

We’ve got one stretch goal left–and in order to get there, we are delighted to share some mega cool rewards that are still available!

Rewards Made of Awesome

These are hot commodities–get ’em while you can!

Signed Personalized Books

WE HAVE BOOKS FOR DAYS, FRIENDS. 

Five personalized signed copies of The Brightest Fell by Seanan Mcguire + everything at the $45 level

Three personalized signed copies of Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray + everything at the $45 level

Personalized signed copy of Gunpowder Alchemy + Clockwork Samurai (printed ARC) by Jeannie Lin + everything in the $45 level

Personalized copy of Heroine Complex + Heroine Worship by Sarah Kuhn + everything at the $45 level

One copy of the beautifully illustrated and interactive Alien: Augmented Reality Survival Manual, courtesy of Carlton Books UK. This pledge level gives you the book + one “I am a book smuggler” tote bag + “Awakenings” anthology in electronic format (mobi or epub).

Personalised signed copies of the Court of Fives Trilogy by Kate Elliott. Includes Court of Fives, Poisoned Blade and Buried Heart + one “I am a book smuggler” tote bag + “Awakenings” anthology in electronic format (mobi or epub).

Personalized signed copies of the award-winning audiobooks of Illuminae AND Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff + everything in the $45 level.

One signed personalized copy of Ink Black Magic (a superhero novel) by Tansy Rayner Roberts + a handwritten letter about her favorite diverse/feminist superhero comics + “Awakenings” anthology in electronic format (mobi and epub)

One signed personalized copy AND the ability to name a character in Andrea K Host’s next novel, Snug Ship (a novel about the world’s first full virtual reality MMORPG, including spaceships, body hopping, internet connectiveness and distance, and virtual trust.) + the “Awakenings” anthology in electronic format (mobi and epub)

International Bookstore-Curated Boxes of Awesome

Box of books hand-selected by The Ripped Bodice, an LA-based bookstore specializing in romance

Box of books hand-selected by Bakka Phoenix, a Toronto-based bookstore specializing in SFF

Tote bag + books hand-selected and published by Twelfth Planet Press, a diverse indie publisher out of Australia

Arts and Crafts Made by Kickass Ladies

Harry Potter Scarves, handmade and knitted by the lovely Renay of Lady Buisiness

Original artwork by Anjale Perrault, cofounder of Raise Your Vibe

One personalized signed copy of Sunvault + a signed print of Glittership art by writer and Hugo Award-nominated artist M. Sereno/Likhain + “Awakenings” anthology in electronic format (mobi and epub)

Sweet Smuggler Swag

We have an official sticker! PLUS an iron-on patch of awesome.

And the pièce de résistance, our very own SMUGGLE-WORTHY TOTE BAG.

These are all available as add-ons to existing pledges! The sticker is $5, the patch is $10, and the bag is $35 (plus shipping for the tote only)! Confused about add-ons? Check out our handy infographic below!

LET’S DO THIS THING GUYS! KEEP CALM AND PLEDGE!