Fantasy is a genre that extends across mediums with artists of every ilk contributing and expanding it in their own ways to create a wonderful shared experience for the community. Whether it’s the artist drawing, the cinematographer filming, or the novelist writing, fantasy and art are connected in a symbiotic relationship.
Kickstarter, and other sources of crowdfunding, have had a surge in popularity in the last couple of years. It’s a wonderful platform for artists of all types to gain support for the projects that they normally wouldn’t have the means to fund, while simultaneously giving something back to those that donate in order to make an inclusive experience.
For those that are unaware here’s a basic rundown of how Kickstarter works:
1. An artist posts their idea on Kickstarter, with a full proposal and a requested amount of money they’d need to complete the project.
2. Along with the proposal is a tier system of pledge amounts that typically run from $1 – $10 – $50 all the way to as high as $1,000 or more. Each pledge tier typically has a set of rewards. Obviously, the more you pledge the more, and typically better, the rewards are.
3. A backer, that’s you or I, can choose a reward tier and pledge their money. Your credit card isn’t charged until the end of the 30-day project timeline and only if the entire requested amount is meant. Meaning if the artist is asking for $3,000 and by the end of 30 days they only have $2,000 you’re card isn’t charged and the artist doesn’t get a dime.
4. Once successfully funded, if the project still has time left on their 30-day timeline, some artists choose to include Stretch Goals, which is additional content or an improved product if they hit a certain monetary goal above their initial requested amount. It’s a way to further the backer’s bang for their buck.
5. At the end of the 30 days, if successfully funded, the artist will send out a survey to each backer asking for shipping information in order to send along any rewards – including, hopefully, the finished project.
Kickstarter has a host of different categories to choose from and explore, with artists ranging from amateur to professionals, each looking for a better way to get their idea into your hands. Categories include: Art, Comics, Dance, Design, Fashion, Film & Video, Food, Games, Music, Photography, Publishing, Technology, and Theater.
There are some risks to pledging your money to a Kickstarter. First and foremost are those unsavory types that merely use Kickstarter as the latest platform to scam. These are the people that simply take your money and run, with no intentions of providing any kind of finished product. The Kickstarter team does their best to manage these types of accounts but every so often horror stories trickle through the grapevine.
Another possibility is any kind of unforeseen complications ruining a project. We are all human after all and any number of tragedies can befall any one of us, and our dreams, especially those of an artistic nature. Whether it’s natural disasters that ruin international shipping of goods or supplies, human error in delivery, or production costing quite a bit more than anticipated. Each of these scenarios, and many more, have occurred and left backers with nothing to show for their pledge other than an apology, and rarely yet possibly reimbursement, from the artist.
None of this should deter any one of us from looking at Kickstarter and pledging to the projects that sound appealing to us. I would just advise caution and do your research beforehand to ensure your money is going to a credible place. I’ve donated to nine projects to date and I haven’t regretted a single one and I’ve received some amazing things as compensation, including a deck of officially licensed The Name of the Wind playing cards done by Albino Dragon in cooperation with Patrick Rothfuss.
(I’d keep an eye out on this space here when they announce their Wise Man’s Fear card deck on Kickstarter.)
I wanted to take the time now to go through a few fantasy-themed Kickstarters that I thought the Factioners might be interested in taking a look at.
Wrath of Kings by CoolMiniOrNot – A miniatures war game set that is focused on epic fantasy. The plus to this being that the project has already reached its funding goal, meaning there is no worry about if they’ll be able to produce or not. The artwork and detail in these miniatures is really quite impressive and if the war game is your type of scene you might want to take a look at this and consider reserving your set.
Planeswalkers – A Documentary on “Magic: The Gathering” by Broken Science Productions – This is exactly what it sounds like, a video that is meant to focus on the players and subculture of the fantasy card game, Magic: The Gathering.
Explore Strange New Words! By Ari Marmell – A novel featuring a series of short stories with a wide range of themes. Fantasy is the majority but there is also cuberpunk, horror, and many others. It’s an interesting project that might be worth checking out if you’re in the market to try out something new.
Kickstarter is attracting more and more attention each day, both from newcomers and professional authors. Looking to use the platform to create a better, more personal product for their fans. I encourage everyone to check in with Kickstarter every now and again and find a project that’s both unique and interesting to you.
Happy Backing!
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Have you found an interesting fantasy Kickstarter that you think everyone should take a look at? Tell us in the comments!
