Kickstarter Tips: The Purple Door District

Character art designed by Gabriella Bujdoso

On March 1st, 2022, I launched my very first Kickstarter for The Purple Door District: Urban Fantasy Series. In 4 days, I was 50% funded and received the “Project We Love” badge from Kickstarter. By day 11, I was fully funded. The project is still going, and I’ve had people ask me for advice starting their own Kickstarter. I thought I’d share a few of my tips below.

Background: The Purple Door District: Urban Fantasy project is a 3-book series of parahumans (werebirds, werewolves, vampires), magic, diversity, LGBTQIA+ representation, and adventure in Chicago. It was created to help me publish the 3rd book, A Game of Fae, in my urban fantasy series. However, I set it up in a way that both new and old readers could benefit from the reward tiers. More about this below.

• Pre-launch page: A pre-launch page is super helpful. After you’ve set up your project and had it approved by Kickstarter, you can create a pre-launch page. Send people there and they can click to be notified when your project goes live. I had around 25 people following me and many of them backed me when I went live. I promoted about 1 1/2 months before I launched. Another creator promoted for about 3 months and she got 150 followers and was fully-funded in literally 15 minutes (I watched it happen live).
• Video: Your video and project image are important. They’re the first things people see. Your video should be clear and well edited. It’s best if your image doesn’t have a bunch of text on it (according to Kickstarter, wordy images can get suppressed by the algorithm). Instead of my book covers, I used character art I bought for the series.

Character art designed by Gabriella Bujdoso

• Push for Early Backing: Once you launch, encourage people to back you early. The more funding you get early on, the more likely you’ll hit your goal, if not early. Also, if you get a lot of funding right away, you may receive a “Project We Love” badge through Kickstarter, which gives you more exposure. By day 4 I had 50% of my project funded and I received the badge.

• Tiers: Have a variety of tiers you know you can fulfill. I heard a sweet spot is about 10 different tiers with several low tiers and a couple super high tiers. I never expected anyone to back my $500 tier, but it happened. Offer both Digital and printed so you can hit both audiences. I have tiers that are digital based, some that are printed based, and some that are both.
• Trilogy: If you’re launching a Kickstarter for a book in your series (book 3 in my case), set up your Kickstarter so it’s accessible for both new and old readers. I have “catch up” tiers that let people order the books individually, or as packages. I also have full-trilogy tiers. That way if someone already has the first book, they can get the second and third. Or if they’ve never heard of my series, they can order one book, or get all three. The more accessible, the better.
• Updates: Provide frequent updates so people know what’s happening with your Kickstarter. I find that creating images with percentages listed encourages people to back you, especially if they think they can get you that much closer to 100%.
• Advertise: Advertise, advertise, advertise. Post in newsletters, on social media, in crowdfunding groups. Ask others to share your campaign around. The more exposure you get, the better your chances!
• Stretch Goals and Additional Perks: It’s always good to have Stretch Goals in case you meet your goal early. It encourages people to keep backing you. If you’re close to being funded, and you want to give people an incentive to offer more, offer another small perk. For example, my co-creator and I offered to do a zoom session with all backers to talk about the book series if we hit 50% by the 4th of March, and we got it. Add-ons are valuable too because people may back a tier AND buy a few add-ons as well, which gets you closer to your goal.
• Shipping Costs: Make sure you calculate shipping costs into your goal. They’re more expensive now, and if you don’t add that into the campaign, you may end up using more money for shipping than to actually create your product.
• Story Set Up: When you create your story, pictures seem to be a must. People don’t want to just read a wall of text. They want to see what they’re getting and what you’re creating. Some of the best Kickstarters I’ve seen use graphic headers to separate out the different sections of their story (check mine for example). It’s eye catching and keeps people engaged.

• Be Honest and Transparent: Be honest about what the funds are going to, how they will help you, and what will happen if you’re not funded. People want to help genuine creators who are grateful for the help they receive. And they want to know if they can expect any risks or set backs. If you get delayed in creating/shipping things, be honest. Sure, some people might be frustrated, but they’ll feel better knowing what’s going on with their tier than if they’re left in the dark.
• Be Kind: Thank your backers. Show gratitude to those who share your post around. Thank any team members who help with the project. As I always say, endeavor to be kind.
• Teamwork: Find other creators like you who have launched their Kickstarter. See if you can swap newsletter information or share each other’s projects to social media. By supporting each other, you might find additional backers for your project. Other creators aren’t your competition. I’ve backed other authors and supported them through their campaigns, and they’ve done the same for me in return. It’s just being part of the literary community! Speaking of, shout out to Brenna Deutchman, Brian K. Morris, Jennifer Rose, Cindy Koepp, and Daphne Lage.

I hope some of these tips and tools help you. Feel free to ask questions or offer tidbits that worked or didn’t work for you in the comments! I’ve left my Kickstarter link as an example of what I did since some people were wondering where to start.  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/purpledoordistrict/the-purple-door-district-urban-fantasy-series

My Kickstarter goes until March 31st, and all tiers are still open. We’re currently working toward our first Stretch goal, a digital/printed image of Vesp the Fae. To learn even more about me and my series, visit erincasey.org. A Game of Fae comes out in June 2022.

Vesp created by Brooke Lydick.

PS: Here’s another awesome Kickstarter by the creator Daphne Lage who had her project funded in 15 minutes. Check her out!

Let’s Go, Indiegogo!

Last year I set up an Indiegogo campaign to help launch The Purple Door District. Thanks to all of the amazing donations, I was able to print 100 books for publication and use the rest of the money to take care of some marketing elements. This year, I’m back at it again with my second campaign, set to last 60 days (instead of 30) with a goal of reaching $2,500 to print Wolf Pit.

I’ve had several people ask me what Indiegogo is. Well, Indiegogo is a website that allows creators to set up campaigns to help raise money towards a particular goal, usually for a product. People who back the campaign receive rewards/perks depending on the tier they pick. For example, $1 in my campaign will get you a shout out on social media, whereas $25 will get you the e-book versions of both The Purple Door District and Wolf Pit once the second book is released. The higher the tier, the more perks you receive!

Indiegogo is very much like Kickstarter except Indiegogo seems to be more author-friendly. Also, while Kickstarter is an “all or nothing” campaign, meaning you either hit your goal and get everything, or you don’t and get nothing, Indiegogo also provides a flexible campaign in which the creator receives whatever donations are made, even if the goal isn’t met. I personally prefer the flexible goal, just in case I can’t meet the deadline. Some say it’s better to do all or nothing because it pushes people to donate, but I don’t want to risk it. I know how hard it is to have money problems, and I’d rather people feel more comfortable donating a smaller amount, if anything at all. As I always say, every dollar helps!

With that being said, here’s information regarding my campaign. At the very least, hopefully it will help other writers get ideas for setting up their own campaigns! I actually used the template that Indiegogo suggested. Don’t forget to check out the actual campaign and see the book trailer/welcome video.

Overview

“Wolf Pit” is the sequel to the urban fantasy book, “The Purple Door District.” Werewolves are going missing, and the District must come together to solve the mystery of their disappearance. In the same vein, I’ve relied on the community to help me build this book. Editors, artists, marketing specialists, and other authors have been vital to its production. I want to raise the money both to print this book, and to also support other creators. Will you help the District?

Who Am I and Who’s the Community?

My name is Erin Casey, and I’m an urban fantasy and YA fantasy writer, as well as the Director of a writing organization called The Writers’ Rooms. TWR is a non-profit corporation focused on providing a free and safe environment to all writers no matter their gender, skill set, background, income, etc. I focus on bringing communities of writers together to help them learn from one another. This is what drove me to want to write about the diverse community in The Purple Door District series.

The Purple Door District and Wolf Pit started out as part of a canon that AE Kellar and I are writing together and hoping to publish in the future. PDD was a smaller component of it, but I fell in love with the concept and asked if I could write a series based on it to help support our main canon. She has been vital in helping me make sure I keep my facts straight! We jokingly say that she’s the brain and I’m the heart of our series. I couldn’t have done this without her.

So what is Wolf Pit about? Here’s the blurb:

My dream is to become an author and help inspire other people. Community plays a big part in my life now, because it was something I grew up without as a child. Last year I ran a campaign and it enabled me to print The Purple Door District. Now I’m looking for help to print Wolf Pit and also support the creative minds who are helping me.

Your generous contributions will allow me to publish the books and support additional creators:

• Author and Editor Leona Bushman who edited the book and is an author herself.
• Author and Proofreader, Shakyra Dunn who proofread and sensitivity read my book. See her book down below.
• Author, Leslie Kung, who has agreed to sensitivity read my book. Check out her work on Patreon!
• Jewelry maker Amanda Bouma who will help create jewelry for the book.
• Artist Oni Algarra who is creating character portraits. (Tess from PDD and Wolf Pit is featured below)

Not only would this ensure the production of this book, it would open up the possibility to a series that would continue to bring more work to you and invest in these members of the literary community.

What I Need

My goal is to be open and honest with everyone, so here are what the funds will go towards:

• Editing through Leona Bushman $500+
• Business Cards $40
• Book printing through Ingramspark ($6.74 per book) x 100   $850 (shipping included)
• Ingramspark Print and Ebook Set up  $50
• Art Marketing  $150 (for Oni)
• Promotional Publishing/swag  $300
• Cover $50 (for artist on Fiverr)
• Copyright $25
• Additional Costs (additional marketing/publicity, donation books, office supplies, ec). 

What You Get

• Character art! Just look at that awesome picture by Oni!
• Book swag!
• First look at items to be sold alongside Wolf Pit and the first chance to receive them!
• Jewelry and items that I and Amanda Bouma create for The Purple Door District and Wolf Pit. 
• E-books
• Printed copies
• A one-on-one writing talk with me
• and much more!

The Impact

I can’t even express how important your support is. Self-publishing is becoming a more respected form of publishing, and I can’t do it without your help. In a time when our country feels so divided, I think it’s valuable to bring a book with a diverse cast to the community. You get to read through the eyes of characters who are Latino/a, Native American, black, Caucasian, Indian, Chinese, LGBT, etc, and with those who have different beliefs to survive. Even if the different parahumans have prejudices against one another, they’re able to put it aside to make their community safer for themselves and for their children. I hope that people who read this will see themselves in these characters. As I get deeper in to the series, I want to bring in more people of different nationalities, beliefs, and abilities so they can feel represented as well.

Here are just a few of the reviews from The Purple Door District about the world:

• This book has a great group of characters that are diverse in many ways, and the author will have you falling in love with each one of them. The PDD is a safe haven for all parahumans and it is interesting how all of the different species co-exist together. –Amazon Review
• THE PURPLE DOOR DISTRICT has everything I want from an urban fantasy series–a big, diverse community of characters who have the same general goals but are at odds with each other as far as how to achieve them, a great blend of high stakes action scenes and poignant emotional moments, and the looming threat of a group of Hunters determined to track down and eliminate magical beings. –Amazon Review
• It has been a very long time since a book has made me cry, in sadness and joy. The emotion in these characters is so moving, you can’t help but feel you are there with every character through a ride of a story. The people of the Purple Door District are multi-dimensional and it was so great to see such diversity among the characters in a modern fantasy book.  —Amazon Review

You have the opportunity to see a group of creative minds come together to create this book and its future series. We can do this together, and in December, I hope you’ll feel proud holding this book in your hands.

Other Ways You Can Help

I completely understand that you may not be able to donate, and that’s okay! There are other ways you can help!

• Share this campaign on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, etc.
• Share this campaign word-of-mouth! Get your friends involved. Show them how they can help a creative community.
• Let me know what you would like to see promoted. More jewelry? More art? What representation do you want to see in future books?
• Want to make a smaller but still powerful contribution? Consider becoming a patron on Patreon and receive chapters of the book before everyone else!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart! I can’t do this without you!

Cheers!

Erin Casey

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/wolf-pit-urban-fantasy-novel

www.erincasey.org

Fantasy and Society (OWS CyCon)

Introduction 

I’d like to offer you a warm welcome to my blog. I write what you want to read, so feel free to drop a topic below! I hope you enjoyed visiting Timothy Bateson’s blog. If you haven’t stopped by, make sure to check him out!

My name is Erin Casey, and I’m an urban fantasy/YA fantasy/medieval fantasy writer. My first book The Purple Door District came out December 2018, and the next book in the series, Wolf Pit, will be released in December 2019. To learn more about my series, and all the other projects I’m doing, find me on my website, twitter, instagram, and facebook.

If you’ve come here from OWS CyCon, you can find my booth here. If you’re new to OWS CyCon, CyCon is a weekend-long book online convention where you can meet authors, vote on book covers, check out interviews and readings… all without putting on pants! I’m also involved in cover wars, character wars, and several panels. Be sure to visit the CyCon website and Facebook events acting as the hub for all of our events. Sign up for our newsletter or RSVP to the event to make sure you don’t miss out on any of the bookish goodness we have to offer. Be sure to visit the Fantasy Sci-Fi Reader’s Lounge, especially on Sunday, May 19th from 11am-12pm when I’ll host an author takeover event. 

Now, with all the logistics out of the way, let’s get into the heart of the blog post!

Fantasy and Society 

Whether you write epic fantasy or urban fantasy, you have to find a way to integrate the fantastical world into “normal” society. How you do that depends on several factors of world building. We’re going to talk about a few of these in hopes that they’ll get you started in developing your fantasy world.

Who Knows? The first question to ask yourself is who knows about magic and your “not human” characters (we’ll call them parahuman in this case)? Are your parahumans just starting to come out in society or are they a secret hidden away from the government?

For example, in The Purple Door District, society is starting to learn about parahumans. There’s a government section that is specifically devoted to the parahumans, though they generally keep to themselves unless otherwise needed. The way parahumans can find each other is by going to Purple Door Districts, safe havens that are marked by purple-colored doors, or purple-colored items at the front of the building. In this case, some people know about the parahumans, and others don’t. They try not to announce themselves because Hunters lurk in the shadows, people who think parahumans are an abomination and want to kill them.

What about your world? Whether society knows about your parahumans or not can play a major factor in the danger your characters may endure.

Jobs/Economy: What kind of jobs do your parahumans have (whether they’re “out” or not in society)? Are werewolves more likely to take on heavy-lifting jobs like construction or maintenance work while suave vampires are more adapt to being lawyers? Do you have places that are run by magic (think of a coffee shop that’s powered by magic and produces drinks with potions that help with stress, anxiety, weight loss, etc.)? Or do their abilities not influence where they work or what they do? Note: If you find the idea of a fae-run coffee shop interesting, check out my story Coffee Chaos on wattpad.

Introducing Your Readers to Your World: Once you have your world established, how do you want to introduce the magic and society to your readers? Some writers will introduce a character who is human or not very aware of the parahuman world and slowly integrate them, and the readers, into the world. In other cases, you can use someone who knows about the world but has a very different view of it to help your readers adjust. Stick with some familiarity so that the readers don’t feel completely overwhelmed.

Government: As mentioned, The Purple Door District has a government faction that knows about the parahumans and keeps them in check. What about your world? How is the government involved? Do the parahumans have to watch their backs? Are they free to roam in society as they are? Does your world resemble X-Men where some government officials call for sanctions against them while others want to protect their rights? It’s good to figure this out ahead of time because it can help you know just how much trouble you can get your characters in with or without government involvement.

How Powerful Are Your Parahumans? Do they have abilities that could threaten all of humanity? Think of Professor Xavier and Cerebro and how his ability almost took out all humans/mutants in the 2nd X-men film. Are there fae who have their own world and government and could easily take over humankind? Or are your parahumans more like groups of vampires and werewolves who can be considered a threat but can’t take over the entire world? Knowing this allows you to figure out how society might either accept or fear the parahumans. You can also play around with the characters who have different power levels. How would an overpowered character react to a situation vs someone who is weaker? Figuring out how you can integrate the fantasy element into society will help you further develop your characters.

These are just a few elements to think about when you’re integrating fantasy into society. One thing to keep in mind is that you want it to be believable. Know why parahumans act the way they do, or why society treats parahumans a certain way. Be creative, and most importantly, have fun!

I hope that you found these tips helpful. If you want to learn more about integrating fantasy into society, take a look at Kayla Matt’s blog.

Happy writing!

 

Wolf Pit Draft Complete!

I did it.

After 6 grueling months, several weeks of depression, and enough overtime at work to last me a lifetime, I finally finished the first draft of The Purple Door District: Wolf Pit. Book 1 clocked in at about 76,000 words. Wolf Pit? As of now, she’s a whopping 99,000 words. Granted, she still has to go through editing, but I’m headed in the right direction.

So what does this mean for the final piece?

Ideally, I would like to publish Wolf Pit by December 2019. I’m not officially making this the date, as it’s going to depend on a couple of things.

1. I’m attempting to get accepted to #writementor with my YA fantasy book Dragon Steal. If I’m selected, I’m going to spend the summer working with a published mentor to get my book in shape for an agent showcase. That means PDD might have to get pushed back a bit.

2. Editing. Editing takes a lot of time and the book is longer than the first one. I need to do my revisions, I have to send it to my co-world-creator, AE Kellar, to pass her inspection, I need a few sensitivity readers to look it over, not to mention my main editor Leona Bushman will have to rip it apart so I can rebuild it. And after that, I have proofreaders who need to review it. That all takes time, and I don’t want to rush it. So, if I don’t make the December deadline, I imagine it’ll be ready by early 2020.

I’m sure I’m going to get the stink eye from some of my readers and a scolding from fellow authors. Why is it taking me so long to put out a book? Well, there are a few factors. I work a 40+-hour job each week, volunteer for The Iowa Writers’ House, and I’m a Director of The Writers’ Rooms. On top of that, I spend time marketing my main book, querying Dragon Steal, blogging, interviewing authors, etc. It all takes time, and when writer’s block or depression hits, that means it’s going to take even longer. I honestly don’t take many breaks from the computer. I’m usually always doing something when it comes to writing, even if it’s not for PDD specifically.

Believe me, it’s not that I don’t consider PDD a priority, I just have to make sure I pay the bills and put food on the table. And at the same time, I have to take care of my mental and physical health, which have both been up in the air over the past year. I wish I could write as a full-time author and produce more, but at this point in my life, that’s not a possibility. So while I hate to delay the books, it’s something I just have to do. That’s why I try to keep my patreon updated so that people have short stories about the characters they can read while the book is in production.

Now, that all being said, what’s Wolf Pit about? (Spoilers: If you haven’t read PDD 1, I suggest you not read the book promo).

Tess Montgomery isn’t your typical member of the Chicago wolf pack. In fact, she’s not a wolf at all. She’s an adopted fire magus of the pack and thus doesn’t always “play by the rules.” When her father and her best friend Nick are kidnapped in what the parahumans assume is a Hunter operation, Tess’s pack is thrown into turmoil. With Alpha Paytah unable to step outside the bounds of his new position as Violet Marshall of Chicago’s Purple Door District, Tess takes the reins to plan a rescue attempt.

Meanwhile, Nick and his fellow wolves find themselves in a world of battle and bloodshed. The Hunters have set up an illegal fighting pit where the strongest survive and the weakest are traded or killed. It’s all Nick can do to keep up the spirits of his packmates and help them escape. Or survive long enough until they’re rescued.

Unfortunately, Tess’ rescue mission fails spectacularly, leading to her capture. She finds herself the unwilling guest of a local Hunter named Arjun. Handsome, charming, and deadly, Arjun tries to convince Tess that not all Hunters are the enemy.  He even offers to help her find her packmates. But is he true to his word, or does he have his own wicked plans in mind?

As you can see, there’s a lot going on in this book and many POV switches so you can experience what’s happening both in Tess’s world and Nick’s. It was a challenge to provide equal time to both, but I’m hoping it works out.

I’m really excited to share the cover and the story with all of you. The cover I’m planning to release on May 1st, 2019 in its full glory. Those of you who are patrons, however, get to see it early 😉 That’s my gift to you since my story this month is going to be a bit late due to finishing up PDD.

I want to thank you for following me on this crazy journey/adventure, and I hope you’re excited for Wolf Pit.

2018 Wrap Up and 2019 Goals

I can’t believe that 2018 is finally over. It felt like the year that just would not die! I made resolutions last year, but most of them I don’t even  remember, except for wanting to start querying Dragon Steal, which I did manage to accomplish. For this post, I’d like to go over some of the awesome (and not-so-awesome) things that happened this year and cover my goals for 2019.

2018 in Review

• Finished editing Dragon Steal and submitted it for publication.
  • I’ve received several rejection letters but recently got a full manuscript request. While the rejections have hurt, at least the book is out there!
• I created my own website and started developing a branded persona on twitter, facebook, instagram, etc. I have over 1,000 followers both on twitter and on instagram.
  • Even better, I’ve met a ton of amazing authors and creators through these sites who I can’t wait to work with next year!
• Wrote, edited, and published The Purple Door District.  I can’t believe I developed my own marketing and indiegogo campaigns, formatted the book, published it, and held a launch party all in the space of six months. The question is, can I do it for PDD2?
• Had “Latte with a Shot of Poltergeist” and “Frozen Heart” published in anthologies.
• Submitted more short stories and poetry than I ever have before. While I received a lot of rejections, I at least received a few publications.
• Officially launched The Writers’ Rooms with my co-Director, Alexandra Penn. We also finished our Articles of Incorporation and got certified as a non-profit corporation.
• Helped develop the concierge anthology through The Writers’ Rooms.
• Returned to my college and taught a few classes about publishing and NaNoWriMo.
• Wrote 50k words for The Purple Door District: Wolf Pit.
• Lost about 45 lbs through exercise and healthy eating.
• Attended my first book signing event with other authors and signed up for even more in 2019.
• Hosted giveaways for my book and swag that was developed by local creators.
• Started my patreon account to help raise money for my writing career.
• Received honorable mention in Writers of the Future.
• Truly started my profession as an author.

It’s been a really big year for me writing wise. I still can’t believe that six months ago I decided to publish The Purple Door District. It seems like ages since I made that decision. I’ve managed to publish a few pieces of work this year, including on wattpad and patreon.

Next year, I hope to do even more, but also find a way to take care of myself at the same time.

2019 Goals

• Focus on my mental health and take better care of myself mentally and physically.
• Find an agent and publisher for Dragon Steal.
• Finish writing and publish The Purple Door District: Wolf Pit.
• Work on Fates and Furies with my co-author, AE Kellar, and hopefully publish the first book, if not in 2019, then in early 2020.
• Submit more short stories and poetry for publication.
• Start working on The Purple Door District #3 and Dragon Steal #2
• Return to working on Traitors of the Crown.
• Lose more weight for health reasons and get healthier.
• Attend multiple writing conventions to both sell my books and to meet other authors.
• Start my path to becoming a full-time author.

These are pretty ambitious goals, but I think most of them are possible. I really do need to focus on my mental and physical health, though, because I managed to break myself a few times while working on PDD. If I can’t hold myself together, I won’t be able to accomplish any/all of this.

I’m really proud of what I did this year. It’s my biggest year as an author, and I can’t wait to see what 2019 holds. I’m also a little scared. What if next year doesn’t unfold as well? I guess that’s all part of growing up and making plans as a writer, though. Some years you’re going to make it big, and some years are going to be a lot slower. I hope 2019 is still a fantastic one.

What are your goals for 2019? Feel free to share them below! Also, let me know what topics you’d like me to cover this year!

Happy Writing!

Erin

Book Launch Day

It finally happened.

The Purple Door District officially launched on Saturday, December 15th, 2018, and it was spectacular.

If you had told me at the beginning of 2018 that I would decide to publish one of my books, I probably would have laughed. Over the course of six months, I started my own marketing campaign (with the help of other brilliant writers like Alexandra Penn and Brian K Morris), and began furiously editing my book. My social media realm exploded, and I delved into the world of being an indie author. There was joy, and there were tears, but it all came together on Saturday in a way I never could have imagined.

I started my day out at the North Liberty Community Library where I sat with five other lovely authors: Jolene Buchheit, Mary Chalupsky, Alexandra Penn, M.L. Williams, and Jo Salemink. The whole event was set up by Jenn Thompson and IABE. It was my very first time officially setting up my table, and it came out beautifully.

I was delighted by a visit from my college professor, Glenn Freeman who has published a few poetry books of his own! All of the authors were incredibly supportive, and it gave me the courage to put on the event that night.

At the same time, my co-creator, AE Kellar, received a gift package in the mail full of swag and the book. And I got to see her joy and excitement as she tore into it and realized that the world we’d created over the course of 6 years had finally come to life for everyone to see.

I hosted the official book launch at The Makers’ Loft in downtown Iowa City. It seemed like the perfect location for selling, reading, eating, and meeting other incredible people. And the table just dazzled, especially surrounded by my friends.

Throughout the night, people joined us for the celebration. I met new fans and welcomed fellow Writers’ Rooms writers and former professors with open arms. We even got to celebrate with a delicious cake that welcomed everyone to the District.

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After a great evening of selling books and talking to people, I actually held a reading. This was the first time I read my book in public, and I was so nervous. But everyone was supportive and receptive. I couldn’t have asked for a better audience.

Most of all, I can’t thank my friend Desiree enough for being with me to set things up, take them down, and just help me through the nerves. She even dressed to match my table! It made me realize just how lucky I am to have this community in my life. With you all, I’m never really alone.

I had hoped at least a handful of people would come to help me celebrate, but you all more than came through for me. Thank you for making this a night and experience to remember.

When I first started writing, I ached with loneliness. I didn’t know any other writers and I didn’t really have many people to share my craft with who understood what I was trying to do. I was the oddball, and all I wanted was someone who got me and shared my passion.

I’ve found that literary family in Iowa City. The passion and excitement for writing is intoxicating and infectious. I felt it first through Cornell’s English Department, and then the Iowa Writers’ House, and now through The Writers’ Rooms. We all come from varied backgrounds and have different stories to tell, but in the end, we’re all writers. We all need companionship and people who understand where we’re coming from.

That’s why The Purple Door District is so special to me. It’s all about community coming together, and that’s what my friends and fellow writers did for me. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for making me feel like I have a place to call home. Thank you for welcoming a scared kid hoping to be a writer into the world of being an adult author. I hope that I’ve been able to give as much support and love back to you as I received last night.

And it’s not over. The Purple Door District is the first of many books to come, and I can’t wait to see what happens next on this journey.

Happy writing to you all!

Erin

You can purchase The Purple Door District at:

Amazon in kindle and paper!

My website for a signed copy.

Prairie Lights in Iowa City

M and M Bookstore in Cedar Rapids

The Maker’s Loft in Iowa City

 

Launch Week and What Comes Next

I can’t believe it’s finally here. After six months of planning, plotting, and procrastinating (we all do it), The Purple Door District is finally going to see the light of day. I’ve already sent a few copies out to ARC readers and to my indiegogo supporters, and the reviews thus far have been great. My favorite has to be:

“Casey caught me hook, line, and sinker and I’m already impatient for the sequel!” -Rebecca Daniels.

At this moment I’m putting the final pieces of the launch together. I dropped books off at Prairie Lights and M and M Bookstore. It’s surreal to be handing them a paper copy of my book. My bookmarks at Haunted Bookshop are gone already, and a couple press releases should be appearing in the paper any day now. Everything is headed in the right direction.

On Saturday, December 15th, the book will launch both on amazon and in stores. My first signing is at the North Liberty Community Library where there will be free cookies and pictures with Santa for the kids while parents do last-minute shopping. It’s my first chance to sell my books beside other authors, and I can’t wait. I’ve met so many incredible people over this past year, and it’ll be such an honor to actually sell my book beside them. If you’re in the North Liberty area, stop on by from 10am-1pm. You can find more information here.

Saturday night will be the big event. From 6:30-8:30 pm, I’m holding a signing and reading event at The Makers’ Loft in Iowa City. This is a fantastic new business that helps support local indie creators. They’ve agreed to sell my books there as well because they want to start a book section. People can come get their books, celebrate with dessert, and then listen to a reading at 8 pm. I’m also holding a raffle. Authors Shakyra Dunn, R.C. Davis, Alexandra Penn, Eliza David, and more, will donate their books to the prize pool. You might walk away with more than a couple of gifts!

And speaking of gifts, Marion Mavis, author of The Supremacy Witch, and I are doing a giveaway on Instagram! Go check out our guidelines on how to win signed copies of both of our books!

I really hope to have a great turn out to blog about. You can be sure I’ll take pictures, and I’m planning to do a brief live recording as well.

Then, on Sunday, I’ll finally face plant my bed and get some rest.

This whole experience has been incredible, but it’s also been draining. There have been more than a few times that I’ve wanted to throw up my hands and toss in the towel. Publishing a book is practically a second job. When I’m not doing my daily work and volunteer positions, I’m usually busy with writing, editing, or marketing. I’ll admit I haven’t taken quite enough time for myself since the whole process started, but I’m hoping to get some breathing room now that the book is going to be published.

What then, do you ask? What’s the future of The Purple Door District?

The answer is twofold. This will not be the only book. I started working on book 2, tentatively named Wolf Pit, and I’m already 50,000 words into it. My hope is that I can publish it in 2019. At the same time, my co-creator and I, AE Kellar, plan to work on our main series to get that ready for publication. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but with The Purple Door District finally taking flight, we think we’re ready to crank the work out.

The story doesn’t end here, my friends.

The journey is just beginning.

The Purple Door District: Behind the Scenes

The world of The Purple Door District started out as the stubborn brainchild of AE Kellar and myself. We have spent years writing together, researching, brainstorming, and developing characters and rules governing our parahumans and worlds. Our main series, Fates and Furies, is still in production but occurs in the same urban fantasy setting.

But let me backtrack a little.

AE Kellar and I met each other on a Redwall roleplaying site when I was still in high school. We had a mutual interest in the book series by Brian Jacques, obviously, and the forums gave us the opportunity to create our own characters, be they cat in AE’s case, or a silver-striped red squirrel named SilverRose Brighteye. Some of you may recognize my NaNo name.

For those unfamiliar with roleplaying on forums, basically one person writes out a few paragraphs of a scene with their character, someone responds, and the two people (or more) write back and forth to create an adventure. Redwall provided the world for us; we just had to worry about the characters and plot.

We wrote together for years, developing characters and immersing ourselves in the world. Eventually, we sought after a change and started roleplaying on an urban fantasy website that has long since closed. That’s when we realized that we might have found our niche. We took our characters, built a world, and ran with it, rping back and forth most nights. We’d alternate taking point on a plotline and naturally switch to the next person.

Unless we both brainfarted, in which case we just started up a new plotline.

Years of writing produced thousands of pages of writing (I’m not joking, AE took a picture of the pile of paper). Eventually, we realized we wanted to do something with it, and thus Fates and Furies was born. But in order to fully create the series, we had to know more about our world.

When we started to design the District, I latched onto it and suddenly had ideas blossoming in my head about creating one in Chicago (I grew up around the area). Plus, as a birdmom of seven feathered kids, it gave me the chance to professionally write about a werebird, even if I still get the side eye. With AE’s blessing, I wrote The Purple Door District to introduce you to our insanity.

But what about the PDD struck a chord in me? It was the community. I loved this idea that people of different talents, appearances, and strengths could come together to protect one another. A lot of urban/paranormal fantasies focus on the battle between werewolves and vampires or different magical groups. It was nice to think that there was a neutral ground where everyone could get along under the direction of The Violet Marshall. With the way the country is going today, I felt it was important to show that it’s possible for a mixing pot of people to actually come together peacefully. I chose Chicago specifically because I knew I could create a diverse cast. Even more characters will appear in The Purple Door District Book 2.

Community plays a huge role in my life. I help bring writers together through The Writers’ Rooms, a non-profit corporation that focuses on providing a free, safe environment for writers no matter their background, income, experience, gender, etc. And I work with The Iowa Writers’ House which also supports writers through workshops, lectures, and bicultural fellowship. In the writing world, I firmly believe that the only way we can succeed is if we support one another. Rising Tide, as Brian K Morris calls it.

Even through the book production, I reached out to the community for help. I asked Oni Algarra and Gabriella Bujdoso to create art for the book, indie artists who post on deviantart and instagram respectively. My cover artist is a Fiverr creator named Les. Sara Cunningham used her marketing magic to create sand jars and postcards for my book. Amanda Bouma taught me how to make jewelry so I could develop Bianca’s necklace. Leona Bushman, a fellow urban fantasy writer, guided me through editing my book and polishing it for publication. Alexandra Penn helped me format the book and was one of my main supporters who gave me the courage to publish the book. And my wonderful proofreaders, Shakyra Dunn and AE made sure the book was ready to go. I couldn’t have done this without my community, and I’m excited to support them just as they supported me. That’s partially why I created the Indiegogo campaign. I wanted to help give back to them.

As of November 5th, The Purple Door District is available for pre-order on amazon. There are no words I can use to convey my pride, joy, and hint of terror at having my book out there (I think I used up all my words in the manuscript haha). I do know that, had it not been for AE, I never would have been able to create such an immersive world.

We jokingly say that AE is the brain and I’m the heart, but I think it’s very true. While AE fills our books with well-researched facts and logic, I add feeling, creativity, and literary flare. I couldn’t have done it without my walking encyclopedia. All you see in The Purple Door District exists because of our love for storytelling and our incessant need to get fewer than 8 hours of sleep a night.

Keep an eye out. Fates and Furies is on the horizon.

And thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all of your support during this crazy and amazing journey.

Welcome to the District.

 

Purple Door District Cover Reveal!

I have some exciting news to share! I’ve been posting The Purple Door District on patreon for the past 6 months. After receiving positive feedback, I’ve decided to publish the book on December 15th, 2018, exactly 1 year since my first patreon post.

But first, The Purple Door District needed a bit of an upgrade. So I enlisted the help of an artist to create a brand new cover for the book. On Monday, July 9th, I’ll release the book cover on the front of my website. I can’t wait to share it with you! Once it’s released, I plan to also make bookmarks and other merchandise to promote to help promote the series.

I couldn’t do this without you. I’ve received so much help from the writing community, and I can’t thank you enough. I hope that I’m able to give back.

If anyone is interested in becoming an ARC reader to leave a review when the book comes out, let me know!

Let the countdown begin!

Wattpad: New Journey

I’ve been struggling to gain traction on my patreon account. So, I reached out to one of the many facebook writing groups I joined and asked what I can do to improve my process.

Her suggestion? Wattpad.

For those of you who don’t know, Wattpad is basically a free writing site. Authors create stories that people can read, comment on, and vote for. Think of it like a fan fiction site, only a lot of the material on there is original.

That’s not to say you can’t write fan fiction though.

Authors can build an audience there by providing free writing. It’s an opportunity for you to meet other writers, modify and improve your writing, find beta readers, enter contests, etc.

Some people do have qualms about writing for “free,” and I completely respect that. You work really hard on your book. Why should you just give it away?

The thing is, if you’re interested in Indie publishing, Wattpad seems like a great way to get people interested in what you do. You can post things on the site, and if you decide you want to publish it, you can always leave a teaser chapter up for people and take the rest off. Just make sure you warn your readers, otherwise they may feel a little misguided.

Also, Wattpad has plans to introduce Wattpad Future where authors can insert ads between their chapters, and that will provide them revenue. It’s still in the beta testing period right now, but I hope it gets opened up to everyone soon. What a great way to support a writer without having to drop a dime!

I’ve only been on the site for about a week, but I have about 33 followers, and I’ve posted two stories. It gives me the opportunity to write little tales running around in my head and get feedback. I also get to play around with covers (like the Gossamer one above).

Keep in mind, though, that you have to work towards getting a following. You not only have to post material, you have to interact with the readers and other writers as well. As I get more used to Wattpad, I’ll write informational blog posts about it for anyone who is interested. You can seriously find just about anything on the website, so if you’re looking for good stories to read, take a look!

And feel free to follow me here: https://www.wattpad.com/user/erincasey09

Happy reading!