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I realize I just announced the Kickstarter project for The Guild Leader’s Companion 2e but I already feel like I have to do an update! A lot happened in an extremely short period of time and I can’t even begin to say how stoked and grateful I am to the MMORPG community. The project was fully funded in less than 20 hours. That was amazing! So that means we’re done and everyone can go home, right? I certainly hope not! Please don’t assume that just because we’re funded that we’re done! I can still use your support and if you give it we’ve got some very special rewards and stretch rewards for you!
You already have what you needed, right?
Yes, we received the minimal amount of funding necessary to do what I had in mind. There is still a lot more I can do to improve the book and bring it to an entirely new level of polish. The additional funds that we raise on Kickstarter will go directly back into the book itself. That is where stretch goals come in. A stretch goal is basically a point we’re trying to reach to be able to add something extra into the GLC2e. It also comes with a stretch reward! As we over-fund I want to reward anyone and everyone that helps push the project to new levels of success (more on this at the bottom).
I don’t want to lead a guild!
I understand that and you’re the hardest person to convince but I have to try! I realize the book is called The Guild Leader’s Companion but I can promise you it is a lot more than that. The second edition strips out the focus on the terms guild, raids, and loot. I also tried to steer clear of just looking at the organization leader. The GLC2e is a book that is for anyone that will take any kind of leadership role in an online game. It is also for the people that are curious as to what all goes into running one of these organizations. If you’re a leader, an officer, or a curious party, you’ll find the insights in the book useful. To be quite honest, I learned these skills playing MMORPGs but I’ve applied them to my real life with great success! You might find something cool inside the GLC2e that you didn’t expect!
I don’t have any money
Supporting a Kickstarter isn’t just about money (although money truly helps). If you get the word out I will be eternally grateful. A blog post, tweet, Facebook update, or Google+ note really goes further than you could ever imagine. The more eyes that see this the better chance I’ll have of reaching my target audience! I would also say, if you can, try to jump in on the smallest reward. The higher we get on the stretch goals the more that “global” rewards open up. You really can get a huge bang for your buck at $5 if we reach the top!
So what are your stretch goals
The general idea behind these stretch goals is to raise money to add more value to the book and treat Amanda and Ellie a little better. Our ultimate goal is $7000. If we reach it we’ll be able to create a brand new cover to match what is basically a brand new book. We’ll also be able to use a far more professional printer for the Kickstarter rewards and convention books (the Amazon ones will still be there as stock). Additional funds also add artwork and more editing time. Amanda and Ellie work on the cheap for me. We all have a great association and I want them to see a bigger bang for their buck. As we go up on stretch goals they receive more money. The one thing I want to make clear is that I never receive a pay check. I only get paid on the back end when we sell books.
Our stretch goals are pretty cool this time around. I’ll go over them a little bit so you know what you’re getting since we’re past our goal!
$1,000 – When we hit the $1000 mark on May 11th (our first stretch goal) I added a personal shout out on my new podcast, MMO Radio, to every supporter! No matter how much or how little you donate, your name and the name of your blog, website, guild, or project will be on our show! That is some pretty good exposure and the chance to hear me personally express my gratitude. The extra $200 from this goal will help us pay off some of the extra publishing costs that normally come out of my pocket. I also solemnly swear not to mess up on the shout outs this time!
$1,500 – We have these cute little white and blue six-sided dice for tabletop gaming with the cool ESP heraldry on them. I’ll put a pair in your rewards package!
$2,000 is cool too. Originally it was a sneak peak at book three. I’m about 25% done with it and it is turning out to be pretty good. Stephen from Guild Launch wanted to sweeten the pot a bit and is going to let us randomly select one lucky supporter (regardless of what amount you pledge) and do an interview with them. It will be the winner, Stephen and (probably) Mike from GL, and me all together having a good time. That interview will go up on the Guild Launch blog. A huge thank you to Guild Launch for this one!
$3,000 is awesome! Amanda will do two additional sketches outside of the ones on the reward side. One I’ve got planned but the other will be randomly awarded to a supporter (again, doesn’t matter how much you pledged). It is basically like one person getting the art part of the $275 reward for free!
$4,500 is subtle but real. Amazon printing is okay. The Raider’s Companion came out pretty well and it is nice. If you happen to have a hardcover, however, it is night and day. The binding, cover, and paper quality that come from the professional printer is massively different. They’re also significantly more expensive, harder to work with, and totally frustrating. With that said, I’d prefer to do that! Everyone that donates at a level to get a book will benefit from this!
$7,000 – The stretchiest of the stretch goals. I recognize that this is a ton of money past our target goal. I believe in having one “go big or go home” stretch goal because you never know, it might happen! If we hit this the book will receive a brand new cover by Amanda. I’m thrilled with the original cover and the revised one Amanda is doing for the 2E but wouldn’t it be cool to get one to match the new book? The second edition is a lot more than a minor update. We’re talking 30% more content. Of the original content I probably rewrote 65% of it with a different tone and with new experiences I’ve earned. The message is similar but this truly is a new book. Why not a totally new cover?
We need you!
So that is my update/pitch! I realize that was more pitch than update but it is what it is! Any help that you can give will be truly appreciated! Make a post, slander me online, tweet to your mother! Epic Slant Press only succeeds through the kindness of the community. If you have the time, please consider dropping by both the campaign and product pages to “like” and “+1” them!