I’d given serious thought to creating a Kickstarter program to raise money for A Distant Soil‘s restoration, and have supported several Kickstarter projects in the past. People often ask me to endorse their projects.
Alas, I am on a satellite internet system, and I have the same IP as many other people using the satellite. Some of those people are not very nice. I am often banned from websites I’ve never been to before, and this past week, I found I was banned from Kickstarter.
Here’s what I see.
I can sometimes access these sites using other proxy IP’s, but I can’t sign in to my account.
It’s a pain to run around getting other IP’s to see the site, and I am often asked to endorse other people’s fundraising efforts. But since I can’t see your project now, I can’t endorse it.
Sorry, but until this matter is resolved, I won’t be using Kickstarter or endorsing anyone who does. It’s nothing personal. As I wrote, I have this problem on a number of other websites, and if nothing else, it cuts down on my websurfing, which is not all bad.
Now a bunch of people will tell me to write and complain and get a new IP and blah blah blah, all that means is I will get a new IP which will be banned in a few months anyway. This has happened repeatedly. Until we get alternative access to the internet out here, this is what I have to deal with.
This will also launch emails from well-meaning people who will try to find out where I live to tell me what other services I can use. Please don’t. It’s not very nice to use the internet to find out where people live. I know you don’t mean any harm, but that’s kind of icky.
I assure you, there is no other satellite alternative where I live, no really, and that other Colleen Doran some of you people keep bugging would really appreciate it if people would stop bothering her. I think she hates me a lot by now.
I am honestly more worried about the type of neighbors you have that manage to get you banned from all these websites. o.O;
Even if you could get a satellite alternative, I wouldn’t. There’s only one company I know of that does it, and because they have a monopoly, well, not only is there tons of horror stories online, but my friend who had to deal with them saw the nightmare first hand.
The good news is, any basic web usage, including facebook and, god forbid, trying to update your webcomic, would help you cut down on internet use! The bad news is, any basic web usage, including facebook and, god forbid, trying to update your webcomic, would help you cut down on internet use.
That said, there are other kickstarter-like-websites, right? Like Rockethub? (I’ve funded a webcomic print run through rockethub before…)
Anyway, good luck, I hope you eventually resolve such issues.
The tech issues are the tip of the iceberg.
Kickstarter’s overall success rate for projects is around 40%. Large projects take longer to launch if successful, due to added workload. Larger projects are less likely to be funded than smaller projects, though name recognition can help with a larger project.
Most importantly, Kickstarter revenues are taxable income.
You’re a savvy businesswoman and I’m sure you’ve done your homework on this. I’m not trying to discourage you or anyone else from working with Kickstarter- I’ve had one in mind myself for a couple years now- but I do think that, bottom line, it’s a business venture, easily romanticized by the allure of the elusive million dollar project.
I’m just suggesting a level head when embarking on any such venture.
All great points, and I’m agreement, and I am not losing any sleep over this. I think I will be able to raise funds without them, and did very well last year on this website. For me, it’s just another way to pre-sell your books, and, perhaps, reach a new audience. I’m not in the position that my work would not come out at all if I didn’t raise fast cash.
Aurora, I know you’re trying to be funny, but because lots of people don’t understand how satellites work, it is highly unlikely any of my neighbors did anything to get me banned. The satellite covers many hundreds of thousands of people from various states, and my IP is actually located 1500 miles from where I live.
Learn something new every day. (And I misread, thought you specifically didn’t have satellite. My bad.)
Either way, I’m looking forward to buying these.
Any chance you’ll be offering signed or sketched copies? 
(Er, I’d like to add that I know it’ll be a while yet before you’re at that stage, just curious. ^^;; )