5 ms·

A self-published riff on Hamlet broke every Kickstarter record.

63 points by curtis 13y ago

losethos 13y ago
This makes me happy. I don't know what God thinks. God says... thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever? 20:8 And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying, 20:9 If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help. 20:10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not; 20:11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit. 20:12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee. 20:13 And all Judah stood before the LORD, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
kn0thing 13y ago
Technically, that book was not "self-published," rather it was published by my company, breadpig (which also publishes xkcd, SMBC, and some other fun things like Story War!). If you're inspired, you can buy the book here: http://breadpig.com/products/to-be-or-not-to-be http://breadpig.com/products/to-be-or-not-to-be It'll be available in bookstores nationwide soon enough!
- MaxGabriel 13y ago
  Did you work with Ryan North at all? If so, what was that like? He seems pretty zany
  - kn0thing 13y ago
    Employees did, but having spent time with Ryan, I can assure you he's as zany as you'd imagine. But even taller. And a wonderful person.
- justcuri0us 13y ago
  How do you define "published by"? I define it as paying for production, and distributing the product..
  - mehwoot 13y ago
    I always thought the publisher was the person who organised actually making and distributing the media (book in this case). I don't think they have to pay for it to be made.
  - kn0thing 13y ago
    Responsible for: paying* + coordinating the people who get produce the product (this includes the author herself, the designers providing art, the person doing the layout, the editor, and the printer - down to helping the authors choose paper stock); distributing the product - we do direct sales, as well as have the contract with PGW, a distributor, that lets us get into bookstores (sad but true, we had to get one before Barnes and Noble would stock xkcd: volume 0); we have a warehouse in Austin (Hi Amplifier!) that handles all the fulfillment for kickstarter rewards, we manage that relationship to make sure every address-change is accounted for and everyone gets their perks; in the case of this kickstarter, we're also the ones coordinating with manufacturers to make everything from bookmarks to plushie-skulls; we do a wee bit of promotion, but that's how we can afford to give authors (75%+) of the profits -- they already bring their fans with them. This is a bit old, but still pretty accurate -- I published a step-by-step guide to do what breadpig does, so anyone can replicate it, because that's how we roll. http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863073-reasons-to-self-publish-or-start-your-own-niche-publishing-company-or-not http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863073-reasons-to-self-publi... http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863065-step-by-step-guide-on-how-to-publish-a-book http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863065-step-by-step-guide-on... Sorry for the mega post but I know how much work Christina (runs breadpig ops) put into pulling this off and I feel like an article that doesn't even mention that isn't doing it justice. Obviously the story here is Ryan, which made this amazing thing possible, and he deserves 99.9% of the credit for the product and campaign, but it's not quite as simple as "self-published." *We paid for printing up-front with xkcd's book and a couple of SMBC's, but thankfully kickstarter came along and we've since adapted the business because we now have the pre-order dollars from backers.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
jmduke 13y ago
Something I didn't realize until now: "Choose Your Own Adventure" is an actual series/brand, not just a genre: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choose_Your_Own_Adventure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choose_Your_Own_Adventure
- mh- 13y ago
  Indeed, there are over 200 of them - I read most of them as a kid, at least all of the ones available in our local library.
  - kn0thing 13y ago
    And it's under copyright, so we have to call them Adventures-of-your-own-choosing ;) http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clone-a-choosable-path-gamebook-by-za http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clon... http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clone-2-wrath-of-the-pacifist http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clon...
    - AndresNavarro 13y ago
      The problem here is actually trademark law not copyright. The idea behind trademarks is that customers know the source of the product, so names, logos, brands, etc. are protected by it. Copyright only protects the actual content/expression of the work of the Choose Your Own Adventure, not the name of the series. Stallman has a nice article about the conflation of the "intellectual property" laws here: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/not-ipr.html https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/not-ipr.html
aeontech 13y ago
I just received the book, and it is impressive! Good paper, beautifully printed, great illustrations, not to mention absolutely hilarious. Definitely exceeded my expectations.
- kn0thing 13y ago
  That's exactly how Ryan North rolls, that magical Canadian....
barry-cotter 13y ago
Good, thoughtful article but I fail to see how Shakespeare's legacy is "perverted" by Ryan North's project. The original is stilo there, pristine as ever.
lessnonymous 13y ago
The article asks > Is it a good book? Is it $580,905 good? The point it misses, I think, is that it doesn't have to be "$580,905 good". It just has to be $15 or $20 good to each independent backer. If I put up $20 to get a physical copy, then the worth of my copy has absolutely nothing to do with everyone else's copy. This is, of course, the "work smarter, not harder" concept proven. Contracting, consulting, and anything else where our time is the product on sale is a low return product. We can't create more time to increase our returns. Instead we need to find our own "Hamlet" that for some finite effort on our part we can be rewarded by tens, hundreds or even thousands of customers. All of whom receive the value they pay for and all of whom have no interest in every other customer and whether our effort (time) is worth the total we've been paid by all customers.
- aeontech 13y ago
  Yeah, I thought that was an odd way to phrase it as well. Undertones of "well, it's not _real_ literature" levied against science fiction, fantasy, pulp, and most anything not written by people long dead somewhere in there as well.

63 points by curtis 13y ago

This makes me happy. I don't know what God thinks. God says... thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever? 20:8 And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying, 20:9 If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help. 20:10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not; 20:11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit. 20:12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee. 20:13 And all Judah stood before the LORD, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.

kn0thing 13y ago

Technically, that book was not "self-published," rather it was published by my company, breadpig (which also publishes xkcd, SMBC, and some other fun things like Story War!). If you're inspired, you can buy the book here: http://breadpig.com/products/to-be-or-not-to-be http://breadpig.com/products/to-be-or-not-to-be It'll be available in bookstores nationwide soon enough!

MaxGabriel 13y ago
Did you work with Ryan North at all? If so, what was that like? He seems pretty zany
- kn0thing 13y ago
  Employees did, but having spent time with Ryan, I can assure you he's as zany as you'd imagine. But even taller. And a wonderful person.
justcuri0us 13y ago
How do you define "published by"? I define it as paying for production, and distributing the product..
- mehwoot 13y ago
  I always thought the publisher was the person who organised actually making and distributing the media (book in this case). I don't think they have to pay for it to be made.
- kn0thing 13y ago
  Responsible for: paying* + coordinating the people who get produce the product (this includes the author herself, the designers providing art, the person doing the layout, the editor, and the printer - down to helping the authors choose paper stock); distributing the product - we do direct sales, as well as have the contract with PGW, a distributor, that lets us get into bookstores (sad but true, we had to get one before Barnes and Noble would stock xkcd: volume 0); we have a warehouse in Austin (Hi Amplifier!) that handles all the fulfillment for kickstarter rewards, we manage that relationship to make sure every address-change is accounted for and everyone gets their perks; in the case of this kickstarter, we're also the ones coordinating with manufacturers to make everything from bookmarks to plushie-skulls; we do a wee bit of promotion, but that's how we can afford to give authors (75%+) of the profits -- they already bring their fans with them. This is a bit old, but still pretty accurate -- I published a step-by-step guide to do what breadpig does, so anyone can replicate it, because that's how we roll. http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863073-reasons-to-self-publish-or-start-your-own-niche-publishing-company-or-not http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863073-reasons-to-self-publi... http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863065-step-by-step-guide-on-how-to-publish-a-book http://breadpig.com/blogs/news/5863065-step-by-step-guide-on... Sorry for the mega post but I know how much work Christina (runs breadpig ops) put into pulling this off and I feel like an article that doesn't even mention that isn't doing it justice. Obviously the story here is Ryan, which made this amazing thing possible, and he deserves 99.9% of the credit for the product and campaign, but it's not quite as simple as "self-published." *We paid for printing up-front with xkcd's book and a couple of SMBC's, but thankfully kickstarter came along and we've since adapted the business because we now have the pre-order dollars from backers.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]

jmduke 13y ago

Something I didn't realize until now: "Choose Your Own Adventure" is an actual series/brand, not just a genre: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choose_Your_Own_Adventure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choose_Your_Own_Adventure

mh- 13y ago
Indeed, there are over 200 of them - I read most of them as a kid, at least all of the ones available in our local library.
- kn0thing 13y ago
  And it's under copyright, so we have to call them Adventures-of-your-own-choosing ;) http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clone-a-choosable-path-gamebook-by-za http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clon... http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clone-2-wrath-of-the-pacifist http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/weiner/trial-of-the-clon...
  - AndresNavarro 13y ago
    The problem here is actually trademark law not copyright. The idea behind trademarks is that customers know the source of the product, so names, logos, brands, etc. are protected by it. Copyright only protects the actual content/expression of the work of the Choose Your Own Adventure, not the name of the series. Stallman has a nice article about the conflation of the "intellectual property" laws here: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/not-ipr.html https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/not-ipr.html

aeontech 13y ago

I just received the book, and it is impressive! Good paper, beautifully printed, great illustrations, not to mention absolutely hilarious. Definitely exceeded my expectations.

kn0thing 13y ago
That's exactly how Ryan North rolls, that magical Canadian....

barry-cotter 13y ago

Good, thoughtful article but I fail to see how Shakespeare's legacy is "perverted" by Ryan North's project. The original is stilo there, pristine as ever.

lessnonymous 13y ago

The article asks > Is it a good book? Is it $580,905 good? The point it misses, I think, is that it doesn't have to be "$580,905 good". It just has to be $15 or $20 good to each independent backer. If I put up $20 to get a physical copy, then the worth of my copy has absolutely nothing to do with everyone else's copy. This is, of course, the "work smarter, not harder" concept proven. Contracting, consulting, and anything else where our time is the product on sale is a low return product. We can't create more time to increase our returns. Instead we need to find our own "Hamlet" that for some finite effort on our part we can be rewarded by tens, hundreds or even thousands of customers. All of whom receive the value they pay for and all of whom have no interest in every other customer and whether our effort (time) is worth the total we've been paid by all customers.

aeontech 13y ago
Yeah, I thought that was an odd way to phrase it as well. Undertones of "well, it's not _real_ literature" levied against science fiction, fantasy, pulp, and most anything not written by people long dead somewhere in there as well.