Ex-Axis Adschool creative director David Bell raising money via Kickstarter to fund illustrated version of his first book ‘The Dog Hunters’
David Bell, former CD of the NZ’s AXIS Adschool has been busy. His first book, ‘The Dog Hunters’ was published as an eBook in July, and due to demand, came out in paperback shortly afterwards.
Says Bell: “I was surprised to see the pricier ‘real’ book outsell the digital version by five to one, but that just made me work harder to get it out on the local market.”
An outing at Armageddon, NZ’s pulp culture expo, saw a burst in sales (seen by 60,000 attendees), and when Bell started doing ‘live drawings’, the inevitable question was ‘Will there be an illustrated version?’ This evidence of potential demand coincided with the NZ launch of Kickstarter, the crowd-funding phenomenon that helps creative types get their projects up and running. Bell was quick to seize the opportunity.
Says Bell: “A score or more people have already jumped in, with over $1,000 of pledges in four days. From in-your-face sales experience at Armageddon to amorphous blur of social media, it’s been a fascinating insight into the marketing process on a near zero budget. It’s hard work, and an incredibly steep learning curve, and I’m hoping it all will push the ‘Dog Hunters’ to the next level. But even if it doesn’t, I’ve made friends with thousands of people round the planet, and maybe I’ll be able to write a new book on self publishing in the digital age. But first things first- I need to get on with finishing a hundred plus new drawings.”