Crowdfunding Glossary D-G

[ysabetwordsmith]

Here is another installment of the crowdfunding glossary.


donation button -- a small graphic on the screen which may be clicked to take the shopper to a money handling site where they may send funds to the creator.  Most often, this is the PayPal "Donate" button, because that's the version which allows the shopper to designate the amount (useful if the project has many items of different prices).  The usual locations for a donation button include the project's landing page, the creator's profile or bio page, a session post for an ongoing project, and the page or post where an individual item within a project is available.

fan -- someone who is devoted to a crowdfunded project, but isn't necessarily contributing money to it.  Fans keep the project alive by paying attention to it, most often through comments and/or inspiration.  Some creators and projects are fueled mainly by fan enthusiasm.  A fan may or may not also be a barker, aiding the project through promotion in other venues. 

feedback -- anything from the audience that gives the creator useful targeting information about a crowdfunded project.  This may include comments, votes in a poll, prompts, linkbacks, using a "favorite" or "like" function, reviews, ratings, etc.

fishbowl -- a traditional exercise in which someone does an activity in front of an audience, while the audience makes suggestions or analytical comments.  In a writing or art class, this is typically done by seating one or a few people at the front of the room to work while the rest of the class observes; ideas or observations may be recorded on the blackboard.  In cyberfunded creativity, this has been adapted to a live writing or art activity online, usually hosted on a blog, where audience members post ideas and the creator makes something using those ideas.  The fishbowl technique can also be used for brainstorming business projects or other ideas.

ficlet -- a short piece of fiction, usually under 1000 words.  Some crowdfunded fiction is written in brief segments, which may be extended by donations or other audience actions.  Also known as microfic.

first-reader -- a volunteer editor.  This is a friend, family member, or fan who looks over a rough draft and suggests improvements so that you can make revisions before the final version gets published.  Some crowdfunding projects provide perks for supporters who do this.

flash fiction -- a short piece of fiction, usually intended to stand alone, although it may belong to a series.  There is no concensus as to what the length of flash fiction "should" be, but ranges average 300-1000 words.  Some people use the term to mean any short-short story.

general fund -- a pool of donations not earmarked for sponsoring a specific item, but paid toward supporting the project as a whole.  Some projects simply put this toward covering overhead costs.  Others use it to fund items not sponsored by individual patrons; the audience may get to vote in a poll to select what gets released based on the amount in the general fund and what items are available.