Sharing a World For Fun... and Profit
Jul. 18th, 2011 08:00 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
ellenmillion.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
crowdfundingShared worlds can be tremendous fun, as anyone who has dabbled in fanfiction can tell you. In some ways it is easier than working from scratch, because you begin your writing or artistic work in an established framework, and in some ways, it is more challenging, because you are constrained by that world, to respect its rules, history and established characters. It can be wildly inspirational, and gives a great deal of license to explore the 'what if?s' and 'what thens?' that can be left at the 'end' of stories.
Torn World was opened just 18 months ago, inviting new authors and artists to come play in a richly detailed science fantasy world. We have since published 158 stories, 50 poems, 116 pieces of artwork, and 116 meta-fiction articles. I could write volumes on some of the sticky issues we've faced presenting this volume of material in an accessible way, managing submissions and maintaining a continuous canon timeline, defining character ownership and control, and figuring how to run a diverse group of distinct, creative people.
But today, I want to focus on a topic near and dear to all of us: money.
How do you make money with a shared world? Torn World has been busy exploring several different methods!
Subscriptions
Borrowing an idea from traditional magazine publishing, Torn World made subscriptions available... and changed up the model pretty extensively from that start.
Subscribers get access to a special extra selection of stories, poetry and artwork. When creative contributors submit their work to the site, they can choose whether it will be public or available for paying subscribers only. Usually about 15-25% of the material at the site is for subscribers only - we currently have 49 short stories and poems reserved for those members.
Subscribers also get special character ownership privileges, and a 10% discount on all Torn World publications and merchandise. Some of the artwork also has special extras included for subscribers, such as higher resolution copies of the artwork, or copies of linework to print and color.
Subscriptions are available in chunks of 12 months, 6 months or 3 months, or as a monthly subscription via Paypal. (This latter has been far more popular than I anticipated!)
Credits
So, where does the money from subscriptions go? A small portion of it goes to cover payment transfer fees and administration, but most of it gets distributed back to the creative talent making the shared world possible.
Subscribers get most of their subscription costs back as 'credits,' which they can spend at the site, giving these credits to artists and authors who are producing the work that they enjoy the most. They can tip at specific stories, articles, or pieces of artwork to show their appreciation of them, or send a general tip through the creative contributor's member page.
Contributors can cash out the credits they've earned whenever they reach $10. It comes to them at a 1-to-1 rate: one credit is $1.00. Patrons can purchase spending credits without subscriptions; there is a minimal fee taken out of these to cover the expense of processing payments.
Sponsorships
Every month, Torn World hosts a "Muse Fusion." Our readers bring prompts, questions and ideas and our contributors participate in a creative jam, writing short fiction and poetry and sketching to these prompts. Sometimes meta-fiction articles are written, and sometimes answers to questions are straightforward, with links to existing work. Sometimes, answers to prompts act as new prompts, and the inspiration continues to loop forward. The Muse Fusions have spawned nearly half of the written material at the site, providing an interactive community experience and even monetary incentive!
Authors and artists are invited to pursue whatever crowdfunding methods they choose for their participation in Muse Fusion. Most participants share one of their creations for free, posting it in their livejournal and making it public at the site once it has been approved by the canon board. The remainder of their work is usually available for sponsorship. Sponsorship makes the story or artwork public at the website, and lists the sponsor as the 'patron' for that piece!
This can be done in a variety of ways. A finished story with a known wordcount can be made available for sponsorship as it is ($1 per 100 words makes the math easy, but is not at all required). A story beginning may be sponsored-to-finish: the author predicts how long it will take to write, and sets a price to complete it. This can be done with artwork, too: either prices set for specific time spent on a piece ($25 for another hour spent working on it), or milestones ($10 to ink this, or $50 to paint it, etc.). Authors and artists can also offer to work a patron's character into it. Prompters nearly always get a sneak preview of the work created to their prompt, even if it doesn't get sponsored and made public.
Many contributors post a paypal donation button for 'general sponsorships' also. These don't get tagged to specific stories or poems right off, but tip the author or artist and keep them creating. At the end of the Muse Fusion, they may choose an extra piece of work to make public, or they may post a poll to let readers choose which piece the accumulated general sponsorship goes to.
July's Muse Fusion is running this weekend - you are invited to jump in for our extended last day of accepting prompts, over here: http://torn-world.livejournal.com/83662.html You don't need to be a current Torn World member to leave prompts and ask questions! (And this month, you might win something!)
Sponsorships aren't only done at Muse Fusions, and patrons can also commission specific stories and artwork from many of the creative contributors at any time.
Sales to Outside Markets
Most commercial shared world models involve licensing; authors who want to use the shared setting and sell their work are required to pay a licensing fee for the use of the world. Sometimes this is a percentage, sometimes a flat fee.
Torn World defies this model, and allows its contributors to sell and license their original work without taking a cut. However, we do require non-exclusive publication rights - all work created based on Torn World will eventually be available in the archives at the site, regardless of where else it has appeared. We are, however, flexible about when that work is published. First publication rights for a Torn World story may be sold, and Torn World will put a hold on releasing the work at the site until those rights have been used according to their contract.
Authors are welcome to sell their work through Smashwords or other ebook distributors, and artwork is also available for licensing on merchandise. Artists may maintain Zazzle or Cafepress stores, and may offer their originals for sale. One story that has been approved at the site has not been published yet because the author is planning to release it as a webserial on their own livejournal first.
Publications
But we're not just waiting around for someone else to publish Torn World work: the parent company of Torn World, Ellen Million Graphics, is also a registered publisher. In June, we released our first print (and ebook) anthology of short stories, Family Ties and Torn Skies. This anthology looks at some of the unique family structures of the world, both by blood and by choice, and includes a rich collection of artwork, as well as several poems.
Two future anthologies are under discussion now, one highlighting the unique temporal features of Torn World, and another telling stories about the sea monsters of Torn World. A coloring book is being compiled for a holiday release this year.
Contributors to these publications (both ebook and print) receive royalties at industry standard rates.
Forthcoming...
These aren't the only ways to monetize a shared world! We've discussed several other options, and some of them may be implemented in the future:
Advertising: Many creative sites utilize advertising to cover their expenses. If Torn World ever chooses to show advertising, it will be removed from the view of logged-in subscribers.
Merchandise: Torn World merchandise will be available for fans and participants, including clothing and stationery items. Subscribers will receive a discount on these products!
On-site sales: Tools for artists to sell their originals or prints, or for authors to sell print versions of their work or papercraft poems are under development. Subscribers may be able to spend their credits on these items!
But how well is it working?
Ideas are all very well and good, but are credits actually being spent? Are stories actually being sponsored? The short answer is: yes.
Several hundred credits have already been purchased and spent over the last 18 months, and several hundred more are floating around at the site as spend-only credits, waiting for an artist or author to catch the attention of that subscriber. This doesn't count the many sponsorships that occur off-site, or the sales of prints or originals, or the commission of originals. Several stories are out for submission at traditional story markets.
A few hundred dollars spread out over a handful of active contributors is not a living wage, but for a site that has only been attracting readers for 18 months, in the middle of a depressed economy, trying a totally new and different funding model... it's not too shabby a showing, and it's been rather steadily increasing. It beats the returns on fanfiction, and still offers all the fun and inspiration of a shared world and creative community!
If this sounds like something you'd be interested in joining, we're still accepting new contributors. Have a look at the Contributors Starting Page and the Terms of Agreement. If you've got questions about memberships, please feel free to ask!
Want to know more about Torn World? The best place to start is the Torn World site itself. I've also written more about how Torn World came to be, and some of our progress to date; you can find more details on those topics at these links:
Sharing a world, after one month: http://ellenmillion.livejournal.com/1020511.html
Torn World on the chopping block, a look at (almost) one year: http://ellenmillion.livejournal.com/1141613.html
An interview on creating Torn World at Shared Story Worlds: http://sharedstoryworlds.com/2011/04/interview-with-ellen-million-creator-of-torn-world/
Torn World was opened just 18 months ago, inviting new authors and artists to come play in a richly detailed science fantasy world. We have since published 158 stories, 50 poems, 116 pieces of artwork, and 116 meta-fiction articles. I could write volumes on some of the sticky issues we've faced presenting this volume of material in an accessible way, managing submissions and maintaining a continuous canon timeline, defining character ownership and control, and figuring how to run a diverse group of distinct, creative people.
But today, I want to focus on a topic near and dear to all of us: money.
How do you make money with a shared world? Torn World has been busy exploring several different methods!
Subscriptions
Borrowing an idea from traditional magazine publishing, Torn World made subscriptions available... and changed up the model pretty extensively from that start.
Subscribers get access to a special extra selection of stories, poetry and artwork. When creative contributors submit their work to the site, they can choose whether it will be public or available for paying subscribers only. Usually about 15-25% of the material at the site is for subscribers only - we currently have 49 short stories and poems reserved for those members.
Subscribers also get special character ownership privileges, and a 10% discount on all Torn World publications and merchandise. Some of the artwork also has special extras included for subscribers, such as higher resolution copies of the artwork, or copies of linework to print and color.
Subscriptions are available in chunks of 12 months, 6 months or 3 months, or as a monthly subscription via Paypal. (This latter has been far more popular than I anticipated!)
Credits
So, where does the money from subscriptions go? A small portion of it goes to cover payment transfer fees and administration, but most of it gets distributed back to the creative talent making the shared world possible.
Subscribers get most of their subscription costs back as 'credits,' which they can spend at the site, giving these credits to artists and authors who are producing the work that they enjoy the most. They can tip at specific stories, articles, or pieces of artwork to show their appreciation of them, or send a general tip through the creative contributor's member page.
Contributors can cash out the credits they've earned whenever they reach $10. It comes to them at a 1-to-1 rate: one credit is $1.00. Patrons can purchase spending credits without subscriptions; there is a minimal fee taken out of these to cover the expense of processing payments.
Sponsorships
Every month, Torn World hosts a "Muse Fusion." Our readers bring prompts, questions and ideas and our contributors participate in a creative jam, writing short fiction and poetry and sketching to these prompts. Sometimes meta-fiction articles are written, and sometimes answers to questions are straightforward, with links to existing work. Sometimes, answers to prompts act as new prompts, and the inspiration continues to loop forward. The Muse Fusions have spawned nearly half of the written material at the site, providing an interactive community experience and even monetary incentive!
Authors and artists are invited to pursue whatever crowdfunding methods they choose for their participation in Muse Fusion. Most participants share one of their creations for free, posting it in their livejournal and making it public at the site once it has been approved by the canon board. The remainder of their work is usually available for sponsorship. Sponsorship makes the story or artwork public at the website, and lists the sponsor as the 'patron' for that piece!
This can be done in a variety of ways. A finished story with a known wordcount can be made available for sponsorship as it is ($1 per 100 words makes the math easy, but is not at all required). A story beginning may be sponsored-to-finish: the author predicts how long it will take to write, and sets a price to complete it. This can be done with artwork, too: either prices set for specific time spent on a piece ($25 for another hour spent working on it), or milestones ($10 to ink this, or $50 to paint it, etc.). Authors and artists can also offer to work a patron's character into it. Prompters nearly always get a sneak preview of the work created to their prompt, even if it doesn't get sponsored and made public.
Many contributors post a paypal donation button for 'general sponsorships' also. These don't get tagged to specific stories or poems right off, but tip the author or artist and keep them creating. At the end of the Muse Fusion, they may choose an extra piece of work to make public, or they may post a poll to let readers choose which piece the accumulated general sponsorship goes to.
July's Muse Fusion is running this weekend - you are invited to jump in for our extended last day of accepting prompts, over here: http://torn-world.livejournal.com/83662.html You don't need to be a current Torn World member to leave prompts and ask questions! (And this month, you might win something!)
Sponsorships aren't only done at Muse Fusions, and patrons can also commission specific stories and artwork from many of the creative contributors at any time.
Sales to Outside Markets
Most commercial shared world models involve licensing; authors who want to use the shared setting and sell their work are required to pay a licensing fee for the use of the world. Sometimes this is a percentage, sometimes a flat fee.
Torn World defies this model, and allows its contributors to sell and license their original work without taking a cut. However, we do require non-exclusive publication rights - all work created based on Torn World will eventually be available in the archives at the site, regardless of where else it has appeared. We are, however, flexible about when that work is published. First publication rights for a Torn World story may be sold, and Torn World will put a hold on releasing the work at the site until those rights have been used according to their contract.
Authors are welcome to sell their work through Smashwords or other ebook distributors, and artwork is also available for licensing on merchandise. Artists may maintain Zazzle or Cafepress stores, and may offer their originals for sale. One story that has been approved at the site has not been published yet because the author is planning to release it as a webserial on their own livejournal first.
Publications
But we're not just waiting around for someone else to publish Torn World work: the parent company of Torn World, Ellen Million Graphics, is also a registered publisher. In June, we released our first print (and ebook) anthology of short stories, Family Ties and Torn Skies. This anthology looks at some of the unique family structures of the world, both by blood and by choice, and includes a rich collection of artwork, as well as several poems.
Two future anthologies are under discussion now, one highlighting the unique temporal features of Torn World, and another telling stories about the sea monsters of Torn World. A coloring book is being compiled for a holiday release this year.
Contributors to these publications (both ebook and print) receive royalties at industry standard rates.
Forthcoming...
These aren't the only ways to monetize a shared world! We've discussed several other options, and some of them may be implemented in the future:
Advertising: Many creative sites utilize advertising to cover their expenses. If Torn World ever chooses to show advertising, it will be removed from the view of logged-in subscribers.
Merchandise: Torn World merchandise will be available for fans and participants, including clothing and stationery items. Subscribers will receive a discount on these products!
On-site sales: Tools for artists to sell their originals or prints, or for authors to sell print versions of their work or papercraft poems are under development. Subscribers may be able to spend their credits on these items!
But how well is it working?
Ideas are all very well and good, but are credits actually being spent? Are stories actually being sponsored? The short answer is: yes.
Several hundred credits have already been purchased and spent over the last 18 months, and several hundred more are floating around at the site as spend-only credits, waiting for an artist or author to catch the attention of that subscriber. This doesn't count the many sponsorships that occur off-site, or the sales of prints or originals, or the commission of originals. Several stories are out for submission at traditional story markets.
A few hundred dollars spread out over a handful of active contributors is not a living wage, but for a site that has only been attracting readers for 18 months, in the middle of a depressed economy, trying a totally new and different funding model... it's not too shabby a showing, and it's been rather steadily increasing. It beats the returns on fanfiction, and still offers all the fun and inspiration of a shared world and creative community!
If this sounds like something you'd be interested in joining, we're still accepting new contributors. Have a look at the Contributors Starting Page and the Terms of Agreement. If you've got questions about memberships, please feel free to ask!
Want to know more about Torn World? The best place to start is the Torn World site itself. I've also written more about how Torn World came to be, and some of our progress to date; you can find more details on those topics at these links:
Sharing a world, after one month: http://ellenmillion.livejournal.com/1020511.html
Torn World on the chopping block, a look at (almost) one year: http://ellenmillion.livejournal.com/1141613.html
An interview on creating Torn World at Shared Story Worlds: http://sharedstoryworlds.com/2011/04/interview-with-ellen-million-creator-of-torn-world/
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
You're welcome to join in the Muse Fusion fun
Date: 2011-07-18 06:19 pm (UTC)Even better, our readers prompts inspire new fiction, poetry, art, and metafiction. Prompters also get a sneak-peek at the new work as a thank you.
I hope to see some new faces (well, icons, anyway) there.
Re: You're welcome to join in the Muse Fusion fun
Date: 2011-07-19 03:36 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-18 06:43 pm (UTC)I think it's important to note that a lot of these ideas can work for a lot of different crowdfunding situations.
Yes...
Date: 2011-07-18 06:52 pm (UTC)I'm hoping to get back to the Muse Fusion today and do some more poems. I've got a couple pieces in progress currently -- a short story and the Tarot-inspired divination deck.
Re: Yes...
Date: 2011-07-19 03:35 am (UTC)Re: Yes...
Date: 2011-07-19 03:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-19 03:35 am (UTC)Oh, that's very true! Many of them have been tweaked to fit the multi-creator platform, but most of them could be applied directly by an individual.
The paypal subscriptions surprised me - I always tend to buy the 'best deal,' even when I end up with seven extra bags of flour at the end. :P
Hmm...
Date: 2011-07-19 04:55 am (UTC)