Dear All Six of You,
After mulling the idea for this post for a very long time, here it is. Today I'm asking if you'll help sponsor my blog. As I pass the virtual tip jar up and down the aisles here, let me tell you why I'm asking. I've been a journalist for going on thirty years (I know, I know, I look damn good for my age). This Internet thing has been a major game changer and with papers and magazines folding all over the place paying gigs have been harder to come by. Those that do surface usually involve me reading ten other existing blog posts and coming up with something that's similar but different enough to not count as plagiarism. The idea behind the majority of this content is to help big websites sell ads. I admit I've grown weary of this not just because I'm hustling and writing crap to fill someone else's bank account, but also because it means less time to write about the stuff that matters to me.
For awhile, I had a gig with JetBlue that was really super awesome-- every month I wrote 50+ posts about how much I love Austin. I wrote restaurant reviews, theater reviews, listed upcoming shows, profiled cool people, and revealed secret treasures all around the city. Of all the writing I've been asked to do commercially, this has been the most fun. (I mean, okay, there were those years and years when I plumbed the depths-- and I do mean depths-- of my personal life, but these days everyone and their mother is doing that and I find I'd rather focus on all the cool things around me, rather than do daily updates about my bowel movements, stray nipple hairs, and thoughts about my ex-husbands.) I was bummed when it ended but have continued to write about our fine city here.
Of course, whether I get sponsorships or not, I won't stop writing. But in the interest of seeking out less crap work and focusing more on what I love-- namely covering All Things Austin-- I thought I'd throw it out there: anybody want to kick in so I can live this dream? I like what Amanda Palmer has to say about asking readers for contributions -- maybe that will inspire you.
Here's what I was thinking-- maybe individual sponsors could kick in $12 per year (a buck a month). If there are any business folks out there who want to contribute more, I'd be glad to highlight your business in a post (which, of course, would clearly indicate you're an official sponsor). If any of you happen to have mountains of cash burning holes in your pockets and want to do a sponsorship in exchange for a premium, here are some possibilities I can offer to donors who kick in $75 or more:
1. I can knit you something that I promise will be VERY unique.
2. I can write a post about you or the topic of your choice.
3. I can entertain some other possible premium that you want to suggest.
There's a donate button over there in the right hand margin if you want to help out with this experiment of mine. And if you're cash short but want to help anyway, I can always use assistance getting the word about about my camps, workshops and wedding officiating-- gigs I take that I enjoy and that help support my writing. Coming up I have a bunch of Summer Camps for Kids and also I'm going to host a silly Summer Camp for Grown Ups in July. I also perform weddings -- there's info right here. And I do private writing coaching, too. So if you'll tell folks who might be interested in any of these projects that I'm out here, that would be super awesome. And let me know if you'd like to be listed as a sponsor on this page.
Thanks,
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