Introduction
Hi, my name’s Fay Roberts. You may know me from Hammer & Tongue, Allographic, Wild Strawberries, Other Voices Spoken Word Cabaret, Spoken Word @ PBH’s Free Fringe, the BBC Slam, or even Poetry Kapow! from back in the day. Alternatively you may be a friend, relative, or colleague. Hello!
I write, produce, and publish poetry and prose, and provide platforms for performers, focusing on providing spaces where people can be bold, and especially where they can tell their stories that may otherwise go unheard.
Short version: I wrote a show called “The Selkie: A Song of Many Waters”, it was well-received, I performed it at Edinburgh Fringe 2016, and subsequently got so sick that I could barely sleep, eat, or speak. I’m better recovered now and would like to bring The Selkie back to life – give her a voice again. I’ll be performing the show at Edinburgh Fringe 4th-15th August at 52 Canoes, Grassmarket, 12:30pm every day except Wednesday 8th, and – for once – I’ve decided to ask for people’s help to make this happen.
It’s expensive to take shows to Edinburgh – even with The Free Fringe, an organisation I’ve been an active part of for several years now. Publicity, accommodation, transport, props, hiring a technician to provide music cues, insurance, costume – they all cost money. And creating merchandise to sell to try to recoup some of that cash means spending money up-front. In all it costs between one and two thousand pounds to take a show run of eleven days up to The Fringe. And no – as far as I can tell, there are no official grants available!
My health is fragile enough that working extra hours for extra income while I’m up in Edinburgh may very easily damage my health again, and I cannot stress enough how keen I am to avoid that! Similarly, in order to take everything I need with me, I need to hire a car, which gets really expensive really quickly.
You can help me by pledging money in exchange for a reward (anything from a hearty thanks through badges and copies of the book or album, up to a writing or performance coaching session with me, and plenty of other goods and services), or just sharing this with other people!
What I Need & What You Get
Publicity |
£347.20 |
Equipment |
£22.17 |
Merchandise |
£645.52 |
Support |
£220.00 |
Accommodation |
£228.75 |
Transport |
£211.36 |
Total |
£1,675 |
(Total accommodation for my full time there will be £915, and transport £845.44, but I am taking another show (Other Voices Spoken Word Cabaret) up for the full run, so am assuming a 25% share of resources, for want of a better phrase, for The Selkie, even though I’m not running any crowdfunding campaign for that show.)
The perks offered are a mixture of physical (badges, postcards, books, CDs, etc.) and virtual goods (pdf of the show, digital download of the album), plus services (bespoke poems, coaching sessions, performances). The goods will all carry Sa’adiah Khan’s gorgeous artwork inspired by the show, and will be signed by me – either directly or on the packaging. These will be unique mementos of the show or even more unique treats for you or gifts for loved-ones (bespoke poems are an amazing way to show someone how you feel about them, or to commemorate an event!)
If I don’t reach my entire goal. the priority for using the funding will be for publicity (without which I don’t get an audience), and support (technician – without which it will be next to impossible to run the show, and flyerer – without which I’m less likely to get a decent audience, and also run the risk of making myself more ill flyering by myself). The next priority will be to produce the book and CD for minimal merchandise (without which I stand less of a chance making my money back), followed by transport (without which I don’t get get to bring as many items that will help me run the shows and maintain my health while at The Fringe).
If I make more than my goal (!), the extra money will go towards my total costs of accommodation and transport.
Risks & Challenges
I acknowledge that this is a niche project to say the least – not only is it an arts project, but it’s a poetry project to boot. Added to which: it’s for a show that’s difficult to explain or describe, and doesn’t even have the courtesy to stick to one genre! And then we have the fact that I’m notoriously poor at asking for help (ask pretty much any of my friends or family about this stubbornness).
I’m banking on the audiences that I’ve entertained over the years, plus the artists I’ve hosted on innumerable stages over the last ten years, responding favourably to helping me out with a few quid each, and that some of them will be keen to get hold of the more elaborate perks such as bespoke poems, coaching sessions, and the like.
I will be using social media (Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, even Instagram, if I can work out how to do it!), my specialist mailing lists, and live performances over the next few weeks, to push the crowdfunding campaign, plus putting out a press release.
Other Ways You Can Help
I understand (believe me!) that it’s not always possible to share cash support – let’s face it: times are tough for all but the super-rich at the moment. If you can’t spare even the £1 for some hearty thanks, please consider sharing this campaign with your friends online or in person – IndieGoGo have some lovely social media sharing tools and literally every little helps.