I apologize that this is so late in coming. For a number of reasons, neither Anita nor I have had much of a chance to stop and reflect since the Kickstarter for Clockwork Phoenix 4 reached such a stunning conclusion on August 9.

In case anyone needs a reminder what that conclusion was:

Reflecting back on the days leading up to launching the Kickstarter, and what my expectations were, this result wasn’t something I weighed as a serious possibility. More along the lines of “Wouldn’t it be wild if…”

This simply would not have happened without the amazing breadth and depth of support this community gave, to help Clockwork Phoenix, to help Anita and me, to help bring more art into the world.

It would not have happened without the help of all our backers — and as of this writing, as long as this thank-you list is (click here to view) this still represents just barely half of the people who stepped up to support us.

It would not have happened without all the people who chose to signal boost us, many more than once, from fans with 50 Twitter followers to bestselling authors. It all mattered. It all helped. It was all amazing.

It would not have happened without the platoon of friends and colleagues, fellow poets and writers and Clockwork Phoenix contributors and fans, who made suggestions and let me bounce ideas off of them in the weeks leading up to the launch. (I want to single out Rose Lemberg, Elizabeth Campbell and Ken Schneyer in particular for excellent advice, and Cherie Priest and Paula Friedlander for signing on for the game-changing chapbook project without hesitation. Thank you folks.)

And it certainly wouldn’t have happened without Anita’s artistic skills and sensible instincts. Thank you so much, sweetheart.

I’m already working on getting rewards to people. I have a lot to do in the coming months. (Our submission window’s going to run from Oct. 1 to Dec. 14, so recruiting slush readers will be a priority task.) But I’m grateful that I get to do these things. Anita and I are grateful for this wonderful mandate, this unexpected, stunning, beautiful show of support.

We did it. You did it. Thank you so much.

Extra bonus: if you’re interested in my thoughts on the nitty-gritty of Kickstarter, there’s an interview with me on that topic now posted at Twisted Scifi.

Posted in Clockwork Phoenix, Editing, Kickstarter