file under fundraiser UPDATE

DISCLAIMER:  AT NO POINT IN THIS "FUNDRAISER" WILL I ASK YOU FOR A DONATION.  YOU ARE WELCOME.

UPDATE 10/30/2010:  Thanks to all the pals that have supported file under other in the first week of the fundraiser.   It is really appreciated.  DONATIONS.  People have asked about just making a straight up donation.  I think it's totally cool for comics blogs and webcomics to take donations for support (a lot of them do) but I would rather not at this time. I'd rather give you something tangible for your money.  The easiest way to make a small donation without it being a donation would probably be to buy a finished (inked) drawing.  They go for $10 plus $1 shipping here at my store.  If you want to give less than that I'll take anything $1 or more straight to my pay pal and I'll mail you a quick pencil sketch.  My pay pal email address is spaghettijunk "at" gmail "dot" com.  I do happen to be an illustrator so if you want something bigger and better than those two options then please feel free to email me and we will work it out. 

Many of the eBay items expire in the next few hours so check them out and see if there is anything you want.  This stuff is dirt cheap.  I'll post new items this weekend.  The better this thing goes the sooner I can spend more time posting reviews to file under other and less time posting things on eBay.  So, thanks for your help.

On a sad note, the kitty I mentioned in the original post below did not make it.  Robert was just two years old.  He was a really sweet boy.  I've lived with cats since I was a sophomore in college but I've only had one I claimed as my own.  That was my little buddy Hendrix who died last year.  Robert was Hendrix's little buddy.  His partner in crime.  After Hendrix died, Robert became the big brother or uncle to our other cats and he filled Hendrix's place as my little kitty buddy.  He will be missed.  RIP little buddy.

And now, for those that are checking in for the first time, the original post...

ORIGINAL POST 10/25/2010

Times is tough folks.  I got a cat that needs surgery and kids that apparently want to participate in Halloween and Christmas again this year.  I know right?!   In short, I need to generate hundreds of dollars really fast.  Now, what does that have to do with file under other?  I'm glad you asked Uncle Stan.

This has been a pretty lousy year for file under other.  I've received a lot of great books for review but I've just not had the time or resources to get the reviews posted.  And by time I mean time and by resources I mean money.  If fuo (as the street kids call it) is to survive and be the best little fuo it can be it's going to take a lot of time and a little bit of resources.  Again, resources=money.  It takes money to keep teh intronets pumping through the veins of my humble home.  It takes money to keep the domain name safe.  It takes money to promote the site through ads and conventions.  It takes money to keep me full of the coffee, peanut butter and ramen that keep my brain running at the peak of human capacity.

I have big goals for fuo.  First of all is to catch up on reviews and post reviews of each and every single comic that has been sent to me.  I want more interviews.  More con reports.  More event reports.   Wouldn't that be neato?!?  But I want more.  More for minicomics, more for webcomics, more for alt comics, more for cartoonists, more for publishers, more for you.  I want a bigger audience and I want the creators mentioned here to have bigger audiences.  I want the world and I want it next Tuesday.

Well how do we do that?  Again, I'm glad you asked Uncle Stan.

I've traveled to the future and back via technology that does not yet exist and I've reverse engineered the inevitable staggering success of fuo in the future and the answer is really simple;  Be better.  Be better, faster, more proficient, ask better questions, think better thoughts, blog better bloggies... be better.

So what is stopping us?  Uncle Stan knows the answer.  Time and money.

Like my good pal Dr. Banzai once said, "The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen all at once."   (Yeah, I don't know what that means either.  Dr. Banzai is crazy!)  The point is that time is probably too tough to tame.  The transmission on my way-back machine is busted.  But money, that's just numbers floating around waiting for us snatch them up and shape them into something useful.  We can do that.  We can make money!  More money= less time worrying about money= more time being better= better fuo= better me= better you= better us= funnybook nirvana.  See there, we can punch time in his face!

Now before we start this fundraiser, I'd like to take a few moments to get inspired by what the world's leading sociologists, economists, physicists and high school drop outs  agree is the finest example of fundraising in the history of mankind...

That's right, it's time to put on your fundraisin' shoes.  Now if you are like me, then you weigh 194 pounds, prefer Zagnut to Butterfinger and hate fundraisers.  If you want to see a man reach the limits of human speed then hop in my car to see how fast I can change the channel on my radio during NPR's fund drive weeks.  (A radio is an ancient device used to receive and then project audio transmissions. Not as clumsy or random as a pod phone.  A more civilised sound device for a more civilised age.) 

But this fundraiser is going to be the best kind of fundraiser because at no point am I going to ask you to make a pledge or donation.  Neither fuo or it's creator have any intentions of being a charity or a non-profit.  Oh, quite the opposite.  For profit, I say for profit!  The American Dream and a side order of tater tots.  Let's ride the snake of capitalism to the ancient lake of trickle down economics together.  Let's put the fun in fundraiser.  Shall we?

Five ways to help:

1)  Support file under other.  Hey, that's easy.  You are doing that right now.  Believe it or not file under other does generate some ad revenue.  Every page view and click through helps.  So please bookmark this page and check back daily if you can.  If you use a blog/news reader then please subscribe. You will see a Subscribe to posts link at the top of the page.

If you look at the ad banners on this site you will notice that most of them are for webcomics.  I have discovered a lot of good webcomics through those ads so yeah, click on them and check those websites out.  The ads that mention Project Wonderful underneath them make money for fuo.  You get to help fuo and read good webcomics at the same time.

I also appreciate your feedback.  Each blog post has a comments option so please get yer comment on.  I'll reply as quickly as possible

2) Spread the word.  If you look at the bottom of each post there are options for sharing the post.  If you like what you have read then please do that.  I have also started a file under other community page at facebook.  In the left hand column of this webpage there is a button to "like" fuo.  You should do that.  Do you Reddit or Digg or any of that junk?  That stuff is over my head but if you do, then ya know, do that too.  Are you a twitter person?  Me too!  What a cowinkydink.  My twitter name is Shannon_Smith so you should follow me and junk.  Anytime I post something at fuo I will update it on twitter and you can re-tweet it and do that junk.  It will be so fantastic! I'm getting goose bumps just thinking about it!       

3) Buy comics.  I have posted several items from my comics collection on eBay.  The starting bids are insanely cheap.  So far the items have  included Green :Lantern, Iron Man, The X-Men, Wolverine, Bendis' Alias, JLA, The Ultimates, Daredevil, Spider-Man and more.  I will continue to add items each week so check back.  I may even get some toys on there.  Go here to see the current list.

4) Buy minicomics.  I will throw in a free sketch with any minicomic purchase.  Supplies are limited.  Go here to see what is left. 

5) Buy original art. I have original pages for sale and I will do custom pencil and ink sketches by request for just $10.  Order a sketch or buy original comics pages here.

See what a fun fundraiser that was.  I did not ask you for a pledge or a donation not even once.  That was great.  I can feel the success of this thing reverberating backwards trough time right now.   It sounds just like this...

Seriously pals, thanks in advance for your help.  I do hereby reaffirm my commitment to post reviews of every book that has been sent my way as soon as humanly possible.  With your help that will be sooner rather than whenever.  You are the best! 

Your best pal ever,

Shannon Smith