Setting our Sights on a Bright Future
On September 1, 2022 we will be launching into our SEVENTH year in circulation and we certainly couldn’t be approaching that milestone without the support of good people like you!
Asking for support is uncomfortable. Expecting people to actually do it is unrealistic unless they can be given a clear understanding of our goals. That’s why we want to take a minute and let you know what we’re thinking.
We have three main goals:
We want to keep our print costs as low as possible
We want to expand our reach
We want to spread our message & empower our contributors
And how can we do that? With your help, we believe we can do whatever we put our minds to! The financial goals set out in our ‘Fund our Future’ campaign are based on real targets we’ve set for ourselves.
At the very least, we need to cover our operating costs in order to keep bringing you the great content you’re used to receiving. And we’re not asking for a lot to do that; in fact, we’re asking for less than a regular digital subscription renewal—just $15! Talk about a good deal!
Let us break it down into four target goal categories for you:
Base Target — $3,000
This covers our simple day-to-day operating costs: shipping, web hosting and shopping cart feature, customer management software, marketing, banking/transaction fees, and obligations we have to the Library and Archives Canada. At the very least, meeting this target means that we’re able to keeping doing what we’re doing. No added bells and whistles, but we can keep doing the work of perpetuating the arts across Canada.
[All it will take is 200 new or renewing digital subscribers.]
Stretch Goal — $6,000
We know you’ve been waiting for this one: we want to pay our contributors! You work so hard and you deserve a gesture of financial gratitude. This wouldn’t let us pay a huge amount, but enough to show that we’re here to support you on your creative career.
[All it will take is 400 new or renewing digital subscribers.]
Super Stretch Goal — $10,000
Real talk here. Blank Spaces has a small but vibrant team that has been working for free since the very first days. If we could honour them by paying them an annual or quarterly honorarium, we’ll be more likely to keep them enthusiastic about new projects and ideas. At this level of fundraising we would also remove our submission fee, meaning it would be free for Canadians to submit to Blank Spaces all the time, not just during publication months!
[All it will take is 667 new or renewing digital subscribers.]
Long Term Super Duper Stretch Goal — $30,000
This is the big one. This is the one that keeps us up at night, imagining all the doors it would open to us…
We want a storefront! We want to get out of the home office and into a spot in the community where we can become contributors. We want to offer a space for quiet reflection and writing; we want to offer workshops and seminars and art classes; we want a proper space for team meetings and design work; and we want a spot that truly reflects who we are and what we stand for. (We’re already making a list of artwork we want to commission from Blank Spaces contributors! Have we designed floor plans and proposals? Um… like a million of them. Okay. Not a million. But you get the idea. We’re obsessed. Our aesthetic of choice? Think Rose Apothecary on Schitt’s Creek - but literary.)
[All it will take is 2000 new or renewing digital subscribers.]
The beautiful thing about this fundraiser is that it’s not just about you handing over your hard-earned money. We are giving you something in return. At the very least, you’ll be getting a digital subscription to a great publication; not only that, but you’ll be investing in a vision that is helping to spread a message of inclusion and possibility to writers and artists across Canada. There is space for everyone. That is what we’re here to promote and that is what you’ll be giving your money to.
Want to learn more about what your donation dollars can get you? Click the button below to find out! And for a limited time, your donation reward will include FIVE digital issues - you’ll get a free code to unlock the March issue too!
No matter what tier of support you choose to go in on—even if you can’t swing anything financial right now and can offer something as simple as sharing our posts on social media—know that we appreciate you and are so honoured to have you as part of this community.
Thank you for being here, and thank you for believing in Blank Spaces!
Cheers to seven more years! 🥂
