Hi everyone.
Fabrice here. I'm the lucky publisher of RED FLOWER at FairSquare Graphics.
And I want to start counting down with you the days that separate us from the end of our campaign.
12 days. Looks like a lot, but it's not.
And I feel many of the thousands of people who are following us and have supported us in our publishing journey don't know how important RED FLOWER is to us.
As of now, we're 41% funded. It's not what I would call an Earth shattering start.
We had campaigns funded in a few hours.
But not this time.
Why? I heard some publishing pros say to me: "Well… Manga tend to struggle sometimes at crowdfunding."
Others say: "Well… many of your backers already read volume one of Red Flower" or "You know… the economy…"
All valid points. But I still believe that RED FLOWER deserves a chance and I hope you'll read my love letter to Loui's fantastic series until the last sentence.
1- RED FLOWER is an incredibly well made manga. Art is stunning. Story and dialogue move at great pace and there's no dull moment. It also feature right to left reading, just like the original Japanese manga that Loui took inspiration and learned from. Because the creator went straight to the source, in Japan, to learn how to craft manga the right way.
2- RED FLOWER originally came out at the worst time, when our former distributor Diamond went bankrupt. Most of the inventory has been lost to their bankruptcy process. We saved what we could but 80% of our inventory has been seized by the Diamond estate and there's no way we can get it back. Not only it was a loss for us, but it's heart breaking.
3-In spite of that, everywhere we showed up with RED FLOWER, it sold out almost instantly. We know there's a huge potential to this series. And that's why we decided to relaunch it on Backer Kit. And we did not come empty handed. On top of a brand new cover for volume 1 reissue, we're bringing volume 2 as well.
4-There's the story itself and what it symbolizes. FairSquare Graphics is a company built on representation in the most natural way. We're immigrants and minorities. We're a family. I don't feel we're activists. We're a company that brings under represented voices to light in an organic and natural way. That creates a system where creators are at the heart of the game, not at the tail end of the food chain.
RED FLOWER is a perfect example of a book filled with tolerance and culture. It highlights West African culture. There are even some interlude pages describing how the tribe lives: culture, fashion, food, how society is structured. All that on top a coming of age story that everyone can identify with. RED FLOWER has substance and heart. Just like its creator.
5- Who is RED FLOWER for? Well… Everyone. If you're a Shonen manga fan, you'll be in good company. There's some NARUTO, some DRAGON BALL and some ONE PIECE in this series, mixed with its own flavors.
I hope you'll be convinced and will help us take RED FLOWER back to life.
Head there to support and pledge:
https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/fairsquare-comics/red-flowerSee you in the funny books as people say :)
Merci.
Fabrice
Y