Another Katrina Relief Project (For Our Animal Friends)

akelsey333

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Hi, all! Jenna's anthology project to support Katrina's victims has inspired me to start a similar project to aid the animals who are currently without food, water, or shelter. I am currently working with employees of local animal shelters in the Texas Hill Country to get this project off the ground in a hurry.

This book will also be released through Lulu with 100% of the proceeds going to charities (hope you don't mind me following your lead, Jenna!). At this point, we're thinking of splitting the donations between the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and the ASPCA. The first is working to rescue the stranded animals; the second is building shelters to house them. We're also open to other suggestions.

We're currently asking fellow animal lovers to submit essays, short stories, etc., of 1000 words or less to be included in the anthology. We have no set themes at this point (feel free to offer suggestions), but would love to read submissions which make us laugh, cry, and feel inspired.

We're also looking for another editor (since I'm currently the only one suited for this task). And we'd like volunteers to spread word about this project to their local animal shelters and newspapers.

Plus, would anybody be willing to create a website for the project? I could do it, but not quickly and not professionally, I'm afraid.

Feel free to contact me at [email protected] to ask questions, make suggestions, or submit a story.

~ Kelsey
 
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awatkins

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Hi everybody,

If anyone has any ideas for Kelsey re: editors or creating web sites, drop her a PM! Or you can e-mail her at [email protected] if you'd like more info about this project.

I see that you have a word count in mind; do you have a deadline for stories? Do you accept reprints? And should all submissions be e-mailed? The more info we have, the better. :)

If you have any links to the shelters you're working with, this might be helpful, too, so folks could see who all is involved. If this works out, it sounds as if it could turn into a good thing for the animals displaced by Katrina.

~ Anne
 

akelsey333

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Hi, all! Thanks to awatkins, book_maven, and all who've contacted me for your support!

This project is still in the early stages and we're waiting to hear back from lawyers, publishers, and various organizations. We're hoping to find volunteers to take over the legal and financial aspects of the project. I'm also hoping a well-known author will step in and take over the role of spokesperson so this introvert can manage things behind the scenes.

As various people and organizations publicly endorse this project by placing announcements on their websites, I'll provide links to them. I've already been warned it'll be later in the week, however. Austin is receiving a large number of animals left homeless in Katrina's wake and they're all scrambling to coordinate efforts.

We're asking for one time rights and reprints are OK if you currently own the rights to the piece. The tentative deadline is September 18th. I'll update this post if it changes. Please email all submissions to [email protected]. Word attachments are preferred, but I'm also willing to accept text documents.

I've received plenty of wonderful suggestions from members of this board. One of my favorite is publishing a book of poetry written by children. I'm afraid working with minors would have a large number of problems, however. Has anyone here ever dealt with this situation?

Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments.

~ Kelsey
 

veinglory

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In the meantime a lot of the charities in volved are taking online donations specifically to help the disaster affected animals. I just put off buying photoshop for another few months and sent my saving to the ASPCA, sigh. Well, what can you do? I know people need help to but I think the key to really rescue/humanitarian work has to be to help everyone, human and animal.

http://www.petfinder.org/disaster/

I will see if I have something you can use. I have a short story somewhere that might be appropriate.
 

akelsey333

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Thank you for your support, veinglory :)

At this point, we're still playing the waiting game. I talked to my CPA, and the way things are set up now, I'll have to pay taxes on the sales of the book. So we're waiting for one of the charities to agree to sell the book themselves.

A lot of talented writers have agreed to write a piece for the book, so the writing part is going well :)

~ Kelsey
 

akelsey333

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Update: Please note the word count has been increased to 3000 words and the deadline has been extended until September 30th.

Veinglory, we did receive your submission. It's wonderful!

We thank everyone for their support :)

~ Kelsey
 

VeggieChick

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Update?

Just wondering how the project is going. Still going strong? Any news about taxes, publication date, etc.?

Thanks!
 

akelsey333

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Hi, all! We're lucky enough to be in the center of the state. At this point, it looks like we'll just get a few showers. I'm worried about the folks in Louisiana, though.

I've been communicating with someone from the ASPCA, and she's sending me a contract via snail mail. Unfortunately, this project is taking much longer than expected to get going. Fortunately, this means everyone has longer to submit pieces for the anthology :)
 

awatkins

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Great news on the ASPCA/contract thing! And here's hoping that everyone in the areas targeted by Rita stays safe.

Hope you feel better soon, Kelsey. :)
 

akelsey333

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Tony, I did receive your submission, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. Thank you for your support :)
 

VeggieChick

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Kelsey,

Please check your email. I just got an email from IFAW offering help with the anthology. I sent you all the contact info. Good luck !!!
 

Mihoshi

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Just curious as I've been away, what's happening with this project now? Did you manage to get a website and enough submissions to publish? I hope so!
 

akelsey333

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The good word is I've received the contract from ASPCA, so they're ready to endorse us :)

We're still waiting to see the contract from the IFAW to make sure it meshes with the contract from the ASPCA.

So, we're still playing the waiting game. Gotta love that red tape ;)

Since we're currently in limbo, the deadline has been extended to October 31st.

Thanks all for your support.

~ Kelsey
 

awatkins

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Good, good, good. Thanks for the updates!

How many stories did you get? And do you need any more?

We appreciate your hard work on the behalf of the ones who can't speak for themselves, Kelsey. :)
 
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akelsey333

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awatkins said:
How many stories did you get? And do you need any more?

Thanks for your kind words, Anne!

I'd love to see about 20 more quality submissions, so please send them to [email protected].

And I'd like to thank all of you contributors for your patience. I had no idea how long it takes to go through the proper channels at the large charities.

~ Kelsey