Quote Originally Posted by Flatlander View Post
I know the rules of this thread included not asking about financials, but I've been wondering about how to fund an audio-book/radio drama/podcast such as this one. I've seen the youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj3OswgPeBo) in-studio session and there has to be some serious costs to putting this together. This is not run on a shoe-string and volunteerism.

I'm not asking about the specifics but I am curious about how you got started finding the funding. The advertizing angle does not seem to be dominant. There is a DONATE button on the website and maybe that works to some degree but in my mind the left and the right side of the ledger doesn't add up.

Basically the question is how did you guys do it?
Thanks

PS maybe this has been addressed in another thread that I haven't found yet.
Definitely not a taboo subject-

To be honest we run on a very low budget and some volunteerism. The studio we use for recording here in California is kinda a perk of where I work full time. Part of my job is to maintain that facility, so it's not difficult to use. We record the actors once every two months in the studio, so our time spent isn't a lot, and the actors aren't paid a large amount. Most of the time spent making the show is spent either writing it, or editing. The first line editors are paid per episode, and a voice cut is made by our zintern, but as supervising sound designer it falls back on me to do a large portion of the editing before it airs. And, I don't get paid, so that's it. The website is mostly run at the cost of the server space and bandwidth and I get help from time to time from developers such as J0be and Jason Stone who help on the forum and website, and we have moderators that watch everything on here as well.

Most of it's done on a very small budget, but with a very high yield. That being said if I were to have to pay for the time and work I put it, it would cost significantly more. The costs of the show are offset by the merchandise and advertising space on the website and show. That keeps us from getting deep into the red, but the show has always been an investment. Sort of the "if you build it, they will come" model. I hope that if enough people notice, a studio will as well.

That's at least my hope. I think it's likely and possible if the story is well rounded and polished.

TLDR; Hard work and sweat, with a little bit of supplemental funds.