Tuesday 28 May 2013

"The Quait Cheil" By Bill Thom


We're now getting to the final stages in preparing to launch our first pamphlet, The Quait Cheil by Bill Thom. The illustrations are almost ready, the text is basically complete. All that's left is the final cover design and typesetting. We'll be previewing some parts of the process on the blog here so you can see things as they develop.

Bill's debut pamphlet is well worth a read (of course we would say that!). It consists of one long poem in the old north-eastern ballad style, written entirely in Banffshire Doric. Although Tapsalteerie are well aware that the long poem isn't exactly "in" at the moment, Bill has managed to create a piece that really grabs the attention. He's produced a cracking story, told with a rhythm born out of traditional Scottish folk music. We're very pleased to be able to help him release it.


The Quait Cheil 
[extract from beginning section]


Thi twa o them aye disagreed,
Fit een o them wid takk thi lead,
Fan aye they cum up tae thi wid,
Wi thochts o fit thi darkness hid,
For lang they kent o stories old,
O ghosts an spirits they were told,
Bit through thi wid thi pathie geed,
An intae trouble wis guaranteed.
So huddin in atween thi trees,
Thi lack o licht caased their displease,
Nae moon thi nicht, nae licht wis seen,
Nor even stars oot up abeen.

By Bill Thom

Release date: early July




Tuesday 14 May 2013

In praise of crowdfunding


And so Tapsalteerie's crowdfunding campaign has been successful, having raised a grand total of £625 so far. Of course there's still a little time to donate if you would like - anything more than this total would be massively useful - but at least the minimum amount I needed to get the press off the ground has been reached. It really is fantastic news, and I'm very grateful to all the generous crowdfunders out there who made it happen.

I would heartily recommend anyone to give the crowdfunding a go. I was genuinely surprised by the amount of people who showed their support so readily, including those I both knew and didn't know.

So what would I count as the main reasons for Tapsalteerie's success? Firstly, a worthy cause combining a few different elements. Not only did we have the Scots language side, but also the idea of helping young Scottish artists. I was also launching two things for quite a modest amount of money - both a new poet's first collection and a new publishing company. I do think this means people could get quite a bit of bang for their buck, which probably helps when they're deciding to donate or not.

The thing is that a solid idea with clear motives and goals is not enough for success. You also need the support of those around you, and if it wasn't for my personal and professional networks I don't think the funding target would have been reached. Although it all happened through the internet, it was in the real world that the success was built.