We Need Your Help

This is a call for financial aid from our friends and subscribers. While On Spec does receive some operational funding from the Alberta Government through a Cultural Industries magazine grant, we find this grant growing smaller and smaller each year, and we need to apply for the money every year, with no guarantee of it being granted or being enough to cover our costs of production.

And our costs are not getting smaller. At this time of year, we are especially feeling the pinch. We had anticipated a boost in sales of issues and new subscriptions last year with major SF&F events attended by our editors,  but this proved to be a disappointment.

We  are grateful for the support from our renewing subscribers and our generous donors, but even that will not be sufficient to pay for  the ongoing costs we anticipate in the months and years ahead. It’s been a long time since we had to ask for money to sustain On Spec, but now is the time we need people to step up if they want us to continue.

You might find it interesting to see how your money gets put to good use. Below are some estimated costs we incur with each issue.

• $500 pays for each issue’s poetry and interior illustrations and graphics
• $2500 pays for each issue’s original  short fiction and non-fiction
• $500 pays for cover art
• $5,000 pays for production (design, pre-press, printing and mailing) of an average issue

There are also the ongoing costs of maintaining our website, purchasing office equipment and supplies, professional fees for accounting work, digital conversion of issues, and the like. While some costs are covered by our grants, and subscriptions, we also need sustainable funding to help with initiatives such as advertising and convention appearances. Right now, the editors are paying out of their own pockets for our promotional in-person activities.

While the obvious solution is to simply switch to being a digital magazine and stop printing hard copies, we have been trying to avoid this for several years. Our readers like the feel and look of holding an issue of On Spec, and then keeping it on their bookshelves.  But printing an issue has its obvious drawbacks.

HOW TO HELP

There are many ways you can contribute financially to On Spec Magazine and help us continue providing a voice for speculative short-fiction in Canada.   The Copper Pig Writers’ Society, which publishes On Spec, is not a registered charity, so we are unable to issue a tax receipt.

BUY SOMEONE A GIFT SUBSCRIPTION!!!!!!

If each current subscriber to On Spec were to, today, order a single gift subscription for a school, library,  friend or family member, it would pay for the production of at least one issue of the magazine. That’s all it would take.

START A DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION

If the cost of a hard copy subscription is a deterrent to you, subscriptions to digital copies are available at reasonable cost through our friends at Weightless Books. It’s just that simple.

MAKE REGULAR DONATIONS THROUGH PATREON

We have a fantastic Patreon page where you can support us with monthly donations. Patreon supports creators of all kinds. All you need to do is to pick the support level that works for you, and you will be providing us with a sustainable source of revenue. A monthly commitment of $5 and over will get you a subscription to On Spec.

DONATE WITH PAYPAL

Simply click on the PayPal Donate button to the right, to complete your transaction. If you are donating over $24 Cdn, please include your mailing address (if you want print) or type “Digital Subscription” (if you want digital) in the Special Instructions box.

DONATE BY CHEQUE

Cheques can be made out to ‘On Spec Magazine’, and mailed to: ON SPEC, 15129 Stony Plain Road NW, Edmonton, AB T5P 3Y2 Canada. If you are donating over $24 Cdn and wish a subscription as our gift, please include the mailing address you’d like us to use with your cheque. Similarly, if you plan to gift a local library or school with a subscription, we can do that as well.

(IN CANADA) DONATE BY E-TRANSFER

You can e-transfer your gift straight to our bank by sending it to onspecmag(at)gmail.com. Send us an email with your instructions if you want a subscription or a gift or if this is simply a generous donation.

DONATE THROUGH KO-FI

Ko-fi gives you the option of a single, one-time donation, or a monthly donation, or you can purchase a sample copy of a digital version of current and back issues of On Spec.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST- TELL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT THIS FABULOUS LITTLE MAGAZINE!