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The Alleyman's Tarot

Created by SevenThirteenBooks

Get your own copy of this one-time printing, incredibly unique deck. The Alleyman's Tarot was the #1 most funded (and by far the most backed) tarot kickstarter ever. Made up of 137-cards from various decks, old and modern, the deck is a small art museum that fits in your hand and that divines smoothly. With the Booster Packs, you can include additional cards in the deck to replace or support the pre-existing cards. Grab your box, cloth, and bag while you're at it, and a X/O coin and poker chip, and see what the Alleyman has to tell you.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Project Update | Shipping, Addresses, Flipthru Video, and Blockchain
about 2 years ago – Mon, Jan 10, 2022 at 02:39:34 AM

Hello you amazing people!

First, I've seen a few people requesting updates. I try to do just one update a month when possible, especially at this point when there's not much more to share, or when the timeline is still on track. We are exactly a month since the previous update, so that follows my goals, and I have plenty in this update! First, a comprehensive shipping timeline update.


UPDATE TO SHIPPING TIMELINE

The manufacturer (who is also handling our shipping) has let me know that the decks, boosters, art prints, and more are all completed. The last thing that they are waiting on are the nice red wooden boxes. The other issue is that now that we've been so delayed by COVID and the world's supply chain issues, there are struggles to get ahold of a vessel and freight container before the Chinese New Year. It's.... super expensive, let me tell you that much. Between limited supply and space, AND the holiday? Yikes.

They have been packing orders for people, and in some cases they are adding items to people's orders to limit the unique combinations of items and add-ons to orders-- i.e. the 300 or so people who ordered a deck without a guidebook are getting a guidebook because that streamlines how many combinations of packages they have to make (there were 1600+ combinations last they told me).  Their current goal is to get 8000 of the US packages ready before the Chinese New Year to get on a freighter to the US, and 2,000 or so international packages ready before then as well.

The current timeline for various places, verbatim from my contact with New Titan Print:

1. US Orders

--About half of the US orders (we will try our best to do more) are shipped via ocean freight around Jan 23rd; Vessel arrive at Oakland around Feb 14.  Packages will be sent out in 5 days, so most recipients should receive their packages at the end of February.  

-- The remaining orders will be picked, packed and labeled after Chinese New Year. We estimate recipients will receive their packages about 3 weeks later than the above batch, around Mar 20.

2. Non-Canadian, Non-EU, Non-UK, Non-AU Orders

-- Orders will be picked, packed and labeled after Chinese New Year. Packages will be shipped directly from China via different approaches. Recipients will receive their packages between Feb 20 to Mar 15.

3.  AU Orders

-- Orders will be picked, packed and labeled after Chinese New Year. Packages will be shipped via ocean freight to our partner in Australia and shipped out there. Recipients will receive their packages between mid March and end of March

4.  Canadian Orders

-- Canadian fulfillment is not easy though Canada is our neighbor. We are considering different alternatives and should have a decision shortly. Recipients will receive their packages mid to late

March.

5.  UK Orders

-- As mentioned above, it is fairly tough to fulfill UK orders. We are waiting for a few logistic companies for an optimum solution. We anticipate recipients can receive the package in April

6.  EU Orders

-- Very similar to UK fulfillment but even more troublesome. We anticipate recipients can receive the package in April


The reason the EU and UK orders are so messy right now is due to the VAT and tax things, so I apologize that they look to be the only ones not arriving in the Feb/March window I've been saying is the ideal arrival window for most people.


Second, if you need to check your address or update your address, you are too late for that. In the previous update I was clear that address updates were due by the 15th of December. I know there are so many reasons people missed that-- they don't see the emails, they don't read updates, their moving situation came up just now, etc-- I've still taken late addresses by message and passed them on to the manufacturer who is doing the shipping, but at this point we can't do that any longer. We are all set to pack and ship things.  They are organizing packages and getting them labeled ASAP, so if you get me a new address now that just complicates things, as you may be changing an address they have already labeled or packed in a box to send. There are over 20,000 packages, it is a long process to get it all properly packaged, labeled, and to its destinations, and that work has begun. Please set up a forwarding address with your local carrier, the manufacturer/shipper is no longer accepting changed addresses, no matter the reason or circumstance.


If you never did the survey (or did it after December 15th), you WILL get your package, it will just be later than everyone else. The shipper got all the ones that were locked in on the 15th and they are going to take care of those 20,000~ packages first. Once those are done, I will lock and send the remaining stragglers information to the shipper to do after. There have been 7~ months to get that information in, so I apologize to those who got stuff in late, but it was plenty of time and this is just where we're at.


And lastly, in regards to comments: Please message me if you have questions! There are 20,000 people and 40+ updates, and I'm just one person. I get emails all the time telling me I have new comments but tracking which update they were on is hard, and some people respond to old comments way back when and I cannot find it all. I still read comments periodically, but it is not an effective or efficient way to contact me. Please email [email protected] or message me on here! Im much faster to reply on those things! Thanks <3.


The Publishing Goblin Website!

www.PublishingGoblin.com is now live! It's been very slow going to get this up because I just had too many things happening in my life, but a dear friend made it for me and got it online, so here it is! I will do my best to consolidate all my things onto there, but you can also check my linktr.ee/7DA for all my things if you see something missing from the website.


Flip Thru Videos!

The long awaited videos are here!

I have broken the flip thru videos down into 5 total videos. Things to note-- I have only ever put up a few videos on youtube and I'm sure I did something wrong, bear with me. This is the test print deck, not the final version, so a few differences will be present. 1) Any foil or gilding on these cards is just silver, though in the final version the foil colors are mostly all different. I note in the video what color it should be when it comes up. 2) There is a linen finish on this deck that I had removed for the final version. I didn't like how it looked on the foils.

This first video covers the Major Arcana of the base deck. This is from the Fool to the World, and all the extras and duplicates betweeen.

This second video covers the traditional Minor Arcana, the suits of Cups, Swords, Wands, and Disks.

This third video covers the new Fifth Suit and the Second Arcana. These three videos make up the full 137-card deck that you get in the base pledge!

This fourth video covers the Booster Pack cards from Boosters 1-4. I didn't include the Blanks in here because I seem to have misplaced those, but the Blanks booster has unique card backs on each card.

And this fifth video is me showing off the accessories, like the box, book, coins, etc!

That's all for the Alleyman things for now!

Thanks so much for waiting with me, we have all been so patient and soon, so very soon, we are going to have the coolest tarot deck in history in our hands.  If you're super excited about it and happen to be on Facebook, please join The Alley. It's run by fans and backers, and it's the kindest, most welcoming place I've found. 

Want to Play a Game with Me?

So I've mentioned it a few times, but the apocalyptic, city-building card game of mine, tentaively titled Avernum, is a free mod on Tabletop Simulator right now on Steam. I would really like to see some playtests of the game with feedback, so I'd like to run some games for people who have Tabletop Simulator on steam, and who would be willing to give an hour or two of their time to me.

Avernum Playtest Materials!

If you want to play along, I'll be running games with people Wednesday the 12th, Friday the 14th, and Saturday the 15th! Check this spreadsheet for times and to signup!

Just want the game's free mod for tabletop simulator to run it yourself? Click here!

And if you do play it, PLEASE please please fill out the post-game survey here! Having people play the game is awesome, but if we don't get feedback for final fixes before it's done, people playing it means little.


Blockchain and Ethics

So, in other news. (I am going off here. If you don't care about this topic, then the update ended above-- it's not relevant to this project, but is for my future projects and me as a creator.)

Kickstarter has announced an interest to move to using and accepting blockchain and crypto currencies. There is so much to say about this, but let's get down to the brass tacks of it. Crypto currency, for those unfamiliar, is a decentralized and unregulated currency system. In many ways, it functions like stocks, but for strange and fake forms of currency. Now please bear in mind currency at its core is always fake, even our dollars, so crypto currencies can still be used for purchasing things where it is accepted.

The issues with crypto currencies is largely in how they are made. Most (and especially the biggest and most used) currencies are made or 'minted' through practices that waste a ridiculous amount of energy. The long story short there is that the amount of harm that these currencies do to the environment is astronomical for something that is so utterly unnecessary, and the computer parts needed to set up crypto currency 'mining' operations introduce a new scarcity for computer parts, which negatively impacts people who need those parts for non-exploitative and environmentally harmful purposes.

In addition, because it is decentralized, it is not regulated by local or national law (yet) and is not protected in any way. If your 100,000$ of Bitcoin is stolen, no one is required to help you fix it, and in most cases you're just out that money.

Additionally, the blockchain technology with crypto currencies use is used by NFTs, which are a whole other messy element. The long story short of NFTs is that they are digital images that you are sold the rights to through a token that says you own it. Yes, a digital image being sold to you, with the only proof of ownership being a text code that is locked into something on the internet to prove that you own it. 

It has been proven time and again that NFTs are just money laundering schemes, and the energy and processing needed to 'mint' your proof of ownership token is again ridiculously large and does nothing but hurt the environment so that someone can prove they 'own' a jpeg. 

If it was actually about the artists and supporting the artists in a new way, I would listen long enough to understand, but it isn't. Most NFTs are stolen from their artists and sold without credit or without the artist's permission. This is espeically obvious in that the most common NFTs being sold right now are the monkeys, and I have never once seen the artist's name. It's not a way to appreciate or support art, it's just exploitative and unethical on every axis, and pointless! I can right click and save every NFT I see and 'own' the art inasmuch as the NFT owner does. A token that proves ownership is useless in this case, as you can't verify the authenticity of a digital image. This isn't the same thing as owning a real Money and having a certificate from an art historian that proves it. It's just the same pixels anyone could have if they know how to save an image to their hard drive.


I'm not looking for a debate here. I've already done the research and know that NFTs and crypto currencies do little for the world but harm. Kickstarter is talking about moving to platforming and accepting crypto currencies, and whenever they go to explain how moving to the block chain will be beneficial to the website and its functions, they get really vague with the specifics and never give any clear examples. I penned a long email to them to express my dismay and received similar vague, business jargon with buzz words and no real clear admission of people's concerns.


So why is this bad? They have been clear that you do not need to accept crypto currencies on your projects, and you can continue on as normal. Them turning on the ability to accept cryptocurrencies to fund your projects does not affect you unless you let it by accepting them as currency yourself.

However, by being such a large platform that supports and actively encourages the cryptocurrencies and technology, we are becoming implicit in its use and continuance. Even if we ignore that it's horrible for the environment (and it is), it's pointless. It is a wildly fluctuating currency. It works like stocks, and as money comes in and out (and it does a lot) the value fluctuates. It's not a safe currency to use or trust in. The value of our national currencies changes, but never (with rare exception) to the extent that bitcoin and its ilk do. What happens to a creator who accepts it as currency, then the value plummets as the campaign ends? Do they even have enough to fulfill anymore? 

What happens when the money goes missing in the transaction? It's not regulated, can Kickstarter even legally hold anyone responsible for those funds on either end of the transaction?

Kickstarter keeps saying the platform they want to use to engage in the blockchain technology is carbon neutral, which is great! But the crypto currencies that will be used through that tech is decidedly NOT carbon neutral. Acceptance of that technology is at its basis unethical and irreparably harming the planet. 

And this is all before we get to the possibility that NFTs might come through this technology in the same routes, and I don't want to see a Kickstarter that begins to sell NFTs.


What can I do about it? You can email [email protected] and express your concerns, as I and so many project runners have. The boilerplate response I got wasn't very helpful, but sheer volume of complaints and disinterest still speaks.


What will I, the runner of the Alleyman's Tarot, do about it? This is much harder. Kickstarter is literally my job and income. This is how I make a living and pay my bills, buy my cat's food, pay for auto maintenance on my car. This is where I've established my backer base. I have an online store, but that's just part of my income. I make some from my on-demand printed books and cards on other websites. I make a little on my patreon, which I do not update or make worthwhile for people because I'm working on so many projects at a time. Do I jump ship to another crowdfunding platform that I have no following on? Do I keep going on here but voice my disappointment, which is ultimately hypocritical while knowing that there's no ethical consumption or participation under capitalism? At this point, I'm not certain.

The most ethical thing I could do should Kickstarter implement blockchain technology is to jump ship to somewhere else. At this point, it seems like the most likely scenario. I am under contract to run at least one more Kickstarter, so we'll see after that.


So, question for all of you. Where would you go? What other platforms have you used or relied on? (I'm going to ignore comments defending the decision to move to blockchain-- I've heard it all before. I will read them, but I won't respond unless it's actually something I'm surprised by/didn't know. I'm always open to learn, but I've already done the research on this.)


7

FINAL CALL FOR ADDRESS UPDATES | Some Pictures!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Dec 12, 2021 at 07:42:45 PM

Hello everyone!


FIRST, if you need to update your address, see this old update for how. If you're not sure if you did the survey yet, check that update. Thank you.


In some exciting life updates, I got a super clean tattoo of my personal sigil by Braxton here in Denver at Certified Tattoo, am dating a lovely fellow, and got through my sister's celebration of life this last weekend.  I'm working with a team of people on a big TTRPG, Confluence, which I tried to Kickstarter a few times now in the past, but now it's going to get redone in a big way, AND I have a really awesome apocalyptic city-building card game that you can test for free on Tabletop Simulator here.

My new tattoo, Confluence's old cover, and Avernum's old cover

FINAL CALL FOR THE ALLEYMAN'S

You have until the 15th of this month to update your address or talk to Backerkit support to help with adding additional items or making any changes to your order. We are not doing refunds at this time. I did them for months after the project ended, but we're way too far along now to refund anything. 

If you need help updating your address, click here. If you need to update your state or country, you have to contact Backerkit support, I cant make those changes.

The printer is assembling all the packages to the best of their ability as things are made before they leave China, so I need to get them a final packing list on the 15th.

December 15th is the cutoff. 

December 15th is the cutoff.

December 15th is the cutoff.

Thing should start making motion to your homes in February or March at the latest, with some arriving in late January. Of course, things that are being touched by me (Touched by the Alleyman, Signed sets, packages with hand-made items like the artisan wood boxes, puzzleboxes, handsewn bags, etc) will likely be in March, April, and May. I will work overtime to get things done faster than the original 5 or so month plan. 

For packages I'm sending, I will use USPS, so setup mail forwarding if you move and you should be fine in the US at least.

WHERE IS PRODUCTION?

Picture time!

Books books books books
So many books

The guidebooks have been all printed for at least a month now. They were easy and fast, as they didn't need to wait on some rogue cardstock, and they didn't have foil or other by-hand nonsense that needed done. They look great, and the one I got from the print test is the exact same as the final ones, so I know they are awesome and I'm so so so proud of the work I did on the book. I hope you will all love it as much as I did.

Poker Chips, Coins, and Tarot Cloths

The Poker Chips, Alleyman's Coins, and Tarot Cloths are also all complete, and standing by to go into packages.  Because everyone is getting Booster #4 and a Coin for free, all of the base decks for people's pledges will have the booster pack and coin in the deck's box, and anyone who got a chip will also get the chip in the box, which I think is just kind of neat. Based on early packing lists I sent the manufacturer, there are 2922 unique combinations of rewards that you have all grabbed, so that's wild. 

Matchbox (the basic box your deck will come in)

Matchboxes are printed and being assembled, and look really great just based on the print sample one I have on hand and that I've shared previously in an old update. 

Cigar Box and Satin Bag

I don't have new production photos of these two, and the box is actually being done by a different factory now, but it should be the same. The bag was perfect and no changes were made, so that is as it will look when you receive it!

Walnut Box!
Walnut Box with Coin and pokerchip slotted wood block

I cannot stress how gorgeous the Walnut Boxes are from Cen at Galdrecraft! They are solid and so lovely, and they smell like wood which I find exciting I guess haha. You can tell I don't get out much. I don't have the Wenge puzzleboxes in hand yet, but I told the artisans we have time because of the delays so those should be in my hand by January.  I know I gave exact measurements for the coin and pokerchip, but Im still in love with how perfectly they fit into their slots in the coin block. These will truly be boxes to keep forever, just gorgeous work.

Patchwork foldover bags with coin pouches

These were the expensive foldover bags with appliques, and I have them all. They are super lovely and have hand-drawn runes and handsewn appliques, they just rock. I have checked and they fit the deck nicely with some room to spare. So excited to send these out, big shoutout to Alex Kelly!

Drawstring bags!

And finally, from LadyLatham herself, the drawstring patchwork bags. These are lovely, and feature a hidden pocket inside to put the coin and poker chip. I have the majority of these on hand, and she's finishing up the final ones to get to me on time for Feb/March shipping from the Pub Gob's house. Turns out making 900 bags is a lot of work! Find her on Facebook or Instagram!


THE DECK!

To say the least, the deck is coming along.  And it's looking fantastic! I cannot wait for these to be in our hands. The print test is lovely, but knowing that not all the details were in place since it just used silver foil and gilded edges for everything made it feel still like a stepping stone. 

The bogeyman with the proper foil!

Here's my bogeyman with the proper foils! It looks so so so fantastic!  


We are on track to have it done and moving around in January/Feb. Packages should all be in the air or on the way to people by March at the latest. Then my work begins handling all the touched by the alleyman and etc decks, THEN I can finally bring one of my new projects which is either done or almost done to Kickstarter, which has been the hardest part for me with the slowdown on this project-- I have so many projects in the pipeline ready for funding that delays like this shove back my schedule by years. 


I will be doing a fantastic flipthrough video of all the items and printtest of the deck before I leave the state for the holidays this month, and I think I'll start doing instagram daily readings with the alleyman's starting sometime this next week. linktr.ee/7DA for all those links to social media, etc.


Thank you, and talk again soon!


7

Non-Project Update | What Else is Going On!
over 2 years ago – Mon, Nov 15, 2021 at 11:40:01 PM

Hello everyone! 

If you are tired of being unsure if an update has information you need, worry no longer. I will mark them as Non-Project Updates. If you only want info on what's happening with this project, you can delete this email/skip this update now. 

If you need to update your address, follow this update's guide here!

And if you want to know an update for shipping stuff on this project, check the previous update.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

First off, both the Nine Bridges active oracle and the Points of You Oracle are coming up on their final few days here, and have both done fantastically! Reminder that I'm not being paid or earning money off their projects in any way, I just have met both project creators and gave a few pointers to each, so I'd love to see them succeed. Please take a look if you haven't, or pass it on to your communities if you think other people might be interested in the projects. Thanks!

Nine Arches

Nine Arches is part oracle, part active card game. We stole their Time Machine card for one of the booster packs, and the whole deck is gorgeous. Playing the game is to embark on an active journey that forces you to go out in the world and have experiences, but you could also use the deck and its cards as your own oracle-- it has some fantastic and super unique cards that would augment your decks or readings in strange ways, and is totally worth taking a look at. Geoff and his team have done a remarkable job with the deck and its ridiculously gorgeous packaging.

They are almost at $150k of a 10k goal, so they have done quite well for themselves!

Check out their project here!


Points of You Oracle

The Points of You Oracle by Beth Kelley is a labor of love. As a therapist, she has brought her own knowledge of people and their experiences and existing in a body to her oracle, and the deck is just so lovely. None of the cards from it are in this project, but a card WILL be in the Alleyman's Oracle, no question. 

It's about to break $24,000 of a $12,000 goal, and that's awesome. The next stretch goal is at $25k for a free lovely patch for all physical item backers, and I think that's pretty awesome. Unfortunately with the state of the world and this being Beth's first project, this project is currently locked to US backers only. 

Still, it deserves a look!  Check it out here!


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


In my life, I'm getting some work done on a few other projects, weirdly actively dating (and met a really wonderful guy, knock on wood), and have continued on my gender journey. I've seen a few people correcting others on my pronouns, which is really kind of you-- but about 2 months ago I realized I'm gender fluid and am currently living life as a man. My pronouns are super in the air now, but I think I'm comfy with any of them and either of my gender presentations. Life's weird and a constant learning journey, so I'm just going with it, and I hope you all have time to explore yourselves now as well!

If anyone knows how to shape shift so I can go from high femme goth woman to more masc punk guy with a beard on a whim, I'm all ears. Until then, I'll pop back and forth for periods of time on both, I think.

Confluence

With a small portion of the earnings from the Alleyman's, I have finally been able to contract a team of writers and game designers to work on my big book TTRPG (table top roleplaying game), Confluence. I've worked on this project on and off for years (like what it's coming from I've worked on for 15+ years), and tried to Kickstart it twice (both flopped.) Without getting too into the weeds with it, the Alleyman will make an appearance as the character of the Alleyman exists in the worlds that Confluence steals from. More on that later, but now I have a very exciting team of people working on it, and they're posting on twitter @CosmicMirrorRPG as things come up!


Avernum

Meanwhile, I contracted the help of an old friend to help me retool a card game I worked on a couple years ago but never finished in a way I was happy with it. He's done an incredible job basically entirely on his own taking the version I had and finishing it. I've just popped in every other week to playtest it with him, but he took it to a final version I'm really excited about. This card game is about doing your best to construct a city that will survive the oncoming meteor apocalypse, and seeing what's left after it hits (and counting points to see who wins!) 

All the games I've ever made all relate back to my larger games, and so themes and ideas from this game will also appear in Confluence at some point. Stay tuned for what's happening with this, if you're interested! Tabletop Simulator free mod for playtesting is coming hopefully later today. Follow along on the @CosmicMirrorRPG twitter for more info. I'll also post on my various socials, discord, and facebook group. Thanks!


TikTok?

And because I binge a lot of bad shows and have no one to talk to about them, I've been posting daily tiktoks about the Arrowverse because I binged them all for some reason, mostly summarizing and having petty opinions as I go. If you're on tiktok, feel free to take a look. I'd very much consider doing daily Alleyman readings on there, if people want! Otherwise I'm thinking I'll do daily instagram or twitter or both readings starting here very soon.  Or all three? Let me know thoughts!

I'm @Seventhesins on Tiktok. 


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


You're all wonderful, and I'll update again soon with any new info on the campaign if I get it, especially with new pictures from the manufacturer as they get to work!


<3

your Publishing Goblin

7DA

Production and Shipping Update | Shipping in Feb/March and on
over 2 years ago – Wed, Nov 03, 2021 at 02:14:06 AM

Hello you amazing people!

Happy (late) Halloween, I hope you all got to do something spooky!

Need to update your address or check and see if you did your survey? Read this old update.

NOTE: I honored refunds for longer than I should have, but I paid the money to the manufacturer months ago and cannot refund people any longer. I get maybe one request a month, but just want it here for people to know and so it's in writing. Thanks.


PRODUCTION AND SHIPPING UPDATE

I wanted to give a (hopefully) final update on the production and shipping. Well, I got an update from the printer and manufacturer/fulfillment company. The long story short, we won't be shipping until February/March. It just isn't going to happen. The printer has had a hard time sourcing the cardstock in the amount they need it-- the factory in France they were getting it from folded and shut down. In the UK, there is no more book-quality paper left. They put the order for the cardstock they needed in back in March, but it never came. The world is just kind of on fire, in case you haven't heard of (or looked into) the global supply chain crisis. 


However, our printer has gotten ahold of what they need from Germany, and it is on the way to them by the end of November, as long as it arrives on time. However, with how slow and messed up travel and transportation is, I'm thinking we'll probably have a while yet on that, as well. The production of the books is basically done at this point, but the decks haven't been fully started yet.


That being said, the printer is telling me now that they should, on schedule or not, have 25,000 of the 40,000 we're ordering printed by the start of December from cardstock they could source from places near them, and they hope to have things traveling in the air to people end of January/start of February. I'm saying Feb/March with a bit more certainty, because I expect the world to still be slow even in the start of 2021.


Additionally, the cigar box needed to be made a little taller and the original production team we were talking to wanted to raise the price too much, so we had to source a new manufacturer. They have been grabbed and are good to go.


And finally, there have been power shortages and restrictions in the area where we are having all the items produced. Decks, books, tarot cloths, cigar boxes, etc. The printer has said this hasn't affected them too much, but it has slowed production on tarot cloths and cigar boxes by a lot, so they won't be done until mid-November anyways.


When this project started, it had a projected ship date of September. That was for an $80,000 project, expecting I'd print 1,000 decks or so. We went on to make 1.4 million $ and have ordered 40,000 decks. Just from that alone, production times in a COVID world, would have delayed us. Add on the supply chain issues worldwide? Worldwide slowdowns on transportation for goods and shipping? There's nothing we can say or do at this point but do our best to get things where they need to go. 

Thank you for your patience. I promise this is as frustrating for me as it is for all of you. But good things arrive when they are meant to, and this is a very good thing we did together. If this is your first Kickstarter, welcome to the chaos of watching a project go from its starting idea to its final creation. For me, at least, this is an abnormal and big slow-down for a project. But it's also just how it goes when a project gets this big, in the middle of a global pandemic, and during a time of crisis for supply and distribution. Let's all do our best to be fair and understanding for where the world is now. 

I have nothing but appreciation for Shawn and New Titan Print, who are doing an awesome job doing whatever they can to keep this project moving on the manufacturing end. Thank you for your hard work! 


MY WORK ON THE PROJECT

I have seen some comments and messages that have been calling into question my work on the project. A few people have said the project is taking so long because I'm procrastinating, or because my focus is split on other projects. I want to be clear, my work on this project is and has been done for months. There's legitimately nothing else for me to do on the project other than wait for production and shipping with the rest of you. I am working on other projects now, but only because there's nothing left for me to do in regards to this project at this time. I will have a lot of work ahead of me when decks start coming my way, 'Touched by the Alleyman' decks, signed sets, etc. But I can't do any of that until I have the decks, so I have had nothing to do the last couple months and will continue to have nothing to do for a while, as far as production and manufacturing goes.


I recognize that most comments and messages have been nothing but kind and supportive, and I see and appreciate you. But I am just one person, and the negative and rude comments have a tendency to outweigh the good in my brain, as they do most of us creative nerds. Recent tragedies aside, please try to be kind to one another in life. And if you have a negative or rude comment to share, do some simple research first to see if your opinion is founded in reality. Most times, they are just factually untrue. If you have real criticisms (such as not liking my updates that don't include updates on the project itself, which is fair!), feel free to share. I can handle and do something useful in the world with fair critique! However, most of what I've seen lately has just been people taking out disappointment and frustration with the world on the project. The world would be a better place if we gave one another some grace and understanding, so let's try to do that for one another. :)


ADDITIONAL UPDATES

I still intend to do a flip through of the print test I have on hand, but I want to wait just a little bit yet. I honestly thought we might be heading to shipping in November and December, and wanted to time it a littler close to the actual shipping, to get people excited. But now that the shipping date is pushed back 3 months, I feel like it's just too soon.  I will keep doing monthly updates, just hope I can share more fun pictures and videos from the manufacturer as we go! 


I also have most of the artisan, hand-made items in my apartment, and want to show those off soon! I apologize to those of you who are frustrated by recent updates where I note decks I think are really neat. I thought it was in-theme for this project, and it is making a handy list for myself for the near future when I go to compile the Alleyman's Oracle! All the decks I've shared I'd love to steal a card or two from for that. More than anything, I think the incredible success you have all made this project has also made it a perfect platform to share the news for small indie decks that are struggling to make their funding goals. We have single handedly made or broke campaigns, and you are all to thank for that. So thank you! I would have given anything for a big campaign to share my little projects when I was first starting-- not for money, or clout, or for a favor back. Just because they saw me and thought I was worth seeing. Being seen. So I share that, now.


If people have thoughts on final thing they want to see or hear, let me know! I'll try to include fun things, images, videos, and readings, in the next few months of updates. 




For now, I love you all and thank you for all your support!

As soon as I get pictures of finished book production or cloth or things like that, I'll share them!


For now, the future has answers!

We are often, lately, lost in the macro-view of our lives. In the systems beyond us, and have little faith in our actions having weight. In the face of the world which has judged us to be satisfactory or unsatisfactory, never finding the middle-ground of the radical notion of just being alive being enough, we are at a crossroads. Now, more than ever, we are faced with the realization that our choice to continue living in the face of all that stands against and over us is empowerment enough to take action. When you play a rigged game, you always lose. We have the choice to change the game.

What will you do today to reclaim your time, even in the small ways? Treat yourself to something nice, be it a moment alone, some overindulgence with leftover candy, or making a new choice for once. 

We are the masters of our own fates. <3

5 Card Spread

With love,

your Publishing Goblin

7DA

Decks that Have Come Since | Points of You Oracle | Nine Bridges
over 2 years ago – Thu, Oct 14, 2021 at 06:43:22 PM

First off, as always, if you need to check your backerkit survey or need to change your address, see this old update here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/713books/the-alleymans-tarot/posts/3244896

And a reminder from past updates that our new target ship date is by the end of the year, likely in November though.


Second, I have had the great opportunity to share the things I've learned with so many other people for their own kickstarters. I am a firm believer that knowledge should be shared, and I am always happy to give a little advice along the way to other creators. If you want to see my general advice, you can see my 7-post series from Tumblr here: https://publishinggoblin.tumblr.com/post/618565629221453824/how-to-run-a-kickstarter-pt-1


Of the decks I have made some suggestions on, I have two that I think really deserve your attention. I am not making money off of these in any way, I just talked to the creators and think the projects are neat.

Points of You Oracle

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mud-witch-industries/points-of-you-oracle-deck

The Points of You Oracle is a really neat, lovely, and clean deck made by Beth Kelley, a lovely human being who approaches the experience of living from a background in therapy. The deck is her passion project and she really just wants to get it into people's hands. Please consider going and following her project-- she's taking it live a week from today (Tuesday the 19th), and I know having this deck succeed is worth it. I would also love to steal a card from it for the Alleyman's Oracle, so help it thrive!


Nine Arches
Nine Arches

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/playninearches/nine-arches

https://bit.ly/3AxSBNL

https://www.playninearches.com/choose-wisely

Now, Nine Arches is a bit different. First off, they are offering this nice link to a custom landing page that gives you guys 30% off, a special gift if pledging on launch day, and they're also raffling off a free game kit. Signing your email up on their list here will let you know when they launch!


Nine Arches is what I have dubbed an 'Active Oracle'-- it's a unique deck that's also a game, meant to be used as a call-to-action to go out and have experiences in the world. I would love to steal another card from them, but we already stole the Time Machine for one of the booster packs, so they're already included! Absolutely keep an eye out for them, they are launching yet this month! Tuesday, October 26th!



Now, new decks on KS that I would be interested in for a future Alleyman's iteration...

The Cosmic Eye Tarot

The Cosmic Eye Tarot

There's just a lovely and intentional vibe of bright colors and lovely art here. Also, Lalania runs a metaphysical store in my area and I haven't visited, so I need to rectify that! I'm especially in love with the 5 of Wands. but the 6 just beside it is just so full of joy. How could you hate that? 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lalaniasimone/the-cosmic-eye-tarot


Blissful Dolphin Tarot

Blissful Dolphin Tarot

God, it's like cotton candy is fucking my eyes. It's loud and aggressive and soft and bright-- I don't think I'd find much use for a full deck like that, but a single card in an Alleyman's deck? Absolutely.


The Eternal Sun and Moon Decks

The Eternal Sun and Moon Decks

Art looks lovely, the borders are a clean and small foil, and that just works for me. They are already closed for pledges, but looks like they're doing on demand printing, so you should be good to get these decks in the near future. 

The Portent Tarot (and the Inuitive Night Goddess Tarot)

The Portent Tarot

Okay so this kickstarter has two decks in it, and while the other deck is more aesthetic and art and stuff, it's the Portent Tarot that I'm here for. The Alleyman needs a card from this.  Just look at it! I'm in love. (I backed this one, which is rare noawadays as I have too many tarot decks, but still...)


Tarot of the Artcanes

Okay this is frustrating because it keeps auto-translating which makes all the campaign text disappear and I can't get ahold of any images, but trust me. It looks fantastic. It's also a collab deck so the cards vary in design, but it looks just really nice.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/638074127/tarot-des-artcanes/description

The Next Gen Tarot

The Next Gen Tarot

Now, not all of this deck speaks to me, but the majority of it does. I'm a big fan of the strange blocks of color and deformation of shapes and bodies, especially various cards in the bottom row and that one in the center. Hell yeah.


The Pasta Tarot

The Pasta Tarot

Okay this is one of those moments where I wouldn't pick up the deck but I feel that the Alleyman would. It happens. The suits are replaced with pasta, and it's a weirdly queer deck (in a lovely way), so give it a look.


Zeke's Arcana

Zeke's Arcana

There's a strange and aggressive energy in soft colors, and decks like this really exemplify it. Like a My Little Pony switchblade. Would love this in my life. (Which is to say, I have pledged. God, these updates are as bad on my wallet as they are on yours.)

The Living Thread Tarot

The Living Thread Tarot

This deck is just so pretty. Please please please go look at it.  I have nothing more to say than that. I would buy it but I am stopping myself here. You don't need to, though. : )


Mars Power Tarot

Mars Power Tarot

Is it true that I only wear all-black? Basically. So why do I love art that feels like it punched you in the face with a neon-ink-stained brick? I may never know. This deck would absolutely have a card in the Alleyman somewhere. And it will, if I have anything to say about it. : )



That's all for today!

Tom Bombadill and I say hello from the eternally sleepy land of my very cozy bed. Thanks for all the well wishing and kind words. Talk to you all sometime again very soon! 


7DA,

your Publishing Goblin