Nicole Dieker is creating
a novel: The Biographies of Ordinary People
Three sisters, their parents, and the past 27 years.
43
$378.14
Milestone Goals
The story begins.
With $800 in monthly pledges, I can set aside one afternoon per week to work on my novel. (I am currently writing chapters on the weekends.) So this is our first goal, and I hope we can achieve it together.
The audiobook begins.
You know how, in the beginning of the book (SPOILER ALERT) Meredith reads Matilda aloud to her sisters? I'm going to read my book aloud to you. I'll set it up like a podcast and you can subscribe and get one chapter per week, in your ears, for free. If you heard me read my short fiction aloud at Space Time with Marian Call and Friends or The Billfold LIVE!, you know this'll be worth it.
About
Freelance writer. You might have seen my work on The Billfold, The Write Life, or Boing Boing. I wrote the piece about a post-apocalyptic Neko Atsume.
Location
Seattle, WA, USA
Top PatronsSee all 43
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Hi! I'm Nicole Dieker, and I'm a full-time freelance writer. I write about five short articles per day for a number of websites you might recognize including The Billfold, Boing Boing, SparkLife, and The Penny Hoarder.
I'm asking you to help me write something bigger. It's a story I've wanted to tell for a long time, called The Biographies of Ordinary People.
New chapters on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
What is Patreon?
Patreon is kind of like a PBS pledge drive, or a Netflix subscription. With this project, you'll pledge a set number of dollars per month to support The Biographies of Ordinary People. You get to choose how many dollars.
Like a PBS pledge drive, you get rewards based on your pledge level. And, like a Netflix subscription, you get access to subscriber-only content, including the patron-only stream.
What is The Biographies of Ordinary People?
The Biographies of Ordinary People is the story of the Gruber family: Rosemary and Jack, and their children Meredith, Natalie, and Jackie. The story begins in 1989, on Rosemary's thirty-fifth birthday; it ends in 2016, on Meredith's thirty-fifth birthday.
If you like Mad Men or Little Women, you'll like this.
Why this story, and why Patreon?
Watch the video to learn why this story is important to me.
And here's why Patreon: I've been writing short articles and blog posts for a number of clients for the past three years. You've probably read some of them, since I often publish between 3-6 pieces per day.
But I also want to tell bigger stories. To do that, I need both time and financial support, because the writing of these stories will come out of what would otherwise be hot takes and short articles. (Essentially I want to write 12 pieces a week instead of 15, and use that extra space to write this novel.)
I also want to give you all something that I think you will value. A quick moment of connection in your busy week. We connect through truth, and stories are sometimes the truest things there are.
Do you have any experience with novel-writing? How do we know you can pull this off?
I have already written an (unpublished) novel called The Red Book of Cordia. Last year, I published a weekly episodic story at The Billfold. I am also a freelance writer who has been hitting deadlines for multiple clients for years.
So... novel-writing, episodic storytelling, deadline-hitting... I can pull this off.
How is this going to work?
I've put a lot of thought into this, to make The Biographies of Ordinary People something that holds up both as a novel in its own right and specifically as a novel written for the internet.
My favorite stories have nearly all been episodic and long-ranging. Think Anne of Green Gables, Little Women, Ballet Shoes, or newer books like Meg Wolitzer's The Interestings. You get a series of episodes in a person's life, and the person gradually ages as the novel progresses, and at the end you've watched a person grow from childhood to adulthood—and you've watched all the people around them grow and change too.
And this structure is perfect for online storytelling and for Patreon. You'll receive one episode every Thursday, and there aren't going to be a lot of cliffhangers. Each episode will probably take about 10 minutes to read, so it will be the sort of thing that fits into your day like a webcomic or the newest episode of Welcome to Night Vale. If you accidentally skip one, you aren't going to lose track of the story—but, of course, I hope you read them all.
Can I read the novel without pledging?
Yes. I'm making every chapter available, for free, here.
I'm doing this for three reasons: first, because I know not everyone can afford to pledge; second, because I know that supportive readers are just as valuable as cash money; third, because I hope people will get hooked on the chapters and then decide to pledge. (Mwah ha ha.)
Can I read a sample chapter before I pledge?
Yes! Read the first chapter here, or read the first chapter with my annotations here.
We're helping you. How are you going to help other creators?
I'm taking 10 percent of the money you give me and putting it back into other Patreons. So if you all pledge $800 a month to my Patreon, I'll take $80 of that and pledge it to other Patreons. Giving back is as important as creating.
I'm asking you to help me write something bigger. It's a story I've wanted to tell for a long time, called The Biographies of Ordinary People.
New chapters on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
What is Patreon?
Patreon is kind of like a PBS pledge drive, or a Netflix subscription. With this project, you'll pledge a set number of dollars per month to support The Biographies of Ordinary People. You get to choose how many dollars.
Like a PBS pledge drive, you get rewards based on your pledge level. And, like a Netflix subscription, you get access to subscriber-only content, including the patron-only stream.
What is The Biographies of Ordinary People?
The Biographies of Ordinary People is the story of the Gruber family: Rosemary and Jack, and their children Meredith, Natalie, and Jackie. The story begins in 1989, on Rosemary's thirty-fifth birthday; it ends in 2016, on Meredith's thirty-fifth birthday.
If you like Mad Men or Little Women, you'll like this.
Why this story, and why Patreon?
Watch the video to learn why this story is important to me.
And here's why Patreon: I've been writing short articles and blog posts for a number of clients for the past three years. You've probably read some of them, since I often publish between 3-6 pieces per day.
But I also want to tell bigger stories. To do that, I need both time and financial support, because the writing of these stories will come out of what would otherwise be hot takes and short articles. (Essentially I want to write 12 pieces a week instead of 15, and use that extra space to write this novel.)
I also want to give you all something that I think you will value. A quick moment of connection in your busy week. We connect through truth, and stories are sometimes the truest things there are.
Do you have any experience with novel-writing? How do we know you can pull this off?
I have already written an (unpublished) novel called The Red Book of Cordia. Last year, I published a weekly episodic story at The Billfold. I am also a freelance writer who has been hitting deadlines for multiple clients for years.
So... novel-writing, episodic storytelling, deadline-hitting... I can pull this off.
How is this going to work?
I've put a lot of thought into this, to make The Biographies of Ordinary People something that holds up both as a novel in its own right and specifically as a novel written for the internet.
My favorite stories have nearly all been episodic and long-ranging. Think Anne of Green Gables, Little Women, Ballet Shoes, or newer books like Meg Wolitzer's The Interestings. You get a series of episodes in a person's life, and the person gradually ages as the novel progresses, and at the end you've watched a person grow from childhood to adulthood—and you've watched all the people around them grow and change too.
And this structure is perfect for online storytelling and for Patreon. You'll receive one episode every Thursday, and there aren't going to be a lot of cliffhangers. Each episode will probably take about 10 minutes to read, so it will be the sort of thing that fits into your day like a webcomic or the newest episode of Welcome to Night Vale. If you accidentally skip one, you aren't going to lose track of the story—but, of course, I hope you read them all.
Can I read the novel without pledging?
Yes. I'm making every chapter available, for free, here.
I'm doing this for three reasons: first, because I know not everyone can afford to pledge; second, because I know that supportive readers are just as valuable as cash money; third, because I hope people will get hooked on the chapters and then decide to pledge. (Mwah ha ha.)
Can I read a sample chapter before I pledge?
Yes! Read the first chapter here, or read the first chapter with my annotations here.
We're helping you. How are you going to help other creators?
I'm taking 10 percent of the money you give me and putting it back into other Patreons. So if you all pledge $800 a month to my Patreon, I'll take $80 of that and pledge it to other Patreons. Giving back is as important as creating.