Love Between the Covers documentary by Emmy award winner, Laurie Kahn

Hey all.  Cindy here.

Two RWA’s ago, when the national conference was rerouted to Orlando due to flooding in Nashville, I had the pleasure of meeting Peabody and Emmy award winning documentary film producer, Laurie Kahn on the shuttle from the airport to the conference hotel.  Laurie was attending her first RWA conference and the purpose of her attendance was to interview several prominent authors about the role of romantic fiction in today’s society for a documentary film project.  Since that time, Laurie has been busy filming and just this past month, attended the RWA National conference in Anaheim, at which time she unveiled a clip from her upcoming documentary and continued with her round of author and fan interviews.  (I’m happy to say, I, personally had a blast with my hour long session with Laurie).

Like many other authors and industry professionals, I am so excited by this project.  For the first time EVER, the romance genre – writers AND fans -  is receiving positive, in depth attention as Laurie explores the ins and outs of the business and the driving force behind our popularity as a genre. 

Laurie just launched a Kickstarter campaign, and if you go to her Kickstarter page (lovebetweenthecovers.com) you can see a fun video preview of the film, which is going to be called Love Between the Covers.  IT IS SO COOL!!!

When the video preview was shown at RWA, it was a huge success. I think it’s fabulous and again, shows the industry and the fans in such a positive and truthful light.  I’m so eager for this film to be finished and made available to the public. But, for that to happen, Laurie needs a little help.  She has to raise $50,000 in pledges by Sunday August 26^th or she gets NOTHING. If she raises more than $50,000 by that deadline, however, she’ll get to keep EVERYTHING that has been pledged. So every gift really matters. I know she would be grateful if you could swing even a $1.00 donation.

And the really fun part?  Laurie is offering a wide range of donor gifts at Kickstarter, including copies of the film, first chapter critiques, a thank-you in the film credits, and tickets to the film premiere. As I said before, project supporters can give as little as $1, or as much as $5,000 (for $5,000, Laurie will fly to the donor’s hometown before the film is broadcast for an intimate private film premiere with the donor’s friends/family/readers, where she’ll answer any and all questions!). For a pledge of $35, someone who pledges can pre-buy a copy of the film, and also get a credit at the SUPPORTER page of the Popular Romance Project website and a fabulous magnetic bumper sticker. There are other gifts, too. Take a look at lovebetweenthecovers.com!

Many Kickstarter campaigns raise much more than their official goals. Laurie has asked for $50,000, but she actually needs more than that to complete the film and keep the Popular Romance Project moving forward. So don’t stop giving if the $50,000 mark is reached! (She is $200,000 short of what she needs to complete the film, launch it in the world, plan the symposium, and keep PopularRomanceProject.org alive and growing.)

When the film is finished, it will be broadcast worldwide, seen at film festivals, and used in high school and university classrooms, like Laurie’s other award-winning films (she’s won the primetime EMMY and Peabody awards, among others).

Love Between the Covers is part of the larger Popular Romance Project, and the footage Laurie and her crew are shooting for Love Between the Covers will also be used at a symposium about the deep roots of popular romance at the Library of Congress, in nationwide library programs about popular romance run by the American Library Association, and at a huge website looking at popular romance across time and cultures. You can already check out the prototype of that website at PopularRomanceProject.org – it’s well worth visiting.

If this project is completed, it will help change how the world sees the romance community.  Don’t know about you, but I would LOVE to see that happen and as I said, even $1.00 pledge can help – and the pledge process is easy peasy and painless!

Make sure you check out the preview at lovebetweenthecovers.com and if you have any questions or comments – even if it’s a ‘ Rah Rah!  Yea, Laurie!!! – let her hear from you right here today by leaving a comment.  And be sure to tell your friends about this wonderful shot in the arm for the genre as Laurie gives both romance writers and romance readers the respect we have always deserved.  Thanks!!

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