✨ Hi, I’m Karen Alleluia ✨ I'm a full-time illustrator who can’t stop drawing woodland creatures~ I draw everything from foxes to raccoons, bears, and birds and I put them up for sale through my art business, kluia! I am so honored to join several other authors and artists for Backerkit's Booktopia! 🎉
If you've been following me for a while, then you may know that I've been working on a blue-eared fox pup and story for a very long time. To put it simply, I have had no luck finding a publisher or agent willing to take a chance on me, but understandably so. My work doesn't quite fit into a children's book aesthetic, I have little experience in writing a book, and it's just hard for me to get recognized when there's an entire sea of new authors and illustrators born from the pandemic and AI. Despite all that, Fish's story and design have gotten so much love over the last few years online and offline that I finally decided to take this into my own hands. A self-published book is a lot harder to make and market but I trust in the skillset of my small team and myself and I know that we can do it.
By backing this project, you're helping an independent artist fight against all odds and tell a story that I believe has the power to uplift kids and communities. If you want to support what I'm doing, then please keep scrolling to learn all about The Blue-Eared Fox and all the fun items you can get in this campaign~ Thank you so much for being here. :)
Introducing my first-ever author-illustrated picture book, The Blue-Eared Fox!
By backing this project, you are giving me time to complete the story to perfection, and the resources to get it made with a high-quality manufacturer. The Blue-Eared Fox contains roughly 30 pages in full color, measuring 7 x 7 inches with a hard cover and matte finish.
The book's illustrative textures imitate those of risograph prints, using minimal and overlapping palettes to produce unique color relationships. The result is a warm illustration on each page that is sure to inspire whoever decides to flip through. At over 100 gsm per page, the book feels sturdy and comfortable to touch and will be a charming addition to any book collection, big or small.
Meet Fish, an orange fox pup with blue ears. Fish has a hard time accepting herself. Her favorite snack is blue fish and she loves wearing yellow. But every morning, she pours orange paint over her ears and paws, dawns an orange backpack, and snacks only on carrots and tangerines. She leaves all her favorite things at home because the only acceptable color in her outside world is orange. One day at school, a big, mean fox named Copper charged at Fish, throwing her across the floor. Large traces of orange paint marked her trail and everyone in class froze with their mouths agape. Someone whispered. "Is that.. blue?" Fish, with tears in her eyes, covered her ears with her front paws and ran all the way home. She gently washed off her paint and quietly crawled into bed.
The next morning, she sat up on her little tree stump to reach the mirror. Fish gave her reflection a long, hard stare, looking at her orange paint and back at her ears. She was done. She tossed the paint, put on her yellow backpack, packed some blue damsel fish for lunch, and confidently marched to school.
When Fish arrived, Apricot, one of Fish's friends, pulled her aside. Fish quirked her head as Apricot shakily pulled a handkerchief from her bag and wiped it across her cheeks. There was a blue spot on her face! Fish then looked around to see everyone in class with yellow spots, blue patches, and red fur! A paw touched Fish's shoulder from behind. It was Copper, fully draped in blue fur. Copper looked down with glassy eyes. Fish sighed, reached out for his paws, and hugged him.
Ever since that day, Fish and her friends chose to live colorful lives and build a colorful world together. And she never stopped snacking on blue fish ever again. 🐾
〰 Please note: All displayed thumbnail colors, compositions, and writing were altered to provide rough visuals and summaries for this campaign and story. The final product will stretch out across 30 polished pages and utilize lighter colors and minimal linework, as shown throughout the rest of this campaign page! Final illustrations will be shown during the book's completion to avoid any inconsistencies + confusion if some pages don't make the final cut. I hope you enjoyed the story! 〰
It all started with Fish the Fox Plush, which was successfully funded in 2021 as a fun, magnetic plush toy. Fish's magnetic snacking has garnered love from all around the world, selling out time and time again, so of course we had to bring her back for the launch of The Blue-Eared Fox!
Due to popular demand, we are offering one small and final round of preorders for Fish the Fox Plush throughout this campaign! We have no plans to restock this product after this campaign, so if you were looking for the perfect combo, look no further~
Strapped behind Fish's body is a little yellow backpack to store her fishy snacks for later, but it can also hold her other minky and magnetic plush props -- a tree branch and a red mushroom! All the details are tastefully embroidered to make a truly satisfying (and huggable) piece of art. Standing at under 14 inches tall, Fish the Fox will be your new favorite comfort buddy and traveling companion!
But don't just take our word for it! Here's what previous backers and customers have to say about adopting Fish~
These are products I have alwayswanted to create but they're super risky to invest in bc not everyone likes to wear this much color. Still, I love an outfit that pops and if you like my work, then maybe you do too! Everything matches the book and the plush and no campaign could be more complete. Here's what we can unlock together~ At $4,500, I can make heavy-duty tote bags with both print and different-colored textiles
At $5,500, I can make three (3) pairs of crew socks, printed all over
At $7,000, I can make bucket hats, one fully embroidered and the other with ears poking out!
Your shipping address and order details will be collected and calculated after the campaign ends through BackerKit surveys! Orders made in the United States will range anywhere from $8 - 18 for shipping. Orders outside of the US will range from $23 - 56.
I am not responsible for VAT or other import taxes and fees you may incur via your local customs office. For UK buyers: Anything worth more than £15 which is imported to the UK from a non-EU country is subject to VAT at 20% of the item value plus an additional £8 handling fee. You will likely be required to pay this upon receipt of your package, so please keep that in mind before backing!
We factored in the fastest shipping we can offer and we are working with very reliable companies for production. In case of any unforeseen delays, we have set the completion date farther out than when we actually aim to have all items shipped! These goodies are expected to arrive to you by May 2025 but we will be pushing for an earlier delivery date. Again, we'll be sure to update you via BackerKit every step of the way!
Please note that all the designs on this page are not final production! They are mockup designs and may change slightly due to small tweaks and modifications in the production process. But we will do our very best to match the colors and designs as closely as possible with our manufacturer~
Lastly, this is my second BackerKit campaign but not my first crowdfunding campaign! I expect to come across some learning curves with this specific platform, but with the experience I have with running a shop for over three years and the small team that will be helping me throughout this campaign and fulfillment process, I am confident we'll be able to keep up!
Due to the nature of this platform and us being a small business, we are not able to refund you after the campaign has ended. However, if your item arrives damaged or incorrect, please email us at ✨[email protected]✨ and we'll do our best to rectify the issue! Shipping delays can happen, especially if we're shipping out of the country, so we ask that you back this campaign only if you're willing to wait~ But trust us, the wait will be worth it and we are so grateful for your support!
Welcome to Booktopia — a celebration of creativity and collaboration from a vibrant collective of writers, authors and artists collectively running crowdfunding projects from September 5th -September 26th.
Limited Cross-Collaboration Freebies — All 50+ Booktopia creators have paired up with a fellow participant to create two unique and limited freebies together. If BOTH projects successfully fund, backers who support BOTH will get the TWO (2) cross-collab freebies listed on their campaign page, one will ship from each creator. The more pairs of Booktopia creators you support, the more freebies you will earn ✨
1 FREE Limited Edition Booktopia 2024 reward if you back FIVE (5) or more projects. Exclusive reward for Booktopia - Black Metal Bookmark (*design coming)
Leigha Huggins & Heather Lean x Karen Alleluia — I'm very excited to be partnered with Leigha & Heather for Booktopia! Both our books explore different animal worlds so we combined our covers' characters into this freebie moth pair. You can get a free foil art print / postcard and an exclusive enamel pin for free by backing both our campaigns, no matter what tier~ No extra steps needed! We'll see in our records if you've backed both our books. Click here to check out Leigha and Heather's campaign!
〰️ Why should I back this campaign now and not after it's over? 〰️
Here are some reasons why you should back now:
Many of these products are exclusive to this campaign so they will not be available anywhere else
Every pledge helps me reach stretch goals, which are projects that will likely not be funded or created outside this platform
These rewards are the most discounted they will ever be
And lastly, campaign funds are oftentimes only enough to make the project, but not actually profit from them! We come to you and ask for pledges because manufacturers have a minimum order requirement that's usually high in quantity and cost, but we usually don't ask you for more (like charging the time it takes to set up campaigns and fulfill them). Every extra pledge allows us to purchase larger inventory and more products in a cost-effective way, setting us up for success (and actual profits) in the future.
In summary, every pledge matters and the best time to get these products is now!
〰️ Why go through crowdfunding? 〰️
By pitching my ideas here, I'm able to get necessary funds from new + loyal fans all at once, making it possible to produce expensive products and order smart quantities in the most cost-effective way. If I'm lucky enough to meet my fiscal goals, I'll have steady inventory for events, my online store, and other sales channels and therefore steady income~ Backing this campaign means a bit of waiting on your part, but it's currently the best way to run my art business and sustain my career! I am very grateful for any support I can get and I always make sure the backer experience is a good one. 🥳
〰️ How do I specify the things I want? 〰️
After the campaign is complete, we'll be sending out surveys so you can make final selections of your pledge and add-ons! Please do so in a timely manner to ensure we can ship your product to you as soon as they are ready~
〰️ How do I get the free Booktopia merch? 〰️
You can get one (1) free pin from me and one (1) free foil print postcard by Leigha Huggins & Heather Lean by backing bothour campaigns! (Scroll up to Booktopia for all the details~) This will not show up in your survey after the campaign ends, but we will have that in our records and pop it into your packages if applicable. BackerKit will also send you one (1) black metal bookmark if you back at least five (5) different campaigns from our Booktopia authors and artists. Lastly, if you back at least five (5) children's book campaigns, you will also get a free matching-card game featuring all the kid lit authors in this campaign. With that said, you have the opportunity to get up to four (4) free pieces from this fun event!
〰️ Will any of these items be available after this campaign ends? 〰️
Most likely! I will sell remaining books and products from this campaign at in-person events and in my online store but at higher prices. Furthermore, I can't guarantee that any of the extras or add-ons will be available in the future, so if you can't live without it, don't miss out~
Thank you so much for hanging around! I'm everywhere online if you want to follow me. :)
