Arts Council England Decision

Well, I promised an update once I had my decision from the Arts Council England on whether I would be given National Lottery funding. Here was their answer, as presented through the medium of imagery:

Bugger indeed. Funding from them would have catapulted Rory Hobble and the Voyage to Haligogen to about 90% funded and would have provided funds for a lot of direct work with children. My eldest daughter was very upset and, frankly, so was I. The feedback was that there needed to be more public engagement in the application, otherwise I don’t think it was a million miles off the mark.

So, where does this leave us?

It leaves us with an uphill struggle which, a few days ago, I didn’t feel like facing. However, some wonderful people – primarily in the Unbound author fraternity/sorority/gender-neutral-ity – were very encouraging and I’m going to carry on crowdfunding.

I’ve come to the realisation that I need a large cash injection from somewhere. Here’s my plan of attack:

1. I have approached the Priory to see whether they may be interested in supporting the book in some way. They are, after all, a large, private organisation specialising in supporting people with mental health issues and they were the first people who had the onerous task of helping me tackle my own OCD. Perhaps they’d want to encourage me?
2. Courtesy of a tip, I have applied to Barclays for a sponsorship scheme they run for causes that the bank would like to be associated with. Who knows – maybe Barclays would be interested in supporting a book aimed at destigmatising OCD in children and social care involvement?
3. Re-apply for the Arts Council England funding – but with an upgraded application. My thinking here is that, if I didn’t have enough public engagement in my first application, then maybe I can add some for a second shot at the prize. I’ve started looking for children’s book festivals I could attend, as well as other events, and if I find enough then maybe a second application will be successful.

What’s that you’re saying? ‘How can I help you, Max?’ Glad you asked. Well, as ever, if there is someone you know who might be interested in supporting the book then let them know about it. Secondly, if you know any organisation that may be interested in hosting some form of event that could involve my good self, then let me know at maximilianhawker@gmail.com.

Let’s take a moment to remember what this book is about. It’s about giving children a message: if you suffer with OCD (or, indeed, any mental health issue), or if you have social care involvement in your life, then it doesn’t mean you are worthless. You can succeed, you can be happy and you have courage within you. OCD Action have already agreed that the book will be included in an OCD support pack sent out to 100 UK schools. I have already booked talks at Croydon schools to discuss my book and themes it presents. In September, I'll be travelling up to Birmingham Council to talk to Adult Social Care about the realities of OCD. I don't want all of this to be for nothing.

I will keep up the crowdfunding for as long as I can, but I can’t do it forever and with quite an epically busy close of the year ahead of me (both at work and at university), I won’t be able to sink hours into trying to drum up support. I think it's now or never time.

Thank you, as always, for your support (it's humbling). That’s all for now!