It’s that time of year again. You see the banners, you read the posts — but why is the OTW asking for money? Well, one of the many reasons that the Organization for Transformative Works is awesome is that we don’t have any advertising, which is why we rely on your support.
When visiting any of our websites, you don’t have to worry about having a fanwork or article squeezed into a corner of your screen by advertising or accidentally clicking on an advert. The OTW and its projects are free of any advertising.
The reasons the OTW does not accept any advertising tie into some of the founding principles of the Organization itself.
In a presentation for the Nine Worlds convention in August 2013, OTW staffer Lucy Pearson described some of these principles: “The reason the OTW was formed really had to do with the fundamental lack of security that fans have when they rely on commercial platforms to host their work… Any site that’s for profit and dependent on advertisers is very rarely going to stick its neck out for users in the face of advertiser pressure.”
Many of us have, over the years, seen beloved works disappear in purges. With the OTW, there is no pressure from anyone to remove content to be more attractive to advertisers. This allows the OTW to give our undivided loyalty to our users.
While not having advertising is brilliant, it means that we need your help to function and maintain our awesomeness. Your donation of US$10 or more allows the OTW to continue to provide you with the ad-free sites that you know and love. Help preserve our freedom and our works! Please donate today. The goal of this fundraiser is to raise $70,000 for the OTW. We are well on our way! Please help us meet our goal today.