It’s no secret that universities are more and more organized like corporations these days, and that funding for research is increasingly invested into applied sciences and fields with obvious potential to generate profit. As a result, historians and other humanities scholars even with stellar academic track records are forced to be inventive as jobs are getting scarcer by the year.
From its inception in 2013, Forbidden Histories has been a labour of love – I currently receive no regular funding for my work and pay all expenses to run this website, produce Youtube videos, and promote FH out of my own pocket. (Sadly, ad revenue and Amazon/AbeBooks affiliate commissions do not even begin to cover the costs of running FH.)
Some of you may already have noticed the Patreon logo, which began appearing here on FH a couple of weeks ago. While I haven’t given up hope of returning to academia at least for another fixed-term research post just yet, my private funds are running out, and I have no choice but to explore alternative income options.
If you value my research and outreach activities, and if you would like to help keep Forbidden Histories going, please consider a pledge on Patreon (to go to my profile, click here or on the Patreon logo). Starting at $2 a month, your patronage will come with various rewards for you and can be cancelled any time (pledges are actually taken monthly rather than up-front).
Some of the ongoing projects your pledge will support are, for example:
- two book chapters I was invited to write for edited volumes, to be published by Oxford University Press and Routledge respectively;
- an extensively researched reconstruction of William James’ studies of the trance medium Leonora Piper (drawing on newly discovered archival material at Cambridge and various collections in the USA), to be completed and submitted in two parts to a leading history of science journal; and not least
- the planned annotated research guide to materials on the history of science and magic at Cambridge University, which I’ve outlined here.
Apart from allowing me to continue publishing my research, producing more Youtube videos, and of course running the Forbidden Histories website and associated Facebook and Twitter accounts, as a long-term goal your patronage will also support the foundation of a planned academic research centre for the history of science and magic (of which I hope to share some details soon).
As part of this official launch of my Patreon profile, all existing and new patrons will enter a prize draw for a copy of Deborah Harkness’ classic, John Dee’s Conversations with Angels: Cabala, Alchemy, and the End of Nature (Cambridge University Press, 2008 reprint of the original 1999 edition). For a chance to win the book, simply make a pledge on Patreon by 28 February 2019 (10pm GMT).
If you’d like to buy a copy of the book: [US readers] [UK readers] [Search on Abebooks] (affiliate links)
The winner will be selected and informed by email on 1 March (free shipping is included regardless of your country of residence), and provided they are happy for me to do so, will be announced by name here on Forbidden Histories.
Regardless of your decision to make a pledge and enter the competition, there are many other ways in which you can effectively support my work. The easiest is simply by sharing your favourite Forbidden Histories articles and videos, either by email or on social media, with those of your family members, friends and colleagues who might appreciate them.
With sincere thanks for your support,
Andreas Sommer
