Friends of Freedom

What Friends of Freedom does

Friends of Freedom is a solo-authored historical fiction novel project by writer Sally Latham-Lawrence, distributed as a web-native serial on the WordPress site friends-of-freedom.org. The work is set in 17th-century England and chronicles early Quakers such as Thomas Lightfoot and George Whitehead, tracing the historical lineage from religious dissent and tithe-related persecution to the English Bill of Rights and, by extension, the American Bill of Rights. The novel is explicitly positioned as "Based on true stories," grounded in genealogical research and primary-source material including George Whitehead's memoir and Thomas Besse's "Sufferings of the Quakers." The product also emphasizes a youth-activism narrative paralleling 17th-century Quaker "Children of Light" with contemporary youth-led movements.

The published work is organized into a Prologue, Part I ("The Valiant Sixty") with nine chapters, and Part 2 ("A Light Unquenched") with five chapters, supported by a blog archive and an email newsletter subscription funnel. The technical stack is minimal: a hosted WordPress.com site with native email subscription, Facebook and X (Twitter) share integrations, and a donation/WordPress membership layer. Distribution is global and self-serve — any reader can access all chapters directly through the website, with no paywall, app, or physical product.

The revenue model is freemium patronage. All novel content is free during development; the author solicits voluntary donations at $5, $15, and $100 price points, available as one-time, monthly, or yearly contributions via PayPal and WordPress memberships. There is no corporate entity, no funding history, no employees beyond the author, and no disclosed revenue. The target audience is readers of historical fiction interested in 17th-century English religion, Quaker history, and the origins of modern civil liberties, including genealogists researching Quaker ancestry.

Name

Friends of Freedom

Website

https://friends-of-freedom.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Friends of Freedom is a solo-authored historical fiction novel by Sally Latham-Lawrence, distributed freely online via WordPress to readers of 17th-century English Quaker history, supported by voluntary reader donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Historical Fiction Novel

akta.pro primary industry

Interfaith & Comparative Religion Publishing (MPAJAHAK)

Keywords

• Historical fiction novel
• Serialized online fiction
• Quaker history narrative
• Patronage publishing
• Religious freedom fiction

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Others, Operations

Revenue model

1. Donations and Support: The novel is shared freely during development. Revenue is generated through voluntary donations at various price points ($5, $15, $100) with options for one-time, monthly, or yearly contributions via PayPal and WordPress memberships. This is a patronage/freemium model where content is free but supporters can contribute financially.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Friends of Freedom is a historical fiction novel being developed and shared freely online, set in 17th-century England and tracing the stories of early Quakers such as Thomas Lightfoot and George Whitehead whose religious dissent influenced the English Bill of Rights and the American Bill of Rights. The novel is published serially in chapters on a WordPress website, with voluntary reader donations supporting ongoing creation, research, and production.

Product overview

Friends of Freedom is a single unified literary work—a historical fiction novel being developed and shared freely online during its creation. The product consists of the novel itself, its Prologue and multiple chapters organized into two parts (The Valiant Sixty and A Light Unquenched), a blog archive, and a donations/support mechanism. The novel follows 17th-century Quaker figures including Thomas Lightfoot and George Whitehead.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Friends of Freedom (Novel) A historical fiction novel based on true stories about 17th-century English religious dissenters (early Quakers), tracing figures such as Thomas Lightfoot and George Whitehead whose struggles for freedom of conscience influenced the English Bill of Rights and the American Bill of Rights. Targeted at individual readers interested in religious freedom history, Quaker history, and 17th-century English history.
• Reader Donations/Support Voluntary reader support mechanism accepting one-time, monthly, or yearly contributions at $5, $15, or $100 tiers via PayPal and WordPress memberships, used to fund the novel's creation, research, and production. Targeted at readers who wish to financially support the author's continued work.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Tracy Chevalier: Bestselling author of historical fiction including 'The Personal Librarian' and 'Girl with a Pearl Earring,' known for deep research into religious and reform-era figures. Comparable as a literary historical-fiction author focused on religious and social-history subject matter.
• Geraldine Brooks: Pulitzer Prize-winning author of historical fiction (e.g., 'March,' 'People of the Book') who grounds narratives in rigorous primary-source research of religious and cultural history. Directly comparable as a historical-fiction writer whose work lives at the intersection of religious/cultural history and literary storytelling.
• James Fenimore Cooper (estate/catalog): Landmark historical-fiction author whose work on early American history and dissent-era themes represents the established literary-historical tradition the novel sits within. Comparable as a foundational historical-fiction voice around early American founding narratives.

Broad incumbents

• Friends United Press: Publishing arm of Friends United Meeting focused on Quaker and religious literature. Comparable as an established publisher serving the Quaker-reading niche that Friends of Freedom targets with its historical content.

Others

• Thomas Nelson (HarperCollins Christian Publishing):

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat1 record

Key risks6 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/friends-of-freedom

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Friends of Freedom