Venture capital is a powerful tool for entrepreneurship—one that can help overcome some of the numerous challenges of starting and scaling a new business. But the path of deciding if, when, and how to raise early-stage venture capital is navigated most easily by those with past experience, insider knowledge, and the right connections. It’s notoriously easy for founders to take wrong turns in their path to successfully finance a company.

The lead author of this Guide, Andy Sparks, raised $17M for his last startup—having failed to secure any funding for his first company. He’d moved to Silicon Valley without a network, and spent the next four years piecing together how fundraising works, from hundreds of conversations, countless hours of internet searches, and multiple $900 sessions with lawyers.

Learning how to fundraise doesn’t have to be so painful—or so costly. Anyone aspiring to build a company should have access to the experiences and knowledge of those who have gone before. We’ve pulled together 40 experts—lawyers, founders, and investors—to build a practical Guide that helps founders approach the process with confidence.

At Holloway, we imagine a place on the web where depth, quality, and high-value writing are the norm. A place where experts’ ideas are accessible to anyone. Where thoughtful, inclusive, and well-written resources win over quick takes, self-promoting blog posts, and content marketing.

We believe you, the reader, know the difference. It’s the 2020s. You recognize sites riddled with ads and clickbait headlines. Deep and comprehensive resources take expertise, time, and money to build. By buying access to this title, you’re supporting a place online that makes longform reading a pleasure—and allowing us to pay authors, contributors, engineers, and editors who build and improve them. Holloway is a new and powerful way to publish. We hope you’ll join us on the journey.

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