Tuesday, May 06, 2008

A Contest!

In order to promote Beyond the Reflection's Edge, I am starting a contest on this blog. The prize? Books for life! The grand prize winner will receive one autographed copy of every new book I publish for as long as we both shall live. He or she will also have the option of being a character in a future book, that is, I will create a character who will be a fictionalized representation of the winner, using a name and characteristics that we will agree upon.

Since contestants will accumulate points in this contest, I will be able to award prizes to others who do well. The second place finisher will receive the next five books I publish. Third place will win the next three books, and all of the top ten finishers will receive a free copy of Eternity's Edge, book two in the Echoes from the Edge series, when it comes out.

Here are the guidelines. First, post a comment here to let me know you are participating. You will also have to send me an email with your real name and address to verify your participation. I will keep your personal information private. Please send the information to bryan (at) dragonsinourmidst (dot) com. Of course, replace "at" with the @ sign and "dot" with a period.

Here is how you gain points:
1. Recommend Beyond the Reflection's Edge to someone. If that person buys it, send me a scanned photocopy of the receipt by email. The receipt must show the store name and the date, and the date must be on or later than today's date, May 6, 2008. Every bookstore receipt is worth twenty points.
If you have a receipt from an online store, I have to be able to verify that it's real. Since I'm trying to promote buying at bookstores, online receipts will be worth only five points, but that's better than nothing.Buying the book for someone else counts as a referral.

If you are unable to scan a receipt, you may mail a photocopy to me at P.O. Box 512, Middleton, TN 38052.

2. Email a digital photo of you posing with a store employee in a bookstore where the book is shelved. In the photo, I must be able to see the book on the shelf. Every photo you send is worth ten points, but each photo must be from a different store, and with each photo, include the name and address of the store as well as the name of the employee. Please let me know if I am allowed to post the photo on the blog.

Because some people live in small towns without any bookstores, I will allow you to ask friends to get photos for you. The friend must be in the photo along with the store employee.


3. Write an online review dated after the contest begins. Each new review is worth three points. The review must be on a public site such as Amazon.com or Christianbook.com, and the review must be positive. If you post a negative review, that doesn't help promote the book, right? I realize that many people have already posted reviews. Let me know where they are, and I will award two points for each.

If you want to post a review on someone else's blog, ask permission first. Don't assume that the blogger wants your review on his or her blog.

4. As the contest continues, at random times, I will post a quiz or a puzzle related to Beyond the Reflection's Edge. These puzzles will require possession of the book and knowledge of the story. Correct answers will be awarded points based on the difficulty. You will email me your answers. These questions might pop up here at any time, so keep checking back. The first person with the correct answer will get more points than others will.

5. Get someone else to participate in this contest. It's true that the new contestant will be in competition with you, but if you do well, you won't have to worry about that. When your referred contestant signs up through email, make sure he or she mentions you as the one who referred him or her. For each referral you will be awarded three points, but there will be a bonus. For every ten points your referred person accumulates, you will get another point. Does that sound like multi-level marketing? Yup!

If you get someone to participate, you won't get your three points until that person gets at least some points through reviews, photos, etc.

6. Make a video supporting Beyond the Reflection's Edge and post it on Youtube or Godtube. You can interview people, use music or artwork, or even recruit people to join the contest. If you don't mind, I would like you to include a positive comment or two about the book. Make it imaginative, funny, insightful, anything (within reason) to attract attention.

Posting a video will be worth twenty points, but only one video per person will count. As the contest draws to a close, I will award an additional twenty points to the person who makes the best video (in the opinion of the judges).

As an added benefit, I will send an autographed Beyond the Reflection's Edge poster to everyone who posts a video.

7. Make a poster about Beyond the Reflection's Edge and put it on a school, church, or store bulletin board. The poster has to be at least eight and a half by eleven inches, which is the sized of standard paper, and it must have an image of the book cover.

You can get the book cover image by clicking here. A poster needs to include where a person can purchase the book locally, or if there is no local place to get it, mention that it can be purchased online at Christianbook.com, Amazon.com, or another online bookseller.

A poster is worth five points, but you won't get extra points for more than one poster at the same school. You may put the poster up in many different places, but only one credit per establishment. To get credit for a poster, please send me a digital photo of you at the place where you placed it.

8. If you make a T-shirt and wear it while handing out fliers that tell about Beyond the Reflection's Edge, send me a photo of you doing that, and you'll get twenty points (only one twenty-point award per person). Remember to put on your flier where a person can get a copy of the book, whether locally or on the Internet, and suggest that they let you know they bought it so you can get referral points. There is no limit to the number of referrals you can earn.

9. I might also add new ways to add points, so keep checking my blog.

This contest will last until the end of June, and the decisions of the judges will be final. If you have any questions, please post a comment. Questions that are already answered in this post will be deleted.

I hope this competition stays loving and friendly. Although I hope you want to win the books, I also hope you want to share with others the benefit of reading Beyond the Reflection's Edge. As the series progresses, the spiritual value of the story will become clearer. Since the book doesn't overtly preach, it's a great opportunity to introduce your friends to a story that will lead them on a spiritual journey.

I will post regular updates with contestants and their point totals. My thanks to Wayne Thomas Batson. I got the idea from a similar contest he ran to promote Isle of Swords.

By the way, the photo above is from my visit to Nixon Elementary School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Why is it relevant? With the students' raising their hands, it made me think of participation. I hope we get many participants.

65 comments:

Sapphira Adi said...

I would like to participate in the contest! I'll send the email soon.

Sapphira

Anonymous said...

Count me in! My book buddies will be thrilled! This is kinda a crazy idea, but I like it!

Bryce said...

I'm in! Thanks for having this Mr. Davis. I do have one question. Can we mail the pictures to the same address as the receipt if we can't e-mail them to you?

Camden said...

I'll definatly participate in the contest!

~Elliot

Anonymous said...

I'll join your contest

Bryan Davis said...

Twin, yes, you may snail mail photos using the same address.

Ian said...

I think I'll try to enter tis contest....just not sure how much chancee I'll actually have to do all this stuff...oh well. :)

:)Ian(:

Lewinna said...

Ah that sounds like fun! Books for life sounds very appealing, since I NEVER have money to buy books. x_x I'm so swamped right now though.. leaving for Spokane this Friday, Bend next weekend, Los Angeles the following week, and then Maui. I don't imagine I'd be able to rack up many points... at any rate though, the idea sounds like a lot of fun, and I wish you good luck with the book promotion (I still have to read 'Beyond the Reflection's Edge'... the library doesn't have it yet).

Anonymous said...

I would love to participate in the contest. I am wondering if there is any restrictions for Canadian residence.
Thanks

Jessica

Anonymous said...

I'll try your contest Mr. Davis!

Unknown said...

I would like to participate! I shall email you now! *Runs with eagerness to her Email*

Famous Person101 said...

I would like to participate!
I shall email you now!
*Runs off eagerly to email*

Anonymous said...

I would love to participate in this contest. Considering the fact that Bryan Davis is one of my favorite authors, it would be awesome to have autographed copies of ANY of his books.

Tiffany Guild said...

This is such a creative contest, and what generous prizes!! My children and I would like to participate. Can we join in as a family?
We noticed you are going to be in Dallas about an hour from us, but at a school function instead of a bookstore. We'll miss the opportunity to meet you, but have prayed for your book tour, and enjoy reading your daily posts about how it is going. Thanks for the frequent updates!

CHOSENFOG said...

I don't think there is any way I can win this contest. :( I might still try it though. If we buy the books for other people, can we get points that way? I don't have a Christian bookstore in my town. The Christian bookstore in the next town is expensive, so I'd have to have someone drive me over an hour away to go to a Christian bookstore that doesn't cost as much as the small one in the town 18 miles away. We do have a Wal-Mart Supercenter, but they don't have good choices for books. It is a small "Supercenter", so they skimped on the books.

So, back to my question, Can we buy the books for other people and get points? Though I will probably have to use the internet...

Sapphira Adi said...

I can't do soem of these things because I have yet to read the book! If you need some ideas for people to get more points then here are my suggestions (1) post a review for any book from the DIOM series or Oracles of Fire (2) People buy a book from DIOM or Oracles of Fire or the new book (3) reccomend any of your books to a friend and they buy it. These are just some suggestions. Feel free to use them if you'd like.

Sapphira

Unknown said...

Oh.. I am definitely participating, count me in!

Bryan Davis said...

Jessica, there are no restrictions for Canadian participants.

Chosenfog, buying the book for someone else counts as a referral. I have now updated my post to include that rule.

Sapphira, if you read the book soon, you'll be fine. It will be a few days before I start adding puzzles.

Anonymous said...

I'd like to! I'll send the e-mail asap!!!
~dragonfire

Magma said...

sign me up!
I'll email through my gmail addie....

btw, what about us dragging an employee to the setup area you have at the bookstores you're doing the promo tour in??? would that count if the BtRE books are in the pic?

Bryan Davis said...

Magma,

Yes, that would count.

Anonymous said...

does asking a library to buy the book for its shelves count?

Bryan Davis said...

Library purchases count, but I would need to see a receipt just like any other purchase.

Craig Snedeker said...

COUNT ME IN!! WOOHOO!

andyreed said...

Count me in!!

Katie said...

I'm in!!! I'll send the e-mail right now!!!! ;)

Anonymous said...

DO making posters count?

Craig Snedeker said...

as Anonymous said, about about web banners and splash pages?

Bryan Davis said...

Craig and Anonymous,

I'm not sure what you mean by posters, web banners, and splash pages. Where would you put them? What would they say?

Shae said...

I would love to participate! I have a lot of online reviews already...*sends e-mail*

Erilea said...

Tis Lisse. I'm in! :D

Anonymous said...

I am DEFINITELY going to participate!!

Anonymous said...

***I know this may sound like a stupid question*** but what do you mean, buying it over e-mail??

thanks again!

Bryan Davis said...

Bookworm,

I wrote, "If that person buys it, using email, send me a photocopy of the receipt."

I hoped the commas made it clear that I meant that you should use email to send me a copy of the receipt.

I edited the post to say, "If that person buys it, send me a scanned photocopy of the receipt by email."

I hope that's clearer.

Anonymous said...

I would like to participate!

Moncowgirl said...

I'd really like to do this contest!

Dodger said...

I'll totally join! Sounds fun! I'll send the email soon.

Danielle Diez - Maiden of Emmanuel said...

haha, ya i uunderstand now!!! yay... oh i juts got your book yesterday and i'm already in my 180's or 190's.... i'm going now to read but ya!!!

Anonymous said...

None of the bookstores in my area have gotten the book. The clerks seemed to indicate it would be a while.

Bryan Davis said...

Jessica,

Please let me know which bookstores you tried. I would like to check on the supply line. You can use email if that's easier.

Anonymous said...

This may be a repeat comment, but when does this contest end?

Bryan Davis said...

Anonymous,

The answer to that is in the post, but it's hard to see, so I put it in bold. It lasts until the end of June.

Anonymous said...

I would like to participate in the contest soon, so I'll send an email.

Anonymous said...

I'll be in it! I'll send the email any second now...

Josh

Paris said...

I'm gonna send the e-mail to participate! Wish me luck.

Paris said...

Can we get points for doing a blog post on the book, tell what we like about it, and add a picture?

Bryan Davis said...

Paris,

Yes, a blog post with a review counts that same as a regular review.

Anonymous said...

I would love to participate! I am a little late, but I'll catch up! E-mail is comeing soon! Can we get for getting our library to purchase a copy?

Roheryn said...

ooh! I'll have to send an e-mail later...
I'm going to want to participate, but I'll probably wait 'til after exam week...
then I actually haveto get a real copy of the book...

Bryan Davis said...

djaq, for a library, I would need a photocopy of the receipt, just as I would for other referral purchases.

Anonymous said...

I'm definatly in and what about reviews can they be about any of your other books and how do we show you our review from our blog.

Bryan Davis said...

Timlovesyourbooks,

For this contest, the reviews have to be for Beyond the Reflection's Edge. You may send me links to your reviews by email.

Anonymous said...

Count me in too! This is Siobhan.

Anonymous said...

I do it if I can. I have to ask to make sure. My friend actually refered me to join so I'll include that in my e-mail. Just wanted to say we really enjoy your books. I didn't even here of them until probably not over a year ago and I have the first four so far. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

How many points will making a poster count for. I couldn't find it when I read that section.
Thanks!

Bryan Davis said...

Andrew,

Sorry about that. I updated the rules. A poster is worth five points.

Unknown said...

Whoa! This is going to be so much fun! I'm going to tell my friend too.
Count me in!

Unknown said...

I don't see my comment posted yet. I don't know if it worked or not or is just slow so here it is again.


WOW! I am soooooooooooooooo excited! Kale just told me about it and I would LOVE to participate. I'll send in the email in a minute.

Anonymous said...

cool

Anonymous said...

I am going to participate.
Sending the email now. :]

The Ordinary said...

Im joinin! sounds so cool!!!!!

The Ordinary said...

I posted some reviews but i didnt get any points! why is that??

Bryan Davis said...

Wanderer,

I can't award points if I don't know about your reviews. You have to email the review links to bryan (at) dragonsinourmidst (dot) com.

Rachel Kimberly said...

I know I'm starting a little late...
but I want to participate!

Anonymous said...

I would like to participate in your contest!




-Ryan