STRIKING DISTANCE
Woof!
Things at our Kickstarter project are looking great. Today, with one week to go, we passed the $5000 mark.
One of our backers, Audry, told me an amazing story.
When her beautiful Derby Dawg died at the young age of six (Orville also died at six) Audry found my photograph of the dog in the clouds online. In the email Audry sent out to let her friends and family know that Derby was gone, she accompanied the photograph of Derby with the image of The Dog in the Clouds.
I don't know how that happened, because that photo has never been published. Sure, I've sent it to a few friends, and somehow it got out, as everything does on the net, but it was just another grain of sand on the beach of the net, so obscure that finding it was a million-to-one shot.
That it touched Audry enough to send it along with the news of Derby Dawg really moved me. It's the best reminder yet that every dog is The Dog in the Clouds.
The Project
Kickstarter data shows that a lot of people don't pledge until the end of a campaign. Conceivably, for Kickstarters far less composed than me, this could mean a lot of sleepless nights.
Maybe it's time for a reminder for people to whom you might have suggested the project. Now's the time to email them or post on their facebook pages or pick up the phone. Bring your dog over to their house to implore them to pledge.
If there's anyone you think I should contact directly, please drop me a line either through Kickstarter or email me at brian@alittleacorn.com. And of course I'd love to hear from any of you at 310-237-3393.
Nothing has been a more productive fundraising tool than personal recommendations, so if you can think of anyone who would like The Dog in the Clouds, now's the time to let them know.
So - thanks to all of you, not just for the pledges, but for the powerful encouragement they have provided. Knowing that there are actual people out there offering tangible support has been the greatest boost I've ever had.
A Foster Dog
Tomorrow I'm getting a foster dog. His name is Tanner, and he's out of a home because of a death in his family. I'm going to document Tanner's whole journey as a foster and hopefully through his eventual adoption, on the project page for The Dog in the Clouds on facebook. The motto on the page is:
"Every dog is worth bragging about. This is the place to do it."
People are having a lot of fun posting pictures of their dogs and sharing thoughts about them. Those of you who aren't there yet - what are you waiting for? So far, one dog has been credited with a sudden ability to speak Russian (it was subsequently noted that he might be a spy), another with super powers (or at least a Superman uniform), and yet another with the ability to count to nine, possibly more but there being no way to tell as he could not carry more sticks than that at once. It's good there, and friendly, and I hope you make a habit of dropping by.
http://facebook.com/thedogintheclouds
And for anyone you might send a reminder to, here's the project link:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ambassador/the-dog-in-the-clouds-multimedia-e-book-dog-memoir
Thanks, everybody.
Yours,
Brian
94
Backers
$6,354
pledged of $6,000 goal
0
seconds to go
Funding period
Apr 30, 2012 -
May 31, 2012
- First created · 10 backed
- Brian Beker 3510 friends
- Website: imdb.com
Pledge $10 or more
12 backers
RUNTS: Receive a beautiful color desktop wallpaper image from the high Himalayan temple in the ending of The Dog in the Clouds. Plus an exclusive, backer-only link to footage of The Oldest Man Who Ever Lived. This is the last known time this 141-year old man (LA Times obit link at bottom) was filmed, and it has never been screened. In other words, there is no film of anyone older in existence, and you’ll be the first to see it. The wallpaper download and this amazing footage will be available as soon as the project is funded. The names of all Runts and the pets who love them will be published in the e-book’s "Runts" thank-you list.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2012Pledge $25 or more
37 backers
Be in THE LITTER and you’ll get everything a Runt does, plus a download of the e-book as soon as it’s ready (please note, delivery dates are for immediate items and mailed items only). The names of everyone in The Litter and their pets will be published in the e-book’s “Good “Dogs” thank-you list.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2012Pledge $60 or more
5 backers
GOOD DOGS receive everything the guys in The Litter get, plus one of the original photographs of Orville from the wall of pictures that is important to the e-book’s story, along with a handmade thank-you card from Kathmandu, plus some frames of actual 16-millimeter film workprint, signed and numbered, showing captured weapons that earned Brian the best film review he ever got: a death sentence for espionage in Burma. All Good dogs and their pets will be published in the e-book’s “Good Dogs” thank-you list.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2012Pledge $100 or more
14 backers
If you join THE PACK you’ll get everything above, plus your pet will receive a handmade Ganesh (the elephant god and bringer of good luck) charm for your pet’s collar, each one made in India and individually selected (it will take a few months to get these, so no precise delivery date). International orders please add $5 for shipping. These will reach you well before Christmas. Pictures of the whole Pack and their pets will be published in our “The Pack” acknowledgements section of the e-book.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2012Pledge $150 or more
4 backers
BIG DOGS get everything a Good Dog gets, plus an 8” x 10” photographic (handmade, not computer-generated) print made from the original dog in the clouds negative. Pictures of all the Big Dogs and their pets will be published in the “Big Dogs” acknowledgements section of the e-book.
Estimated delivery: Jul 2012Pledge $200 or more
2 backers
ALPHA DOGS get all of the above with two copies of the e-book download; plus an original, signed and numbered 11” x 14” black-and-white photographic print made from the original Dog in the Clouds negative in an edition limited to the number of Kickstarter Alpha Dogs. The names and pictures of all the Alpha Dogs and their pets will be prominently displayed in the “Alpha Dogs” acknowledgements section in the e-book.
Estimated delivery: Jul 2012Pledge $500 or more
2 backers
LEADERS OF THE PACK get it all: five downloads of the desktop wallpaper and five downloads of the e-book, plus a 16” x 20” signed and framed black-and-white gelatin silver print made from the Dog in the Clouds negative in an edition limited to the Leaders of the Pack (instead of the smaller prints). And of course the names and pictures of all Leaders of the Pack will be super-prominently displayed in the “Leaders of the Pack” acknowledgements section in the e-book.
Estimated delivery: Jul 2012
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