This was my comment:
I haven't read all of the comments yet so sorry if this is a repeat. I have no idea how crafty you are but I'm willing to bet at least a bit. This would take a little bit of work but as a Jim Henson fan, how can you really say no? (Easily, it's one syllable, I get that.) What if you made little dolls of your characters? Not all of them and they don't have to be super detailed action figures, sock puppet-esque things would be cool too. Then run a little giveaway. Book giveaways are always cool but I can get the books anywhere, one of a kind dolls made by Amanda Hocking herself (or whatever cheap labor she hires) would be bad ass. Or, if you paint, maybe a painted scene from your book. Or, if you're me, a really juvenile-can't-believe-she-isn't-mentally-slow stick figure drawing. These things would get me jazzed. Here's my blog if you need me to post about any giveaways. :)
Now, here's my question, and this has nothing to do with Amanda Hocking, I'm posting this directly after writing that comment so she's had zippy time to read it or respond to it, would you get jazzed if your favorite author did this? My answer is Hell Yes.
If Neil Gaiman or Terry Pratchett made dolls of their characters, I would collect them all. If I could only get them in a giveaway and the only way to enter was to buy a book of theirs, I would buy them all. This isn't just for them, I'd do for any of my favorite authors including ones whose characters don't lend themselves to dolls - Brock Clarke, Michael Chabon, Virginia Woolf, Muriel Spark, Eugene O'Neill, Margaret Atwood, Kurt Vonnegut, August Strindberg, David Ives, etc.
I just wanted to check to make sure I'm not obsessively weird. Okay, I kind of am, but would anyone else collect dolls of characters made by their favorite authors? Or am I on a whole new plane of lame?
If they were dolls of their readers, that would be strange. I think dolls of characters is a pretty rad idea. Not sure how it could be pulled off, but I like it! :)
ReplyDeleteAuthors do stuff like this sometimes for charity auctions. I think if it were a drawing or something, people would go crazy for it, if it were done by a well known author. Kind of a creative way to draw people in, though imagining Neil Gaiman making sock puppets of Richard Mayhew and Door just cracks me up. :P
ReplyDeleteAloha Libby,
ReplyDeleteJust stopping by to say I just *loved* your guest post over at DPK:)
I'm just a new follower, too :)
I would absolutely love to do this for my characters, and yes, as an avid reader, I would want these from my favorite books. Now... how do you make them not suck?
ReplyDeleteNo one said anything about not sucking. :)
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, this: "a really juvenile-can't-believe-she-isn't-mentally-slow stick figure drawing" really cracked me up because that is what I draw and I get made fun of by my four year old because yes, she can draw better than me.
ReplyDeleteSecond! Yes, I would totally buy a book to win something my favorite author had actually MADE. I think that would be so cool!
Considering that I was probably one of the only girls to buy a Nurse Julia doll from the 60's TV show, I'm all for it! I still haven't forgiven my mom for giving Julia, Barbie, and Ken away! Bring on the stick dolls! Julie
ReplyDeleteI like the concept. I guess it depends on if Amanda is into crafting. I'd send folks signed copies of books or gift certificates. Everyone loves gift certificates.
ReplyDeleteI don't know. I'm not really a fan of things like that any more. Used to be, but got so many that they cluttered up my room. And given the amount of chaos I live in, I don't need little figures to make it worse.
ReplyDelete:-)