New Unleashed Gear Store

We’ve started a Cafe Press store for our logo products and for other gear for writers and readers. There are t-shirts, totes and other items. So far, most of the items are for romance writers. We do have some really cute things for writer’s kids.

All the profits from sales of these items will be donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. We’ll be adding products on a regular basis, so do check back often. Feel free to link to the store and let your reading and writing friends know about it.

If you will be attending the RWA National Conference in D.C. this month, we will have an Unleash Your Story table at Moonlight Madness. Be sure to stop by, say hello and check out some of our products.  That’s Thursday night from 8-midnight. We will have special conference prices for these items (plus you will save on shipping). Hope to see you there!

Three months, twelve hours

My countdown time is showing us close to three months from the beginning of the 2009 Unleash Your Story event.

Time for us to get the website in shape. Time for all of our participants to start setting goals, getting the TBR pile ready and thinking about the stories they are going to write.

Make it more fun by putting a team together. Your friends can support each other in your goals–reading, writing and seeking donations. The time is near. Get ready!

Getting the word out

I’m checking in from Uruguay to talk about getting the word out for our 2009 Unleash Your Story event. We’ve started on Facebook where our list of fans has grown from 25 to 66 overnight. Sure that’s a long way from the 1,000 fans we hope to have before our event starts at the end of August, but it is a great start.

Let’s take a minute to talk about our goals. Last year, we made over $11,000, which was great for our first year. This year we will raise over $20,000. How can we do that in a down economy where people have tighter budgets and little left for charitable giving? We continue with our philosophy of many small gifts. The beauty of our event is that we don’t rely on a few large donors. Instead, we spread the wealth to a lot of small donors.

Did I really say spread the wealth? Of course! Because we all know just how good it feels to give to a great cause. To feel as though we are a part of something bigger than ourselves. To truly make a difference in the lives of others and contribute to making the world a better place. Honestly, there is no better form a wealth than simply feeling content.

Now for the math. Last year we had around 140 participants to raise that $11,000. That works out to around $80 per participant. Let’s assume that this year the average will go down to $50 per participant. To reach $20,000 we will need 400 participants. Let’s hedge out bets by aiming for 500 participants and be sure to make our goal.

What can you do to help? First, start by helping us get the word out. If you are a Facebook user, you can start by becoming a fan of our page. Then encourage all your Facebook friends to become fans too.

Next, start talking to your reader or writer friends about forming an Unleash Your Story team. Think about your reading, writing and fund raising goals. Help us reach our goal of 500 participants and we will meet or exceed our $20,000 fund raising goal.

Together we can make a difference in the lives of young people with cystic fibrosis.

Brenda Novak Diabetes Research Auction

In support of fellow author Brenda Novak’s efforts to raise money for diabetes research, the authors of Romance Unleash have donated an Unleash Your Story tote bag full of books.

You can bid on our bag of books and lots of other fun items at:

http://brendanovak.auctionanything.com/

Our bag is item number 1389142. Bidding continues until May 31.

Find us on Facebook

We’ve created an Unleash Your Story page on Facebook.

If you’re a Facebook user, you can become a fan. Use this page to help get the word out about our Unleash Your Story event.

A Pacesetter Reader

Last year some of our readers asked for a Pacesetter Reader. Well, have we got a Pacesetter Reader for you in 2009!

Michelle Buonfiglio of Romance B(u)y the Book has graciously agreed to serve. She takes her reading seriously–see her post on the subject during our 2008 event.

Michelle Buonfiglio

Fair warning, I understand Michelle will be setting a really high goal!

Watch our site for more info and a Pacesetter Reader page coming soon!

Shhhh. Come a little closer and let me whisper in your ear–we also have a fantastic Pacesetter Author set to go. We’ll be making an announcement soon. For now, her identify is top secret.

Pacesetter author

Debbie Macomber did a great job as the 2008 Pacesetter Author. She set the bar high for our next Pacesetter. We thank her for all her efforts, especially for taking on an undefined position in a new event.

We started Unleash Your Story with the idea that our Pacesetter Author is an honorary position like the Grand Marshall of the Rose Parade (okay, I grew up in Southern California so the Rose Parade is high on my list of great events). As we say good-bye to 2008 and Debbie Macomber,the search is on for the 2009 Pacesetter Author.

Who will it be? Watch this space for an answer in the next few weeks.

Coming up

We have the final report from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation we’ve raised a total of $11,366. Thanks to all of you for your support. Now that we have the final report we will be tallying everyone’s efforts and announcing prizes. So–watch your inbox for our announcement.

As we make our plans for next year’s event, we will continue to blog in this space. Watch for more blogs about writing, reading and news about Cystic Fibrosis research. As a special feature we will be have occasional book give-aways from authors. Our first interview and book give away will be Thursday October 30. We will be featuring author Jeff Rivera . For a chance to win a copy of Jeff’s book, Forever My Lady, just comment on Jeff’s interview Thursday. We will pick a random commenter to receive the book.

Prizes!

Thanks everyone for waiting patiently for prizes to be announced. This is just a reminder that we are waiting until October 15 for all donations to clear. CFF will be sending us a final report on the 15th and we should be able to tally and announce prizes within a few days after than.

In the meantime we here at Unleash Your Story are catching up on our writing. We’ve been a bit slow to tally the reading and writing you’ve sent in, but we will have that shortly. I can tell you right now that between us we’ve written a whole shelf of novels and read piles of books!

Thanks to everyone for your support!!!

We did it!!

Thanks to everyone who participated, donated and helped get the word out!! We are officially over our $10,000 goal!!

There are donations still rolling in, so we won’t have a final tally for a while. But we do know that we have met our goal. We will wait until October 15 for final totals to come in. At that time we will be awarding prizes to participants–so watch your inbox for that prize announcement.

Missed your chance to participate? Come back next year or click here to donate now!