Auctions: Golden Ticket and an ARC of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle


This is a Worldbuilders blog.

Let’s deal with the simpler auction first, shall we?

  • An ARC of The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle: The Thing Beneath the Bed by Patrick Rothfuss and Nathan Taylor. Signed by the Author.



(I think of it as Coraline meets Calvin and Hobbes.)


I’ve already talked about the Princess book over on this blog. If you’d like more details on it,you can head over there.

Simply said, if you win this auction, you can get an Advance Reading Copy of this book now, rather than having to wait until July when it’s coming out through Subterranean Press. I’ll sign it for you too.

Interested? Here’s the link to the auction.

Note: for those of you interested in buying a copy of this book, you might want to do so sooner rather than later. Last I heard the print run was already more than half sold out…

  • The Golden Ticket.



(Note, contains no actual chocolate.)

Ever since I mentioned I was donating the Golden Ticket in one of the early posts of the fundraiser, people have been asking me questions about it.

Now that I’m auctioning one off, I should clarify a few things to make sure there’s no confusion or hurt feelings after the bidding’s done.

In the previous post about the golden ticket, here’s what I said.

“If you win this prize, I will owe you one (1) favor. You can cash it in however you like.

You want your name in book two? We can do that. You want me to read your book and give you some criticism? No problem. You want me to attend your local convention, perform your wedding ceremony, or just give you a nice backrub? Consider it done.

A few stipulations:

* The favor has to be legal. (More or less.)

* It has to be something I can actually do. (Duh)

* I can’t make anyone fall in love.

Other than that, I’ll do my best to grant your wish….”

Aside from the last two sentences (which were really just a joking reference to Aladdin) I thought this was pretty clear. But since then, people have sent me e-mail asking questions that made me realize the wide scope of things people *could* ask for as a favor.

So here’s a few more formal guidelines.

Examples of things you could use the golden ticket for:

  • If you missed the previous auction, or just didn’t manage to win, you could ask me to read and critique your manuscript.
  • You could ask for one of the numbered museum quality copies of the Luring the Draccus posters. Phil was nice enough to give me a couple, and I’d part with one for this.
  • You could ask to get an early look at The Wise Man’s Fear. (As soon as it’s ready to show around.)

Examples of things you *can’t* use the Golden Ticket for:

  • I won’t give out details about what happens in the third book. I don’t go in for spoilers.
  • You can’t ask to change the course of the book so that, say, Kvothe and Elodin have a sex scene. Or Kvothe and Ambrose have a sex scene. Or so that someone dies, or doesn’t die, or has a threesome with Bast and Chronicler, or whatever. Sorry.
  • I won’t blurb your book. I’d gladly *read* your book and consider blurbing it, but that’s not something you can buy, at least not from me. I decided years ago that I didn’t want to be a blurb whore, and that I’d only blurb books I truly enjoyed and could recommend wholeheartedly.
  • I won’t re-name my child, buy you a car, beat up your ex-boyfriend, or become physically intimate with you.
  • Well… let’s call that last one a maybe. Anything more than a kiss and backrub would have to be approved by Sarah.

As you can see, there’s a lot of room between these two extremes. Someone asked if I would come out to their house, make them dinner, and tell them a story. My response was that that sounded fine to me so long as:

1) They didn’t mind waiting until I can work it into my travel plans.
2) They like pasta.
3) They don’t kill me and wear my skin like a coat.

See how easy I am to work with?

Here’s the link to the auction.

Remember folks, for every 10 dollars you donate to Heifer International, you get a chance to win fabulous prizes. Plus there’s the whole helping make the world a better place thing. That’s nice too.

And don’t forget, I’m matching 50% of all donations made. So why not head over to my page at Team Heifer and chip in. Trust me. You’ll feel great afterward.

Or, if you want to go back to the main page for Worldbuilders, you can click HERE.

With thanks to our sponsor, Subterranean Press.

This entry was posted in Golden Ticket, Subterranean Press, The Adventures of The Princess and Mr. Whiffle, Worldbuilders 2009By Pat28 Responses

27 Comments

  1. kellytobin
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 4:30 AM | Permalink

    Its funny you should put that last one in there about dinner, because that was what I was thinking I would use the golden ticket for. Not for you to come here, because I live in Australia – unless you’d be coming this way anyways – but I’d totally love to have someone else cook for me. Also, you seem like a pretty cool kind of a guy to hang out with. And as my favourite food is Someone Else’s Cooking, I’m sure I’d love your cullinary masterpeice.

  2. Simone
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 4:45 AM | Permalink

    What I am curious about is… are you going to pay for the postage cost for all the books? Because I feel that would suck for you… with over a thousand books and all… and us all living all over the world.

    But I’d def be putting my hand up for an advanced copy of Wise Man’s Fear.

    =]

  3. Anonymous
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 5:27 AM | Permalink

    My golden ticket wish would be something like.. Pat posts a picture of him and the the letter I sent him with him giving a thumbs up ;-)

    -Haiden

  4. Alucard
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 5:37 AM | Permalink

    Wow¡¡ If I win I would ask “The Wise Man´s Fear” signed by you :D or the dinner, or could I ask you the name of the third book? XD

  5. Anonymous
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 8:08 AM | Permalink

    Okay then… I won’t kill you and wear your skin as a coat.

    Instead I will just kill you and lay your skin in front of the fire place ;)

    To assure you… I’m just kidding, I like reading your blogs. The humor in it always make me smile.

  6. Bombie
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 10:08 AM | Permalink

    According to Wikipedia, the working title for the third book is The Doors of Stone. Yeah, more than one door. I know, I’m excited too!

    With a Golden Ticket I’d totally ask for your Friendship.

  7. Alicia
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 10:43 AM | Permalink

    Golden Ticket. I know what I’d ask for, but I doubt you could get me it. Should I ever happen to be present at a convention with you, Neil Gaiman and/ or Terry Pratchett; I’d like to be introduced by you to the other two as a slavering fan. That would set me up for life. Can you imagine? One rocking author introduces me to two others as if I belonged in that circle of awesome? Hell yeah.

    -A-

  8. Daniella
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 1:09 PM | Permalink

    I couldn’t find an option to onate with paypall on your donation page. Is there no option for that this time? *sad face*

    Daniella.
    p.s. You’re so cool… Me want golden ticket!! (And to-donate-and-be-a-good-person of course :D)

  9. Anonymous
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 2:00 PM | Permalink

    I feel the need to point out pat that you left your beard unprotected! Make sure it’s a rule they can’t make you shave the beard! We all know it’s your secret power source of awsome. And if that beard be bestowed to another person, that amount of power in a lesser man’s hands, the outcome could be devestating to say the least! ;)

  10. logankstewart
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 2:38 PM | Permalink

    This post was beautiful. I love Aladdin, and the last line about wearing your skin as a coat nearly made my day.

    Hope you raise tons of money from these auctions.

  11. Michael
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 2:45 PM | Permalink

    Is there a certain time frame that we would have to redeem the golden ticket in? I think I would want to hold the favor over your head until I thought of something suitably devious, while still being “legal” of course.

  12. Marie
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 3:44 PM | Permalink

    What I want to know is who chewed the corner off the ticket!

    Wish I had hundreds of dollars for this…it would be nice to have loads of unspoken-for money laying about for exactly such opportunities. Money does not buy happiness, but it buys some pretty cool experiences.

  13. Anonymous
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 3:51 PM | Permalink

    I’ll have to hope for the raffle to get my Golden ticket. The auction is already out of my price range. Checked out the Worldbuilder donations page too. I hope you set enough money aside this year Pat cuz I think you’re going to be giving at least $50,000 again. :) Next year you should put a limit on your out of pocket so you don’t go broke

  14. Anonymous
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 4:25 PM | Permalink

    As soon as I read the first golden ticket post I knew I wanted an advanced copy of The Wise Man’s Fear AND book three. I figure that’s easier than some of that other stuff anyway. Besides, who would ask you to change the course of your story? That would wreck the genius.

  15. Vulpes Fulva
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 6:12 PM | Permalink

    Well I already preordered a copy of “Princess” but an ARC would be freaking awesome.

    Also, I had a hilarious vision of you coming to my house and fixing spaghetti while we compared and contrasted Dragonlance, A Song of Ice and Fire, and your books.

    And, Pat, I won’t be mad at you if you don’t match half of the donations. I don’t want you and Sarah and Oot to live in a car. Charity is great as long as its logical. :)

  16. Anonymous
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 8:58 PM | Permalink

    Alright so I was doing some numbers on the auction and I figured out that since the current donation number is $89,110.00, but I decided to round up to $90,000 for the sake of easiness and we will most likely reach that soon. And you said none of the matching of donations has been put in yet, so, $10,000 from Subterranean, and you have $100,000, THEN take the $80,000 and 50% of that, and you have $140,000! Not including auctions or any other things. That’s what I’m assuming of course. So…is 200,000 a realistic possibility? There’s still 9/10? days left in this fundraiser and who knows what else will be put in..wow. You really are awesome.

  17. Pat
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 11:15 PM | Permalink

    Michael:

    There’s no time limit on redeeming it. You can save it for as long as you like before cashing it in.

  18. Alexis
    Posted January 5, 2010 at 11:36 PM | Permalink

    I find your particular blend of optimistic outlook and gristly humor strangely uplifting. It displays both a belief that people are good and will use this power well, and a recognition there are people who would wear someone’s skin as a coat…

    Why would this be uplifting? Maybe its that I hope my jaded nature can be overcome….

  19. Joe L.
    Posted January 6, 2010 at 1:16 AM | Permalink

    ok Pat — here’s a Big Question(tm) for you.

    How much to BUY a golden ticket? Why leave it to chance?

    (and no, I don’t have any nefarious idea of what to do. I’d probably just fly you out to Seattle on my dime and buy you dinner with my friends at some super-fancy restaurant…its about the *time*, not the $$)

  20. Charles
    Posted January 6, 2010 at 5:09 PM | Permalink

    Would you pretend to be my long lost brother at my birthday party?

    Or better yet, my long lost brother at our mother’s birthday party? That one would really throw everyone for a loop.

  21. Anonymous
    Posted January 7, 2010 at 12:16 AM | Permalink

    I would just ask for a conversation over wine, nothing fancy. Let me pick your brain, kind sir, and I shall do the same.

  22. tkempton
    Posted January 7, 2010 at 12:20 AM | Permalink

    Pat, you never cease to amaze me. I look forward to hearing how you grant the winning “wish,” and I commend your bravery!

    Sending you lots of love and best wishes for a successful auction!

  23. Tesse
    Posted January 7, 2010 at 2:13 PM | Permalink

    holy smokes, the auction is already at 8.200 dollar! That’s more money than I have on all my savings counted together. And with me all other students I guess :).

    You’re probably gonna be won by an old lady with lots of money.

  24. fairytail3982
    Posted January 7, 2010 at 9:57 PM | Permalink

    It’s up to $15,100.00 now. I don’t have the money to compete with that, but if I did, I’d use the favor to ask you to co-author a short story with me. :)

  25. Carly
    Posted January 7, 2010 at 10:47 PM | Permalink

    Are you going to tell us who wins and what they wished for?

  26. Garrett
    Posted January 8, 2010 at 2:50 AM | Permalink

    Just checked out the auction, ha. Glad you put it up there, looks like you did earn more money that way. Means I’m way out of the running though. $15k is incredible! Glad it’s going to a good cause.

  27. Izola the World Builder
    Posted January 8, 2010 at 11:26 PM | Permalink

    So i’ve been doing my part in this Fundraiser, i feel its one of the best i have ever participated in. Im am going to be traveling soon and wont be able to read your blog for a while Pat. Just wanted to say one last time…..

    “Izola the World Builder” has international best selling sequel written all over it. Love You All, and wrap this thing up the right way, by donating!

One Trackback

  • By A story, A gift, and A Book from Neil Gaiman on December 15, 2010 at 4:06 PM

    […] the rest of the fundraiser, I realized I hadn’t posted up the auction for this year’s Golden Ticket yet. The winner of the Golden Ticket gets one official favor from me. As the Marquis de Carabas […]

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