WANTED: Contest ideas!! aka "excuses to send you free b

Chris OConnor

WANTED: Contest ideas!!
aka "excuses to send you books"

Contest #1 was the "Explore BookTalk" contest where you were asked to accomplish 10 super simple tasks. Four free books have been sent out to members who tackled these 10 items, but more will be shipped as part of this ongoing contest.

So what next? What should we do for Contest #2 and 3 and 4?

I'm hoping for some creative ideas. Shocked

How about a BookTalk poem contest? I don't know much about poetry, but I personally prefer poems that actually rhyme. Limericks are nice too. Cool

"There once was a book site called BookTalk..."

As you can see I'm no poet. And I know it. Cry Baby

Perhaps you can do better.

Or how about our own version of "Twas the Night Before Christmas?"

Yes, I'm looking for something fun that we can all enjoy and maybe laugh at a bit. But more serious suggestions are also desired. We can do some essay or even short story contests. And don't worry. No contest will only award one book to the 1st place winner. We'll always try to give away multiple books so that everyone feels they have a reasonable chance of winning.

You could even consider this search for contest ideas as a contest. Yes, that sounds good. The people that give the best suggestions will have a chance at some free books. So speak up! Smile

Chris OConnor · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 3:47 am Post subject:

Ok, since nobody came up with any suggestions I will create the next contest myself. Twisted Evil

Penelope · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 10:44 am Post subject:

Here is my poem Chris:-

Christopher O'Connor - that's Irish you know,
The Irish are bonkers.....but it don't always show
So, especially beware of those on the Net
'Cos they're very confusing....and I'd take a Bet
That those ones in Florida are doubly opaque
BT comrades, be warey for goodness sake!

Tread gently and slowly and be circumspect
The Celtic Blood's there, and without due respect....
That bloodline is firey, and will die for a cause....
So before you confront him....for goodness sake pause!!

As to ideas for Competitions.......I suggest our favourite 'one pic' cartoons.

Cartoons are great for saying a lot without a language barrier.

Like my current Avatar.....BT is my favourite 'Hole'.

President Camacho · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 10:55 am Post subject:

For a group of people that love books so much it's interesting that no one is coming up with any ideas!

Well, I'll come up with a contest idea to show some support for the contests!

The top 5 contributors to a BT Wikipedia entry will win the contest. Here is the link to the page:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booktalk.org

President Camacho · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 10:56 am Post subject:

I dont know if i made the page correctly or not. o well... you get the idea Wink

President Camacho · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 11:03 am Post subject:

OK I found out why it was deleted:

An article about a real person, organization (band, club, company, etc.), or web content that does not indicate why its subject is important or significant. This is distinct from questions of verifiability and reliability of sources, and is a lower standard than notability; to avoid speedy deletion an article does not have to prove that its subject is notable, just give a reasonable indication of why it might be notable. A7 applies only to articles about web content or articles on people and organizations themselves, not articles on their books, albums, software and so on. Other article types are not eligible for deletion by this criterion. If controversial, as with schools, list the article at Articles for deletion instead.

I guess I failed to indicate why BT is notable. Sad

Penelope · Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 12:47 pm Post subject:

OK - Pres. Camacho.....forget the poems.....forget the Cartoons.....and let us go for the impersonal....Wiki.....

Chris OConnor · Posted: Sun May 25, 2008 11:14 pm Post subject:

Penelope, very cute. Laughing

Mr. President, looks like your wiki idea is a bit more complex than would be suitable for this contest. Shocked

Ophelia · Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 2:27 am Post subject:

How about giving books to members who start successful discussion threads?

Chris OConnor · Posted: Fri May 30, 2008 6:47 pm Post subject:

This is an idea too.

Moon Knight · Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2008 11:17 pm Post subject:

I like the essay contest idea. Perhaps it could be designed to coincide topically with one or more of the books being read monthly/bi-monthly?

Chris OConnor · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 3:29 pm Post subject:

Yes, I think essay contests are ideal for a community based on writing about books and the ideas found in those books. But not many members have shown an interest in the "On The Importance of Reading" essay contest, to my dismay.

tarav · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 5:51 pm Post subject:

How about a contest for best avatar? (Yeah, I'm still in love with my new avatar.)

Seriously, though I am trying to think of some good contest ideas. I am not saying this is great, but it just came to me. How about we give books to winners of polls that ask yearbook-like questions.
eg. most funny BT contributor,
most eloquent poster,
most knowledgeable about the environment,
most knowledgeable about the classics,
most knowledgeable about religion,
most knowledgeable about memes,
most knowledgeable about evolution,
most welcoming to new members,
best avatar,
best intro. thread,
best blog

Anyway, you get the idea. Would this be fun and uplifting or would people get their feelings hurt if they weren't an option on the poll or if they didn't win the poll?

Penelope · Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 5:03 am Post subject:

Tarav

I think this is a great idea!

We could then vote for people whose knowledge we admire without sounding too fawning. I like it. Wink

Chris OConnor · Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 9:27 am Post subject:

Tara, this is a great idea. And we don't have to put names on the poll. We have 1200+ members so creating a fair poll that only includes a small fraction would be difficult. We could simply ask everyone to nominate their fellow members for various awards.

Example:

We have a contest thread here in this forum asking the community to nominate a few members that they feel deserve recognition for X, Y or Z. We could either award free books to all, some or one of the members on this list of nominees.

Let's give this a shot soon!


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