Every once in awhile I’ll use this space to promote something that I feel is important……other than the usual stuff. This is one of those times. For those of you that have followed the 50 States in 50 Days tour……you know that I partnered with the Orange Duffel Bag Foundation to try to help kids aging out of foster care in America.
UPDATE-We estimate that the book has sold 1400 copies, so we are about 600 copies from making the New York Times Best Seller List…….so, please pick up a copy today, or even think about gifting a copy to a local charity that works with At-risk teens. Or, if you have a sizable email list, please think about sending out an email to all your contacts. That would help tremendously. Let’s get it on that list!
The idea for the foundation was born out of my sister’s book that she co-authored with Sam Bracken, My Orange Duffel Bag-A Journey to Radical Change. I took the book on the road with me on the 2010 50 States in 50 Days tour. They self-released it. The book has won 5 national awards for best young adult nonfiction, best self-help and 2 international awards for best design. This coming week it is being re-released through Random House. We are hoping to make the New York Times Best Seller’s List in the first week.
How many copies do we need to sell to make that list? About 2,000.
My personal testimonial from taking the book on the road. I could go on and on, but in short, I saw foster kids get a copy in their hands and start reading it during my house concerts……..many of them cried, many of them powerfully spoke about the fact that they could relate to Sam’s story. Adults had the same reaction. I had teachers tell me that they bought books for their whole school and it had literally “transformed the faculty as well as the students”……..and “they would notice that it became a permanent fixture in many of the student’s backpacks.”
The first half conveys Sam’s moving story of overcoming a life of teen homelessness, poverty and abuse. The second half of the book is called Sam’s 7 Rules for the Road and gives his transformational change process. It’s an easy, fast and hugely impactful read (lots of cool pictures!)! If Echo/Sam can get 2,000 orders before June 12th, they will have a good chance of making bestseller lists, which will help spread awareness of this important cause.
So, I need you to buy a copy of the book before Monday, June 11th-the official release date.
Many of you bought the book on the last 50 States in 50 Days tour, and yes, I will have copies on the upcoming 50 States in 50 Days tour, but the time to buy is now! Please buy a copy to help my sister reach the goal of making the New York Time’s Best Seller list! Please share this post via Facebook and Twitter!!! And, if you already have a copy…….please leave a review in the comments below. Thanks!
Ok, Echo Garrett will do a live web stream tomorrow night (Sunday, June 10th) at 7pm Eastern time. She will discuss the book, the foundation, and chat with everyone. Why is that so cool?
Echo Garrett is the co-author of MY ORANGE DUFFEL BAG: A JOURNEY TO RADICAL CHANGE, which is one of the publishing industry’s biggest new self-publishing success stories. Echo and Sam Bracken self-published his graphic mini-memoir/self help book after being turned down by 60 publishers. Within a few months they sold several thousand copies and won 5 national awards for best young adult/nonfiction and 2 international awards for best book design. Simultaneously Echo and Sam co-founded a nonprofit called the Orange Duffel Bag Foundation to coach at-risk teens aging out of foster care system and homeless youth on how to change their lives and achieve their goals. For the last two years, she’s served as the unpaid president of the nonprofit, which has brought a message of hope to more than 1,000 kids. Now on the eve of MY ORANGE DUFFEL BAG’s re-launch by Crown Archetype, an imprint of Random House, with a first printing of 60,000 copies, Echo will chat live on Sunday night, June 10 at 7 pm EST, about her journey. MY ORANGE DUFFEL BAG is the first self-published book ever acquired by Crown, which had more #1 NYT Bestsellers in 2011 than any other publisher.
A journalist for 30 years, Echo’s work has appeared in more than 75 national publications including Parade, Delta Sky, Money, Business Week, Success, The New York Times and many more. She’s the author of 10 books, and has won many writing awards. For the last several years, she’s concentrated on book projects that inspire people to make positive changes in their lives.
You can tune in to the live webcast right here. I highly recommend logging into the chat facility on Ustream so you can ask Echo questions, and participate in the discussion. If you want to participate in the chat, then go to ustream.tv and set up an account. You don’t have to do that to watch, but to chat you will. If you want to connect with Echo on Ustream.tv, or watch it directly on Ustream.tv, then you go here.
Live Video streaming by Ustream
The chat…………..
Join the Facebook group “Help make My Orange Duffel Bag-A Journey to Radical Change a New York Times Best Seller”
Also, the Facebook event invite for the webcast.
