West By Sea on a quest for numbered treasure

Posted on 2013/03/15 by admin

 

Masquerade Book Cover

 

I’m a huge fan of codes, ciphers, word plays, puns (as you’ve discovered this week on Twitter), maps, treasure hunting and quests. And for a while now I’ve wanted to do a book like one of my favorites from grammar school: Masquerade by Kit Williams (on Amazon).  Well now thanks to your support it looks like West By Sea can actually be that book.

If you’re not familiar with Masquerade, you should start at Wikipedia.  The images are stunning all by themselves but the code is intricate and must be solved in multiple layers. West By Sea will include a similar multi-layered code. As I looked more and more at the trip itinerary, it became very clear that for a certain code key to work it HAD to be used on THIS trip for THIS book. The format was too perfect.  This has kept me up late nights all week.  The code structure is ready. All I need are 104 pages in a book format. The first layer will be relatively easy, and successive layers will require both insight and industry.

The answer to the final coded layer is not intended to lead to an actual treasure as it did in Masquerade. That would probably be considered a “contest” and against the Kickstarter rules. This will be a puzzle book, equally open and accessible to all backers. Plus a daily blog and a cool book about world travel.

So, here’s why you should be excited. This Kickstarter campaign will be the one and only time any clues will be released prior to publication. After publication there will be a quiet period of at least 3 months to let people work through the clues themselves and complete the puzzle.

I will release the first clue on your exclusive postcard from the ship.  So if you’re already a $12 backer or above you will get this clue.  THEN, I will release a new clue to BACKERS ONLY for each time the West By Sea project adds 250 backers. The more people you persuade to back this project, the more clues YOU will receive.

Less than 200 backers to go before unlocking another backer clue…  (and only 16 days left…) We can do this!

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Update #5: Blog and Book (alpha test)

Posted on 2013/03/13 by admin
West By Sea Update #5

West By Sea Update #5

(You can also view this update on the Kickstarter project page.)

Hi everyone, it was a busy weekend. Did we mention we hate daylight savings time? That’s one reason we’re going WEST by sea – 25 hour days!

  • Updated the KS video (new Ed outtake) and posted to new YouTube channel
  • Received sponsored Juicies cables & swapped into the WBS command center
  • Drafted guest blog post for Jetset Times.
  • Started collecting Twitter followers: Sun/0, Mon/31, Tues/86, Weds/131 and counting. Follow us!
  • Contacted by Drobo about sponsoring their product
  • Contacted by a potential 5th segment backer
  • Added a whole bunch of new rewards ($100 ‘certificate’, $150 ‘segmenter’, $180 ‘bookbinder’)
  • Stickied by Slacker’s Haven (thanks Andy)
  • Downloaded Adobe CS 6 applications to start the free trial month.
  • (Plus we started cleaning the entire house for the showing on Saturday 3/16… Whew.)

Today we’re going to share two things. First some ‘sample’ blog entries and then a concept sketch for the book.

So, the problem with doing a project about the future is your actual content hasn’t happened yet. It’s hard to show all the backers what they’re backing. Fortunately we’ve done a lot of travel and can pull from our “back catalog”. So we did mock-ups of what two typical days might look like. We modeled having only 30 minutes to post from a slow satellite connection over a web interface. Thank goodness for WordPress: the test went great.

Click the screen shots to view the blog entries. You can also view them as a PDF.

Sample-Blog-75

Sample-Blog-67

Keep in mind that these are only mock-ups. The actual posts will contain comments and photos about actual events in near real-time.

Once we’re back it’ll be time to finalize the book. This is why we want to bring really reliable IT gear like the Drobo and the Macbook Pro – we need to ship the book by November. The more work that gets done underway, the quicker it goes to print and then out to you. So we’re getting up to speed again with InDesign and Illustrator.

Here’s our first concept sketch of Day 28 and Day 29.

WBS-Book-Alpha

For each day we need to fit in a quote, tribute, photos, ships position, day/date/activity and a writeup about the day. That’s a lot to cram into a 9″x6″ page! We intend for each segment to have a different layout, color scheme and elements. We’ll be collecting textures and elements along the way. The working titles for each segment are:

  1. Oceanus: Sydney to Dubai (Far East and Africa feel)
  2. Mediterranius: Dubai to London (Egypt, Middle East and European feel)
  3. Atlantius: London to New York (Scandinavian feel)
  4. Pan Americus: New York to Los Angeles (Caribbean and Central American feel)
  5. Pacificus: Los Angeles to Sydney (South Seas Islands feel)

The book will probably be filled with “easter eggs”. More on that in later updates. If you’re imaginative you can probably guess what some of them might be from the concept drawing.

That’s it for now. Our success – collective success – depends on you, SHARING this project with your networks. Do you know a school full of kids that might like to follow along? Are you a member of an alumni group who would benefit from vicarious travel? Do you have a media contact who might spread the word? Then it really is up to you!

As always THANKS for your faith and commitment to Join us on the Journey.

—————-

Ed & Michelle
westbysea@gmail.com
www.westbysea.com

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How did the Pied Piper do it?

Posted on 2013/03/10 by admin
Pied Piper of Hamelin and his rats

Pied Piper of Hamelin and his rats

Today we’re thinking about followers. Twitter, Facebook, Kickstarter. There are online companies who guarantee you tens of thousands of followers. Our concern is those followers are actually follow-bots or worse sweatshops filled with drudges at computers.  I’m sure many are completely legitimate, but the scale seems daunting on such a short timeframe. Our Kickstarter timeframe ends March 31st, so we feel the crunch.  But we really want quality followers, people who grok what we’re doing and care enough to follow along. The Pied Piper did it with a magic flute and we all remember the disastrous consequences.

In social media the golden ratio is nine to one (9:1). You must produce nine (or more) items of compelling content for every one request for help. In short, you must front-load your value. You must work HARD giving people something GOOD so they will trust you enough to FOLLOW. There is no magic flute. But without followers there may be no future value. A conundrum.

We are setting out to bring some significant value to the world. People who already know and trust us, know what we’re capable of, and are really compelled by what we’re doing have already jumped on board. With them (many dozens of them) they’ve brought along almost $5,000 in support. The next question is – how to expand this trust?

As we keep playing on the flute, let us know what you think we should be doing next in the comments.

(Incidently, if you’ve ever wondered what exactly “pied” really means, read through this multicolored thread.)

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Update #4: Announcing Stretch Goals

Posted on 2013/03/08 by admin

3/8 UPDATE: Announcing Stretch Goals in Kickstarter Update #4. And the first one is already funded! We also added new rewards and welcomed our first expeditionary gear sponsor Juicies.

The first ten days have been exciting. The initial funding goal for underway internet access was reached in less than 72 hours thanks to your support. At this point a campaign normally turns to so-called “stretch goals”. We touched briefly on stretch goals in Update #2. Stretch goals help enhance the project quality and support upgrades to existing rewards.

Stretch Goal #1: $4500 [REACHED on 3/8] will fund access to Adobe Creative Cloud software. Funding this goal will also let us “go big” with the printed rewards: larger post cards, paperbacks and hardcover books. $60 and $80 backer postcards will be mailed in envelopes.

Stretch Goal #2: $6000 will fund a Nikon D1500 camera kit. This particular kit was recommended by Will (of willbeale.com here in Connecticut). Michelle has a lot of experience with SLR photography and a great eye. The kit will upgrade or replace camera gear that is over 20 years old and frankly starting to fall apart. Reaching this goal will fund envelopes for $12 postcard backers and a dust jacket for the $80 hardcover backers.

Stretch Goal #3: $7500 will fund a Tascam USB audio mixer, Blue-brand XLR microphone(s) and a Pelican case for shipping. If you can help find more backers and get us here, all $6 bandwidth and $20 eBook backers will also get a handwritten postcard from the ship. All $40, $60 and $80 backers will also get the eBook.

Stretch Goal #4: $9000 will fund a Drobo Mini with 2-3 terabytes of redundant storage, an upgrade from our current 500mb redundant storage solution. If you can help find more backers and get us here, all $12 postcard backers will get an eBook and all $20 eBook backers will get a paperback. $100 certificate backers will be upgraded to a hardcover book.

Stretch Goal #5: $11000 will help fund a laptop upgrade. If you can help find more backers and can get us here, $6 backers will get the eBook. All $40 and $60 paperback backers will get a hard cover book. All $80 hardcover backers will get upgraded to the Adventurer level and get the full-color hand-calligraphed framable certificate.

New Rewards: In this update we are adding the Adventurer Certificate at the $100 level and a package reward with phone/video chat at the $150 level. You may also choose to sponsor the binding, front or back cover at the $180 level.

Keep in mind that reward levels must cover Kickstarter and fulfillment company fees, federal tax withholding plus the cost of producing the rewards. The goal remains a high quality daily blog with photos, a weekly audio podcast, five segment updates with video and a 9×6 full-color book. You’re helping to fund the entire operation and getting an exclusive inside look at the process.

Gear Sponsor: Thanks to Laurens and Juicies.com for getting on board as our first expeditionary gear sponsor. We backed the Juicies cable project on Kickstarter a couple years ago, and they returned the favor by sponsoring an object – Juicies of course! We have replaced cables for all our small electronics with Juicies and you should too. They are robust enough to sail around the world, and are made with 100% recycled material to Laurens’ exacting specifications.

Thank you all for your support so far, and for helping achieve these new funding “Stretch Goals”. Let’s keep moving!

________

Help us share West By Sea:

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Jimmy Buffett says “The weather is here…”

Posted on 2013/03/08 by admin

This is what we have to deal with today.

20130308-101157.jpg

Stuck in the house, we took advantage of the lull in the action to call our ship agent to clear up some details about the Australian visa. The letter we received listed the underway date, but of course we get to Australia five days before. It would not be fun to get stuck at the airport for five days waiting for the visa to become active. We would probably bribe someone before that. Luckily the visa was ‘triggered’ two days ago and is good for a year. Australia has an electronic visa system linked to your passport number. So once they scan our passports (fingers crossed) we’ll show up as legit in the system.

Fingers crossed also today for the power to stay on. Ed will be blowing snow and Michelle will be doing after-packout cleanup. We also plan to issue Update #4 on Kickstarter, outlining campaign stretch goals.

Meanwhile:

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“We got to move it move it…”

Posted on 2013/03/06 by admin

The movers are here. What they originally thought would take four days is only going to take two. Partly because there will be 7-15 centimeters of snow between the road and the house tomorrow morning. They packed and moved about half our stuff yesterday. It is always very strange watching your stuff drive off into the world on some strange truck. It was even stranger watching only half the stuff drive away. And a bit liberating. Packing out always forces decisions: what to keep, sell, donate or toss. When it comes right down to it, what really matters? A forced move will help you decide.

sporkIn this case we are forced to (yet again) consider what we’ll need for the next couple of months, and then for the next year. The added wrinkle this time is a second forced shakedown in May. If you are planning a world cruise but will just lock up the house while you’re away, you must still go through the process of packing, cutting, weighing, deciding. Each piece of clothing must perform triple duty. Each object must return value for the weight it adds to your luggage. Even the luggage must be scrutinized. Will this piece fit in a stateroom I have never seen? Do I really need the wheels or can one wheeled bag carry the others? Should I pack my titanium spork?

The movers return in just a few hours. And then the snow begins to fall. And I am grateful we decided to keep the snow blower with us. I just hope they haven’t already shipped my Sorrel boots.

(Also reading about Kickstarter funding curves today.)

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Update #3: Michelle’s Take on the Kickstarter Campaign

Posted on 2013/03/04 by admin

Check out the latest update on the Kickstarter page.
Michelle taking a break from writing West By Sea.

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We need all the tips we can get

Posted on 2013/03/02 by admin

Here are ten top tips for a world cruise from Cunard.

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West By Sea: primary funding goal reached

Posted on 2013/02/28 by admin

Just want to get this awesome news out there. “We’re in!” With your help this is only just the beginning. Join the fun and read this update about what’s coming next.

Did we already say Backers Rock?!? Yeah, ya do.

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Picked up by LUNATIK Life

Posted on 2013/02/28 by admin

Very excited our Kickstarter project is featured in the Lunatik Life weekly roundup! http://lunatiklife.com/features/post/Notable-Kickstarter-Projects

The first project we ever backed came from MNML and the Lunatik brand. So very nice of them to suggest our little project to their loyal followers. THANKS!

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Travel Immunizations, the easy way

Posted on 2013/02/28 by admin

20130228-101527.jpg
At the doc today to get a pre-trip immunization consult. They went over food-borne, air-borne, and all-kindsa-other-borne diseases. So exactly why are we doing this again? (Wink) The CDC brief is pretty good. If you switch hemispheres, keep in mind that flu season comes 6 months early! We only needed a couple shots. And of course the only band-aids left over were “fun” band-aids! (Don’t hate on the band-aid.)

CDC Travel Brief

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Kickstarter project: first funding goal reached. Keep it moving!

Posted on 2013/02/25 by admin

Check it out!

Thanks everyone for your upcoming support.
http://kck.st/WeFlcJ

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This week: Tourist Visas

Posted on 2013/02/24 by admin

Several countries require a visa. Most can be done on the ship. Australia requires pre-approval but can be done on the Internet. India requires mailing in, with passport, application and payment. That’s the goal this week, making sure all the paperwork is ready. The worst thing would be to pull into a port and gaze at it longingly from the weather decks!

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Journal project submitted to Kickstarter

Posted on 2013/02/22 by admin

Just a quick update folks. Kickstarter has the ball. The project submission went in late on Thursday, a couple days later than planned. We wanted to have it live for the weekend. We’ll see if they get to it the next couple days. Probably Tuesday at the latest. Fingers crossed for approval!

We priced nice big postcards 8.5″ x 5.5″ at vistaprint.com, heavy card stock and glossy on both sides. The cards are well within budget and are going to be awesome. Leave a comment if you think a ‘naked’ postcard is better, or should we mail them each in an envelope? The basic envelopes are kinda pricy, and our preference is to let the cards go through the mail to collect some “color” and authenticity.

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Kickstarter – almost ready!

Posted on 2013/02/17 by admin

West by Sea postcardHi everyone. We’re closing in on having the Kickstarter project ready to launch. Pretty much the only thing left is to record narration and cut a short video. To get a sense of what the campaign page will look like, you can check out the ‘preview’ link. Here it is.

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