Donald Miller's Blog, page 133

If you get this e-mail tomorrow, will you pass it along?

Tomorrow we will be sending out an e-mail (.jpg to the right.) Would you mind keeping an eye out for it and sending it along to your friends?

The campaign has been tremendous. CNN has picked up the story, the Atlantic, and I had a wonderful call today with a producer at The Today Show (they are tracking the story) so you're making headlines.

Production meetings have been going almost daily in Nashville. There is a spirit in the room that is inspired. The entire crew is feeling your support. When crews work on film projects, everybody wonders whether what they are making is special. It is very, very rare for a crew to know their project is special before the cameras are even turned on. You've made this project special. You've made it historical.

When you give even a dollar, you will be put on an exclusive list of investors, and you'll be treated as such. We will be sending you the same updates we send our primary investor (whose story of sacrifice and generosity is equally amazing) telling you how production is going. The list of people who have donated to the film will be our main focus of communication. If you've yet to donate, please join us today.

As you know, tomorrow is our last day. If you follow me on twitter, you'll get an hourly countdown all the way through midnight. Please pardon the intrusion. It won't last long. Would you mind retweeting a few of these to your friends?

Tomorrow at midnight, we will no longer be accepting small investments. People's opportunity to join the community that made history will have ended. It's been amazing, but we need one more hard push through the end. Invite everybody you know. We are on mile 25 of this marathon, and we want to finish strong.

You've been unbelievable. You've given us an incredible charge of energy, spirit and hope, and that's the sort of thing that shows up on the screen.

Thanks again! Here we go!!

Help us Press Hard Toward the Finish

It's all over tomorrow! If you've donated to the film, thanks. Thanks, thanks and thanks again. Tomorrow we want to press hard all the way to Midnight (EST). So here are some last minute things you can do to help us…And once again, THANKS.

1. Donate if you haven't. Even a dollar gets you on our mailing list so we can send you updates about the film.

2. For the final 16 hours or so, I'll be sending tweets counting down the hours. Each tweet will have the kickstarter link. Will you retweet a couple of these? Don't bug your friends too much, but this would help a great deal.

3. Please write a blog about the campaign that explains why you've donated.

4. Kindly make the link your facebook status. Here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/2vudtwg

5. Email your friends the link. http://tinyurl.com/2vudtwg

You've been incredibly gracious and kind throughout this insane turn of events. Some of you know how uncomfortable it is to ask for help, and you've shown us nothing but grace as we've gone about this. Tomorrow at midnight, we will stop asking, and start giving back.

With much gratitude,

Don Miller

A Sneak Peek at a Scene From Blue Like Jazz

I hope you are having a terrific Sunday morning.

Tomorrow is the big day. Tomorrow the kickstarter campaign ends, and nobody else will be able to make small investments in the film. The greatest aspect of this entire, rather miraculous story, is the remarkable community that has sprung up almost overnight. We, and by that I mean literally thousands of us, are making a movie. But the movie will hardly trump the story you have already told.

This morning, I wanted to give you a few pages from the script. This is a scene from act one, and it's one of my favorites. It's a scene in which Don's dad pulls into town. He's a professor but something of a vagabond, and he and Don's mom have differing opinions about Don's religious upbringing. He's called the Hobo in the scene because Don and his friend Jordan gave him this nickname in that he comes through town randomly and without notice, and also because he travels in an old RV, filled with Jazz records, beer and often an intern with which he has an inappropriate relationship.

The actor we are bringing in for this scene is fantastic. His audition was impressive and it was a surreal experience listening to somebody with that much talent read our words. He brought the scene completely to life. That said, I fear the blank text on the page isn't going to do the scene justice. Nevertheless, I thought I'd share it with you as we go into tomorrow, afterall, it's our movie now.

Blue Like Jazz is a candid film about the tension of being a young evangelical, and it's an honest film.

Again, if you've not donated and want to see an honest movie about life as a Christian in America the way it really happens with none of our warts hidden, and a movie that is not trying to convert anybody as much as it's trying to tell a story, then please join us.

Click on each page in order to read them. Here's the scene:

The Last Chance to Participate in History!

Kickstarter is no longer counting down the days for the Save Blue Like Jazz campaign. They've switched over to counting down the hours. Unless each of us become multi-millionaires, this may be our last opportunity to invest in a movie.

Steve Taylor Speaks Out About the Film

For the last couple weeks, Steve Taylor has been as busy as ever. You brought the movie back from the dead, which meant he had to hire a crew, hire actors, scout and lockdown locations and make thank-you calls to donors (I'm gladly taking over that task!) all while cutting the budget as much as possible. He's been incredible. Once we start shooting, you won't be in the dark. Updates like these will continue to hit the blog, and if you've donated, you'll be getting tons more communication through e-mail. Here's a special message from Steve as we move into our final few days of fundraising. If you've not donated to the project yet, please join us here. And if you have, please share the link through Facebok and Twitter. We are very grateful. Here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/2vudtwg

Thank you again for your support. Things normally slow down over the weekend, but will you help us by talking about the campaign on Facebook? Email your friends? Tweet about the project? We are going to hit it as hard as we can on Monday. Please forgive us for being annoying. It's going to be something like a telethon as we recruit more and more people to join us in making this film. Send everybody here.

The Real-Life Penny Talking About the Movie

We are pressing on toward Monday night, when we the kickstarter campaign closes. But at the same time, we are pulling twenty-hour days getting ready to film on Wednesday. We have our lead,


Tomorrow I'll post in the afternoon about how you can help us lean strong into Monday. We are hoping that Monday is our biggest day yet. I think we've had a couple days that got us over $30k, and we need another one on Monday. So if you haven't given to the campaign, please do today, and if you have, follow the blog for the next few days and help us spread the word on the last day.

Do You Have a Team of Good Life Editors?

Every so often I get asked to review somebody's manuscript. And anymore, I won't do it. I've had too many bad experiences. I'd assume writers want to be told what should be cut out of their book, but this isn't the case. Only the good writers want to know what should be cut from their manuscripts. The amateurs just want to be told they are good.

I had dinner with Max Lucado last year, and he said his editors sent back his latest book marked up in red. Can you imagine? Can you imagine telling Max he needed to change anything? I wouldn't have the guts, much less the sensibilities to actually say what of his words aren't terrific. But Max surrounds himself by editors who will tell him the hard truths. These are trusted friends, and they've been working with him for years. And they are also part of the reason he's sold more than 60-million books. He said the latest rounds of edits were hard to take. He said he thought by now he's be a "good writer." But he took them in, he sat down, and he edited the book. I read Outlive Your Life on a plane on the way home from Nashville, and it's the best Lucado book I've read. In fact, it's the best book I read this year. I'll be talking more about it in the coming weeks.

But this isn't a blog about editing books. It's a blog about editing your life. If you are like me, it's easy to surround yourself with people who don't tell you about your blind spots, your weaknesses. I told my friend Dave about a piece of criticism that was thrown at me last month, and he helped me dismiss it as a person consumed with bitterness. But he didn't stop there, he asked me why I was sensitive about it, and pointed out that part of that persons criticism was actually true. And you know what? Dave was right. He wisely helped me separate the criticism that helped and healed me from the motive of the messenger, which had in it the desire to destroy.

Not having people around us who can show us our blind spots is a sure path toward self destruction. I'm not talking about surrounding yourself with critics. People who offer blank criticism, especially if they don't know you, are of little help. But if you have friends who are honest with you about your character defects, and yet are obviously for you, you're going to go far.

Here are a few tips on editing your life:

1. Ask for criticism from people who care about you and love you.

2. If you are sensitive about some criticism that has been thrown at you, there's a good chance some of it is true. Analyze that, separate it from the messenger who may not have your best interests at heart, and work on that area of your life.

3. If you suspect a friend is competitive with you or controlling, don't include them in your circle of editors. They aren't going to be able to give you objective advice.

4. Don't get into an editing relationship with a person who can't see their own faults, or admit to their mistakes. These people are usually the fastest to offer criticism of you, but it's not objective or helpful criticism.

A relationship with a good life editor (lets just call them good friends) are gold. If you find them, hold on to them forever.

Our Final Round of Thank-You Videos

Dan Haseltine from Jars of Clay, Matt Wertz (model for Ambercrombie), Joshua Dubois from the White House, Mat Kearney (inventor of the Magic Bullet chopper) and Dave Barnes (the voice of Lisa Simpson on television's The Simpsons) sent in videos saying thanks for supporting the campaign! And if you haven't heard me say it yet: Thanks for saving this movie.

Keep pressing on until Monday at midnight. We've got a ways to go. Tell your friends to donate here! You guys are awesome!

Thank You Videos – Take 4 (Save Blue Like Jazz) from Save Blue Like Jazz on Vimeo.

Dan Haseltine, Matt Wertz, Joshua Dubois, Matt Kearney and Daves Barnes thank you for saving Blue Like Jazz.
www.savebluelikejazz.com

The Next Storyline Conference is Coming Soon

Registration has opened up for the next Storyline Conference here in Portland. We will be meeting January 23rd and 24th. The first conference was a blast, and we'd love to have you join us. This week, I'll be announcing a contest in which we will be flying five people in, along with five of their guests, and providing all their accommodations to attend the seminar. The only catch is all five people have to work together at the same organization. More on that later. But for now, grab your seat today, and we will see you just after the holidays!

Storyline Conference from shieldsfilms.com on Vimeo.

http://donmilleris.com/conference

REGISTER HERE!

Gearing up For The Final Push on the Movie…

Well, we are committed to making the movie, and we are pinching every penny. We know you've already given, and we don't want you to give more. We just need your help crossing the finish line.

Jonathan and Zach, the two guys who created the Save Blue Like Jazz campaign are coming on part time to keep communication up regarding what happens on set and in post production. And they are doing it for the cost of renting the equipment, basically. They are going to be a major link between the film and those of you who have donated. What that means is  you won't be in the dark. If you give even a dollar, you'll be on the mailing list and we will be sending you updates.

Most of you who read the blog and follow me on twitter have already donated. And if you didn't donate, you certainly helped get the word out. So here's what would really help us:

1. Tweet about the project several times. Provide a link directly to the kickstarter page. Here's that link: http://tinyurl.com/22orqmq

2. Make the link your facebook status with a reason you gave. Again, here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/22orqmq

3. Blog about why you donated to the project. And please provide the link. If you need the link, here it is: http://tinyurl.com/22orqmq

4. Get a tattoo in a prominent location (not on our bum, cause that's covered by clothes, we hope) here's what the tattoo should say: http://tinyurl.com/22orqmq

5. Bring up the campaign over dinner, lunch, breakfast, tea, coffee, ultimate frisbee, or yoga classes.

6. If you attend a baseball playoff game, make out with your girl to get on the kissing cam, and wear a shirt that says: http://tinyurl.com/22orqmq (make sure when the camera is on you to stop making out, jump in front of her and throw your chest out so people can read the link.

While 200k makes history on kickstarter, 250k means we don't have to sell Steve's plasma. He's awfully skinny as it is, and we need his wits about him on set. In fact, everybody involved is awfully skinny which means they are going to make me sell my plasma and I seriously, seriously love my plasma.

ALL OF THIS IS PREPARING FOR MONDAY. On Monday, we are going to make a huge last push. We love that it is going down to the last minute, but we are also having heart attacks. So if you can do some of this this week and keep it buzzing over the weekend, then we will all go full press on Monday.

We know you've already donated. Please don't let us manipulate you like an old lady responding to a televangelist and giving us your retirement. But please DO recruit your friends to get on board! THANKS!!