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Soulburners:. Book Proposal Slideshow. 10,000 Secret Questions and My Race to Answer Them All. Book Overview.
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Soulburners: Book Proposal Slideshow 10,000 Secret Questions and My Race to Answer Them All
Book Overview Once he was homeless. Then his startup was bought for $160M. Along the way, he set a world record answering 10,000 questions placed by visitors into his traveling outdoor kiosk. Over one summer, without the money even to feed himself, through this community art project he climbs the campus dome at MIT, is flown out to a movie set by a Hollywood producer, is rushed twice to the hospital, rescues a woman from rape, asks a room of Nobel Laureates about the meaning of life, rolls his art kiosk through Boston’s streets, and disowns and reconciles with his father, all while meeting and advising thousands of people with soul burning questions Can anyone answer 10,000 questions by hand? Why risk homelessness for a crazy marathon to bring love to the world? These tensions bind the diverse advice topics of Soulburners into a story arc that is part memoir, part advice-giving, and part art book, with dozens of photographs of the questions submitted by real visitors to the community art project. The book is nearly 100,000 at a suggested size of 6” x 9” or 8.5” x 11”. With an MIT MBA and two different platforms of fans, author Johnny Monsarrat is uniquely suited to write this book and has the marketing expertise to drive it to success.
About Wheel Questions Wheel Questions is an outdoor kiosk that tours urban sidewalks and local festivals six months a year. Visitors to submit written questions on a colored cards, which the artist answers by hand and posts both on a website and on the outdoor installation for all to see. Artist Johnny Monsarrat set five world records answering most of 12,500 cards this way. See www.SoulBurners.com/book/.
The Wheel is popular with people of all ages. See the video where in 200 minutes, 200 people say “We want the book!” at www.SoulBurners.com/book/.
http://www.SoulBurners.com/ www.SoulBurners.com has the author’s blog and collection of question cards.
As part of the project, the author shot and responded to 276 video questions in just two weeks, another world record.
Platform 1:Monsarrat runs the most popular events blog in New England
Platform 2: The Wheel itself • 1,000,000 see the Wheel in person per year • 5,000,000 read press about world record attempts • 20,000 submit a question per year Boston City Hall Plaza
Soulburners:10,000 Secret Questions and My Race to Answer Them All Every chapter of the book: • Takes its title from a real question submitted to the project • Begins with 6-18 photos of handwritten question cards • Has a memoir component in which advice is given Relating both the author’s past and the adventure of his running the Wheel Questions project despite financial and emotional pressures, Soulburners has a compelling story arc that draws its various topics into a single narrative with a powerful, surprise ending.
See the book proposal for a full description and writing sample.
Soulburners: Competitive Books 10,000 Secret Questions and My Race to Answer Them All
PostSecret, by Frank Warren William Morrow / HarperCollins More of an art book. Photographs of secrets contributed by the public, but unlike Soulburners, no story or response from the author.
PostSecret seriesWilliam Morrow / HarperCollins Similar to Soulburners, an ongoing art project that lends itself to a whole book series.
Found series, by Davy RothbartFireside Lightweight “contributions” from the public are found in the trash and photographed. Soulburnerstells a real story, with topics of more depth.
The 1000 Journals Project, by Kevin KellySterling & Ross / Cambridge House Press Selections taken from journals passed around the anonymous public. Soulburnersis more focused and includes responses and a story arc.
This I Believe series, by Allison & GedimanHenry Holt & Company Collected essays on life from both the public. Soulburnershas topics that are ordered and fit into a real story that is more a dialogue with the reader than standing on a soapbox.
One Red Paperclip, by Kyle MacDonaldThree Rivers Press (Random House) A blog turned into a memoir. The author traded up and up on the Internet from a paperclip to a house. Soulburnersis also an uplifting joyride of a story but touches on serious topics in an arty way.
The Last Lecture, by Randy PauschHyperion Like Soulburners, a thoughtful advice book with a memoir component, but Soulburners adds visual art and public contribution components.
The Kid, by Dan SavagePlume (Penguin Group) A lightweight memoir written by a syndicated sex advice columnist. Soulburners adds visual art and much more advice.
I See Rude People, by Amy AlkonMcGraw-Hill This book by a syndicated advice columnist is engaging but Soulburnersadds visual art and public contribution components to a storyline that is a single thread.
The Happiness Project, by Gretchen RubinHarperCollins Like Soulburners, a memoir that promotes being active in chasing happiness. Soulburnersadds visual art and public dialogue components.
The Happy Book, by Kempster & LederSourceBooks This arty and uplifting book contains blank pages to get the reader to engage and “fill in”. Soulburnersis a real story with direct advice.
Ten Fun Things to Do Before You Die, by JackowskiHyperion Arty and uplifting, but Soulburnersoffers deeper advice and a public engagement component.
Soulburners: • On the website, please find: • The book proposal with writing sample, • A two-minute video overview, • The two-minute video of 200 people • saying “We want the book!” in 200 minutes, • Newspaper articles and 5 world records, • Monsarrat radio interviews & lectures, with • recommendation letters from the hosts, and • Documentary videos and photos, • at www.Soulburners.com/book/. 10,000 Secret Questions and My Race to Answer Them All
