Bucket Lists, Death, Taxes, and Good Times

Bucket Lists, Death, Taxes, and Good Times

by | Aug 12, 2017 | Uncategorized

Work has a nasty way of intruding into life. If, however, your one

of the fortunate ones then work, even when it prevents doing what you what, will provide compensation in one form or another.  And if your not one of the fortunate ones and merely work to stay alive, keep in mind a very simple adage. Hard work is a sure death albeit a slower one than starvation.

Coming soon! The ultimate Route 66 bucket list will be available in stores soon. For signed copies, drop me a note and I can let you know about availability.

This weekend allows for an opportunity to provide an illustrated example. Where I want to be is Springfield, Missouri enjoying the camaraderie of my Route 66 family at the Birthplace of Route 66 Festival.  Where I am is at home trying to put the current book project back on schedule, initiating coordinated promotion and marketing for a book that will hit the stores in a few days, working on the schedule for the fall promotional tour, getting ready to take the podcast AND Facebook live programs to the next level, setting up the ability to solicit assistance from patrons through Patreon ( the  red button at the top of right sidebar) and to provide patrons with exclusive content, and working on the next videos in the Jim Hinckley’s America: A Trek Along Route 66 series being developed by Promote Kingman.

Jim Hinckley’s America has always been interactive. I want to take that a step further, and that is why I initiated the patron initiative. So, …

What are your thoughts about the weekly Facebook live program and how can it be improved?

Would you like to see more of these type of programs from the road?

What would you like to see in regards to the podcast on Podbean?

The fall promotional tour will take place in October, and includes a book signing in Albuquerque and attendance of the Miles of Possibilities Conference in Joliet, Illinois. Would you like to schedule a presentation or book signing in your community?

In short, what would can we do do to create a new & improved Jim Hinckley’s America?

 

 

 

 

Henry Wriothesley And Prospectors, Patrons And Grubstakes

Henry Wriothesley And Prospectors, Patrons And Grubstakes

by | Aug 5, 2017 | Uncategorized

I would be willing to wager that few followers of this blog, or

anyone else for that matter, is familiar with the name Henry Wriothesley, the 3rd Earl of Southampton.  Likewise with Henry Lovin. Yet both men made contributions that forever changed the world. Wriothesley was one of William Shakespeare’s principal patrons. Lovin was the patron who provided the $16.00 grubstake to Jose Jerez, the man who launched the last gold rush in Arizona with his discovery in the Black Mountains, the event that led to the establishment of Gold Road.

For centuries patronage served as an the primary mechanism for the funding of the arts, music, and the work of playwrights and authors. In a nutshell, the rich and famous in a society acted as sponsors. A variation of the concept took hold in the late 19th century when patrons grub staked a prospector. A primary difference was that the reward for patrons of the arts was recognition and the enrichment of society, and the patron who grub staked a prospector hoped for a return on investment.

In the case of Henry Lovin, legend has it that he pocketed something like $50,000 as a return on hist $16 investment. For Wriothesley the return on his investment in Shakespeare was timeless plays and sonnets that resonate with audiences to this very day.

In what seems like a never ending quest to find funds to support my promotional endeavors, writing projects, video development, and related endeavors I recently discovered that the ancient practice of patronage is alive and well. As with so many things, however, it has been wedded to modern technologies. Let me introduce you to Patreon.

I derive tremendous satisfaction from my various projects, such as the weekly Facebook live program. I gladly provide this as a community service, likewise with a few other endeavors such as this blog. The challenge, however, comes from balancing community service projects with those that provide income, and the enormous amount of time required to develop them that is multiplied by the never ending search for funds.  For just a moment consider this – one blog post a week requires one to two hours, the podcast about three hours, and the Facebook live program about two hours.


Steve LeSueur of the Promote Route 66 initiative and I have recently learned that video development is a huge time sink. Episode one of Jim Hinckley’s America: A Trek Along Route 66, a video developed in part to promote Kingman (available for order at http://www.promotekingman.com) required in excess of 450 hours to complete.

Recently, as I was meditating on some of the current projects, how I could expand on them, and other projects I would like to develop such as educational programs, my thoughts turned toward the ancient practice of patronage. To further develop current or future projects I needed more time and as I am powerless to add two, three, or even four hours to each day that left but one option, find more time in the existent day.

As much of my week is consumed with the quest for financial funding to support the various endeavors, this looked like a place to begin the streamlining process. Those thoughts led to patronage and that led me to Patreon. This in turn led to establishment of a Patreon page, a place where I could market my community service projects, my promotional initiatives, and related endeavors to those who saw value in them. And that explains the red button in the upper right corner, which will take you to the new Patreon page where you can become a Jim Hinckley’s America patron.

To add further value to the service provided, I have devised a plan to provide patrons with a little something extra. Okay, with that as an introduction, what are your thoughts? What value do you place on Jim Hinckley’s America?