Break Out Your Video Camera…

Because I’m going to give away TWO brand new Kindle Touch 3Gs at the end of May 2012.

Want one? Here’s the deal: May 2012 is the 10th Anniversary of Lawson’s debut in print (THE FIXER – book 1 in the series came out in May 2002) and I’m looking for the coolest, most creatively awesome videos – made by my fans – to help spread the word about the entire Lawson universe – the books, the TV series, and much more. if I pick your video as one of the two best, you’ll win a brand new Kindle Touch 3G. It’s that simple.

A couple of rules, though:

1. Videos must be under 3 minutes – preferably about two minutes so you don’t bore your viewers.
2. Videos must contain images from anything related to Lawson – book covers, screen grabs from The Fixer, etc. Anything related to Lawson and The Fixer is available for use.
3. Videos may NOT contain any copyrighted images, video, or music. In other words, don’t set your video to a Barry Manilow tune unless you happen to own the rights to use that song.
4. Videos must have a general theme along the lines of “Why I Love the Lawson Vampire Series by Jon F. Merz” It doesn’t have to be exactly like this; you could say something like “I’m rabid for Lawson” or something like that.
5. Videos must be uploaded to both Youtube and to my Facebook Fan Page in order to qualify. For Youtube videos, please be sure to use keywords like “lawson vampire, the fixer, jon f. merz, ebooks, lawson vampire ebooks” etc. etc.
6. By entering this contest you are granting me permission to use your video in any way that I see fit, for as long as I like, wherever I like, without any sort of compensation or payment. Ownership will remain yours, but I’m free to use it as much as I like. (see fine print below)
7. Contest is open to anyone, anywhere. There is no fee to enter; the only requirement is a love of Lawson and his many ebooks.
8. Entries MUST be work-safe, which means no foul language, obscene material, etc.

That’s basically it. So get out there and be creative. Start a Lawson flash mob in a crowded subway station. Interview yourself talking about why Lawson is so awesome. Create a computer animation with the book covers and screenshots. Tell the world why Lawson is so awesome and why everyone should be reading the series and getting ready for the TV show. Include links to the books on Amazon (http://amzn.to/lawsonbks) and/or the Nook (http://bit.ly/lawsonv) if you like. Put a link to the Facebook fan Page if you want (http://on.fb.me/jfmfans) or come up with other ingenious ways to promote Lawson and his many adventures.

I have no idea how many people will enter this contest, so the odds might be pretty good. Videos don’t have to be shot in HD or anything like that. Hell, you could cut it together with video clips shot by a smart phone – just make sure it rocks and helps promote Lawson and his adventures. Final decisions on the winning entries will be made by me and me alone. Winners will be announced no later than June 6th, 2012 and they will receive their new Kindles within a few weeks of the announcement.

And if you haven’t read my Lawson series yet, then go get some of the books and discover the exciting mayhem that awaits! Kindle users go here! | Nook users go here! | iBooks users go here!

Excited? Then get to work! All entries MUST be received by May 16th, 2012. That’s three weeks from now. You are free to enter as many videos as you wish, but make sure they rock. I’d rather have one kick-ass entry than five mediocre ones.

Lawson’s 10th Year Anniversary – May 2012…and you just might win a brand new Kindle!

FINE PRINT:

Copyright
All Entries submitted to the Contest must be original. You must be the sole owner of any copyright and all other intellectual property rights in and to any Entry submitted. Your submission of each Entry is your acknowledgement, warranty and guarantee that you are the author, creator and/ or sole owner of copyright(s) and other intellectual property rights in and to the Entry submitted. By submitting an Entry, you also represent and warrant that the Entries that you submit do not infringe on the copyright, right of publicity, privacy rights or any other intellectual property or other right of any other persons or entity, that you have secured any and all waivers and permissions necessary with respect to persons and subject matter in the Entry and that you have not submitted the Entry to any other contest. If the ownership of any Entry is contested in any manner, the Sponsor may disqualify that Entry. By submitting an Entry you agree to hold harmless and indemnify Jon F. Merz for any breach of these Official Rules and/or your representations and warranties made hereunder.

Rights of Use
You shall retain the copyright to any Entry and all other rights thereto EXCEPT: by entering the Contest, you agree to have your submitted Entry displayed by Sponsor on Sponsor’s website without any fee or other form of compensation. In addition, you hereby grant an unlimited royalty free license to the Sponsor to copy, display, perform, store, broadcast, distribute or otherwise use your Entry for any purpose. You agree that the Sponsor will not be liable to you or to any third party for any use, editing, adaptation, modification and/or publication of any Entry.

Publicity and Advertising
Except where prohibited, participation in the Contest constitutes irrevocable consent to the Sponsor and their agents to use, record reproduce, publish, display, perform, translate, and distribute, the names, likeness, voices, quotations, opinions and biographical information of Entrant, including, without limitation, any photograph or recording for promotional purposes in any media, worldwide, without further payment or consideration; and the name, likeness, voice and biographical information of any natural person appearing in the Entry, including without limitation any photograph or recording, for any promotional purpose in any media, worldwide, and/or for any other commercial or non-commercial corporate purpose, including without limitation use on merchandise or for marketing, without attribution or further payment or compensation to the Entrant, his or her successors or assigns or any other entity.

Playing Ninja

Ninjutsu, to me, isn’t simply a martial art. It’s not simply a way to physically protect yourself and your loved ones. Hatsumi-sensei has said repeatedly that the ultimate goal of ninjutsu is not to become a “meijin” or master, but to become a “tatsujin” or a complete human being. And yet, the focus of most ninjutsu practitioners lies solely within the realm of learning to fight in the dojo. (Of course, such skills are absolutely necessary. And I’d argue that there are plenty of people who need to re-learn how to throw a correct punch.)

But what about real life?

How often do you take the ninjutsu out of the dojo and apply it in other areas of your life? Across the whole spectrum of your existence?

To me, a ninja is one who is able to move at will through any environment or any situation and endure, survive, and even prosper. This means that just practicing fighting is not enough. It means that as a practitioner, you have to constantly and continually push yourself to learn and evolve in all areas of your life – not just on the mat.

For example: do you speak any other languages? Even a smattering of a language? A few key phrases will help facilitate conversation in potential scenarios. It might behoove you to appear as a local instead of an outsider. Knowing how to properly speak even the simplest of greetings in another language might enable you to retain your “invisibility” and not stick out as an outsider.

What about English? Assuming it’s your native tongue, are you well-versed in how to properly write it? Or speak it? Is “like” every other word out of your mouth? How does that make you look to others that you interact with? How do typos in your written communication undercut whatever role you’re attempting to play? In some situations, it might be beneficial to appear less than intelligent, but if you are casting yourself in the role of a professional, a leader, or a teacher, then you should lead by example: the same diligence you practice with in the dojo should also be applied to every other area of your life. If that means breaking out the grammar book and learning the difference between “their,” “they’re,” and “there,” then so be it – that’s what you have to do.

If you’re a man, do you know how to properly wear a suit? Tie a tie? Do you know to button your jacket when you stand and unbutton it when you sit down? Do you know that the tuxedo jacket is never actually supposed to be taken off – regardless of how sweaty you might become doing the Electric Slide at your cousin’s black tie wedding? Can you give an impromptu toast without practice? Do you know how to order wine in a fancy restaurant and properly sample it? Do you know how to surreptitiously tip the Maitre d’ at a restaurant to ensure better service during the meal?

What about your mind? Do you frequently expose yourself to other cultures and belief systems as a way of expanding your consciousness or do you stay fixated and locked in a small prison of your own self-assured prejudices? Does your ego goad you into angry impulses that prompt others to view you as insecure, juvenile, and petty?

Before I studied ninjutsu, I was fortunate to have a mentor whose background was, let’s say, “interesting.” His advice to me, given my path in life at the time, was to develop myself to the point where I could seamlessly move through everyday life without causing any friction – and by friction, he meant knowing what to do and how to act and how to appear such that I never stood out unless I wanted to. The highest level of this development was to become the “gray man,” the man you see on the street or in a hotel or anywhere…and then five seconds later, you can’t remember him.

Think about this scenario: you’re in an upscale restaurant and note that the majority of people there know exactly how to act. They know which fork to use. They know where the soup spoon is. They know how to order wine. They know how to place their napkin if they get up to use the restroom. Most of these people will pass through your subconsciousness and you won’t remember them (unless you’re especially attracted to them or something else causes you to notice them). Because they fit their situation so well, so seamlessly, they are, in effect, invisible.

Contrast this with the guy sitting in the same restaurant with his napkin tucked into his shirt like a bib. Maybe he holds his fork in a fist rather than with his index finger, middle finger, and thumb. Your subconscious mind notices this almost immediately because he is not in harmony with his environment – he’s causing friction and therefore you notice – and remember – him. His invisibility is completely compromised.

When we talk about success, a lot of times people will point to external factors that keep them back from achieving the greatness they seek. But how much of their lack of success is caused internally by creating friction with the world at large? How much of their failure is caused by not being able to blend seamlessly with their environments? Do they know how to talk to a mechanic? What about a CEO?

As ninjutsu practitioners, it is not enough to simply practice kihon happo thousands of times. It’s not enough to practice cutting things with swords and knives or post pictures of bullets and guns on Facebook and proclaim yourself a “tough guy.” If you do that and think you’re practicing ninjutsu, you’re sorely mistaken: you are merely practicing for one eventuality. Ninjutsu demands that the practitioner train themselves to be able to handle ALL eventualities, ALL scenarios, ALL of life. That means that the study of combat is but ONE part of the art itself. The practitioner of the art must take the teachings of ninjutsu out of the dojo and subject themselves to the real world where not everything is solved with a punch or a throwing star or a ranting threat or a Youtube video showing how fast you can draw a sword.

If you read the scenarios and questions above and thought, “Well, that’s not me. I’m never in an upscale restaurant.” Or “I only wear jeans and T-shirts, I don’t need to know how to tie a bowtie.” Or “I don’t need to read up on Muslim culture. Or know about Mayan civilization.” Then unfortunately, you are not practicing ninjutsu. You are playing at being a ninja.

For some folks, that realization might be fine for them. But for those who would say they are truly studying this art, then the realization should be a wake-up call that you need to do more. You need to train more. You need to develop yourself to the point where you are able to slug back a brewski in a blue collar pub and then the next night be able to order foie gras. By expanding your ability to move from situation to situation, scenario to scenario with ease, you will also be expanding your mind and spirit – your consciousness will evolve as well.

And when you are at ease in more situations, you are a far more powerful than one who can only rely on physical action. You transcend the brutality of physical combat and establish yourself as a true warrior, one able to render themselves invisible at will, or stand out as the beacon of light and positive energy that the universe needs more of – you are a fully actualized example of thought, word, deed.