Volunteering for the Malaria Comic Book Campaign

Thanks for offering to join the Malaria comic book campaign.

Ideally, we would like every kid in India to read this book. But printing copies ourselves and trying to reach every single kid in India is obviously not a long-term solution. We must do our bit by distributing as many copies as we can BUT we must also think of innovative ways to reach out to kids. Plus we must make this campaign self-sustaining or in more modern terms "viral".

We thought the best way to innovate was to let the community take over- We want you to take charge. You can innovate as we go and decide the direction this campaign will take by getting more and more involved.

If you are thinking of approaching other organizations, here is how they could help

Corporate sponsors can sponsor print copies or get directly involved by giving away free copies of the book along with their products. Pharma companies can help us distribute copies of the book amongst pediatricians all over India, so children in clinic waiting rooms can read them. Bookstores can print and display free copies of the book. Local and national dailies can publish the book or its translated version as a series or as a single supplement.

Would you like to receive printed copies of the book?

Though the book is available online we can send you five printed copies of the book. Please send your mailing address to info at Chillibreeze.com and we will have the books sent to you. You can use your five copies in any way you deem suitable. Once you have distributed/used your five copies, tell us all about your experiences and we can have more sent to you.

How individual writers can get involved

You can help by spreading word about the book and contacting local clinics and schools to see if they are interested in a copy of the book (We can have it sent to them). Schools can display copies of the book on their bulletin boards and conduct Malaria quiz contests. Local lending libraries can circulate copies of the book for free. You can contact any such person or establishment to see if they are interested and we can have copies of the book sent to them.

Of course, you can also assist in simple ways such as reading out the book to your own kids as well as underprivileged kids you come across in your daily life.

How to begin

The best way to begin would be to approach decision makers (doctors, school principals, journalists, librarians, corporates) with a copy of the book (We will be sending you copies but for now you can print it from the online version as well) and a print out of this page http://www.chillibreeze.com/ebooks/malaria.asp

You can explain the campaign to them and find out if they are willing to help out. If they have any specific questions that you would like us to answer, you can email us or ask them to contact us at info at Chillibreeze.com.

Some of these tasks could be accomplished by working in groups online and offline.

Working collaboratively: Are we on the same page?

We know one thing for sure- This campaign can only work if we tackle it as a team. But for that we all need to be on the same page. What if that page were a Facebook page, we thought.

We created this new page on Facebook. You all can join Facebook (if you are not on it already) and then click this link to "become a fan". Once you do that, you will be able to discuss the book on the discussion forum and collaborate with other volunteers. You can also invite other volunteers and friends to join the campaign. Here is the link: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Malaria-comic-book-by-Chillibreeze/213504760356?ref=ts

Shortly, we will also be setting up a website devoted to translating the book and writing future health comics. But until then we can all interact using our Facebook page.

If you are having problems joining Facebook or finding our page on Facebook, please email us at info@chillibreeze.com.

We are taking this discussion to Facebook so we all can see and hear (or rather read) each other.

Phew!!! That was long. So let us summarize it quickly

Join Facebook and visit our Comic book page (link above) to join the group (Click on Become a Fan on the comic book page). The great thing about Facebook is that only your friends will be able to see your profile so you can stay as private as you would like to. On the other hand, if you love to network, Facebook is one of the best places to be!
Tell us if you are OK with us creating a mailing list that you will be part of. Writers will be able to post messages to the mailing list and these messages will go to all subscribers- We can then communicate with each other via the mailing group.
Send us your mailing address to receive five copies of the book
We have tried to answer most questions on this page. But if you have other specific queries, feel free to write to us (info at Chillibreeze.com). Or even better, post a message on our Facebook page and we will get back to you.

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Volunteering for the Malaria Comic Book Campaign

We are taking this discussion to Facebook so we all can see and hear (or rather read) each other.

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