Penny Arcade Guest Strip Auction to Benefit Child’s Play
Posted on December 14, 2011 Posted by John Scalzi 36 Comments
As I noted in the previous entry, today I (with artist Jeff Zugale) contributed a guest panel to the estimable Penny Arcade Web comic. The guys at Penny Arcade also run a charity called Child’s Play, which donates toy and games to children who endure hospital stays for treatment of their illnesses. I think this is a fantastic charity and I personally support it every year. As a way of showing our appreciation to the Penny Arcade folks for giving us a guest spot, Jeff and I are now auctioning off the original artwork for the guest strip (pictured above) with all the proceeds of the auction to go to Child’s Play.
This is literally a one-of-a-kind piece of work, as it is the original inked art which was scanned in for the strip, on Strathmore board, signed and dated by me and by Jeff Zugale. Jeff knows the exact dimensions, but given the standard Strathmore board dimensions, I suspect it’s 22 inches by 15 inches, tells me that the dimensions are 17 inches by 11 inches, which makes it nicely suitable for framing. Here’s a much larger picture of the original, so you can examine it in detail.
Extra! If the bidding gets over $1,000, I will throw in some nifty extras to be determined later (but I promise they will be nifty and you will squee with delight, if you are the sort of person who indulges in the squeeing).
(Update, 12:03pm: The $1,000 level has been reached! This is where Jeff Zugale steps in to say “if the bids go over $2,000 I too will throw in nifty extras, starting with a cartoon sketch of the buyer (from a photo over the internet), maybe a print of the UPK painting… y’know, stuff like that.” Excellent.)
(Update, 9:10am, 12/16: The $2,000 level has been reached!)
And now: The details!
How will the auction work?
You must enter a verifiable e-mail address to bid.
1. Bid here on the site. Bidding begins at $25. Each new bid must increase the former bid by at least $5, in dollar amounts. If two bids are made at the same level, the first bid offered is the official bid. You may not increase your bid until someone else bids higher.
2. Until $1,000, bidding must be in increments of no more than $25 (this is to discourage trolls and fake bidders). From $1,000 to $5,000, bidding may be in increments of no more than $100. From $5,000 to $10,000, bidding may be in increments of $250. From $10,000 forward increments of $1,000 are acceptable.
3. However, if any point I am contacted privately by a bidder who wishes to jump the bidding to a significantly higher level (i.e., $250+ more than the current bid in the early stages, $1000+ more in later stages), if I am convinced it’s a serious bid, I’ll go into the thread and raise the bidding to that level. This is the only way to jump ahead.
4. I reserve the right to disqualify any bids if I do not feel they are legitimate. If I do, I will pop into the thread, note the disqualification, ban the bidder if necessary and reset the bidding at what I believe was the last legitimate bid level. If it appears to me the bid thread is being swamped with fake bids I may halt all bidding while I figure out the way to deal with it. I reserve the right to cancel the auction entirely.
5. After the auction ends I will contact the winner via e-mail (this is why you need a verifiable address). You will need to respond to that e-mail within 24 hours or I will assume you were not a serious bidder and contact the next highest bidder. So please be looking for my e-mail!
How and when will you donate the money from the auction?
I won’t; you will. I will forward you the information you’ll need to make the donation to the Child’s Play charity. You will need to send the money within three business days or be disqualified. Send me a copy of the donation receipt and give me permission to verify the donation with Child’s Play. This way you’ll also get any applicable tax deductions.
How will the item(s) get to me?
We will ship it/them to you, worldwide, without charge. When we ship it we will provide you with the tracking number so you will know where it is and when it’s going to get to you.
Can I tell others about this auction?
I hope you will! Please, feel free to tell anyone you’d like.
If you have any questions, please let me know through e-mail (john@scalzi.com) — I want to keep the comment thread open for bids only.
The auction runs through Monday, December 19 at 5pm Eastern.
Good luck and happy bidding! I thank you, Child’s Play thanks you, and I’m sure the kids in the hospitals who will get the toys and games would thank you too.
Reminder: This thread is for bids ONLY. Please hold all other comments. If you have questions about the auction, contact me through e-mail.
Bidders: PLEASE remember to read and follow the bidding instructions.
Bidding has begun at $25.
$30
Here’s (selfishly) hoping everyone else on the net misses this..
Awesome strip. I too have a cool daughter. And a beard.
My bid: $50.
$75
$35 – pretty much just so I can say I was in on the bidding. I *know* it will go much higher.
… and that’s what I get for not reloading the comments.
$80
$100
$100!
Darnit! $125!
Let’s step this up a gear – it’s a great charity.
$200
Lee:
The rules state we’re still in the period of $25 maximum increments.
I’ve readjusted your bid to $150.
Bidding now continues at $150.
Folks, please read the bidding rules.
$160
I can tell it’s not going to be long before this gets way outside my means. Oh, well.
$175
My apologies, John. As we’re now at $175, I’ll take this to $200 for the moment… :-)
$225
$250
$275
$300
$300
$325
Well, that does it for me. Thanks for doing this, John. I’ll be making a donation to Child’s Play anyway.
$350
$340
Darn lag!
£360
Note sure what to do with the £ thing, but…
$385
Force of habit, Ned. :-D
$400
$425
$430
$450
I’m sure the bidding will rapidly become too rich for me, but I can always cross my fingers for a Festivus miracle :)
I have been e-mailed what I believe is a legitimate bid at $1,001, so I have accepted it.
As we have passed the $1,000 threshold, the acceptable maximum bid per round is now $100. Minimum bid remains at $5. Dollar values only, please.
Bidding now resumes at $1,001.
Hi there, bidding 1101 $
$1200
Ok, so I don’t think you guys are serious… But I can’t prove it yet…
$1300
I have been offered and have accepted a private bid for $2,000, which means from this point forward, winning bidders will receive extra goodies from both me and Jeff Zugale. Awesome.
Bidding is now reset at $2,000.
And its too rich for my credit rating now. that was a quick leap.
To be clear, I own the high bid at the moment, but it is my maximum bid. My taunting with the $1300 bid and the large self raise (space bid :-)) were an attempt to scare people off, because I want to win. But this is for the children, so I implore you, septuple madness or bust.