Friends, "Escaping the Matrix" has been in print now for the better part of a year.The time has come for a "book tour". This first tour will be limited to the West Coast (N. America), partly because of time constraints, and partly because there seem to be several 'hotbeds of interest' there, as regards the book, its ideas, and the notion of empowered communities generally. Below I've attached my ideas for this tour. These are not cast in concrete, and if local conditions call for variations, that is fine with me. I'm aiming for the month of October for the tour, so please contact me ASAP if you are interested in being part of a 'local team' to help organize a 'tour visit'. Be sure and tell me where you're located, and what opportunities you see for various kinds of gatherings and discussions. Also be sure and let me know of any scheduling constraints. I'll be contacting many of you individually, as we've already been talking about a visit. But if you see this message before I get to you, please go ahead and respond. We've only got a few weeks to pull this thing together. If it turns out to be too difficult to make arrangements on such short notice, I can postpone until November. But let's go ahead and get started and see if October can work. I'm looking forward to meeting as many of you as possible in person. best wishes to all, richard ____________________________________________________ Draft Tour Plan My goal won't be to 'sell books' per se. What I'm looking for is a chance to meet with some local folks, with space for a bit of extended dialog, and get into 'what are the issues' in the community, and how do people feel about them. I'd hope for diversity in the group, activists and non-activists, conservative and progressive, etc. If a few of the people have read the book that would be helpful. Certainly anyone who has read the book and wants to come would be welcome. I'd be thinking in terms of a 'circle process', he who has the token has the floor. I see such an event as a kind of improvisational workshop aimed at learning how to understand one another and work together. In some cases I hope it might lead to useful exchanges among the participants, and perhaps spark new local initiatives or connections. I wouldn't be trying to sell the book's ideas, but I would contribute from those ideas as appropriate in the conversation. This kind of event would be of considerable benefit to me in my ongoing work. My goal is to understand how we can create a democratic society. I'm convinced that the starting place is what I call in the book 'empowered communities'. I need to gain a deeper understanding, a more empirical understanding, of the issues and dynamics that real communities are dealing with, and that community activists are dealing with. This 'community dialog event' would be my primary objective for each visit, but it makes sense to pursue other opportunities as well, given that I'm in the area. If there is a local bookstore interested, there could be a standard talk & book signing. If there is a community radio station, there could be a phone-in radio interview a few days before the visit, including itinerary of local 'appearances'. If there is some group that wants to hear a talk w/Q&A, I'd be happy to oblige. I'm thinking in terms of a 2-4 day visit in each location. What I would need in each location: A local 'sponsoring team' who would take on the task of local arrangements: a place to stay , community dialog event, bookstore signing, public talk, radio interview, announcement in local paper, etc., whatever's appropriate locally. Also, I'm supposing that meeting with the 'team', presumably local activists, would be one of highlights of the visit. I'd be available by email & phone to talk to anyone, ie radio producer, bookstore owner, or whatever. Also, I can provide a Promotional Release, flyer, or other needed materials. ____________________________________________________
