Summary of Hunt and How to get involved

[Jenny]

UPDATE: 8/4/18 All puzzles solved and prizes claimed




A new Armchair Treasure Hunt by The Art of Hidden Messages! Below is the email and images sent to MW for announcing this exciting new hunt! Join the Fun and Adventures!


From Beth H. (creator of The Art of Hidden Messages):

I have created a new armchair treasure hunt booklet titled, “Treasures: Art and Poetry, Unlock the Clues”. It is a 20 page, 8.5” x 11” all color booklet that contains eight separate puzzles/hunts. Each hunt leads to an interesting location in the continental United States. There is no need to travel to the location to search for your treasure. With the booklet, the prizes can all be claimed from the comfort of your home. Detailed instructions and rules are inside the booklet.

Before you can claim your treasure, you must search the art and poems for clues to the secret location. It might take some research and possibly some decoding of ciphers.

There is a total of $700.00 US Dollars in cash prizes waiting to be found. One person can claim all of the prizes if they are skilled, or lucky enough, to solve all of the puzzles.

I was hoping to keep the price of the booklet under $10.00, but unfortunately, that was impossible. With the cost of printing, prizes, envelopes and shipping, the cost for anyone in the United States will be $14.00. That includes shipping. For anyone in Canada, the cost will be $15.50. For the UK, Australia, Japan and Holland, the cost will be $17.50. For those from any other country, please email me at [e-mail]

Right now, I am taking pre-orders for the booklet through PayPal. I would like to try to get 50 orders, then I will mail them all at once, so that everyone can start the hunt at the same time. It also gives me time to organize all the orders since this is something new for me. The PayPal link is www.paypal.me/ArtofHiddenMessages You will have to provide your mailing address and enter the proper amount of US Dollars for your country.

I will use TheArtofHiddenMessages facebook page to give updates on the hunt and announce when and what puzzles have been solved.

Also, I have only printed 125 booklets, so order now to get yours, as I don’t plan to do a second printing.

Preview of Cover:






Preview of Back of the Book:

[bellosthemighty]

Jul 21, 2018 6:41:34 GMT -5 Jenny said:

Right now, I am taking pre-orders for the booklet through PayPal. I would like to try to get 50 orders, then I will mail them all at once, so that everyone can start the hunt at the same time. It also gives me time to organize all the orders since this is something new for me. The PayPal link is www.paypal.me/ArtofHiddenMessages You will have to provide your mailing address and enter the proper amount of US Dollars for your country.

I will use TheArtofHiddenMessages facebook page to give updates on the hunt and announce when and what puzzles have been solved.

Also, I have only printed 125 booklets, so order now to get yours, as I don’t plan to do a second printing.

Eh?  That sounds like a vanity publisher model. Who uses those in this day and age? Why not put it up as an e-book or POD using Amazon?

[Jenny]

Jul 21, 2018 6:50:42 GMT -5 bellosthemighty said:

Jul 21, 2018 6:41:34 GMT -5 Jenny said:

Right now, I am taking pre-orders for the booklet through PayPal. I would like to try to get 50 orders, then I will mail them all at once, so that everyone can start the hunt at the same time. It also gives me time to organize all the orders since this is something new for me. The PayPal link is www.paypal.me/ArtofHiddenMessages You will have to provide your mailing address and enter the proper amount of US Dollars for your country.

I will use TheArtofHiddenMessages facebook page to give updates on the hunt and announce when and what puzzles have been solved.

Also, I have only printed 125 booklets, so order now to get yours, as I don’t plan to do a second printing.

Eh?  That sounds like a vanity publisher model. Who uses those in this day and age? Why not put it up as an e-book or POD using Amazon?

Does it matter? It's another wonderful treasure hunt! lol.

And from experience with the first hunt from The Art of Hidden Messages, it will be awesome, whatever way is used to distribute the 'hidden clues for finding treasures' to searchers.

[bellosthemighty]

Eh, I suppose. But a crucial part of any treasure hunt is trusting that the organizer knows what they're doing, and the use of such behind-the-times methods does not inspire confidence. Besides that, distribution via e-book/print-on-demand channels would probably be cheaper for both author and reader. But hey, I ain't gonna judge- I don't know the author's business situation, after all. Good luck to all!

[artofhiddenmessages]

Initially, I had a much longer post, but I decided that I didn’t need to go into details explaining why this is a booklet and not a pdf. If it is the price you are complaining about, I assure you, I am not trying to make a profit on this. I am just trying to cover my costs. I do this for fun.

The booklet contains EIGHT separate hunts/puzzles. So with eight puzzles in one book, each hunt costs less than $2.00, and you are getting the chance to win $700.00.

[zupzel]

I have to disagree Bellos. This is an armchair hunt but it is also a publication of beautiful pieces of art. There is a fundamental wonder in being able to turn the pages of a book and immerse yourself in its images and words that can never be satisfied through electronic media.

[GeneticBlend]

Zupzel and wigreeves,

Thank you both for the kind words!

[artofhiddenmessages]

I would like to sell 50 booklets and then mail those out all at once. That way the start date will be the same for all of those who made a purchase. So far, I have sold 25 booklets. Spread the word! Let's start this hunt sooner than later!

If I don't get 50 sales, I will start the hunt in early August.

[ana]

I’m super happy it’s a print version. Then I don’t have to worry that my printer messes it up and I don’t have to strain my eyes staring at a computer screen.
A print version will also be easier to involve my kids with. I have an e-reader I got as a Christmas present a few years ago that I never use. Nothing better than the feel and comfort of a real book.
Anyhow - I’m excited for the hunt and look forward to receiving something that is not a bill in the mailbox!

[artofhiddenmessages]

Thank you ana! I prefer the print version of books myself, which is one of the reasons I chose to do it this way. Plus the entire booklet is in color. Not everyone has a color printer, if they choose to print it out.

[Karen]

Ordered! So glad you decided to do this & I'm looking forward to it!

[rarbowen]

I think the author/publisher has every right to decide how she wants to make her work of art available to the public. After we pay and own it, we can do as we please with our product. I will probably scan mine, just as I have with other treasure books I have purchased, so I can work them either on my desktop or in my book. I just appreciate the fact that there are those who have the talent to do this, so that I can have hours and hours of fun.

[roundabout]

Ordered! This will be fun. I'm glad it's a book to thumb through and get immersed in. The artwork will be wonderful I'm sure!

[artofhiddenmessages]

Thank you to everyone who has ordered so far! I have received a lot of orders. I don't have quite 50 yet, but it is getting close. Some people have told me that they are mailing checks, and some are waiting for payday. It won't be long! So if you want to get your booklet with the first mailing, pre-order now!

[artofhiddenmessages]

I am shipping the international orders on FRIDAY, JULY 27th! Those to the USA will be shipped on MONDAY, JULY 30th! So if you haven't ordered, get your orders in!