The Tower Guard Program

On November 2nd, Towers of Midnight, book thirteen of the Wheel of Time, will be released around the world. Beginning at midnight that morning, Brandon Sanderson will kick off his U.S tour. You can get the exact times and locations of each tour stop below.

For each one of the book tour events, Dragonmount will be recruiting approximately 5-7 Tower Guards. The Tower Guard will get the rare opportunity to meet with Brandon and Harriet in a casual setting before the actual book signing, and discuss whatever you guys like. You can also get your books signed and personalized in advance. The amount of time you'll have to hang out will vary from city to city depending on Brandon's schedule, but right now we're estimating that it will be about an hour. And, of course, you'll receive an Official Collector's Edition 2010 Towers of Midnight Tour T-shirt. (Oh yeah)

In return for this opportunity, we're going to put you to work. Each member of the Tower Guard will be asked to help document the event in different ways. Some Guard Members will take photos. Others will take notes and do a blog write-up for DM to share with the wider community. Some will hand out promotional material to people standing in line. If the bookstore needs help organizing lines, one of the Guard will be there to help. If Harriet needs a glass of water, the Tower Guard will be there to take care of that.

Another important task for some of the Tower Guard will be to get involved on our message boards, and on our Facebook group to help promote the event. We'll probably ask that each "regiment" of the Tower Guard get together in person at the bookstore once before the event in order to work out the logistics and delegate tasks to be in charge of. You'll be provided with a packet of more detailed guidelines once the teams are assembled.

What are we looking for in members of the Tower Guard?
First and foremost, we're looking for people who are excited about this book release, and excited about meeting Brandon, Harriet and your fellow fans. Because being a member of the Tower Guard requires a lot of organization and initiative, we're looking for people who are proactive and willing to work a little bit. Age isn't a factor. In fact, we want to put teams together that have a diverse range of ages. If you have some good experience in organizing club activities, or have been a contributing member to the various online WoT communities, be sure to mention that in your application. Above all, tell us why you should get selected and why Brandon and Harriet might want to meet you.

What if I'm just a casual fan but still want to be a part of this?
No problem. You don't have to have been a part of a WoT community staff for the last decade to get involved. As long as you're willing to help with the tasks that need to get done, then we'll consider you.

Who's doing the selections?
Jason Denzel, Jennifer Liang and myself (James Luckman) will be going through the applications and putting together interesting and diverse groups. We don't accept bribes, and we hope you won't hurt us if you're not selected. We're expecting a pretty big turn-out of applications. Everyone will get a fair shot. We might even save some open slots to be filled by random selection.

Okay, so how do I apply?
We are now accepting applications. To apply, fill out the web form below. You cannot apply more than once, but you can list your first and second choice of events to attend. You cannot serve on the Tower Guard for more than one event, and we regret that we cannot choose you again if you were chosen as a Storm Leader last year.

The deadline for applications is 11:59 PM (U.S. Pacific Time) on October 8th.

We will review all of the applications and offer positions on the Tower Guard to people within a week after the deadline. This should hopefully give you enough time to get the day/afternoon/evening off from work or other commitments.

Here is a list of the book tour events.

Tuesday, November 2nd - Midnight
BYU Bookstore
Wilkinson Student Center (WSC) / University Hill
Provo, Utah 84602
*With special guest Harriet McDougal

Tuesday, November 2nd – 7:00 PM
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
1725 Arden Way
Sacramento, CA 95815
*With special guests Harriet McDougal and Jason Denzel (founder, Dragonmount.com)

Wednesday, November 3rd - 7:00 PM
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
2692 Madison Rd
Cincinnati, OH 45208
*With special guest Harriet McDougal

Thursday, November 4th - 7:00 PM
Borders
10720 Preston Road, Suite 1018
Dallas, TX 75230
*With special guest Harriet McDougal

Friday, November 5th – 7:00 PM
Books A Million
7000 Arundel Mills Cir
Hanover, MD 21076-1282
*With special guest Harriet McDougal

Saturday, November 6th – 2:00 PM
Borders
5871 Crossroads Center Way
Baileys Crossroads, VA 22041
*With special guest Harriet McDougal

Sunday, November 7th - 3:00 PM
The Harvard Coop
1400 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
*With special guest Harriet McDougal

Monday, November 8th - 7:30 PM
Barnes & Noble Booksellers – Lincoln Triangle
1972 Broadway
New York, NY 10023
*With special guests Harriet McDougal, Maria Simons and Alan Romanczuk ("Team Jordan")

If you cannot see the form below, go here to apply.