Thanks, folks! The contest is now closed. A big welcome to all my new readers!

We interrupt the strip schedule to announce: my first-ever READERSHIP EXPANSION CONTEST!

Let me show you one of my favorite things – my personally custom-built Jayne Cobb minifig! Pretty bog-standard, except for that hat, right? I made it myself. Shiny. It’s made from 2-part modeling epoxy, fits perfectly on his little head, and is (so far) as durable as an actual, official, piece of ABS headgear – even sounds like one when you drop it on the table. And it’s warm enough, he don’t have to worry about the damp lung.

But, as much as I wanted a cunning hat like this, I want readers even more. I’ve wanted to be a cartoonist since I was 8 years old, and I’m having fun with it. I wanna share.

2012 may herald the end of the world, but I’m gonna make it count for Drop the Cow! I’m checking into the feasibility of merchandising this year: T-Shirts, mugs, computer gadgets, and maybe even a compilation book full of remastered strips. Before that, I’ll be starting with some members-only content: desktop images, custom strips, and so forth. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even dust off my pencils and Bristol (snicker!) board and actually draw by hand again… Whatever happens, I’m gonna need more members to start the ball rolling. I’m shooting for 100 members.

So – I hereby announce a “readership drive” contest and will give away this Jayne Cobb minifig as the driver. Want my Hero of Canton for your very own? Here’s how to make that happen.

RULES

First of all, if you’re not a site member here at Drop the Cow!, sign up now. RIGHT NOW! Then, tell all your friends who might like Drop the Cow! about the strip, and ask them to sign up. When they sign up, have them add a comment to this post to reflect that YOU referred them! They can even comment how much they love the strip, if they have to… If you referred yourself, add your own comment to reflect that. Once they’ve registered, they can refer their friends – it’s viral!

Once we hit that magical 100th member, the Jayne Cobb minifig will go to THE MEMBER WHO REFERRED THE 100TH MEMBER. Cool, huh? I’ll then alert the 100th member and ask their referring member for shipping details (I’m paying postage, of course), and declare the winner on the site.

In the event we don’t hit 100 members by 6 June, 2012 (the 1-year anniversary of the strip), I will hang my head in shame and award the minifig to the user who referred the most recent member.

Won’t this be fun? And, if I’m very lucky, I’ll gain a dozen or so new regular readers out of the deal.

Privacy Notice: Sure, I want you to join my site. Sure, I’ll be collecting your email address and whatever other data you provide. But rest assured I am very jealous and protective of such data, and will never sell it, give it away, or otherwise distribute it. I also won’t use it to spam you, although I reserve the right to email the occasional user for the very rare, occasional question, unless told not to.

Disclaimer: All rules of the giveaway must be followed or entries will be voided. There will be a 1-week period following the winning announcement to help verify who referred the 100th member. Failure to comply with the described entry requirement will nullify and void all extra entries. I have the right to remove entries if I feel they are in violation of any rules or are considered SPAM. Giveaway open only to residents of Earth and surrounding territories, unless otherwise noted. You must be 13 years or older to enter. Please note that the prize may take a couple days to process and ship, but I’ll let you know when it’s on the way. Please allow for a reasonable amount of time to receive your prize.

Drop the Cow! is a personal blog and webcomic. The opinions expressed here represent my own opinions and not those of any employers past or present or paid opinions.