Bookmarks. Lovely little strips of art card, fabric, cardboard, and other materials, all used to mark one’s place in a book. Beautiful, beautiful things that have been in use for centuries. So, fellow bibliophiles and lovers of everything bookish, I’d like to borrow some of your attention for a few moments because there is something great that you simply must know about (and really, I think we need more Bookish Days)!
Now, what is this great thing? As you can see from the title of this post, it’s World Bookmark Day (WOBODA)!
Created by the International Friends of Bookmarks (IFOB), the very first WOBODA will be launched on the 25th of February 2017. It’s a day to celebrate our silent little helpers—a day to acknowledge the things they’ve done for us (because short of writing down my last read page number, or dog-earing [which will make me cry because my books must be as perfect as possible], I would forget where I’ve read without my bookmarks). IFOB believes that:
…bookmarks will receive attention and approval they deserve with a little help from their friends. Friends who love to use bookmarks while reading, friends who love to collect bookmarks, illustrate and produce bookmarks, who write blogs, articles, and books on bookmarks, friends who take care of them in libraries and museums, and some other unknown friends.
And, that WOBODA can be an excellent occasion to help bookmarks get the recognition they deserve. So, if you’re interested in joining the celebration for this wonderful day, do partake in one or more of the activities listed below (Note: This list and full details can be found on their website)! And if you’d like, spread the word about WOBODA too!
ACTIVITIES AVAILABLE FOR WOBODA
1. ILLUSTRATOR? ARTIST? CREATE A FREE PRINTABLE BOOKMARK FOR WOBODA 2017!
To partake in this activity, all you have to do is design and submit a free printable bookmark to WOBODA as an uncompressed jpeg (200 x 75 mm) in RGB mode. I make it sound like it’s easy here but yes, I know that designing isn’t an easy thing, no siree! Nevertheless, it’d be a delight should you join this! If not, there’s a bunch of bookmarks already made for WOBODA, ready for you to print right over here so drop by, check them out and maybe print some for yourself!
2. SEND WOBO – THE WORLD TRAVELING BOOKMARK – ON A JOURNEY & HELP HER ACCOMPLISH HER MISSION!
WOBO (on the left) is on a mission to help her bookmark buddies get the recognition they deserve and one step to do that is to download and print some copies of WOBO’s bookmark (go over here to do so). Then, leave them in/at places for other people to find, and when they’re found, their discovery is to be reported via email to the webmaster of IFOB! It’s like a treasure hunt but on a global scale—which is always exciting and fun, no?
There’s a bunch of photographic proof of where WOBO has been already over here (yours can be shown there too!), but I think that she can go to even more places. She’ll be a natural globetrotter soon enough!
So yes, whether you’re on the Western hemisphere or the Eastern hemisphere or wherever in this universe, you can participate in this exciting mission! In fact, you can even let her go at the exact spot you found her to be found by the next lucky person, you can keep her, or you can even send her off on a journey at a different destination. Either way, it’ll be a lovely experience, no?
(And yes, I’ve already printed a bunch of WOBO bookmarks myself. Will be leaving her through a bunch of places I pass through in a few days too. Fingers crossed that people do find her and share their stories!)
3. JOIN THE WOBODA CELEBRATION BOOKMARK RAFFLE!
Adore bookmarks? Collect them because one can never have too many bookmarks? Then, this raffle is just for you!
To join, send IFOB bookmarks (10 bookmarks for a raffle ticket) and on WOBODA (the 25th of February 2017), the first winner will be drawn by lot and he/she will get all (but their own) accumulated bookmarks! The other winner will get the bookmarks the first winner has sent in. So, math time, if a person sends in 100 bookmarks for 10 raffle tickets, another sends in 30 for three tickets and another sends 20 for two tickets, the winner would have at least 50 bookmarks in return—wow!
For more details, head over here.
4. TAKE A PICTURE SHOWING A WOBODA BOOKMARK AT A REMARKABLE PLACE.
This is similar to WOBO’s mission over at #2, but instead of WOBO’s bookmark, download and print any of the designs available for #1 (you can design your own and maybe send it in for #1 too!), bring it somewhere and take photos of it. Then, send these photos to IFOB’s webmaster (jpeg files only) so that they can display them on WOBODA’s page. Don’t forget to provide them your name/nickname and the name of the location you took the picture too!
5. WRITE AN ARTICLE ABOUT WOBODA – THE BEST PUBLICATION WILL BE AWARDED!
All you have to do for this activity, is to write and publish an article on World Bookmark Day (WOBODA) and the activities related to this day, on your blog or website. IFOB will list your publication here and should they be able to obtain a sponsor, they will give an Excellence Award for the best publication about WOBODA. Thus, details on this award and it’s process will be announced when possible.
To register your publication, contact the webmaster. For more details on who already published an article on WOBODA and such, head over here.
(And yes! This is exactly what I’m doing right now. Though, award or no award, I’m satisfied and pleased to share this wonderful Bookish Day with you.)
6. ORGANIZE A BOOKMARK SWAP AT YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY.
Know your local library well (or well enough)? Adore and collect bookmarks? Excited to exchange bookmarks with fellow bookmark lovers? Then, this activity would be the best for you! Of course, you would have to instigate this activity if someone else hasn’t already, but I don’t think there’ll be any harm in trying, no?
Anyway, simply ask your local library if they can hold a Bookmark Swap Day and if they agree, woohoo! (Though, do volunteer to help organizing it and such, you may gain new and exciting experiences!) Write about it when it does happen and share your post with IFOB by emailing the webmaster.
7. WRITE A LIMERICK ABOUT BOOKMARKS AND WOBODA.
Fellow poets and limerick lovers! This here is an opportunity for you to join WOBODA by writing a limerick about bookmarks and WOBODA! Your work will be published on the WOBODA page and you may even win a prize!
For more details and to read the limericks that have already been submitted, head over here. To submit your limerick(s), contact the webmaster. Of course, any inappropriate submissions can be rejected!
8. JOIN THE WORLD BOOKMARK DAY SWAP!
Wanna swap bookmarks with other collectors and lovers globally? Well, this is your chance! Just contact any of the participants listed here and you can swap bookmarks with each other! If you want to register yourself for this activity, simply fill in the form available on the WOBODA page (which can be found under section for Activity #8).
I’m on the list of participants for this activity as well (and I’m really easy to spot thanks to my last name), but if you don’t want to manually type in my email, feel free to contact me via my Contact Page on this WordPress!
9. DONATE TO PROMOTE WOBODA!
You can donate directly with PayPal:
paypal.me/IFOB
Why donate? What’s the purpose? What will your donations be used for?
Well, prizes have been mentioned a few times earlier so that’s the first thing that your donations will be contributing to. The extras will be used to promote WOBODA with additional activities. Even a $5 donation is fantastic for WOBODA’s purposes—your support, no matter how big or small, means a lot after all!
10. ARE YOU A PERSON, COMPANY OR SOCIETY WITH TIES TO READING,
BOOKS AND BOOKMARKS? JOIN WOBODA AS A SPONSOR!
IFOB needs funds to promote the activities associated with WOBODA so sponsors are very much welcomed to help by providing a donation to the cause. Other possible forms of cooperation between the sponsor and IFOB are happily accepted as well!
Sponsors will be listed on the WOBODA page. If you’d like to know more or to be a sponsor, do contact the webmaster!
Snow White Hates Apples 
Fantastic article about the World Bookmark Day (WOBODA) on 25 February 2017. Congratulations, for this creative and extremely motivating paper, we could never have managed to put it that well! Thank you for your contribution to our efforts to make bookmarks, the silent helpers of the readers, better known around the world.
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An excellent blog post with all the spirit WOBODA needs!
I’m crossing my fingers so it may wins the award 😉
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Thanks! 🙂
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