I’ve been getting a fair amount of traffic lately, thanks to steady downloading of my WordPress themes and Pligg templates. And I’ve had great fun checking my referrers, surfing and seeing my work in use. It’s a cheap thrill to see how people have adopted my designs, or modified them extensively to express their own creativity. I decided I’d like to reward that, so I’m going to give some lucky person an iPod shuffle, just for the heck of it. Here’s how it works.

If you link to Upstart Blogger, you’ll show up in my referrer logs. Sometime around July 1st, I’m going to pick someone out of my logs and buy them an iPod shuffle. It’s that simple.

The June winner is Elliott Bäck. But don’t fret. I’m giving away even more this month! Get the scoop.

Questions?

I’m using one of your themes/templates, but I removed the link to Upstart Blogger. Can I still get the iPod if I’m already in your referrer logs?

Ah, no. You’re not really supposed to remove the link. It’s the one thing I ask you kindly to do in exchange for using one of my themes or templates (I ask that you retain a link to Upstart Blogger so that it appears on every page of your site—in your header or footer, for example—even if you modify it). That’s just good etiquette. And good karma.

I’m not using one of your themes/templates. What about me?

No problem. You don’t have to be using one of my themes or templates to show up in my referrer logs. Just add a link to Upstart Blogger on your site. You could write a post or trackback to an entry on Upstart Blogger, or add me to your blogroll.

But I don’t have a blog? Am I screwed?

Nope. You could add a link to Upstart Blogger somewhere else on the Web. For example, you could bookmark me on a social bookmarking site or post a comment on another blog with a link to Upstart Blogger. When I go to the site, I’ll see your name as the person who commented, bookmarked me or voted for the link. But please be cool about it. I’m not encouraging anyone to game the system or spam blogs.

Note: If you do something like this, you might want to leave a comment here so I know how to get in touch with you.

Can I sue you if I don’t get the iPod?

Hmmm, please no. This isn’t a contest, contract, or promise. It’s just a gift. I’ll determine who gets the iPod shuffle however I want. I reserve the right to change my mind about the whole thing. But I’m not going to.

The Fine Print

You must be in the U.S. for me to order an iPod from the Apple store and ship it to you (I’m not making a trip to the post office for this). If you’re outside of the U.S., no problem, I’ll send you $79 via PayPal. If you live somewhere where they don’t have PayPal…sorry. Oh, and if you live in the U.S. and don’t want the iPod, I can send you the cash via PayPal. Whatever makes you happy.