Crowdsourcing: The Book

I was telling a friend the other day that the nature of book writing had changed. Back in the day a writer would receive a commission to write a book, hole up for a year or so and emerge with a near-finished product. The book might be based on an article that originated in a newspaper or magazine, but the works were entirely discrete. Today an article can become the basis for a blog, which then drives further articles, all of which become fodder for the lecture circuit, feedback from which reappears on the blog. If the subject strikes a rich, deep vein, then all this informs a book, which itself is heavily influenced by a continuing discourse facilitated by the blog and further articles. This sounds way more fun than sequestering oneself away in a garret for 12-plus months. The point is that the medium isn't the message anymore. The message is the message, and the medium is merely a delivery mechanism.

Now it's time to put this grand theorizing to the test. I've been developing a book proposal on crowdsourcing for the last several months, a process that reached a happy conclusion last Thursday when Crown Publishing Group bought the rights to publish the book, which is slated to hit shelves in the Spring of 2008. It's my first book and I should probably be more nervous than I am. Instead I feel a sense of giddy anticipation, like the feeling I get when a big trout starts feeding on mayflies just within casting distance (there's surely a more universal metaphor I could use, but hey, this is what comes to mind). One of the immediate effects of the deal is that I'll have much more time to work on this blog, which has been a guilty pleasure up to now. Naturally, I'll be involving contributors to the blog in the writing process, although I'm still mulling exactly how that will take place. And just as naturally, I'll expect you all to give me ideas on that count. I'm sure I won't be disappointed. Thanks to you all, and keep reading ...

Comments

[Stewart McTavish]

Congratulations on the book. I look forwrd to seeing how the process develops. Definitely an exciting topic to look at and perhaps the next economic revolution ...
best of luck.

[Alan]

Congratulations on having the rights bought Jeff and good luck on the process! Alan.

[Alan]

Here is a new IBM Beta site, Many Eyes. A site where you can see your data visualizations and multiple people can access them for a collaborative experience. The amount of interactivity is pretty interesting, many layers and highly developed.

“Investigate the social and communicative value of information visualization.”
Alan.

http://services.alphaworks.ibm.com/manyeyes/app

[Alan]

Interesting Developments at Flicker. They are taking a beating right now over their decision today to force original users to merge with Yahoo accounts with new limits on both the number of contacts and tags allowed on Flicker!

I find it interesting that the “tone” being experienced by users is decidedly different now that Yahoo is at the wheel.

I anticipate, as community and social start ups move through the maturation and the by-out cycle that this might become a common experience. A blip, insignificant?

Posted comments like “Mcflickr! It says so much to the corporatization of a once beautiful site” might become a common lament.

Whilst reading Bruce Livingstone’s rules, I experienced heart and soul. Can the Yahoo’s and Google’s of the world maintain the heart and soul of a community? Alan.

Link to Not Work Safe comments.
http://thomashawk.com/2007/01/theres-some-mighty-pissed-off-flickr.html

[Jeff Howe]

Thanks for your kind comments everyone. I look forward to the collaborative process to come. --Jeff

[Shazz]

Jeff, sincere congrats ... the crowd awaits! :D
It will be fascinating to see how CS (and your book) evolves in a calendar year.

Alan, I'm a happy flickrer and saw some of the brouhaha today too. The first person I saw complaining had almost 20,000 "contacts" ... I've got to think a bit more about this. Is it really a "photo sharing site" if you've got 20,000 contacts? But, then again, why not?

... Shazz

[mademoiselle moutarde]

Interesting Blog, good luck with your book! I found you through an article in a Swiss journal (www.tagesanzeiger.ch) wich mentioned "crowsourcing" once.

[Donal]

Is it too early to pre-order on Amazon? ;)

[Aunt Mary]

Let me know when I can order the book. Good luck.

[Ellen Stiefler]

First, congratulations Jeff! The publishing deal is wonderful news and Random House/Crown is a great publisher. I wish you all the best.

As you said, book writing has changed and so too has book publishing. For years I've represented the traditional authors and publishers (as their attorney) in the book business, but in the last few years, I've also been representing the new players: "book shepherds" who help authors prepare their books for self-publishing, "bestseller strategists" who help get books on bestseller lists so that authors can call themselves "bestselling author" even if that just means short-term status on a minor index; "book marketers", vanity presses, subsidy presses, small independent publishers, and many very savvy people who provide support to the ever more competitive, small margin new publishing business.

Like so many other businesses you write about, the economics of the book publishing business have changed mightily and I think that's what's most responsible for the changes I've seen. Technology and viral marketing and print-on-demand and other factors all come into play too, of course.

As with a portfolio of investments, publishers know that it may take nine non-bestsellers before they recoup their losses with one winner. Consequently, publishers are less and less willing to take risks, especially with unknown authors. They are stingier about book tours and promotional budgets and sizes of first print runs and distribution. I also find that publishers are more apt to sign a book when the believe they have a marketable author and "hook" or "pitch", or a built-in marketable author with a large email database or network to sell into, not just a well-written, marketable book or story.

Advances, especially for non-fiction, can be very small. I often advise my clients that if an advance is below a certain amount or range that I give them depending on various aspects of the deal, they need to be aware that a publisher who has very little invested can let a book languish or even perish unpublished. It won't upset the publisher's bottom line even while it might drive my client mad, and most publishing deals give the publisher a healthy window within which to publish, which can be torture for an author who has expectations of seeing their book in print at long last.

Gosh...I didn't mean this to be so gloomy! There's lots of good news too, especially with how accessible publishing is today, with easy to produce and ecommercialize E-Books, Podcasts and low-cost printed books.

I hope the writing process, and the Blog-facilitated discourse go smoothly and that you have a lot of fun throughout! All my best, Ellen in San Diego

[Daren C. Brabham]

I think there should be an accompanying e-Book, Jeff. In my dissertation research, I've drawn on Surowiecki's Wisdom of Crowds (as I'm sure you will do too), and it being an e-Book has made it very convenient for me.

[Kai]

I'm sure it will be a bestseller in Germany. :)

[tercüme]

hello goes up to