I’ve been thinking a bit about the utility of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) for authors and publishers in today’s book market. As a professional novelist for more than twenty years, I’m highly interested in how blockchain technology and NFTs can benefit someone in the publishing space.
Here are a few utility cases that seem obvious to me…
#1 – Collectible digital editions of new or current titles – The most obvious use case, given that limited collectible editions of books have been a mainstay of genre fiction for many years now. Making digital editions of popular titles, with collectible art as covers or tied to physical editions or with unlockable content (video, audio, interviews, writer commentary, graphics or artwork, music, and the like) would make those editions something above and beyond the standard ebook you can buy on Amazon or any other ebook retailer. (I say buy, but we all know that that’s not really what’s happening. If Amazon Kindle closes tomorrow, there goes your ebook library!)
#2 – One-of-a-kind novel commissions – Ever wanted to be the star in your own action thriller or historical romance? How about commissioning a true one-of-a-kind story where your children are the heroes? Now you can. Writers could cultivate patrons just as artists have been doing since the 15th century art scene in the Italian city states of the time. I know I’d happily write a novel staring a patron as the main character if I was paid commiserate for the work and transfer of IP involved.
#3 – Fan Supported Novels – As with Kickstarter, NFTs could be used to crowd-fund and crowd-source new novels from authors they enjoy. But unlike Kickstarter, novels produced in this fashion would be backed by the blockchain, eliminating the need for middlemen and speeding up both delivery of product and transfer of funds. Ownership of one of the NFTs from such a product could bring the fan in behind the scenes as the novel was being written, making them a part of the process and a witness to the creation of a new story in their favorite literary universe.
#4 – Course Memberships – Some writers, including myself, give back to the writing community by sharing hard-won industry knowledge through courses and non-fiction titles. An NFT could be used as a token granting membership to a course or collection of courses. As a further benefit, when the customer has completed the course, they could resell it on the secondary market, earning income for themselves as well as a royalty to the original creator.
#5 – A Patron Share of Royalties – Imagine owning 1% of popular books like Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, or The Lord of the Rings before they went big? Buying a percentage stake in a new project to support the writer could, over time, turn into a tidy sum as that property rises in popularity. As the writer grows the IP in different directions (ttrps, collectible card games, video games, film and tv, merchandise, theme parks – the sky’s the limit!) the value of the original editions would likely grow, in some cases quite significantly.
#6 – Tickets to Live Events – From small, intimate dinner events with your favorite author to exclusive signings or launches to large conventions, NFTs could serve as the ticket that opens the door to a wide variety of IRL events. Once the event has concluded, the NFT would serve as a reminder of participation in much the same way that we collected concert tickets when we were young.
So that’s six ways NFTs could benefits writers and publishers today or in the near future. The barrier, of course, is making the general public comfortable with digital assets, blockchain technology, crypto wallets, and the like, all elements that are necessary for the buying and trading of NFTs. I have no doubt that such familiarity is coming, and I, for one, want to be ready to take advantage of those possibilities in my career when it does.
I’d would love to hear more publishing or author specific suggestions for how NFTs might be utilized in the industry and whether those in the current crypto space who are also booklovers would find any of these interesting!
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