TenPages and Selexyz close deal

New publishing initiative TenPages and bookstore Selexyz are going to work together. TenPages invites visitors to it’s website to invest a small amount in a manuscript of choice. Books that receive enough support will be published and receive are promoted by the Selexyz chain of bookstores. This way, the mass of small investors takes on the role of literary agent.

Writers can upload the first ten pages of their manuscripts to TenPages.com. Visitors can judge the manuscripts and can invest a small amount. When these crowdfunders have bought a total of 2000 shares, for five euro each, within a period of 4 months, TenPages has the manuscript published. This is done by existing publishers, rather than done by TenPages itself. The crowdfunders receive a share in the profits.

TenPages’ founder calls the start-up the first of its kind. That is not truly the case. In the U.S. it was preceded by WEbook, in The Netherlands by Schrijversmarkt. That more and more of these initiatives pop up seems to indicate a shift in the hierarchic and centralised publishing sector.

Selexyz will sell the books that are approved by the crowd and will promote the works.

22 February 2010