Will You Be at the Presidential Inauguration? Write & Publish About It

The March/April 2009 issue of Writer’s Digest magazine (which will soon be available to subscribers and on-sale at newsstands) focuses on self-publishing, and includes mention of some innovative publishing models…

The March/April 2009 issue of Writer's Digest magazine (which will soon
be available to subscribers and on-sale at newsstands) focuses on
self-publishing, and includes mention of some innovative publishing
models that are starting to heat up. One of them is WeBook,
which is a little difficult to explain (they call it "the home of
community-sourced books), but here's a perfect example of the power of
this model:

WeBook, in honor of the presidential inauguration,
is publishing a collection of Obama inauguration stories, "told by real
people in their own words." You can submit your story anytime between
January 20, 2009 – Midnight EST January 21, 2009, at WeBook.com,
and WeBook wil publish the book within two weeks using digital printing
by CreateSpace (an Amazon company), and sell it for $9.99. All profits
from the project are donated to 826 National, and WeBook is asking contributors to the collection to donate their royalties as well.

You have to sign-up with WeBook to submit your story for
consideration, and if your story is selected, you'll have to sign a
publishing agreement stipulating how you will be paid and what rights
are being purchased. (I was not able to find a copy of such an
agreement, but be sure to read any publishing contract carefully before
signing.)

Jane Friedman is a full-time entrepreneur (since 2014) and has 20 years of experience in the publishing industry. She is the co-founder of The Hot Sheet, the essential publishing industry newsletter for authors, and is the former publisher of Writer’s Digest. In addition to being a columnist with Publishers Weekly and a professor with The Great Courses, Jane maintains an award-winning blog for writers at JaneFriedman.com. Jane’s newest book is The Business of Being a Writer (University of Chicago Press, 2018).