Ideas, Time and Resources: the niche and the social direction

Little by little my idea has its shape more outlined, day after day. Some friends gave me support, some people I know gave me advices, some theoreticians of the “right time for climbing the ladder” gave me no hopes.

Ian gave me some interesting links to projects similar to Ink On Screen. My primary goal is still far from those websites, nevertheless I can easily compare some of the features with one or another. These sites has been funded and this is the starting point I want to reach with my project.

1000Keyboards is a nice site for free short stories. It is quite clean and straightforward. It has a specific target and it is following it “maybe” too much, limiting the stories to those between 800 and 1000 words. Nice and well done.

Fanlib.com is the paradise of fanfiction. At a glance it seems to be quite professional, it does not give me the feeling of “I am a social networking site, Full Stop” as 1000Keyboards, but I feel like entering a domain where someone is expecting great revenues… and do not ask me why, because I do not know. However, the quantity of material is impressive.

Both of these sites have a specific target, a well defined market niche. Ink On Screen, a name that is going to change soon, has a complete different approach, a different target. I do not believe in limiting the type of writing in order to create a niche, but I think that it is the writers’ scope to define the niche itself, while the target of the social networking is one: get published (or e-published). One thing that will change in the time is the perception of publishing; right now we perceive it only when we hold a book or a newspaper, but the first visionaries are starting to understand that in the internet era the paper is not any longer the most popular and convenient distribution method. Being published on (and through) the net, is the next step. Will it be understood and accepted by the writers?

Ian suggested me something I had not kept in consideration before: instead of focusing only on eBooks, whose market is still uncertain, why not opening the door to the audiobooks? In the end when the book is ready, there is just a simple step to add. I have to tell that he gave me a lot of fine advices. Thanks!

The original idea at the basement of Ink On Screen (Books Underground?) is still the same: to provide the writers a social platform to gather the required elements to publish their writings. Proofreaders, translators or readers for the audiobooks: this is what can be required by every writer (or wannabe).

Someone I can see as a sort of “mentor” once told me: Do you know why the startups are successful despite of the lack of experience of their founder? Because of the inexperience and the stubbornness of their founder. After all the advices, after all the market research there is one thing to consider: if you believe in it you have to try!