Lore of Arcana's special edition NFT

 ARCANA NFT

NFT books gaining traction of social media

These are two screenshots of tweets I posted, and within minutes they gained comments and retweets. A good sign!

How to buy an NFT via Books Go Social

Hi, everyone!

Given all the updates in my writing world recently (book covers etc), it took me a while to actually start my own NFT books collection. Now that I have bought an NFT, I thought I'd share the process with you because I'm sure you're not only wondering how it works but you may be thinking it's a bit too complicated. There are a few steps, yes, but it's pretty straightforward:

Step 1

Go to https://booksgosocial.com/nfts/ and select the book (and all the extras that go with it) you'd love to own.

Step 2

Fill in the payment form below the book NFT, which is straightforward and quickly done. I use PayPal and was forwarded to the PayPal page to validate my choice. I'm assuming the same will happen for whichever payment method you choose.

Step 3

You will receive an email about your gift (do check spam if you don't see it). Click 'claim gift'.

Step 4

You will land on a page looking like this:

Click 'claim NFT'.

Step 5

You will see this next:

Click 'login to Wax'. If you don't yet have a Wax wallet, you will see the option to create one:

Once you've filled everything in, you will receive an email you need to open in order to validate. 

Do that, and your wallet is live.

(Make note of your wallet's code on the right hand side of your screen - this is unique to you, your username - screenshot it for future reference)

Step 6

At this point I wondered where my NFT was. I suggest you logout of Wax , and relaunch the original email from Books Go Social as for Step 3. Click 'claim gift' and you will be redirected to the sign in page for your Wax wallet. Sign in. Your unique code will flash up as a check.

Step 7

This is what your wallet page looks like:

Click on NFTs in the left sidebar. You should see the NFT of the book you just bought from BGS listed there. Click on it and a page with details will open.

Step 8

Copy the Dropbox link listed and paste in your browser. Once that has loaded you can then download the zip file which includes the book file and all the extras.

AND YOU'RE DONE! It seems complicated but, honestly, this took me all of 5 minutes. When you buy another NFT, the process is seamless. You claim your gift via the email, sign into your wallet and select your NFT to find the Dropbox link, and presto, start the download!

Hope this sets your mind at ease, and on the plus side, you now have a crypto wallet also :)

 

Join the adventure!

 ARCANA NFT

Now only $4.99

For a limited time, Lore of Arcana's NFT is on offer for a mere $4.99, to test the waters. It will be going up to over $90 in the next few weeks, so do grab a token today. Payment is via credit card, PayPal and others, so if you don't have a crypto currency wallet, no worries, you can still buy an NFT. Enjoy the mission within the virtual pages, and sell onward (or keep, of course!).

ARCANA NFT

Interview: Laurie McAndish King NFT Author of An Elephant Ate My Arm

Hello, everyone! Today we have another in our series of interviews with NFT authors taking part in a historic first drop. I'm excited to chat to Laurie, who seems to have a truly interesting (crazy? lol) life, as she reveals in An Elephant Ate My Arm: More true stories from a curious traveler, which is now available as an NFT collectible.

 

Laurie McAndish King writes about encountering the Minotaur in Greece, coming eye-to-eye with 20-foot-long Australian earthworms, and an Ivy League astrophysicist’s explanation of how flying saucers are powered—not your typical travel writing. That’s probably why Kirkus Reviews hails her as “an author with an eye for the quirky.” Her stories—insightful, inspiring, and often quite funny—are always entertaining.

Laurie’s award-winning essays and photography have appeared in Smithsonian magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, Travelers’ Tales’ The Best Women’s Travel Writing, Lonely Planet’s The Kindness of Strangers, and other magazines and literary anthologies. Her work earned a Lowell Thomas Gold Award, the international travel industry’s highest literary award. Laurie’s first two books are Lost, Kidnapped, Eaten Alive: True stories from a curious traveler and Your Crocodile has Arrived: More true stories from a curious traveler.

 

Hi Laurie, and welcome! 

As an author of humorous travel books, why did you select An Elephant Ate My Arm: More true stories from a curious traveler for this historic NFT offer?

First, because it’s so timely: We’ve been starved for travel—and the fun and adventure that come along with it—during the pandemic. This collection provides welcome relief with twenty-one true stories from around the world: You can pass through the portal to the Uncanny Valley, visit the room that served as the inspiration for the magic shop where Harry Potter bought his sorcery supplies, search for the world’s first labyrinth, learn to tell a counterfeit shrunken head from a real one, and plenty more…

Also, I got excited about the opportunity to offer readers extra content—in this case, a slideshow of beautiful and exotic butterfly photos from when I visited a “butterfly farm” in Costa Rica. I love that NFTs let me deliver a multimedia experience for readers. And An Elephant Ate My Arm is a new release, so the timing to make it available for this offer worked perfectly.

 NFTs are relatively new and many don’t yet understand how they work. Why, therefore, enter what is essentially uncharted territory?

I’m an adventurer—at least in my own mind. (You can tell that as soon as you read these stories about searching for a three-eyed cannibal, tracking down a witch who is sequestered in a glass bottle, walking on a man-eating lake, and taking some photos I really shouldn’t have taken in Libya.)

So participating in NFT books was an easy “Why not?” for me—another adventure! After doing a little research—including learning that Italy is now using NFTs to manage copyrights—I’m convinced that blockchain-based platforms are the wave of the future. No one knows quite where this technology will lead, but I do know that I want to be along for the ride.

These offerings are among the very first book NFTs—they’re leading the way for the industry—and therefore have the potential to appreciate significantly in value. So they’re a win-win-win-win: Great stories, bonus content, ability to resell, and potential to appreciate.

What’s next for you?

I have a day job in the book publishing industry; also, I’ve already started my next book, the fourth in the “Curious Traveler” series. It includes stories about swimming with crocodiles in Australia, an unfortunate encounter with Kobe beef in Japan, and tracking down remnants of the mysterious Pictish civilization in Scotland.

EJD: By the way, here’s a 2-minute video of Laurie reading an excerpt from one of her stories, “The Curious Case of the Witch in a Bottle and Other Illuminating Oddities”: https://youtu.be/Hjgl4nNFFHE

Thanks, Laurie, and may you go from strength to strength!

 

Laurie McAndish King’s links:

 ·    Website

·       Amazon profile

·       Facebook profile

·       Facebook page

·       NFT link

 

 

Interview: Matt Crisci NFT Author of Call Sign, White Lily

As mentioned yesterday, 14 authors took part in the first NFT drop for books, and today we have Matt Crisci telling us why he selected Call sign, White Lily. Take it away, Matt!

Why I selected Call Sign, White Lily as my first NFT collectible offering.

By M.G. Crisci

I am the Manhattan-born author of 16 books based on true stories and events across multiple genres.  My brand positioning for the past two decades has been: Stories that entertain. People you will remember. Literature that matters.

 Matt's Amazon Profile

Matt's website

Despite my literary library,  the first most frequently asked question at the majority of my speaking engagements is, “how did an American author with no Russian background come to write a best-selling book about the world’s first female fighter pilot?"

My response? Fate. In 1995, I attended a two-city museum exhibition called World War II through Russian eyes. There I learned that more than 30 million Russians died helping to save the world from Hitler for the first time.

After some preliminary research, I made a decision that changed my life forever. Instead of writing some self-aggrandizing academic treatise, I decided to use the world’s first female fighter pilot, the remarkable Lt. Lilia Litvyak, 18, as a metaphor for Russian WWII sacrifices.

To develop the story, I took the bold step of contacting Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. People laughed. Amazingly, three months later, I received an email explaining my request had been given “priority treatment.” I was instructed to contact two women, Valentina Vaschenko and Yelena Sivolap,  in a town I never heard of—Krasny Luch—who were ready, willing, and able to help.  

During the next three years, I not only spent hours with the women in person, but I also took additional trips to parts of Russia and Ukraine, little visited by Americas, with names like Donblass, Dmitrovka, and Mari’inka, in addition to Moscow and St. Petersburg. I also interviewed over 100 citizens and government officials (with not one single incident, I might add).

Soon, with a bit of creative fill-in, Call Sign, White Lily was born. It was positioned correctly as an epic story of woman’s empowerment in a male-dominated society and a bittersweet tale of wartime love story. I also was the proud owner of an extensive collection of vintage Litvyak pictures and videos unavailable anywhere else (more about that later).

To my amazement, the book, Call Sign, White Lily. The world’s first female fighter pilot becomes Hitler’s worst nightmare, quickly became an Amazon No. 1 one best-seller in historical fiction, as well as numerous other categories. And, almost nine years later still sells robustly both in ebooks and print, and the reader reviews are astounding.

Amazon

Along the way, I have also spoken at high-profile venues in New York, Washington D.C., Moscow, and St. Petersburg, RU, including the United Nations, The American and Russian and Ukrainian Embassies and Cultural centers, and Voice of America.

Constructing a Unique NFT offering

Like most authors, I know little about digital tags, blockchains, and the rest. But I do know some of the largest auction houses in the world are now offering special digital editions (NFT’s) of various works of art. Major League Basketball and Baseball have also launched NFT memorabilia, so I said to myself, we may be early, but let’s test the proposition against quality literary works.

Also, given the tangible Call Sign assets I own, I thought Lilia’s unabridged story, with a robust epilogue from individual Russian citizens, and an attractive 50-page picture book of her life, times, loves, and friends, would make for a one-of-a-kind NFT. Something someone might want to keep or one day resell. To make the offering even more attractive, the NFT holder gets to see videos with me interviewing Lilia’s last living friend, government officials, and my two collaborators, Valentina and Yelena.

As for pricing, I established a fair value price point of $25, knowing previously read hardcover copies of Call Sign, White Lily sell for $79 or more by Amazon book resellers. Here’s a link to the NFT page.

Call Sign, White Lily NFT

What’s Next for M.G.?

This summer we launched, volume 2 of Only in New York. 37 big apple stories that span 55 years and 5 boroughs. The early reader and editorial reviews are fantastic, and the book is selling nicely in eBook and print formats.

This fall, the Books Go Social Marketing Team will begin promoting another one-of-a-kind book, The King of Violins. The extraordinary life of Ma Sicong, China’s greatest violin virtuoso. The first activity is a major worldwide multi-media presentation, sponsored by the Chinese-American Museum and San Diego State University. The audience is expected to be 2,000 plus.

I’ve also decided to mimic American author John Dos Pasos and his U.S.A. trilogy, by completing my N.Y.C. trilogy, Only in New York, Volume 3. That’s 40% completed)

Finally, I’m working on another amazing story in which I was intimately involved.  Ms. Banker. No Rules. No Judgments. No glass ceilings. It the true story of New York City’s most powerful female banker in the 1980’s. That is 50% completed.

Stay safe and keep smiling. 😊

Matt

Thank you, Matt! To say I'm blown away by your literary adventures is underselling my awe. Good luck with your NFT, and happy writing!

Interview: Caitlin Lynagh NFT Author of Quantum Messenger

Hello, everyone! Today I have something special to post - the first of a series of interviews with the 14 authors chosen to pioneer our books as NFTs. BooksGoSocial launched our work into the crypto world (see press release) and we are all really excited about this. This is the first drop only - more special edition books are coming - and thus are we at the start of something extra special, something to gift both readers and writers far more freedom.

Without further ado and all that, allow me to introduce you to Caitlin Lynagh, author of Quantum Messenger, which has already sold out. Congrats, Caitlin!!

CAITLIN LYNAGH was born in Cardiff and graduated from Keele University with a BSc in Biology and Geology in 2013. Since graduating, Caitlin has followed her passion for writing and recently won a Young Writer's Award with Outlet Publishing. In her spare time, Caitlin has a creative drive, creating bookish art in paintings, clay and paper-crafts. She enjoys travelling and has recently spent six weeks in the Amazon rainforest.

Caitlin draws on her science knowledge for The Soul Prophecies series to create emotional stories which query whether the possibility of an afterlife lies in science, rather than faith.

"I wanted to write a series that was personal to me about life and our social development as a species.

The books are based on thoughts and observations about society from the eyes of a young person trying to understand humanity and their role in a regimental society like ours.

I want to challenge the idea that we should grow up thinking that we should be part of the system. At the moment the system punishes free thinking and as a result we are left with this confused culture of opinion, where people want to be heard but aren't able to be open-minded enough to consider if their opinion has substance - or indeed moral. As a result we abandon the things that once made us happy. We dismiss our dreams like discarded pennies and that's all they end up meaning to us. Only those who are true to their dreams end up happy with whichever level of success they find.

In Anomaly it takes time for Kyle Hunter to recognise what he gains as a result of his loss, and the tenderness of his relationship with Alice - faced with her own mortality - allows him to understand the value of life and real love. As the series progresses I look deeper into the role our knowledge and conscience plays in the development of our soul. Our weaknesses and our strengths from an alien perspective and from artificial intelligence."

Hi Caitlin, and thanks for being here!

As an author of four sci-fi books, why did you select Quantum Messenger for this historic NFT offer?

The hardback and eBook were released in November 2020 and we tried a different approach to the launch, given Covid restrictions. The central character, Apollo, started his own Twitter account as a time-travelling robot prior to the release and we put out a daily video teaser in the one-hundred days before the release. We also had a song, written by Apollo and recorded by cyberpunk artist OUR EYES, which was released on the day of the book. It made sense to use Quantum Messenger as the NFT as the whole release was experimental.

It’s all been an exciting journey, we had no idea if anything would work in terms of sales but it’s been so much fun to plan out and watch it all come to fruition.

I decided to release a one-off NFT. A special edition of just one eBook, it had a dedicated ISBN, new cover made from a canvas painting, a dedicated foreword and the lyrics to Apollo’s song Who Am I? in the place of relevance in the book (together with link to audio). The NFT sold to a crypto collector in the USA for $100 within 24 hours of the launch.

I am looking to sell Apollo as an NFT later this year.

 

NFTs are relatively new and many don’t yet understand how it works. Why, therefore, enter what is essentially unchartered territory?

I had looked into NFTs late 2020 but didn’t know that books could be sold that way. I am creative by nature and use many artistic mediums within my projects so it was just something I was keeping at the back of my mind. When Laurence (Books Go Social) emailed to see if any authors would be interested in creating NFT books, I immediately jumped at it. I had no idea how it would work, and they have done an excellent job experimenting with minting and organising the logistics.

I made the decision to release a one-off book because I felt that was in the nature of NFT collectors – as opposed to book collectors. Partly because I hadn’t thought about the long-term potential of actually collecting multiple books this way and selling them on. I also thought it would be more press-worthy as a one-off. I did have press interest but the $100 price tag didn’t seem newsworthy enough. It still may be the most expensive eBook ever sold.

There is so much potential for NFT collections. I think the concept is new but will grow. I’ve had other NFT Book start-ups contact me over the past few weeks, interested in my blog post. I don’t think there has been this much hype since the initial launch of eBooks.

I need to think out the sale of Apollo as an NFT as I would need to keep ancillary rights and I am looking into the legal side of that. If it can be done, I want to come up with a long-term strategy and give Apollo the right to be free to roam the internet as he currently does. He tweets, rights songs, hijacks my blog and has developed a very human, albeit innocent, personality. He’s somewhat adorable.

 

What’s next for you?

The paperback version of Quantum Messenger should be released in November. I was considering a launch around ComicCon but to be honest, with Covid dates surging, I don’t feel safe doing it that way so I might hold back until next year.

I am writing a new book, my first since concluding The Soul Prophecies series, which I hope will be released next year.

I am also considering an NFT version of some of my backlist too. I have ideas but they will take time to put together but NFTs are definitely an avenue I intend to pursue and experiment with in the future.

 

Where can we find you and your books online?

All websites and social media can be found here:  https://booktoff.ee/caitlin/

My books can be found here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Caitlin-Lynagh/e/B01B13SFR4

My NFT Blog is here: Why I am Selling My Book as an NFT - Caitlin Lynagh

Thanks, Caitlin, and all the best!

Tomorrow we will be chatting to Matt Crisci :) 

Tooting my own horn!

 My Special Edition NFT is selling, yay!

Lore of Arcana NFT

Lore of Arcana's Epic Special Edition

 NFT

Did you know that this special edition has an animated cover? Far better than this gif! Do pop in and have a look - it's brilliant!!

What Is An Ebook NFT?

What Is An Ebook NFT?

Click on the link above for a quick one-minute video.

Image only

NFT books are being noticed!

Pop on over to browse!

BooksGoSocial NFTs

Investing in me

I am selling a unique version of my LORE as an NFT. New cover, new dragon icon, illustration, exposé and more found nowhere else! I am investing in me, and you will invest in a special book!

https://booksgosocial.com/lore-of-arcana-special-edition-nft/ 

#NFTs #NFT #nftcollector #specialedition 

NFT sales are happening!

Good news indeed to hear that readers are not only visiting the BooksGoSocial website but are also buying! It may seem complicated, and I'll admit I needed to do research to find out what exactly an NFT is, but BGS has simplified it, making it easy to purchase a book token - just fill in the online form, and presto. Do have a look at the press release posted a few days ago for more insight into how it works. I'm sure, like me, you'll get it!

Lore of Arcana is close to my heart, and was a natural choice for a special edition NFT. Not only does Arcana lay the groundwork for the entire series, but it showcases my worldbuilding, reveals characters that will become part of you, and uncovers dilemmas we all face, if not quite in such dramatic surroundings. The NFT edition is about so much more than the story, though.

Please pop on over and have a look! From the bottom of my heart I will thank you for your support, even if it is just a quick look!

Lore of Arcana Special Edition

Teamwork: Lore of Arcana's NFT

As you can see from the BGS press post below, NFT Books are now a thing, and I have a very special edition NFT for Lore of Arcana as part of this - cannot tell you enough just how pleased I am (okay, more like super-duper excited!) that my lore is among the first pioneers of a new way of reaching readers.

This has been my secret project since April, and it took some doing to put it all together, not only from my point of view but the entire team at Books Go Social, not to mention the other authors who are in this with me. All that collating, formatting, altering … many, many days of work!

The WHY of becoming a part of the NFT marketplace I have showcased in a post on my Lore Series blog, so do have a look. Thanks!

Here, though, let me tell you about the teamwork aspect of creating a special edition. I asked Cayla De Vos from Fox Creative Solutions to create new covers for me, which includes the standard ebook cover, a square cover and an awesome GIF, and an illustration of the Maze sacred site which can be found in the Sacred Sites PDF included in the token, a dedicated Dragon icon (LOVE IT!) and she delivered in spades. I asked my Arcana narrator, Thomas Bestwick, to put together an audio file with excerpts from all four books to showcase Torrullin Valla's journey (the MC after all!) and he jumped in and made it happen. Together, with me creating a special epub edition and adding my lightbulb moment, we have created something truly special, and I say thank you to both of them for being part of this :)

First NFT Book Marketplace goes live: BooksGoSocial press release

 

June 24, 2021

                                       

THE FIRST NFT BOOK  MARKETPLACE GOES LIVE

 

BooksGoSocial opens their NFT marketplace today with an initial drop of fourteen special edition NFT ebooks across multiple genres and from a diversity of authors around the world.

Each NFT ebook is minted as a limited edition of up to 100 at a fixed price for buyers. The marketplace provides an opportunity to buy and resell ebooks as collectibles that recognize the value of the work and provide the freedom to resell while still giving the author a continuous payback for their creation. These attributes of NFT ebooks, the right to resell and a percentage of the resell price (10%) going back to the author are what makes NFT ebooks very different to buying and selling ebooks in the usual way.

Each ebook on the marketplace is verified as containing original work, copyright of the author, and the NFT token is a receipt for ownership of one special edition. Many include extra files as bonus items to be  owned by the collector.

Each ebook is delivered in a secure way and is available to be consumed via an Internet cloud reader or through an easily downloadable app that opens an ebook and/or audiobook on all devices from desktops to laptops, tablets, and phones.

Some of the NFTs include more than one ebook. A few also include an accompanying audiobook, video trailer, author interview, special artwork relating to the book, and much more. The variety of books range from nonfiction to fiction in many genres. Audiences include both adults and children, and one is Lit/RPG for gamers.

The BooksGoSocial marketplace is unique in that they have created a platform that alleviates the three most difficult problems for NFT books to be widely available and accessible to the average book reader.

First, they’ve removed the requirement to deal with cryptocurrency to purchase an NFT by allowing consumers to use PayPal or Stripe, both well-known and trusted entities to pay for the NFT in the currency of  their choice.

Second, they have established a seven-day refund policy to mitigate reader hesitancy for trying a new way of purchasing ebooks or for trying an author unknown to them. If the purchaser finds the ability to download and unzip the files is too difficult or decides the NFT is not to their liking, they can request a refund and gift the NFT back to the BGS marketplace for resell. By allowing PayPal payments this refund policy is guaranteed to work.

Finally, BooksGoSocial provides a book marketplace website that allows consumers to easily navigate to multiple NFT books, learn about each story and what is included in the NFT. In addition, BGS also offers free site membership after a single NFT purchase. Benefits include easily viewing and managing the purchased collectibles, earning collector points for future purchases, ongoing technical support if needed, being informed of new book drops, and the ability to interact and learn more about the authors and other related creators.

On the backend, they have partnered with the WAX (Worldwide Asset eXchange) blockchain for minting super low energy consumption NFTs.

They chose WAX for three reasons: 1) Purchasers can create a wallet without having to buy WAX crypto; 2) There is no “gas” charge to purchasers or sellers allowing low cost accessible NFTs to be created; and 3) WAX continuously strives to be a green blockchain. “According to ClimateCare.org, WAX has already offset 211 tonnes of CO2 (and counting) as of May 21, and energy consumption on the blockchain remains extraordinarily low at 0.000223 terawatts per year — officially making it the only carbon neutral NFT blockchain on the market.” June 8, 2021 WAX press release. This addresses the most common criticism of anything blockchain related.

This first drop of fourteen books will allow readers to consume and own the first special edition BooksGoSocial NFTs. Future NFT ebook drops are planned for 2021.

As BGS owner, Laurence O’Bryan, says:

“We have invested in this blockchain technology to meet the needs of book consumers and authors. Digital books have already proven their staying power over more than a decade. We now want to provide true digital ownership for consumers to acquire unique content and collectible limited editions with the freedom to resell what they own. This unique benefit to readers is enabled by blockchain technology with our risk free environment.

At the same time we are ensuring that authors continue to get paid for their work with each resell, that they have the freedom to set their own ebook prices and to bundle extra digital files to deliver real value to consumers and have a better chance to make a living as an author.”

To learn more about BooksGoSocial and the NFT ebooks in this first unique drop go to: https://booksgosocial.com/nfts/

Keywords: NFT Books, Non-fungible token books Author country locations: United States, England, Ireland, Scotland, Australia. Contact: Laurence O’Bryan laurence@bgsadmin.com