From the Ridiculous Ideas for Ridicule File comes news that Lulu.com, a pseudo-Vanity Press that Prints-On-Demand, has created the Blooker Prize for bloggers who want to recycle their free blog content and rehash it in paid book form for sale to unwitting readers. Lulu believes these “Blooks” are the publication wave of the future. I hope the “Blooks” die a quicker death than Cinderella Man mourned moviegoers away from the box office.

12 Comments

  2. It seems unseemly to me, tajuki, that bloggers would repackage free content and then sell it in book form for a price. If you have a private blog that cannot be indexed by search spiders or accessed for free, then the “Blooks” model of publishing might make more sense, but as it stands now the models seems silly and poorly executed.

  7. If I were to publish any of my blog posts as a book it would not be a printed copy of my blog, at the very least I would use the book to clue the readers in on some aspects of my life that I was unable to blog at the time. Looking back at some of my early posts from 2/3 years ago I can see a way of writing a book that is based on blog posts without containing them, in effect a dramatisation of my life, in that way I would be adding extra value to the printed book that you could not get by printing from the web.

  8. If I were to publish any of my blog posts as a book it would not be a printed copy of my blog, at the very least I would use the book to clue the readers in on some aspects of my life that I was unable to blog at the time. Looking back at some of my early posts from 2/3 years ago I can see a way of writing a book that is based on blog posts without containing them, in effect a dramatisation of my life, in that way I would be adding extra value to the printed book that you could not get by printing from the web.

  9. Hi Mark!
    Your Avatar is hilarious! 🙂
    I think you’ve hit upon the right idea! The blog inspires the book and if you buy the book you will be directed to extra free unique content that will further enlighten you via the blog.
    Well done! I think that makes sense.
    I have a new American Sign Language book called Hand Jive pending publication with Barnes and Noble in the Spring and we set up a website with free accompanying videos at
    http://hardcoreasl.com/handjive
    and our readers can use that site to further enhance the value of the book because buying the book gains them access to the free ASL videos on our website.

  10. Hi Mark!
    Your Avatar is hilarious! 🙂
    I think you’ve hit upon the right idea! The blog inspires the book and if you buy the book you will be directed to extra free unique content that will further enlighten you via the blog.
    Well done! I think that makes sense.
    I have a new American Sign Language book called Hand Jive pending publication with Barnes and Noble in the Spring and we set up a website with free accompanying videos at
    http://hardcoreasl.com/handjive
    and our readers can use that site to further enhance the value of the book because buying the book gains them access to the free ASL videos on our website.

  11. Hey A.W.!
    I have missed your wit and terrific commentary here and I am glad you found something to share!
    I am happy to hear FeedBlitz is working for you! It is a fine service that works well.
    I think the lazy in us seeking a quick buck might consider recycling blog posts for profit in book form — change the media means change in the pocket — but we must resist that temptation together. No one wants to re-gift a thought that has already been exposed to the free wilds of the web at any price point.
    Creating a synergy between blog information that begs to be free and paid book content that lives to be coveted is key here and this discussion should help us find the answers to these new, remarkable, questions.

  12. Hey A.W.!
    I have missed your wit and terrific commentary here and I am glad you found something to share!
    I am happy to hear FeedBlitz is working for you! It is a fine service that works well.
    I think the lazy in us seeking a quick buck might consider recycling blog posts for profit in book form — change the media means change in the pocket — but we must resist that temptation together. No one wants to re-gift a thought that has already been exposed to the free wilds of the web at any price point.
    Creating a synergy between blog information that begs to be free and paid book content that lives to be coveted is key here and this discussion should help us find the answers to these new, remarkable, questions.

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