inkpop: Who We Are and Where We’re Going

Hey we were going to post an update today that encompassed sort of the future plans for the inkpop site, but then this

article came out on ypulse.com . Here are some great excerpt. Check out the full article at ypulse.com.

 

Ypulse: How was the inkpop platform built or tweaked to accommodate the needs of an interactive community of readers and writers? Could you describe the dynamic between members?

Becki : When inkpop.com was built last year, HarperCollins wanted to create a more social book site experience. That was impetus for inkpop. Over the year HarperCollins has really seen the power of this site. We’re taking our motto, “Your World, Your Books,” seriously.

Along with searching for more manuscripts from our inkpop community, we’re also working on developing more outlets where readers and writers can just get their ideas in front of editors here. We realize that writing a full novel is difficult and not something that every teen can do every day. We also realize that they are full of great ideas and we want to empower our members to share those ideas with us, so that instead of editors in a room creating books that they think teens will like, teens will really be helping to create the books they want to read.

Ypulse: What has been the most challenging aspect of building this new model? The most rewarding?

Becki:  We’re pioneers here, which is an exciting position to be in, but trying to explain exactly what we’re doing for the users at all times is difficult. At first people who came to the site just thought we were going to take their ideas.

We we had to assure them that that wasn’t the goal of the site. Users weren’t sure we were always listening, but publishing is such a long process it’s also hard to explain that books don’t come out in a month. Now that we’re showing some results, our members are really getting excited.

We want to change the way people think about creating books. That we can and should be listening to our consumers in every way possible. The digital age has given us the capability to do that and it is a huge advantage over previous generations. It’s just getting everyone in and showing them that we want to hear from them that is the continuing challenge.