Ebooks have made reading more widely much more accessible. Don’t have $30 to spend on a brand new hardcover? You can get the ebook for half the price and start reading immediately.
But, there’s something unsettling about having a whole library of books you can’t see on a shelf. The tactile nature of physical books makes it easier to feel like you have a collection.
That might be changing soon, as Arc Manor announces they plan to release a set of limited edition ebooks as NFTs.
Ebooks as NFTs? Is It Possible?
With the rise of NFTs and blockchain technology, we’ve seen some wild things. There have been entire genomes minted on the blockchain, as well as medical and chemical research that’s been funded through the sale of utility NFTs.
Not to mention the rampant collectible NFTs that made national news, stuff like Bored Apes or Crypto Punks.
It appears that there’s a broad spectrum of NFTs–some of which sit on the far end of collectibility, with no other value than to exist, where on the opposite side, we have NFTs that have real-world applicability. Is there a middle ground between the two?
That’s where collectible NFT ebooks come in. Books have long been sought after as collectible items, but they also have another purpose, which is obviously to be read.
Shahid Mahmud, owner of Arc Manor, says “There is a huge market for paper-based book collectibles. Now we have the ability to create a similar market with digital books.”
This comes on the wings of the announcement that Arc Manor has partnered with Curate, a mobile NFT marketplace, to create a line of collectable, sci-fi ebooks.
Blockchain technology makes it possible for ebooks to have a collectible value, because no two will be the same. While you might not be able to get your NFT ebooks signed on the title page, you can own a rare collectible edition that holds more value than less-rare variants.
The Pursuit of Pankera
What books will be minted on the blockchain first? Well, Mahmud chose The Pursuit of Pankera by Robert Heinlien as Caezik Crypto’s debut NFT.
The Pursuit of Pankera was released in 2020, and is the last Robert Heinlien novel to be published, albeit posthumously. The manuscript was rediscovered and lovingly edited by Patrick LoBrutto and the staff at Caezik.
The Pursuit of Pankera: A Parallel Novel About Parallel Universes is tied tightly to another Heinlein novel, The Number of the Beast. In fact, the first part of the book reads the same as The Number of the Beast, but it quickly deviates from its predecessor, creating a parallel timeline.
Among the Golden Age sci fi writers, Robert Heinlein was certainly one of the pioneers. His fiction reached wide audiences, and he influenced many of the current science fiction dynamics with his novels. It’s only fitting that he will once again be reaching into new territories as the first NFT ebook.
The Pursuit of Pankera will be released on Curate’s mobile NFT platform, with 500 unique, numbered cover variations.
Arc Manor also plans to release two more ebooks as NFTs: Midnight at the Well of Souls by Jack L. Chalker, and Reboots: Undead Can Dance by Mercedes Lackey and Cody Martin
Where To Get These NFT Ebooks
Like we mentioned, Arc Manor has partnered with Curate to make these NFT ebooks possible. You can access Curate on their mobile app or on their desktop version. Creating an account is fast and easy, but you will need a cryptocurrency wallet to purchase any NFTs.
To learn more about how purchasing NFTs on Curate works–and what currencies you can use–check out their website.
And to keep up to date on the NFT ebooks coming from Arc Manor, sign up for their mailing list over at CaezikCrypto.com.