Usually, when you’re not on the same page as someone else, you’re trying to find a middle ground to accomplish a shared goal. But, what if you were actually encouraged to be on a different page, have your own page that tells your story? This is the case and concept for a new project I recently heard of, and I love the idea. Austin Makes a Book is a crowd-sourced book (anyone in the Austin crowd can contribute content) and funded by the contributors themselves (like you and me!). The project is “a social experiement”, according to Austin-based Phenix & Phenix Literary Publicists.  It’s called an “experiment”, but there’s no doubt it will be successful. As soon as the 100 pages are filled and paid for by contributing Austinites with creative works (ex: stories, poems, photographs, art), there will be an eye-catching, attention-grabbing hard-copy sample of the complex and vibrant culture that is Austin. If this project continues, I would love to see the evolution of the creativity that is borne out of this city over an extended length of time….sort of like a yearbook of Austin, only instead of capturing events, capturing the ideas and art that are influenced by living and breathing in the ATX at the time of each new publication.

The photograph above is my contribution to the book—a unique visual angle and perspective of the in-the-works Austin skyline on a rainy morning taken from my car as I drove across the Congress Avenue bridge.

Here’s what to do if you’d like to be a part of this publication and keep a copy in your personal library:

1. Submit your original work (you must be the creator) entry that fits on a 7″x7″ page to submit@austinmakesabook.com. With your submission, include your name as you’d like it to appear in the book along with the title of your work. Also, please send a short (2-3 sentences) bio about yourself – you may include your blog or website URL to be printed, if you’d like.
2. Submit your $30 publication fee online here.
3.  Text (short stories, essays, poems, etc.) should be submitted in a Word document. Photos and images should be submitted as JPG files and should be at least 300 dpi for best quality.

*Any funds in excess of the cost of publishing and shipping will be donated to Room to Read.  For more information about submission guidelines and the project, visit the project website.

Thanks to Tolly, of the Austin Eavesdropper, for letting me know about this opportunity to become a part of a tangible sample of the creativity Austin fosters.