Project Publish

The New York Times reports on a new initiative called Project Publish that's organized by Media Predict in partnership with Simon & Schuster.

Basically, Media Predict website visitors have the opportunity to vote on their favorite book proposals, those they think deserve to be published. Simon & Schuster will select one of the book proposals based on these rates. I guess a pseudo online American Idol for books?

Maybe not. Here's how NYT described it:

Media Predict is soliciting book proposals from agents and the public, and posting pages of them on the site. Traders, who are given $5,000 in fantasy cash, can buy shares based on their guess about whether a particular book proposal is likely to get a deal, or whether Touchstone Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, will select it as a finalist in a contest called Project Publish. If either happens within a four-month period, the value of the shares go to $100 apiece; if not, the share price falls to zero.

Hmm, okay. Still confused. But hey I'm all for creative ways to get folks published.