After all, you release some trendy high-concept book, and for every person who reads it there are a hundred who just enjoy the concept and ten people who buy it just to put on the bookshelf. Hell, I had more to say about Freakonomics before I read it than after — I got the point by the time I'd read a review and half of the dust jacket. So if the book doesn't have to live up to its publicity, why not come up with a clever idea and outsource the actual writing?

The text itself is terrible. Here's the opening paragraph:

The deep waters, black as ink, began to swell and recede into an uncertain distance. A gray ominous mist obscured the horizon. The ocean expanse seemed to darken in disapproval. Crashing tides sounded groans of agonized discontent. The ocean pulsed with a frightening, vital force. Although hard to imagine, life existed beneath. It's infinite underbelly was teeming with life, a monstrous collection of finned, tentacled, toxic, and slimy parts. Below its surface lay the wreckage of countless souls. But we had dared to journey across it. Some had even been brave enough to explore its sable velveteen depths, and have yet to come up for precious air...."

But the project itself is ripe for sociological study. It's a fully and publicly documented interaction between over a thousand would-be authors, a postmodern literary critic's orgiastic wet dream. And the recently released analysis from De Montfort is a good read. The researchers study the actions and psychology of the most active editor, "Pabruce," picking apart certain edits, describing his relations with other editors, and guessing at his motives.

This is also the only research paper to ever include the heading "YellowBanana — genius, vandal or troll?"

So Penguin gets some academic attention, some PR, and no real lost respect for this side project. Plus they get to test some tools that might help when they really are farming books out to writing groups. I wish I got that much out of my last terrible novel.

EXT. THE HARBOR OF FIRE ISLAND PINES
The Sunday afternoon crowd stands in a line stretching far back onto the Fire Island Boulevard boardwalk. Assorted gays stand in the line with a variety of shapes and styles of luggage waiting for their ferry home. Three Asian-American men in their late twenties stand in the queue. BAGGAGEGAY stands with a red Victorinox wheeled duffel, two Trader Joe's shopping bags and a Victorinox Vertical Deluxe Travel Companion slung around his neck over the opposite shoulder. With him are BOREDGAY, wearing an over-sized white tee and light blue Adidas basketball shorts, and EXCITEDGAY, wearing a tight white tank and G-Unit "Soul Stars" plaid shorts.

Seated on the bench is RHYMESWITHHOMO, wearing floral-print Paul Smith sandals, gray Penguin mid-calf shorts, a navy American Apparel "summer tee", Oliver Peoples "Voltaire" sunglasses and a patterned navy Triple 5 Soul painter's cap. He writes in an Ampad Reporter's Notebook with a Pilot Fine-Liner pen. Putting down the pen, he tips down the sunglasses to reveal riveting steel blue eyes that stare directly into the AUDIENCE. After an uncomfortable pause, he speaks.

YourSpace [Penguin Blog via Boing Boing]

Penguin Books [Flickr via Boing Boing]

Earlier: Penguin Classics Get Comical

An Interview with Paul Buckley [Hear, Hear via Boing Boing]