Write, Read, Share on Widbook, the ‘YouTube of Books’

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Name: Widbook

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Quick Pitch: The YouTube of books.

Genius Idea: Write, share and collaborate with authors and book enthusiasts..

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Who says people using social media don’t have the patience to read anything too lengthy? A new site called Widbook provides a platform to share books and publish your own.

Book lovers and authors can share stories with others in their social networks, as well as create digital bookshelves to peruse. One of the most interesting features of this site is the ability to collaborate with other authors to create a digital book.

Invite writers to add the next chapter and continue sharing — like a Mad Libs for books. You can publish the chapters as you write on Widbook, even if you’re not finished with the book, and share those chapters with your network on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

To sign-up for the site, which is currently in beta, create a username and password. You’ll then be able to create a profile with photo (optional) and some basic information such as what college you attended and your employer. Find out which Facebook friends are on the site and connect with them. Then the fun part: pick your favorite genres of writing from a number of options, including “technology the Internet,” “sports” and “children’s books,” to name a few.

Once your profile is updates you can submit a status update to your friends on Widbook. On your profile page, you’ll see recommendations for books from other authors you might enjoy reading. The site also functions as a social network for writers. Send messages to other writers or following them through the site.

Right now, if you write a book you can’t export it from the site, but that’s a function that will eventually be available when the site launches out of beta.

Widbook is a product of the startup Incubator Y Combinator, which also nursed Reddit and Dropbox in their early days.

Would you use Widbook? Tell us in the comments.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, AnthiaCumming


Series Supported by Microsoft BizSpark


The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark, a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

This story originally published on Mashable here.

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