This SMART 100 profile and the information it contains is a duplication of content submitted by the applicant during the entry process. As a function of entry, applicants were required to declare that all details are factually correct, do not infringe on another’s intellectual property and are not unlawful, threatening, defamatory, invasive of privacy, obscene, or otherwise objectionable. Some profiles have been edited for reasons of space and clarity.
1. THE BEGINNING
This innovation came to life when…
We realised that life is too short to read bad books.
However, law graduate and full-time nerd Stephen Koo wanted a way to try out new books or comics by fresh up-and-coming writers without wasting his time or cash, the way he could try out a few TV episodes before deciding to buy the Blu-rays.
An idea was born – Chaptor. Harsh Overseer (a tech wiz with the coolest name) shared Stephen’s passion and vision for Chaptor, and together they are bringing the idea to life.
2. WHAT & HOW
The purpose of this innovation is to…
Help readers and comic book readers discover amazing high-quality stories as they are being written, one chapter at a time. It also helps writers gain a readership base for books they are currently writing, and earn an income before finishing their book.
It does this by…
Enabling readers to “like” or “dislike” chapters and “subscribe” for future chapters of the story. A writer can choose to make future chapters free to grow his or her readership base, or to charge for future chapters when readers are deeply invested in the story.
3. PURPOSE & BENEFITS
This innovation improves on what came before because…
With thousands of eBooks published every day through Amazon and Apple’s iBookstore, it’s hard for readers to tell good books from the bad.
By charging only when readers are heavily invested into a story and confident about the quality of the writing, writers will have fewer readers who will regret their purchases.
Its various benefits to the customer/end-user include…
For readers, discovering amazing new works by unknown writers.
For writers, a way to get loyal readers for a book they are writing before they even finish it.
4. COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
In the past, this problem was solved by…
Readers guessing if they will like a book through Amazon’s sample previews and reviews.
Writers who publish online had to market their books to get them read by people who have never even heard of the books. Without a proven readership base, new writers who want their book published by traditional publishers had to have very convincing literary agents.
Its predecessors/competitors include…
Wattpad, Unbound, Pubslush, Tablo and comixology.
5. TARGET MARKET
It is made for…
To begin with, all ardent readers, as well as aspiring writers of fiction, comic and manga. As Chaptor grows, we want to also help other writers including business and non-fiction.
It is available for sale through…
It will be available soon at chaptor.com when we launch.
Our marketing strategy is to…
Create awareness where aspiring writers meet online: writing forums, fanfiction websites, deviantart and reddit’s /r/WritingPrompts.
We intend to reach out to established writers and comic book artists and encourage them to experiment releasing their new works through Chaptor.
Your Turn — VOTE!
The Readers’ Choice Index was created to provide an opportunity for Anthill readers to vote on SMART 100 applications, in one of three ways:
- Tweet it: Top left of each page (3 points)
- Trigger a Reaction: Facebook ‘Like’, etc (2 points)
- Leave a Comment: Anonymous comments excluded (1 points)
We’ll use your vote to create the 2014 SMART 100 Readers’ Choice Index.
FINE PRINT
This SMART 100 profile and the information it contains is a duplication of content submitted by the applicant during the entry process. As a function of entry, applicants were required to declare that all details are factually correct, do not infringe on another’s intellectual property and are not unlawful, threatening, defamatory, invasive of privacy, obscene, or otherwise objectionable. Some profiles have been edited for reasons of space and clarity.
