NFT FAQ

Q: What’s an NFT?

Joe sez: An NFT is a non-fungible token. Non-fungible tokens verify ownership of assets on the blockchain, which is a distributed ledger on a decentralized network.

Q: Can you say that in English?

Joe sez: When you buy an NFT, you actually own the ebook.

Q: Huh? I already own plenty of ebooks.

Joe sez: Ebooks that you buy on Amazon, Kobo, Nook, Apple, etc., give you a limited license to read an ebook, but you don’t actually own it.

Q: What do you mean?

Joe sez: The companies you got them from can take your ebooks away. Or censor them. Or change their content. Read your Terms of Service. It has happened before, and will happen again. But if you own an ebook NFT, it is truly yours forever. It isn’t locked to any specific reading device or app. You can read it however you like. It can never be taken away or altered.

Q: I’m happy with my Kindle (or Kobo, or Nook, or ereading app), even if I don’t own the ebooks. This doesn’t seem like something I need.

Joe sez: This NFT can easily be read on your Kindle. Or Nook. Or Kobo. Or favorite reading app.

Q: So it isn’t locked to any device or app?

Joe sez: Correct. With other ebooks, you can’t resell them, or share them with friends, or pass them along to heirs, like you can with paper books. They have no value other than reading them during your lifetime, and that’s only if nothing happens to them in the meantime. Publishers, writers, and digital retailers can decide to stop offering parts of their libraries, and the people who “bought” those pieces of media are out of luck. Terms of Service can change. Retailers can take away access to your account, and to the media you bought. Governments can ban books, and they can ban websites. Retailers can pivot or go bankrupt. If your ebook retailer disappears, your ebooks disappear.

Q: So this is about ownership?

Joe sez: It’s ownership similar to owning something physical. NFTs have scarcity and value. They are collectibles, just like limited and rare first-edition paper books. There are ways to resell the NFT on secondary markets, but even if you do so you can still keep a copy of the book for yourself.

Q: What do you mean?

Joe sez: If you buy my ebook NFT, you can download it and use it any way you like. Then you can resell the NFT, but still keep a copy of the digital file for your personal use. It’s sort of like buying a paper book, copying it, then selling the original.

Q: That’s kind of cool. Can other NFTs do that?

Joe sez: No. The overwhelming majority of NFTs that exist are for collectors. People like to own them. When they sell them, they no longer own them. And with the ebooks you currently have, you can’t make copies or share them because of DRM. My NFTs have no digital rights management. They are the easiest and cheapest way to legally own, share, and resell these books.

Q: Aren’t NFTs a type of cryptocurrency? I heard crypto is a scam.

Joe sez: Crypto can be kind of scary and intimidating. That’s why I partnered with Alexandriabooks.com. They make it super simple and safe to get an NFT. And when you buy something from them, you’re really buying it.

Q: How does it work?

Joe sez: You go to the website, and buy it.

Q: Don’t I need to own cryptocurrency to buy an NFT?

Joe sez: Alexandria gives you the option to buy the NFT with a credit card. It’s 100% safe and secure and really easy.

Q: So to be clear here, I can use a credit card, and get a totally unique collectible NFT that has collector value and that I truly own, and I can put it on any device I want to and make copies for my friends and family?

Joe sez: Exactly. When you pay in US dollars it is subject to crypto exchange rates, so the exact amount may fluctuate slightly.

Q: What does that mean?

Joe sez: Crypto is currency. You know how a currency exchange is always fluctuating based on the value of the dollar vs. the euro vs. the pound vs. yen? Same thing with crypto. It goes up and down. But you’ll always know the price in dollars at the time you buy, because Alexandria’s website tracks the exchange rate in real time and always shows the equivalent dollar amount. When checking out with a credit card, the price you pay in dollars is displayed.

Q: If crypto prices can soar or plunge, what allows this NFT ebook to hold its value?

Joe sez: The value is in the books themselves. Don’t consider it an investment. Consider it a purchase that you’ll own forever. But the actual NFT can go up in price, or down in price, just like anything else you physically own. You can also resell it.

Q: But I already have some or all of these ebooks…

Joe sez: I hear you. To make them more special, each book contains a new afterword, and an animated, musical cover. The supply is limited. When they’re gone, they’re gone.

Q: Are the covers all unique?

Joe sez: For the individual ebook NFTs, they are animated (and have music) but are not unique. But for the Dark Thriller Collective NFT bundle you get a unique digital cover exclusive to your edition. We’re selling 555 different cover variations. No one else will have the same cover as you.

Q: Can I pick the cover I want?

Joe sez: Nope. It’s random. But that’s part of the fun, like getting a toy from a vending machine. You get to be surprised by which one you receive. Buying an NFT is called “minting”, because you create a unique token when you mint. It’s sort of like a new book being born.

Q: What if I’m only interested in the new novella?

Joe sez: The Gang’s All Here is a brand-new story, over 20k words, and it features more than 25 surviving characters from every Konrath Dark Thriller Collective book. Currently it is only available as an exclusive part of the bundle.

Q: You said it’s okay if people share this file?

Joe sez: Absolutely. You own it. Treat it like your property.

Q: I’m still hesitant, and have questions.

Joe sez: I’m happy to help with any questions you may have. And the folks at Alexandria are fantastic and can also answer your questions and assist you. If you already have a crypto wallet, it is easy to connect the wallet to their website to purchase the NFT. If you don’t have a crypto wallet, you can just sign in with your email and Alexandria will create a private Magic Wallet for you. It works just like making an account on any website. The wallet is yours, and only you have access to it. You can also move your NFT to another wallet.

Q: So you mentioned it is possible that some of these giant digital ebook retailers can go out of business. I can’t predict that happening. But then when I was younger I always thought Sears, Blockbuster Video, and the Columbia Record Service would be around forever, and they’re all gone now.

Joe sez: Is that a question? You’re supposed to be asking questions.

Q: What if Alexandria Labs goes out of business? What happens to the NFTs I buy from them?

Joe sez: This is the beauty of decentralized technology. Your books and your ownership of them are built on systems that are completely independent of any single company or organization.

Alexandria books are stored on a decentralized storage network called the Interplanetary File System (IPFS). Nobody owns the Interplanetary File System; it operates as a vast interconnected confederation of nodes, each operated by an independent entity (individual enthusiast, company, organization, etc.). Alexandria uses a multiply redundant IPFS strategy, including Filecoin incentives, that guarantees that Alexandria books on IPFS will exist in perpetuity.

The further beauty of the IPFS protocol is that, once your ebook is stored there, it can never be censored, edited, or removed by anyone, not even Alexandria.

Q: So how is the ownership of a digital asset verified?

Joe sez: Your ownership of your book is recorded on Base, a decentralized blockchain network built on Ethereum. Each book exists as a unique digital token (an NFT) that’s associated with your crypto wallet. Think of it like a digital safety deposit box that only you can access. These wallets operate independently of Alexandria on the blockchain, meaning your ownership is secured without relying on Alexandria’s systems.

Q: So… is this web3?

Joe sez: Yeah. It’s all about decentralization. Instead of a centralized server or cloud holding your asset, your NFT is verified by the blockchain, proving you have the receipt of ownership.

This is completely different from how ebooks (or any digital media) are stored on the current web (“web2”), where your ability to access digital media depends on some entity’s willingness and ability to continue to make it available unchanged.

You get to keep your own unencrypted epub file of this ebook wherever you want to and store it however you like; it isn’t connected to Amazon or Kindle or Nook or Kobo or Apple. And whenever you want to you can move the NFT to your own personal wallet, either online or offline in a cold wallet. Or you can sell it on the secondary market. Or you can keep it forever. Your choice.

Q: Do I have to fuss with the wallet myself?

Joe sez: If you want to, you can. As an easy alternative, Alexandria creates a wallet for you when you sign in with your email. It’s your private wallet, and Alexandria has no control over it.

Q: How long is this NFT offer going to last?

Joe sez: Supply is limited! Once these are gone, they’re gone. If you want to own an NFT after they have all been minted, you’ll have to get it on a secondary market like OpenSea.io, and the price might go up.

Q: You sound really committed to NFTs.

Joe sez: I am. More coming soon!