Thanks for volunteering your efforts! As we move ahead into the next phase of the project — we’re calling it Significant Objects v2, at the moment — we are indeed lining up a new roster of writers. But before you write in demanding an assignment, please read this.

Significant Objects was originally intended as an experiment exploring the relationship between narrative and value. (In fact, we didn’t think many writers would want to participate — before we launched the experiment, we listed 100 writers we knew or just admired and asked ourselves, “How do we convince/cajole/trick/browbeat these talented people into helping us with no guarantee that they’ll get anything out of it whatsoever?”) Our goal, then as now, was not simply to generate content, or to provide writers with a fun creative exercise, but instead to pair our carefully curated objects with stories that we’d curated every bit as carefully. We want the site to offer a consistently great reading experience — and we put a lot of effort into that.

True, as the experiment ran its course, we did take on some volunteers — but only if we knew their work, or if they directed us to their website and/or made a pitch for themselves, and we were into it. (We didn’t accept any would-be contributors who just said, “I’d like to write something for you. When?”) We took on well-known writers and up-and-comers; the criterion was quality. We even added contests to the mix, to add new a wrinkle to our experiment, but again, we were judging the work before saying “yes.”

Same deal as we move into Volume 2. So we’d be very happy to hear your suggestions for writers you’d like to see here (leave ’em in the comments, please!), but if you’re interested in writing for Significant Objects, here are a few things to keep in mind.

1. If you aren’t sure whether we’ll be familiar with your work, and you have a website or similar where we can learn more about it, and/or about you, it’s very helpful to point us to that, or anything else useful we might peruse online. (Please do not send us anything with an attachment — we’ve learned the hard way not to open them.)
2. Bear in mind that even though the experimental phase of Significant Objects has ended, this project is still not designed simply as a fun exercise for writers. The object gets sold (to raise money for charity), which means that we rely on writers to promote their own stories to their friends, fans, followers, bloggers, literary sites, The Today Show, Oprah, wherever, and otherwise do anything they can to get people bidding and commenting on the story.
3. Significant Objects is two guys doing this project in their spare time. We’re unpaid, and we want to spend as little time as possible responding to emails from would-be contributors. So please don’t send us an email saying nothing more than, basically, “Can I write something?”

None of the above is intended to discourage serious writers — whether accomplished or just starting out — from pitching their services to Significant Objects. If you’re willing to take the time to tell us about yourself and your work, point us in the direction of samples of your writing, and explain to us how you’d help promote your story and auction, then get in touch!