Novelist Colson Whitehead Needs Three Websites to Finish One Story

Novelist Colson Whitehead‘s newest story isn’t printed in any magazine or literary journal–it’s unfolding, as we speak, across three different websites.

His new story begins at Significant Objects, new site that pairs a writer with an odd object–a mug, a child’s game, or a ceramic cat. Whitehead has written about a wooden mallet, and both the object and story will be sold on eBay to the highest bidder (as of this writing, current bid is $41). Finally, Whitehead has also composed a series of ongoing Twitter pieces to complete his short story.

It begins here, and Whitehead continues the story on Twitter by adding to the mythology: “On September 16th, 2031 at 2:35 am, a temporal rift–a ‘tear’ in very fabric of time and space–will appear 16.5 meters above the area currently occupied by Jeffrey’s Bistro, 123 E Ivinson Ave, Laramie, WY. Only the person wielding this mallet will be able to enter the rift unscathed.” (Author photo via, link via Richard Nash)

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