Like a Salvation Army staffed by brilliant writers, Significant Objects has created a new kind of online journal--publishing and selling on eBay.

The new site pairs a writer with an odd object--a mug, a child's game, or a ceramic cat. The author writes a story about the object, and the object and story are sold on eBay to the highest bidder. The amazing author list includes Luc Sante, Lydia Millet, Ben Greenman, Curtis Sittenfeld, and Stewart O'Nan.

Here's more from the site: "The winning bidder is mailed the significant object, along with a printout of the object's fictional story. Net proceeds from the sale are given to the respective author. Authors retain all rights to their stories."