Custom short stories!

Kagato

I figure it is high time I do something productive with my learning besides working on my main manuscripts, so I am going to start offering commissions for short stories (or longer, pre-made template stories) where I insert the buyer's name (or their child) as the main character in the story.

I'm trying to decide on prices though, I'm thinking maybe USD$10 for the template story since it will be a little bit longer, but more generic (all the people that buy one will get the same story, but their name or their childs name will be inserted as the main character), custom short stories will likely start at USD$15 and increase in price depending on how long they want the story to be, due to the amount of time it will take for me to draft down an idea and actually produce the final work (I'm saying to allow a week for those that want fully custom stories and intend to give them as a birthday gift)

As for format, I will simply be offering them in PDF format, so they can be read on computers, e-readers or tablet devices.

Main thing I'm wondering is:  Is this something that people out there would actually be interested in?  I used to see this kind of thing offered in local magazines, but the stories were relatively poor quality - they had pictures though, which mine will not since my drawing royally sucks, unless I commission an artist for a percentage of the sales.

Dys

I think this sort of thing works better when the final product is a professional looking printed book. So the child gets a book like they'd buy in the shops but it actually has their own name and details in it.

I don't think even my 3 year old would be interested in just her name on a screen. Pictures sound better, but a lot more work.

Kagato

Yeah, I had considered the possibility of a printed version, but again I'd need to hire an artist most likely, plus for me to ship overseas, I would have to likely do it through Amazon - doing it through a local publisher would simply be impractical since the overheads would be far too high for a university student to be able to handle without taking out a loan.

I mainly thought about using PDF format since more and more kids are being nudged none-too-subtly towards using electronic devices more frequently, some of the schools here in New Zealand actually have tablet devices like an ipad or android tablet device on their REQUIRED stationery lists.

Lavinya

The idea is good, but I will always prefer a proper book to an ebook. My brother still has one of these books that he was given in the 70s. The novelty is less the story and more the fact that they feature in a printed book.

Kagato

Mmhmm, I figured that was the case.  Now I need to decide if such a thing would be viable without having to hire an artist (having a text-only version and aiming it at slightly older audiences), or whether I will have to find someone willing to work for a percentage of sales.