Hank's ReadIt1st website (2011)
project history · status: completed · last event: outcome (2025-12-09)
Hank planned Read It First in August 2011 and launched readit1st.com as a newsletter in September 2011, urging people to read books before their film adaptations; it never paid for itself, and John later listed it among Hank's abandoned projects.
Parts: Hank asks viewers to sign up for the ReadIt1st newsletter and tell their friends (2011)
About: ReadIt1st
| date | event | what | video |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-08-12 | proposed | Hank designs a logo for a website called Read It First, workshops it with Tumblr commenters and buys the domain. | The Fair: Testacular! 00:01:56 |
| 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) (happened 2011-09-13) | launched | Hank launches readit1st.com, starting as a newsletter, the night before this video (13 September 2011). | How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com 00:00:21 |
| 2011-11-28 | paused | Hank remains committed to Read It First, but entries stalled because John was meant to write them at the height of his book signing; they will re-energize it. | Stuffed with STUFF! 00:00:58 |
| 2021-08-06 | looked back | Hank recalls wanting to start ReadIt1st, urging people to read the book before the film or show; community members asked why he wanted to control how people enjoy things, and after pushing back he saw it ran counter to the vibe. | Remembering What's Special 00:00:58 |
| 2025-12-09 | outcome | John calls Read It First one of Hank's many abandoned projects: a newsletter about new book-based movies so you could commit to read it first, meant to fund itself through affiliate sales, which never worked. | Hank Green, from A to Z 00:03:24 |
Dates are upload dates, which set the order. Where the speaker gives a different recording date in the video, it is added as "said on YYYY-MM-DD, implied" (derived from the date said in the video).
What is said about it
8 statements, by date (the events above are the turns of the thread; these are the details).
- 2011-08-12 · The Fair: Testacular! — Hank says the idea would not be possible without Nerdfighteria and thanks Nerdfighteria for supporting it and for being a source of tremendous inspiration. — 00:02:25
- 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) · How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com — announcement: Hank says that, for others who struggle to make things, he will share his process as a case study: readit1st.com, which he launched last night. — 00:00:21
- 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) · How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com — Hank says he had the idea over a year ago; having an idea is a process that just has to happen. — 00:00:29
- 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) · How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com — Hank liked the idea because it promotes reading, could through advertising actually employ a writer, which he would love, and seemed nerdfightastic. (hedged) — 00:00:33
- 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) · How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com — Hank says he brain-cracked ReadIt1st for about a year until LeakyCon re-inspired him about books, adaptations and how people should read the book first. — 00:01:20
- 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) · How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com — Hank made a logo in Fireworks and shared it on Twitter and Tumblr; he got many genius ideas for ReadIt1st and ignored them all, because it needs just one thing to do its job: a newsletter. — 00:01:43
- 2011-09-14 (said on 2011-09-15, implied) · How to Make Ideas Real: Readit1st.com — announcement: Hank announces the first ReadIt1st newsletter, written by John, goes out Friday morning. — 00:02:32
- 2011-11-28 · Stuffed with STUFF! — recommendation: Hank tells those committed to Read It First's mission to read Hugo Cabret, because it's awesome. — 00:01:27