San Francisco Author Launches the First Literary NFT Auction Highlighting Nilla, An Adorable Shelter Rescue Dog

Author Mary Ladd created the Nilla Dog NFT collection, a digital representation and heartwarming true story of an adorable, formerly homeless dog. Ladd is a cancer survivor who collaborated with Anthony Bourdain and has written for Playboy & LitHub.

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Mary Ladd

Dec 01, 2021, 07:07 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Imagine what it's like to be homeless. Author Mary Ladd created the Nilla Dog NFT collection, which is a digital representation and heartwarming true story of an adorable, formerly homeless dog. Nilla is listed on OpenSea, which is the largest marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and drops on December 9 with a run through December 23.

According to the World Health Organization, there are more than 200 million stray dogs in the world. Ladd was amazed to meet the homeless woman who originally owned her rescue dog, Nilla and with these NFTs aims to honor the healing and sweetness that shelter dogs bring to the world.

"Rescue animals provide unconditional love. Having Nilla was important when I was navigating loss and grief from breast cancer, my mom's death, and the pandemic," said Ladd, a member of the We Wai Kai First Nation. This rare offering gives collectors a chance to be one of the few people in the world to own the story of a one-of-a-kind dog who has lived on the streets. Ladd's storytelling is enhanced by Kashif Ahmad's art. For each NFT, there is unlockable content: the story PDF, 3D mp4 and bonus "dancing text" file.

The market for literary NFTs holds promise, yet is in its early stages. "NFTs are a way for experimental writers to experiment with form—especially writers whose interests lie in technology," according to Walker Kaplan, who covered the rise of crypto writers for Lithub.

Ladd said, "I want to be one of the first writers to explore NFTs as a way of telling important stories. Nilla's first owner was relieved that Nilla is safe. Our chance meeting provided heartbreak, redemption, and insights to the lives of at-risk individuals and their companion animals."

About OpenSea: OpenSea is the world's first and largest peer-to-peer digital marketplace for crypto collectibles and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). OpenSea supports multiple blockchains, with the broadest set of categories for new emerging asset classes, which include digital collectibles, gaming items, and other virtual goods.

About Mary Ladd: Mary Ladd's reported stories include meat dresses, dough-throwing pizza champions, and withered sexuality. She started writing at the San Francisco Chronicle and collaborated with Anthony Bourdain. Ladd worked with San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Don Asmussen on The Wig Diaries: An Irreverent Cancer Book which debuted at #1 for breast cancer books on Amazon and was featured in W Magazine and Lithub. She contributed to six anthologies, and authored Write it Down: Pandemic Writing Prompts. Ladd lives in San Francisco and is a We Wai Kai First Nation member.