I agree wholeheartedly. Users will contribute content if they have or already create content that you will help them do something with -- present it, organize

I agree wholeheartedly. Users will contribute content if they have or already create content that you will help them do something with -- present it, organize it, get feedback on it, analyze it, whatever. I signed up for Goodreads thinking I would use it for social networking, maybe find cute girls who read the same books I do, and show off my writing skills to them, but I never actually used it that way. I use it as a place to put my thoughts down about the books I've read. It turns out I don't want anybody to read my embarrassingly shallow and rushed notes, nor do I want to read the embarrassingly shallow and trite ramblings of other normal people like me. I just like the way the site lets me organize my notes and records about what I've read.