Hi Mr. Graham, I would like to ask some questions and possibly publish the results on my blog. I thought that YC news would be the best way to answer the questions, that way we can all read the answers right here.
1) Has YC ever considered investing in a not-for-profit start-up?
2) To your recollection, are there any ideas that were rejected by YC that have made it big? If so, can you name them.
3) You seem to be one of Silicon Valley's busiest/most influential/hard-working persons, why all the fuss? Haven't you earned a respite?
4) Have you ever thought about franchising the YC brand?
5) In your spare time, what does Paul Graham like to do?
6) Rumor has it that you studied the Arts in University, at what point did you realize that you were more capable with the keyboard, if ever?
Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. They are as much a personal interest of mine as I'm sure they are for many others.
2) I don't know of any, but that doesn't mean there aren't any.
3) I like the stuff I work on. You don't need a respite from work you like.
4) We wouldn't trust anyone else enough. We'd rather see if we can cook up some clever way of doing everything ourselves.
5) Write essays.
6) I haven't given up on painting. But the web has opened a window for writing essays that never existed before, so I decided I'd spend a couple years mostly writing.