Books are now more events than glued pages
CONTRACT BY SIMON SPURRIER - IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY
Within these pages you can get your hands on Simon Spurrier’s killer debut novel, CONTRACT… for FREE.
It’s a neat idea, giving away a novel for free online for a limited time*, but I won’t be reading it, at least not in it’s present form. I’m not keen on reading an entire novel off a screen no matter how good it is.
They (it’s publisher and author) are certainly using the world-wide-web to it’s fullest marketing potential - not only the website, but a wiki entry for the fictional main character and he even has his own myspace.
In some sense the marketing has worked on me as I’m blogging about it. Though I didn’t get referred to the site from somewhere online but instead after seeing Contract as part of the “Best Summer Sci-Fi ” in The Times.
There is going to be lot more internet marketing in the future - especially video trailers, dedicated websites, and fictional lives being lived out online. I’m not sure I need all this additional information - some basic information like a blurb and a few reviews should be enough surely.
And in the end for me a book is a wonderful excuse to get away from my computer not spend more time chained to it.
*the papeback is going to be printed in October though you can grab a limited edition hardback whilst stocks last.
