Month: September 2006

Seeking readers via ‘book trailer’ / Publisher tries out movie-style preview to market new title

San Francisco Chronicle, September 18, 2006

by Justin Berton

In his quest to bring literature to the masses, Jeffrey Lependorf turned to an unlikely ally: YouTube.

Lependorf, executive director of the Literary Ventures Fund in New York, recently invested $10,000 to help promote a French memoir on the verge of being published. Instead of the usual press releases or book tours, his money was used to create a short video about the book that was distributed on the popular online video site that attracts an estimated 20 million visitors per month.

You can get your money back IF . . .

Marketplace Radio, September 7, 2006

by Ashley Milne-Tyte

TRANSCRIPT

KAI RYSSDAL: The book was called “A Million Little Pieces.” Might better have been “A Million Big Fat Lies.” It was billed as James Frey’s memoir. But back at the beginning of the year Frey confessed to having made up large chunks of the story. He did a mea culpa on Oprah and then we all forgot about him. Most of us, anyway. But some of the people who had shelled out good money for what they thought was nonfiction sued. They said Random House, the publisher, had committed fraud. Today, a tentative settlement. Frey and Random House will refund almost $2.5 million, if certain conditions are met. Ashley Milne-Tyte has the details from New York.