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This was done recently on the New York Times Website with Michael Chabon's next book. They serialized it in five or six parts. It was available for a short time but you now need to subscribe to read it.
It's an interesting promotional method, i'll be interested to see how both books fare as regards sales.
I think it's a mistake. Why buy the whole book if you have been able to download or cut and paste to your own PC?. Why didn't they at least offer it as an e-book for 99p or something similar?.
If you were going to do this (even though it is for a limited period only) why bother with a publisher, why not hire a good editor and stick it on a site like MySpace?.
When I eventually get published, I like the idea of posting the first 3-4 chapters on my website as a taster, to get people to buy, but never the whole book.
I agree with Stirling's philosophy about giving a "taster" in the hope of whetting the appetite, but not the whole thing. Being a user of YouWriteOn, reading the first few chapters has often led me to want to buy the book. The principal has also worked well for recording artists to promote their albums.
I agree with using it as a promotional tool to get potential buyers hooked on the first couple of chapters, so they will buy it, but free- this must just be a publicity gimmick.
Comments
What do you think?
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1768331.ece
It's an interesting promotional method, i'll be interested to see how both books fare as regards sales.
Rich
If you were going to do this (even though it is for a limited period only) why bother with a publisher, why not hire a good editor and stick it on a site like MySpace?.
When I eventually get published, I like the idea of posting the first 3-4 chapters on my website as a taster, to get people to buy, but never the whole book.
Rich