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Yesterday I went to the big Borders in town and spent most of my Christmas book tokens on the following:
Neal Stephenson, Quicksilver and The System of the World (they were out of The Confusion)
Anthony Swofford, Jarhead
Arthur Herman, The Scottish Enlightenment
Glen David Gold, Carter Beats the Devil.
We've been talking on Hypothetical about marketing-versus-word-of-mouth, and here's an actual datum point: I bought the Stephensons because of prior positive experience of his work and recommendations from friends (and I first heard about him through Zompist's review of Snow Crash); I bought Carter Beats the Devil because of recommendations from friends; I bought The Scottish Enlightenment because it was there and in the 3-for-2 offer; and I bought Jarhead because it looked good when I read bits of it in the Guardian and at bookstalls previously. I've wanted to read it since before I knew about the film, but the film has made copies of the book a lot easier to find. So, my choices were mostly dictated by the inscrutable exhortations of my soul and the good words of my friends, and there was very little room for PR and marketing, right? Except it was marketing that got Jarhead excerpted in G2 back when the book first came out, and there's probably intense competition to get your book listed in the offers at Borders. Or maybe there isn't - does anyone know how the numbers work out? Do the suppliers get stiffed for the money that you save, or do they still make a profit?
Today I've been writing thank-you letters to my aunts and uncles for the book tokens, and reading Jarhead: it's great. Grimly fascinating stuff, and I can't wait for the film. I've never particularly wanted to join the Marines, but if I had possessed such a desire, I would now be cured of it.
In other news, my boiler seems to be on the blink and up the fritz. Or something like that: I'm not too sure of the technical plumbing terms. The flat is yer old-style Glasgow tenement, with less than perfect insulation. It gets a bit chilly. The agent came round today and pronounced himself unequal to the task of fixing it, so an actual registered gasman will be round tomorrow.
Neal Stephenson, Quicksilver and The System of the World (they were out of The Confusion)
Anthony Swofford, Jarhead
Arthur Herman, The Scottish Enlightenment
Glen David Gold, Carter Beats the Devil.
We've been talking on Hypothetical about marketing-versus-word-of-mouth, and here's an actual datum point: I bought the Stephensons because of prior positive experience of his work and recommendations from friends (and I first heard about him through Zompist's review of Snow Crash); I bought Carter Beats the Devil because of recommendations from friends; I bought The Scottish Enlightenment because it was there and in the 3-for-2 offer; and I bought Jarhead because it looked good when I read bits of it in the Guardian and at bookstalls previously. I've wanted to read it since before I knew about the film, but the film has made copies of the book a lot easier to find. So, my choices were mostly dictated by the inscrutable exhortations of my soul and the good words of my friends, and there was very little room for PR and marketing, right? Except it was marketing that got Jarhead excerpted in G2 back when the book first came out, and there's probably intense competition to get your book listed in the offers at Borders. Or maybe there isn't - does anyone know how the numbers work out? Do the suppliers get stiffed for the money that you save, or do they still make a profit?
Today I've been writing thank-you letters to my aunts and uncles for the book tokens, and reading Jarhead: it's great. Grimly fascinating stuff, and I can't wait for the film. I've never particularly wanted to join the Marines, but if I had possessed such a desire, I would now be cured of it.
In other news, my boiler seems to be on the blink and up the fritz. Or something like that: I'm not too sure of the technical plumbing terms. The flat is yer old-style Glasgow tenement, with less than perfect insulation. It gets a bit chilly. The agent came round today and pronounced himself unequal to the task of fixing it, so an actual registered gasman will be round tomorrow.