Posted on 08/09/2011 3:43:01 PM PDT by 7jason
Yet another pundit takes to the airwaves to plug their book. This time, it’s one by Mark Stein: After America: Get Ready for Armageddon. He plugged it on Ed Driscoll’s site, and it was subsequently picked up by other conservative news and commentary outlets like HotAir.com.
It brings to mind an interesting question: Why do political books sell so well? What is it about them that makes so many people want to buy them?
(Excerpt) Read more at edbok.com ...
I don’t think they actually do sell that well. Books by talking heads sell well, but they have a dedicated following. Outside of the big time pundits though you don’t really see that many political books on the best seller list, and even in that group it’s usually one big rush to buy. A year later they’re in the remainder bin.
Why DO people read & post on political discussion boards?
So maybe the answer is, it’s not political books it’s political figures. Their supporters buy the books.
C’mon, discussion boards are different than books, teehee.
And drop the political part. People with a lot of fans who then decide to write books sell well. Howard Stern’s books sold great too, at least for a while. Same with Bill Shatner’s TekWars books and they aren’t political or biographical and they even kind of suck, but he’s got a lot of fans.
That’s Steyn, I think. Hard to give credibility to any book review where they can’t get the author’s name right.
Still seems like the best seller lists often carry political titles. I think it’s a good question, a good mental exercise. There’s something about politics that makes people shell out the bucks for a book. Especially one by a conservative.
Author was probably thinking the German spelling.
I sell political books and I can assure you it isn’t a way to get rich. My book on Harry Reid should be a best seller (it is the only bio of Reid and it has all the sleaze you could want), but no one wanted to touch the liability and backlash, so I was forced to self publish. Publishers are very liberal, so unless you are Ann Coulter or a biggie it is impossible to break in from below. In other words, don’t rock the boat, unless you are the boat.
I’ve been in the book business a long time so I’m not naive about what goes on.
Political movies don’t do that well on the other hand, because the audiences already know where it skews, which is left and living under the obama regime is far more horrific than any Stephen King novel.
The author has got it largely right. People want to be able to digest information at a slower speed than is possible when people are just talking all the time, no matter how good it is.
Also, a book is visual. You can see the text, charts, maps, lists, etc. and view them repeatedly as you put thoughts together into a large coherent whole.
Books also allow the author to say things the way they want to say them without censors hanging around to prevent FCC violations. The author has the time, while writing the book, to work and rework thoughts, sentences, whole paragraphs until they are exactly what they what them to be, to say what they want them to say.
It’s a personal thing but an author (I’ve worked on 10-15 books) often wants to express an idea in a very specific, value-word way, without anyone else trying to inject words that are not adequate for what the author is trying to say.
Political books are influential, esp. before an election. The books on Obama, taken collectively, show who he really is, not what his propagandists and publicists try to make him out to be. Having worked on “Unfit for Command”, the book that sank John Kerry’s presidential run, I can tell you that a well-written, documented, and concise book can have a lot of influence on a political race. If you don’t believe me, ask Lerch.
(And by the way, one of his most vicious and vocal Vietnam veteran supporters, Wade Sanders, is doing federal time for child pornography possession, and was recently stripped of his Silver Star for some serious offense, not yet revealed).
Books are also permanent. My 21 bookcases cover the history of mankind and I can access them any time I want. If the power goes out, so does the internet, but a candle will light up a book at any time.
Guttenberg revolutionized knowledge, and books and newspapers became the eyes for humanity to see the world in which they live, and became the carriers of man’s creativity with words and images.
That is why political books sell so well. They have something to say and it is what people want to hear/read.
When people with millions of fans release a book it tends to hit the best seller list for at least a couple of weeks. If a joeshmoe like you or me releases a political book it probably ain’t hitting the best seller list. The only reason we see it more with political books is that people in politics on any level (especially the TV/ radio personality level that brings fans) get more to talk about. People paid to talk about current events can funnel some of that to the printed word and spew out a book every year or two, actors don’t get as much of that.
OK. Glad to meet someone in the biz. But query me this: Why is it that Ann Coulter and all the rest can write something and it’s an instant best seller? Is it just because they are conservative celebrities and are big shots, or is it because their message resonates? That’s the kind of question this article engenders, imo.
But Morris's books drop off after a few weeks and never come back. Most of my books are that way: "Seven Events that Made America America" and "48 Liberal Lies" continue to sell well, but the star, of course, if "Patriot's History of the U.S.," now with over a half million in print and still going strong.
Very thoughtful comments, MadMax!
So far, you’re all wrong.
It’s because they get unlimited free advertising by appearing on each other’s TV shows, pumping their books.
It’s a can’t miss proposition. Hannity writes a book and pushes it on his show and others. In return, he pushes their books and gets them on his show.
Barnes and Noble tends to be liberal. But if you look at their current events section, the selection tends to be more conservative authors and titles. This is a business decision, since this is the product that moves.
OK. I think the point is, though, a political book ... particularly a conservative political book ... can easily become a best seller.
I agree with you that if someone is part of the establishment, their chances of best selling success is higher. Any past president or other political figure can probably get a book deal with a major publisher that will sell many copies. Same with the faces you see on cable tv every night.
So, oldbill, it’s not the fact it’s a political book, it’s just who you know and how you can cross promote. Politics has nothing to dow ith it?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.