Scott Adams’ (of Dilbert fame) has just released his book, God’s Debris, free as a PDF. Why? Scott has this to say:
“Frankly, this is the hardest book in the world to market. When it first came out in hardcover, booksellers couldn’t decide if it was fiction or nonfiction. Was it philosophy or religion? It’s a religion/science book written by a cartoonist, using hypnosis techniques in the writing. It’s a thought experiment. It’s unlike anything you’ve ever read. How do you sell something that can’t be explained?”
…
“It’s free because it’s designed to be discussed with people who have also read it.”
Brilliant. In a society obsessed with copyright, ownership, and property, it’s nice to see someone who’s not scared to give something away. The biggest problem in the book publishing industry right now is dwindling readership - Cheers to Scott for not approaching this problem like the RIAA/MPAA and blaming his customers for the book’s low numbers. He saw the problems with marketing this book in the traditional way, so instead decided to give this one away in hopes that the discussion it spawns will cause others to either buy it or read it themselves, and then move onto the sequel. I’m liking this approach.
I just downloaded the PDF of God’s Debris and browsed through the introduction. Adams’ intended target audience for this book, he says, are “people who enjoy having their brains spun around inside their skulls.” I think I found my plans for the weekend. :)
[ via mefi ]