Is it possible to predict whether a book will sell well? Former publisher Jodie Archer and Matthew L Jockers, of Stanford University’s Literary Lab, built an algorithm to find outYour program can identify, from scanning 20,000 books, ones which made the New York Times bestseller lists with 80% accuracy, and one of your key discoveries was that the topics covered in a novel – marriage, work, technology – are more important than its genre in terms of predicting its success. Why?JA: If you look at a bestseller list, you might think it was very diverse in genre – a Stephen King alongside a Jojo Moyes. But certain topics were strong indicators of a bestseller, regardless of genre. “Human closeness” came out on top. This doesn’t mean romance – it could be talking with someone you are intimate with or shopping with a parent. It may be to do with pacing – when Dan Brown knows he has to slow his pace down a little bit and let the characters reflect before a big chase scene in the Vatican, his characters talk it out. John Grisham does it perfectly because in all the legal machinations and suspense and back stabbing, there are always scenes where a lawyer gets a bottle of red wine and a Chinese takeaway and sits on the couch with his female counterpart and they chew the cud for a bit. It is almost the opposite of a formulaic how-to; make a boy meet a girl, make them fall out. Related: Bestselling books 2015: Fifty Shades still on top Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2016-09-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
E.L. James announced that she will release a new version of 'Fifty Shades of Grey,' but this time written from the perspective of Christian Grey. 'Grey: Fifty Shades of Grey as Told by Christian' will be released by Vintage on June 18 (the character’s birthday). Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-06-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An 11-year-old boy who dressed as a character from Fifty Shades of Grey was excluded from his school's World Book Day celebrations, says his mother. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2015-03-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nearly two weeks after the premiere of the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' film, books in E.L. James’s series continue to dominate Apple’s chart. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At Addicting Info Nathaniel Downes makes the case that Fifty Shades of Grey is based on 'a flagrant violation of copyright laws.' The post Fifty Shades of Copyright Infringement? appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Following a record-breaking opening weekend for the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' film, which raked in in $81.7 million, the books in E.L. James's series also ruled Apple's bestseller list. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As anticipation continues to mount for the Valentine’s Day release of the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' film adaptation, the book hit #1 on Apple’s iBooks bestseller list. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With the big-screen adaptation of the first book in E.L. James’s trilogy set to hit theaters on Valentine’s Day, PW has a few key numbers on the Vintage movie tie-in, the book, the trilogy, and the forthcoming film. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-02-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The print book market for 2014 is down just 1.3% by value year on year, the full year's statistics from Nielsen BookScan reveal. Just under £1.4bn was spent on print books for the 52 weeks ending 27th December, generated from 180.6 million book sales. Year on year the value of the print book... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sue Monk Kidd’s 'The Invention of Wings' was Amazon’s top-selling title in 2014, the e-tailer said Friday morning. 'Gray Mountain' by John Grisham came in second. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-12-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Gillian Flynn’s 'Gone Girl' has been ousted from the top spot by John Grisham’s 'Gray Mountain.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-11-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Gray Mountain,' the latest novel from John Grisham, debuted on Apple’s iBooks chart at #2. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Orion has acquired a book about “Fifty Shades of Grey” actor Jamie Dornan. Amanda... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-08-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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When the first trailer for the much-anticipated adaptation of E.L. James’s "Fifty Shades of Grey" dropped on July 24, it took the Internet by storm, becoming the most-watched YouTube preview of the year thus far. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-08-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A week after the first trailer for the film adaptation of "Fifty Shades of Grey" dropped, the book hit #1 on Apple's chart. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nearly 900 authors across world back criticism of online retailer's business tactics in ebooks dispute with US publisher HachetteThey include some of the biggest literary names on the planet, among them Stephen King, Donna Tartt, Paul Auster, James Patterson and John Grisham; a Pulitzer prize... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After the first trailer for the film adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey dropped on July 24, lighting up the internet, the first book in E.L. James's trilogy shot back up to the top of Amazon's bestseller list. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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One one side are established authors including Stephen King, John Grisham and James Patterson. On the other side are self-published authors. They're taking sides in the weeks-old dispute between Amazon.com Inc. and Hachette Book Group. King, Grisham and Patterson have signed their names to a... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal
[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2014-07-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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John Grisham’s forthcoming novel will be called Gray Mountain, Hodder & Stoughton has... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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From #Girlboss to #Scandal, publishers are discovering a new marketing hook for hard-copy as well as online readingCan a book go viral in the same way a cat video on YouTube can? Unless its Harry Potter or Fifty Shades of Grey, probably not. So rather than simply trying to reach mass audiences,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-06-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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