Speaking of promotion: James Patterson

ABC News has a piece on James Patterson that I found interesting. It contains some eye-opening stats -- he's sold 150 million books; an incredible 1 out of every 35 books sold last year was one of his -- along with the usual stuff about co-writers, his marketing background, etc.

Here's a quote from Patterson that I loved:

"There are thousands of people around the country who don't like what I do," he said. "Fortunately, there are millions who like it a lot."

Most of the time when Patterson's name comes up in conversation with other writers, he's referred to with derision.

I always shake my head when I hear people make those kinds of statements, because I think they just don't get it. We should be learning from what Patterson is doing. We should be studying his methods and strategies, and figuring out how we can apply his lessons to our own work.

I don't care if people think the books are lousy -- many of them are not very good, but so what? That's not the point. What matters is that he's selling books. And that's something we all need to learn to do better.

(hat tip)

Comments

[I.J.Parker]

There may not be two ways about it. Could we really learn to write like Patterson? Should we?

[David J. Montgomery]

I don't think it's a matter of learning to write like Patterson. I think it's a matter of marketing like Patterson. Not that his strategies would necessarily work for a given writer or be practical for him/her. But I think we need to look at what he's doing and see if we can't learn something from his methods -- because clearly they're working.

Maybe he's a special case and his strategies aren't ones that could be adopted for other authors. But I think it's worth studying.

(Granted, this is advice that might be more applicable to the publisher than the author... But considering how active many authors are in the management of their careers, it's worth thinking about.)

[M.J]

Yes David, its a huge part due to marketing. Writers like Patterson and Nora Roberts and Danielle Steel produce so many books that their books are always out there and so the readers become familiar with their names and see them so often the take away is - they must be good if they are always here.

It's real estate. There is a new Patterson out every other month.

And in keeping with the other conversation about marketing - Patterson kept his day job - in advertising - and invested his advances in his own books until he was selling enough to continue to invest in his own marketing out of his advances. And he still does.

One other thing, about Jim. I really get upset when writers complain about the quality of his books. I'd still rather have a person read a Patterson book that give up reading for tv - at least then that person might buy another book by one of us one time.

[David J. Montgomery]

"I'd still rather have a person read a Patterson book that give up reading for tv."

Yes!

A person who buys James Patterson will, under the right circumstances, consider buying Lee Child. And if they buy Lee Child, maybe they'll try Tess Gerritsen. And if they try Tess Gerritsen, maybe they'll try M.J. Rose...

It's all connected. A person who will buy one book will buy two books. We just need to reach that person and show them that it's worth their time and money.

The most important thing is that we can't let people forget about books. Reading is a habit. It's something that, I think, a lot of people would willingly do, if only they thought about it. If only they remembered. And Patterson is reaching a lot of those people. And as long as he (or someone else) can keep those readers engaged, there's a chance for the rest of the pack to jump on board.

[Elaine Flinn]

Regarding the marketing conversation - I was remiss yesterday in not thanking both Lee and M.J. for their invaluable input. Their spirit of generosity is something all of us should applaud.

[I.J.Parker]

It seems then that in this case it's not the book that matters but the marketing campaign? Maybe so. He's a brand. A heavily advertised brand.
As for the reading public: aren't they the same folks who ruin their health by consuming junk food? Who is to say that Patterson is better for them then watching TV?

[David J. Montgomery]

To my mind, it's not a question of what's better for them. I don't care what people do with their lives.

However, I am interested in people buying books. So if Patterson gets them to buy books, more power to him.

[Guyot]

I'm in the minority I know, but...

I think he's an arrogant ass. He gave up the info about his "co-writers" (love that term by the way) ONLY after being outed. People who say what a great guy he is only know him from meeting him as a huge celebrity, and 99% of them are writers who want his success.

And learn from his marketing methods? Well, Dave. If I gave you that kind of money to spend, I bet that you'd be considered a marketing genius.

IMHO, books with his name on them quit being engaging and entertaining stories long ago, and now are simply advertising tools for the franchise that is Patterson.

But, hey, he's smart as hell, and he's following a plan that has worked in this country for centuries - hit people over the head long enough, and they come around to your way of thinking.

And I think the argument "Buying his books is better than watching TV" is such an easy cop-out. Most will think I'm biased because of my job, but it's become such a cliche for people to say things like that.

And most who bitch about TV melting brains are either hypocrites who are secretly watching reality TV, or else they're uninformed, having never tuned in to the outstanding quality places like HBO and FX produce on a regular basis.

I'd rather my money go to the pockets of HBO than James Patterson.

[Elaine Flinn]

You're not in the minority at all. He pulled a con on his fans and the rest of the reading world until - as you said - he'd been outed. I don't find that method of 'marketing' ethical. But then, 'ethics' has all been removed from much of todays vocabulary.

I understand what David meant, and I'd rather see people reading more too. But you're right, Guyot about HBO and FX - but let's not forget PBS and BBC America - they haven't forgotten what brilliant writing and top notch acting is either.

[David J. Montgomery]

I don't disagree with you -- I'd rather watch TV than read most of Patterson's books as well. But at the same time, I'm not going to criticize people who choose to buy them. I like it when people buy books. Sure, I'd rather they buy George Pelecanos or Laura Lippman or whomever -- but if it's Patterson they want, I'd rather have them buy that than no book at all. (I felt the same way about Dan Brown.)

What I'm afraid of is that people are eventually going to stop buying books altogether. We already see this happening with so many people. But if we can at least keep consumers in the habit of going to bookstores, buying books, reading books -- even if it's Patterson or Brown or Danielle Steele -- I think that's a good thing.

Patterson's success has proven that people WILL buy books. (Again, same with Dan Brown.) They just have to be marketed to in the appropriate way. And that's the lesson I think we can learn from this.

[M.J]

I was not saying anything negative about TV. But book sales are not growing and in fact it looks like we'll drop another 2% in volume this year. We need need readers and if Patterson keeps them coming into the store they's a good chance they'll will be exposed to other books/other authors.

[Cameron Hughes]

Most television these days has better writing than a Patterson Product.

Patterson's method? Its not hard at all to see.

2-3 page chapters to make idiots feel smart after reading 53 chapters in ten minutes.

Cookie cutter characters that have no depth, and are easy to understand(Seriously, the man writes the same serial killer and woman in peril over and over again)

Plots that are ridiculously by committee, careful to titilate, but not really offend or make the reader think.

Slightly larger print thats easier to read.

James Patterson is a blight that needs to go away. I don't like J.K. Rowling either, but she's getting people reading the right way and not poisoning the rest of the well.

Bookstores would be a better place without James Patterson.

[David J. Montgomery]

I've enjoyed some of Patterson's books -- even gave one or two a favorable review. Does that make me an idiot?

I find it supremely arrogant to pass judgment on what people should or shouldn't read.

People should read exactly those book they care to -- and it's nobody else's business what they are.

This whole attitude of looking down one's nose at other people's reading habits is part of why reading is so unpopular in this country.

[Graham]

I'm of two minds on this, mainly because writing is art but selling books is business. In business, all the marketing in the world won't help you unless you do one thing first: make products people are willing to pay for.

But how many people write *just* to make money? Besides, the current state of mediocre, group-tested, risk-averse movies, TV, and music makes me think that writing is best left as art.

[Doug Riddle]

Great post David, and I agree with you about Patterson.

Love him or hate him, the man knows more about marketing then anyone here. That is a fact whether we like his books or not. He knows it well enough that he was a ad agency V.P. at 41 and a case study on his book marketing is used in courses at the Harvard Business School, and those folks know a little bit about business.

There are things we can all learn from him. And by that I mean marketing, and not prose styling. A good example is the next time you are in a bookstore compare one of Patterson's covers to other books and see what is different. Patterson has final say so on his covers and has for a long time.

And lets not be snobs about tv. Just because you pay for HBO and Showtime does not make everthing they show good. They show an equal percentage of crap as the regular channels.

And to paraphrase Twain..."A man who doesn't read has no advantage over a man who can't"....so I would much rather see someone spending as much time reading a book, any book, as watching tv.

[Mark L.]

As a non-writer but someone than reads a lot of books when I see other people trash writers like Patterson they don't come off as smart but as jealous. It's the KISS arguement all over again. Is their music great? No, not really but it's fun and they are great at getting people to buy it and everything else with their name on it. Patterson has gotten to the point that anything he does will sell and as long as he doesn't stray to much from the formula he'll be fine. Clancy was in a similiar position until people just got tired of his stuff.

[Lee Child]

David, I have no problem at all with either Patterson or his books, but it's a mistake to assume we can learn from his methods, because his methods were deeply conventional. He adjusted his product to better fit the intended end-users, and he advertised it more heavily than its rivals - exactly the same way any pill or car gets marketed. The "advertised it more heavily" part was easy - because no one else was using TV at all, because no one was in a position to, but Patterson could buy airtime at cents on the dollar, because he was the guy swinging millions' worth of business in his day job. It wasn't really a bold, hold-your-breath decision - it was an obvious step that broke no new conceptual ground. The commercials were rudimentary and their placement not very strategic.

Bottom line, folks like MJ Rose and Joe Konrath know way more about book marketing - unfortunately, they're not holding the bludgeon that Patterson had in his hand by virtue of his career.

[David J. Montgomery]

You make a good point, Lee, and you bring up an angle I hadn't considered. (Paul Guyot told me the same thing in an offline conversation.) That's why I like having discussions like this because I learn stuff, too.

One thing I do give Patterson credit for, though, is that he proved that conventional advertising strategies work for books. So many times I've been told by people in publishing, "ads don't work for books." But we know that's not true, and Patterson's success proves it.

[Lee Child]

Ads work for everything, but they're very expensive. Buy a new Chevrolet Malibu today, and fully $1,000 of the $25,000 you pay funds the ad budget. Can't load a $1,000-per-unit ad budget onto a $25 book, more's the pity.

[I.J.Parker]

Quite right. The business of selling books is not that different from selling other products. The manufacturer of soft drinks or cereals pays for product placement and TV ad campaigns in order to assure the success of the product. If he doesn't, he fails. The difference is that in this case the author competes with the heavily promoted fellow author who will preempt potential sales and thereby affect the unpromoted author's sales figures negatively. In the end, the publisher may lose some profits or even part of the modest advance paid the unpromoted author, but it is the author who ultimately bears the burden of the failure.

[Doug Riddle]

Just goes to show that money begats money.

[Charles Finch]

Well - it's worth noting he was an ad exec before he was a writer....obviously that experience counts. I think Marcus Sakey worked in advertising too.

[David J. Montgomery]

Patterson wasn't just an ad exec... He was CEO of J. Walter Thompson. Quite a few authors came out of an advertising background. (Clive Cussler, M.J. Rose and Chris Grabenstein are just a few that leap to mind.) It's something I see fairly often in author bios.

[Charles Finch]

That's funny. I wonder what the connection is - knowing what the public wants excuses a lot of sins, I suppose. The Bud Light ad can be crass or the prose can be clunky, but it doesn't matter if it moves product. What the hell. Good for Patterson.

[Fran]

As a bookseller, I've been reading over the last few days' posts with massive interest.

However, I did want to jump into the Patterson conversation to say that Patterson has a greater reach than you might suspect, as I pointed out in my blog entry:

http://fransramblings.blogs.com/my_weblog/2008/02/i-was-enchanted.html

because I truly was enchanted by the dialogue of two homeless men about mystery authors.

I'll also take a moment to observe that, love him or not, he's certainly gotten a lot of coverage here, hasn't he? I suspect he'd be pleased.

[David J. Montgomery]

Welcome, Fran! We love booksellers around here.

[Carlene]

I agree with Fran - he's laughting all the way to the bank. Most of his books that I've tried to read seem like outlines, but maybe that's what modern readers want. Something fast to buzz throught.

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