NO SINECURE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27267, 19 December 1949, Page 4

NO SINECURE

PUBLISHING BOOKS DIFFICULTIES OUTLINED “ What makes a best-seller? I do not ■ know and if I did I would make a fortune.” With these introductory remarks, the well-known London publisher, Mr Michael Joseph, attempted to explain in a broadcast address last night why some books are much more , popular than others. He would not deal with non-fiction such as Mr Churchill's war memoirs, Mr Joseph said, for the success of this type of book was easy to understand. In a different category, however, was the novel which might sell up to 50.000 copies in a few days. In his opinion publicity was not necessary in selling a book, the speaker continued, for if the public did not like it there would be few sales no matter how much “boosting" the novel received. A favourite author might stay at the top for a long period merely on account of his former successes but eventually the book itself would be- . come the chief factor in selling. Nor .did he think the title had much to do '•with the market value, Mr Joseph added. It could help but that was all. The secret, he considered, was the word of mouth recommendation. All these opinions, however, were more in the nature of guesswork. A recognised factor in publishing nevertheless was timing or striking the right note at the right time. Today’s best-seller might have been a failure 10 years earlier for the novel had to be a reflection of the prevailing mood. In peace-time, colourful or exciting books were widely read but at the present time the novels of Jane Austen, • who presented an orderly and serene >world to her readers, were popular. “The writer must be absolutely ; sincere,” Mr Joseph continued, “ and his must be ‘real.’” The art '.‘of telling a good story or fine writing was not enough. The book itself had to touch deep inside half a million readers.

“It is very seldom that an author •writes a best-seller at his first attempt,” Mr Joseph concluded, “ and it would be a very fortunate publisher indeed who could tell before a book reaches the market that it will become a top ranking favourite.”