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Do you have the web address for the Solo microsite?[/quote]
Yes, it's www.jamesbondsolo.co.uk
Yes, it's www.jamesbondsolo.co.uk
[/quote]
Thank you so much, @Villiers53!
In the era of e-books I believe that this launch mechanism is hugely relevant.
The Bentley editions of DMC & CB would have been great if the pages between the covers had merit.
It is fascinating that JC had the wisdom to produce a special edition OHMSS back in the day. 250 where produced and they now sell for over £10000.
If they do something for SOLO it should be accessible. Nobody is going to pay a fortune after the Faulks/Deaver debacle.
Indeed. I think Boyd will deliver. Third time lucky. Bond fans can only take so much...
Doubtless there will be more winging from publishers about the state of their business - people not reading anymore, e-books ruining their business, amazon competing unfairly etc.etc.
Frankly, when you look at how JC are treating the run up to the launch of one of the years biggest launches, it's difficult to sympathise. What's more, they couldn't even get it out for the summer holiday market - bizarre - maybe they have a business limitation director running this?
While for Bondfans the release of a new Bond book may something big, I think you are grossly overstating the importance in book terms.
Dan Browns' Inferno from a publishers viewpoint was one of this years big launches or next up Stephen Kings sequel to the Shining, Dr Sleep is big.
And these books actually get the publication advertisement due to the expected gains to be made for the publishers.
Will the next 007 book a big earner???
Deaver is a fairly popular writer and how well did his 007 book sell??
The new writer is a far less sold writer than Deaver, so I guess the money spend on advertising will be less as well as it subtracks form any profit.
Sure I want the next Bondbook better advertised but I have low expectations, and I will pre-order it anyhow.
I think you are mistaken. Both Dan Brown & Stephen King have different publishers so their marketing spend has nothing to do with the investment behind Bond other than to serve as an indicator to the £ level that should go behind SOLO.
In fact, the risible DMC was Penguin's best selling book of the year and they are one of the worlds biggest publishers!
The fact that both DMC & CB were for the 'read and laugh' file from a qualitative perspective now means that IFP are working with the law of diminishing returns and if the literary Bond is to survive in today's world (Fleming's work will live on as classic) then they have to make this work.
With Boyd they have a great author and he is in a completely different qualitative league to Deaver - read 'Waiting For Sunrise' and you will understand — and with JC, IFP have returned to Fleming's original publisher but if they don't get behind it with a proper, creative marketing plan, it won't amount to a hill of beans!
It will be interesting to see if the move to Jonathan Cape will add anything to SOLO.
Of course, JC is no longer an independent publisher. Today it's just another Random House imprint. That said, there must be some sort of strategy behind attaching SOLO to the JC brand.
Will they return to the original JC physical size? Will the dust jacket be remotely Choppingesque? Will there be any links with the past?
All of this and more will doubtless be answered in the fulness of time but on their performance thus fare, it wouldn't surprise me if returning to JC is just another half baked idea.
On the marketing ideas front, how would it be if all of the purchasers of the SOLO hardback in 2013 were entered into a competition to win a Fleming first edition?
Well, only time will tell, I suppose. Perhaps they could do with you in their marketing department, though.
Some of the submissions were great and the event was featured at the end of the UK's BBC Newsnight TV programme. If only IFP/JC had the imagination!
1) Competition amongst young musicians to compose a new Bond theme with the winning score to be featured in 2 below.
2) Book trailer a la Le Carre's 'Delicate Truth'
3) Competition to design the hardback cover with great ideas from @007VT
4) Series of articles were Boyd reveals how he chose Bond's car, clothes, locations etc..
5) Joint brand promotions with Rolex, Bentley and key featured brands.
6) Special edition JC hardback
Not bad for a bunch of aficionados?
What have we got from IFP/JC a big fat zero and an empty micro site. Frankly this level of complacency beggars belief!
Of course, the most important thing of all is that we have a great novel and on that point I remain positive. Boyd's a great writer and I think he'll pull it off. Unfortunately for him, sales will be half of what they should be because the JC marketing department have been lobotomised!
Licence Renewed (1981) by John Gardner
SilverFin (2005) by Charlie Higson
Devil May Care (2008) by Sebastian Faulks
Carte Blanche (2011) by Jeffrey Deaver
Maybe the folks at IFP are waiting to blitz us from all directions in the coming autumn 2013, no?
Doubtless there will be a late flurry but, to be effective, many of these elements need rolling out well in advance and launching a micro-site two months ago and leaving it empty seems more than a little dumb - n'est pas?
I remember well the tremendous anticipation that was built up for 'Licenced Renewed' - 'Solo' is certainly not getting that treatment - a great shame - Ian will be spinning in his grave!
Unbelievable.
Another idea would be for the publishers to give everybody that advance ordered SOLO hardback a complimentary 60th anniversary edition of CR with the original cape cover.
That sounds a fine idea.
There is this though: http://www.thebookbond.com/2013/07/solo-launch-day-event-in-london.html
I have word that elements of SOLO will include snorkelling on Australia's Great Barrier reef and that the plot involves solar energy, a novelty in 1968 approach. So with that in mind may I suggest the following elements on the cover:
A snorkel mask.
Flies (A Chopping staple and an Aussie staple)
A solar panel with flies on it.
A gun.
maybe a man's lips breathing on the snorkel? (Bond's lips? We saw Bond's hand writing EH BLENIEK, EH BRAVEK on the dust jacket of OHMSS on the crest)
A competition for a cover of this would be ideal. Cape could tease us with more plot info so fans can cook up a cover. Maybe even an MI6 Photostore whiz can cook up a mock up?
I concur @Recipe.
We need a SOLO dust jacket competition on here. Loads of talent on this board.
Incredible - this discussion with Boyd is not even mentioned on their own micro site or e-mailed to those that have registered with said site!
It's now clear, with IFP and JC we are dealing with the gang that can't shoot straight.
Furthermore, I have an awful feeling that the cover art (if you can call it that) may be what they intend to launch. What a mess!
I think the releases have named UK, Africa and USA.
Boyd lived in Africa for years so, no surprise there.
Looks like the publicity has already started for Bond 24 - slated for release in 2 years time were as JC can't even find a way to broadcast Boyd's book signing on their own micro site - unbelievable!
I hope the UK locations expand on just London.
Hopefully we pick up steam as the months go on.
Yes, the films are starting to annoy me. Bond 24 better be good!
> Set in 1969
> Action takes place in Africa, US, London
> Bond's mission is personal and unauthorized
> Bond is 45
Not much else I'm afraid. He did review Henning Mankell's new novel and it was excellent, he can definitely write.
Yes, I'm not in favour of messing with the Fleming timeline at all. Down with that sort of thing, in fact.
I don't think the time line is the important thing. What counts is that we have excellent novels.
DMC could have worked. The first 60 pages were OK but then Faulks went down the pub, got bored with the project and dashed the rest off. The result was sub prime to say the least but such is the strength of the franchise, it went on to be Penguin's biggest seller of that year!
Two years latter we had Deaver with his reboot. Could have worked. 'Skyfall' showed the absolute relevance of a contemporary Bond and the late, great, John Gardner showed that a literary reboot can work well. Gardner's '80s take was very credible - at least his first five novels. But, the fact of the matter is that Deaver's CB was absolute crap.
Now we have Boyd. He's a great writer. I've read 'Ordinary Thunderstorms' and 'Waiting For Sunrise' - both are good. That said, given the damage inflicted by DMC & CB, I'd have gone for Higson, Silva or Cummings. Somebody he either Knows the character (Higson) or the genre (Silva, Cummings) inside out.
The haven't they went for Boyd and now they should support him. We are two months away for launch and they have done absolutely nothing to generate excitement. If I was Boyd, I'd be disgusted!
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/21/books/review/007-goes-rogue.html?_r=0
“a far more complex, nuanced and intriguing figure than his celluloid counterpart.”
“It would therefore be very surprising if, in my own Bond novel, there wasn’t a fair bit about living in Chelsea in 1969, wouldn’t you say?”