How did The Autobiography of James T. Kirk get so many Amazon.com reviews?

Discussion in 'Trek Literature' started by Extrocomp, May 1, 2017.

  1. Extrocomp

    Extrocomp Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    The novel currently has 359 reviews and it doesn't even have Star Trek on the cover.. Federation: The First 150 Years by the same author has 283 reviews. Most of Pocket Books' novels don't have anywhere near those numbers. Does Titan Books have better marketing than Pocket Books?
     
  2. Defcon

    Defcon Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Well at least with the Autobiography I guess it certainly helped that Shatner was at least a bit involved with the PR, i.E. he read excerpts at SDCC etc.

    Add to that that these kind of release are more of an "event" than the steady stream of release from Pocket, so they got more coverage from websites who usually ignore the prose releases.
     
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  3. Therin of Andor

    Therin of Andor Admiral Moderator

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    It's also the kind of book people buy for friends who are hard to buy for, ie. for people might not collect the regular Trek novels, but an autobiography of a famous fictitious character makes a whimsical gift. I don't recall the author canvassing reviews online.
     
  4. Csalem

    Csalem Commodore Commodore

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    That's what I did. I send a copy to a Trekkie who does not read the regular Pocket line. It is one of those books that is easier for regular people to pick up and read than the ongoing novelverse. It has wider appeal.
     
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  5. DarkHorizon

    DarkHorizon Captain Captain

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    The book was also much more widely distributed - I picked my copy up from my local supermarket. It stuck around in stock through Christmas 2015 (the paperback edition also got a release there the following year) and was marketed as more of a 'novelty' product and interesting gift idea.
     
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  6. Allyn Gibson

    Allyn Gibson Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Just a few days ago it was offered for $1.99 on one of the bargain ebook newsletters, and that might not have been the first time. (I see repeats every few months.) It's possible that it has more reviews because more people have read it.
     
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  7. Hela

    Hela Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Can't speak for the US, but the kindle version was a Daily and Monthly Sale here. That'll get some readers.

    And if we get a sale, the US usually has it.