The sun., 1919-08-24
THE SECRET OF THE BEST SELLER.

lF1 inadequately advertised, and rather fire.
quently advertised in the wrong places.
Of the current methods of advertising new fiction
only is unexceptionally good. This is the adver
tisng which arrests the readers attention and bats
his interest by few vivid sentences outlining the
crisis of the story the dilemma that confronts the
hero or heroine the problem of whether the hero
or heroine acted rightly; or paints in few swift
strokes some exciting episode of the action-endng
with question that will stick in the reader mind
Such an advertisement should always have draw
ing other illustration if possible. 1t should be
displayed in generous space and should be placed
broadcast, but with much discrimination as to
where it is to appear
"A Page From Book" .....-
A kind of advertisement somewhat allied to this,
but not in use at all despite its assured selling
power would consist Of the simple reproduction of
a photographed page of the book. The Detroit
Netcs has used such reproduced pages so effectively
as illustrations that it seems strange no publisher
ESQ far as we know has followed suit. Striking
pages, and pages containing not merely objective
thrill but the flavor which makes the fascination
Of particular book, can be found In most novels.
The Detroit NeWS selected a page Of the highest
effectiveness from so subtle a romance as JOSEPH
CoNRAD's The ArroU of Gold This manner of ad-
1ertsing, telling from its complete restraint is ap
plicable to non-fction. A page of book of essays
by SAMUEL CRoTHERs would have to be poorly
taken not to disclose in its several hundred words
the charm and fun of his observations. Publishers
of encyclopedias have long employed this "page
from the book method of advertising with the
best results.
The ordinary advertisement of book, making
few fat assertions of the books extraordinary
merit, has become pretty hopeleSsly convention
allied. The punch is gone from it, we rather fear
forever In all conscience it is psychoogically de-
fective ia that it tries to coerce attention and
credence instead of trying to attract fascinate or
the behoder. The advertiser is not different
essentially, from the public speaker. The public
speaker who aims to compel attention by mere
laundering or by extraordinary assertions has no
chance against the speaker who amuses interests or
agreeably piques his audience who stirs his audi
tors curiosity kindles their collective imagina
tion.
Advertising Mr.. Wells.
There is too little personality in the advertising
of books, and when say personality we mean, in
most cases, the authors personality. The bald and
tnconvncing recital of the opinion of the West
tainster Gazette that this is book every Anglo
American should read is as nothing compared with
few dozen words that could have been written of,
Or by, no man on earth except H. G. WELLS.
The internal factor Of II. G. WEILs's novel The
Dndying Fire is big that it constitutes sort of
least common multiple Of the hopes, doubts and
fears of hundreds of thousands of humans 100
per cent sale of the book under existing merchan-
dising conditions, would be 100000 copies at the
very least 1t ought to be advertised in every
national and religious weekly of 10000 circulation
or over in the United States, and in every period
Zeal of that circulation reaching rural audience.
And it ought to be ADVERTISED essentially, in this
manner: II
SHALL MAN CURSE GOD AND DIEf
No! job AnSWered
NO. H. G. WELLS TELLS STRICKEN EUROPE
Read has Ne~ Short Novel, 'iThe UHdying Fire
in chrh he Holds Out the Hope That Men
Nay Yet Unite to Organise the World and SAGE
Mankind From Extinction.