A London-based author has made literary history after giving away £15,000 worth of his own books – for free.
More than 1,500 complimentary copies of ‘Please God, I Want to Win the Lottery’ were handed to commuters as they passed through Waterloo Station at rush hour.
Author Angus Kennedy wrote the novel for “rat racers”, and said the handout was the “only way” of reaching his target audience.
“Many consumers do not have the time to go to a bookshop and find the writers they are looking for, especially commuters,” he said.
“It's a great shame. My book has been written for ‘rat racers’ with not enough time to buy or read - ironically the very people that need to read the most.
“I thought I would fix that sorry situation with this simple-yet-revolutionary idea. If readers couldn't come to me, I would go to them.”
Experts say it is the first time that a book has been distributed in such a way, and believe it could open the floodgates to similar giveaways in the future.
London-based literary agent Susan Mears said: “I can't think of another occasion when an author has reached out to potential readers in such a direct fashion.
“Though offering free e-books over the internet is nothing new, this is something of a precedent and I look forward to seeing if other authors or publishers follow suit.”
Please God I Want To Win The Lottery follows the fortunes of “everyman” Clayton Caine as he embarks on a grand plan to escape the rat race once and for all.
Facing the fact he relies on his sales job to pay the bills, Clayton turns to divine intervention and prays for a win on the Lottery.
The “semi-autobiographical” 240-page took dad-of-four Angus, 46, nine years to write.
But after becoming “disillusioned” with the mainstream publishing industry, he opted to publish the book himself through his own venture, Kennedy's Publications.
Angus, from Tonbridge, Kent, said: “It seems to get published that you need to be either a well-known author, a criminal, or worse still, a celebrity.”
“It ends up with a literary market flooded with people with nothing to say and so readers are being let down. The trust between publisher and reader has gone.
“My novel isn't for the commissioning editor, buyer or retailer. I wanted to start over; break the rules and build trust directly with the readers by using a different way of publishing and marketing.”
The handout was carried out by a marketing firm between 6.30 and 9am.
Angus is planning to distribute his second book, ‘Who Needs to go to College Anyway’, in a similar way next year.
Please God, I Want to Win the Lottery is available priced £6.99 from www.claytoncaine.co.uk
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