A Free Book for Every Blogger

A few days ago I mentioned my friend, Craig Clevenger’s, new book and encouraged you to seek it out. A few trusting souls did, and today I received my first email from someone who’d found the book via this blog. One new reader - job done.

My wheels have been turning. In years of meetings with ‘mainstream’ companies, the recurring theme has been a desire to reach an audience of people interested in sex, dissuaded by fears of reprisal (”Sugar - how dare you suggest people who buy SUV’s/live in Washington/go to movies visit pornographic websites!”) It would be a good thing for the general acceptance of sexuality, and the bottom line of websites like this, if sex wasn’t assumed to be of interest only to idiots, perverts and weirdoes.

So why don’t we prove that assumption wrong?

(NB: I am an idiot, weirdo-pervert, but can’t be held up as an example of normality.)

If you run a blog on any topic, and it’s been going a couple of months, email me your URL, name, and address, and I’ll send you a free copy of Craig’s first book ‘The Contortionists Handbook’. You don’t have to promise to write about it or, if you do, say anything other than what you feel. I think the quality of his writing will speak for itself. I just want you to read the book.

Hardback copies of Craig’s new book Dermaphoria are expensive, so I’ll share any I can scrounge with bloggers who love ‘The Contortionists Handbook‘, and ask Craig to sign copies bought by bloggers who I can’t get a freebie for.

If I’m right in my thinking, I can add a few bloggers to the unofficial ‘Craig Clevenger Fanclub’ and, while my endorsement doesn’t mean much, the endorsement of a group of us might. We could help win Craig a seat on the Amazon bestseller list and change the pre-conceptions of the entire publishing industry. We might just find something cool to share with our readers. It’s all worthwhile because you can’t keep good down.

I’m sorry we can’t afford send free books to non-bloggers but, if there’s sufficient demand for copies, I’ll arrange a bulk purchase and get Craig to sign them. (I’ll ask about this again when there are more bloggers on-board and we can make the same offer to all our readers simultaneously.)

I’m doing the legwork on this for free and the books are being funded by Craig himself. My reward is helping one friend get noticed and helping many friends with something good to read and a little potential blog fodder.

Craig can be our guy so, when the movie of his first book comes out, you’ll be able to casually refer to him as ‘…a guy I know,’ like I do. (Actually don’t do that, dropping names will make you sound like a wanker - trust me, people tell me all the time.)

Can a few free paperbacks change the way the publishing industry (and the mainstream media) thinks about people who read sex-blogs? Can a great writer compete with the traditional marketing establishment thanks to the aid of a few enthusiastic bloggers? Will you think the sex scene in Dermaphoria is as hot and edgy as the gorgeous woman I was discussing the book with yesterday? Let’s find out…