Selling reading to the masses

Publishers use online tools to lure readers

By Dawn C. Chmielewski
Tribune Newspapers: Los Angeles Times
Published November 12, 2006

Books have long been made into movies. Now, they're heading straight to YouTube.

Michael Connelly adapted the first chapter of his new murder mystery, "Echo Park," into a 10-minute film for YouTube and other online video sites in an attempt to attract new readers.

Book publishers face the same challenge bedeviling all media: how to compete for attention in an entertainment market that includes TV, cable, online social networks, downloadable music and video, podcasts and video games.

The average time Americans spend reading has declined from 117 hours a year in 1999 to about 105 in 2006.

Meanwhile, some 172,000 books were published last year--more than 19 new titles published for every hour of every day of every week.

(Excerpt) Read the full article here.