I, Libertine

I, Libertine appears in How to make a BOOK into a bestseller as the fake book that Gene Shepard asked radio listeners to request from bookstores. The source says the prank became large enough that a publisher eventually helped turn the invented title into a real published book.

The episode uses I, Libertine as an early case of Bestseller Status Feedback Loop. The lesson is not that sales were honestly measured, but that visible or rumored demand can recruit stores, readers, publishers, and media into creating the product they thought already existed.

Connections

• Gene Shepard - radio personality behind the prank.
• New York Times Bestseller List, Bestseller Status Feedback Loop, and Bestseller List Opacity - ranking and popularity mechanisms illustrated by the story.
• Book Publishing Economics - broader market context for turning attention into a publishing object.