James Patterson’s BookShots Off and Running
Oline H. Cogdill

pattersondubois bookshots
The TV commercials are almost impossible to miss.

A man, running through the streets, pursued by what looks like bad guys. But never once does he drop the book he is reading. He reads while jumping, while dodging cars, and even when he leaps onto a passing boat on which every other passenger also has a book, reading.

Let’s hope the boat captain can tear his eyes away from his or her book to keep the ship from going aground.

I admit I can relate to the constant reader. I have been known to read while walking, while on an exercise bike. In a car or in a long line—of course I am reading.

The running reader promotes James Patterson’s new line of books called BookShots, billed as under 150 pages long and costing less than $5. They are being called “fast paced and all thriller, no filler,” Patterson said. They're short enough, he stated, to be read in one sitting, and each chapter, usually no more than a few pages long, “has to move plot and characterization forward.”

Run, reader, run!

They're designed for the many people today who don't have enough time to read and are put off by the idea of reading a 450-page book, Patterson added.

OK, I am for anything that gets people reading, but I have never been put off by a 450 novel—that allows me to immerse myself in the story and characters.

But I can see the appeal of the BookShots, and hope it leads readers to longer, more substantial books.

The plan is that there will be two to four BookShots published each month. Mystery titles will be joined by romance and nonfiction books, too.

pattersonoborn bookshotsPatterson, of course, isn’t actually writing most of the books but using a co-author who will complete Patterson’s ideas.

And, true to form, Patterson is getting some good authors to write for him.

Some of the authors include Brendan DuBois, who has several terrific novels himself, Max DiLallo, James O. Born, Michael Ledwidge, and Jen McLaughlin, among others.

Let us know what you think about this new imprint.

Oline Cogdill
2016-07-23 18:20:00