Am I Crazy?

I got this in email today:
No salutation.
No introdution.
Just this –--

As someone who has a finger on the pulse of contemporary literature, I thought you should be aware of the critical praise that my novel (TITLE HERE) published by (TRADITIONAL WELL RESPECTED NOVEL) has received. Further information can be had
via:

(And then the author’s website, the publisher's website and a publicist's name etc.)

Is this supposed to interest me?

Is this supposed to make me hit reply and ask for a copy?

I’m really surprised that someone creative enough to write a novel can be so dumb when it comes to trying to get attention for it.

Or is it me? Am I crazy? Would you be intrigued by this note?

Inquiring mind wants to know.

Comments

[Kevin Smokler]

Would interest me the same way wax paper interests me, as in not at all.

Perhaps we should trackback this thread to this author, just so they know.

[Jim Winter]

I get this every couple of weeks. Different novel, same spiel. Part of it's because I agreed to look at books to review on the blog or in a pub or two I deal with.

It becomes panning for gold trying to see who sends me a worthwhile risk.

[katharine weber]

What makes it especially unsuccessful to my eye is the notion that you should be impressed by the critical praise and so you should jump on the bandwagon accordingly.

I have a novel coming out in June (Triangle, FSG). So I am curious
to know what kind of simple and straightforward (and syntactically untortured!) email to you as a literary/book biz blogger would have made you want to request a book. What would it have said? Is it a mistake to approach bloggers at all? In some sense does any approach at all risk disdain?

[David J. Montgomery]

I get slight variations on this email all the time. And my reaction is always the same as yours: delete.

To answer Katharine's question, if I may be so bold... I made a blog post about this a while back, which I would refer you to:

http://www.crimefictionblog.com/2005/10/how_to_solicit_.html

[JA Konrath]

I got this email from Lee Goldberg and through it was brilliant.

Dear Friend,

I am a former general in the Nigerian army who has managed to steal countless millions from my people. It has come to my attention that you are an investing genius and I would like your help establishing an account at a U.S. bank.

To start with, you need to know that Lee Goldberg's new mystery novel MR. MONK GOES TO THE FIREHOUSE will be published on Jan. 3rd and is getting a big promo push from The USA Network, which has posted excerpts from his book and a dozen streaming video interviews with him at their site:

http://www.usanetwork.com/series/monk/bookreleases/firehouse/index.html

This is important, because I need you to buy 17,800 copies of the book. In return, if you give me your checking account number, your credit card number, and your social security number, I will wire you $122,000 as "reimbursement" for the purchase of this splendid book.

We will all be winners, especially you my dear, dear friend.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

General Rgo Zan
-------------------

If you're going to do an email blast, do it like that. Entertain, intrigue, and don't take yourself seriously.

I'm not a fan of Monk, but that email made me buy the book.

Joe

[jozef Imrich]

These days we all can become reviewers as long as we are passionate or crazy about the subject; as the karma tends to boomerang to us in one form or another
http://www.lawyersforchange.org/

I have had two reviews published, but one liner moved more books than any of the two 500 word essays. Robert Scoble and Shel Israel of Technorati #1 popular book 'Naked Conversation' fame gave my story a plug and turned Cold River into Hot River ;-P I felt humbled, but happilly humbled as any word-of-blog cannot be taken for granted. It must be enjoyed. Love is an amazingly powerful emotion!

http://redcouch.typepad.com/weblog/2005/10/the_media_drago.html