首部“自毀小說”問世

The world's first self-destructing novel is being offered by James Patterson.

世界上第一部“自毀小說”問世，作者是美國作家詹姆斯·帕特森(James Patterson)。

For £200,000 one fan will get 24 hours to read his latest book before it explodes. Although the precise detail of the destruction are unclear, a SWAT team will be on hand to deal with any issues.

這本新書售價(jià)20萬英鎊，書迷有24小時(shí)來閱讀，隨后它將自我銷毀。盡管“自毀”的具體細(xì)節(jié)尚不清楚，但有一支特種武器和戰(zhàn)術(shù)部隊(duì)將會(huì)處理任何突發(fā)狀況。

Patterson, author of Unlucky 13 and Cross My Heart, says that as book shops are increasingly closing publishers need to be as imaginative as film companies in creating a hype around a new novel.

帕特森的作品包括《不幸的13》(Unlucky 13)和《真心話》(Cross My Heart)等。他表示，隨著愈來愈多書店結(jié)束營業(yè)，書籍更難贏得注意，所以出版商必須和電影公司一樣有想象力，以掀起新一波小說閱讀的熱潮。

Unlike the film industry's red-carpet premieres, Hollywood luminaries and huge advertising budgets, book launches with signings and readings are a more staid affair.

與電影行業(yè)的紅地毯首映、好萊塢影星助陣以及巨大的廣告預(yù)算不同，書籍的簽售和閱讀顯得一成不變。

"The publishing business needs to compete," he said. "It needs to compete with movies and the Internet."

“出版業(yè)需要競爭，”他說，“需要與電影和互聯(lián)網(wǎng)相較量。”

For £194,000 one avid reader will be flown to an undisclosed location for a meal with Patterson and will be given a copy of Private Vegas ahead of its launch at the end of the month.

而花費(fèi)19.4萬英鎊，熱心讀者將飛往一個(gè)私密的地點(diǎn)與帕特森共餐，同時(shí)還能提前得到帕特森月底發(fā)行的新作《私家偵探：拉斯維加斯》(Private Vegas)。

A special weapons and tactics (SWAT) team will also be on hand to handle the explosive thriller.

屆時(shí)，同樣會(huì)有一支特種武器和戰(zhàn)術(shù)部隊(duì)會(huì)處理突發(fā)事件。

Also as part of the promotion, 1,000 fans will be able to download free copies of the book from the website selfdestructingbook.com. Each book will have a 24-hour digital timer that cannot be paused or cancelled.

作為新書推廣的一部分，一千名書迷將從“自我銷毀網(wǎng)站”(selfdestructingbook.com)下載到免費(fèi)電子書。每本電子書都設(shè)有24小時(shí)數(shù)字定時(shí)器，無法暫停或撤銷。

"Twenty four hours after you start it, the book will no longer be there," said Patterson, 67. "I hope this spurs more ways to get attention."

現(xiàn)年67歲的帕特森表示：“超過24個(gè)小時(shí)，這本書就不復(fù)存在了。我希望這一做法能激發(fā)出更多吸引眼球的方式。”

He added: "This seemed like a terrific way to draw attention to a book in a way that has never been done before," he explained. "In the history of publishing there hasn't been anything like this."

他還稱：“用先前從未有過的方式來宣傳一本書，似乎非常棒。在出版行業(yè)的歷史上，還從未有過這樣的事。”

Private Vegas is the latest in Patterson's 'Private' series featuring Jack Morgan, who discovers a murder ring in the gambling mecca.

據(jù)悉，《私家偵探：拉斯維加斯》是詹姆斯·帕特森“私人系列”的最新作品，描述杰克·摩根(Jack Morgan)揭發(fā)賭城謀殺集團(tuán)的故事。

"Hopefully this also opens up different opportunities just in terms of how we can push the boundaries in publishing in general," said copy writer Jose Funegra.

“希望這還能為我們?nèi)绾瓮七M(jìn)出版的無邊界化帶來不同的機(jī)遇。”廣告文案約瑟(Jose Funegra)說道。

Patterson, a fixture on the bestsellers list, has sold more than 300 million books worldwide, with fictional psychologist Alex Cross among his best known characters.

詹姆斯·帕特森是美國暢銷書榜單作家常客，他的作品在全球銷售超過三億多冊(cè)。心理學(xué)家亞歷克斯·克羅斯(Alex Cross)是他作品中最著名的形象。

In addition to his more than 100 novels, Patterson has written books for young readers, including the Middle School age group.

帕特森創(chuàng)作了100多部小說。此外，他還為年輕讀者寫書，包括中學(xué)生群體。

Vocabulary

destruction: 毀滅

hype: 大肆宣傳

luminary: 杰出人物

tactic: 策略

boundary: 邊界

gambling: 賭博

bestseller: 暢銷書