Publisher Prints Books With Disappearing Ink
June 27, 2012
You’ve got two months to read them – or they’re blank:
Ad agency Draftcb has won gold at the Cannes PR Lions for an innovative publishing concept, using disappearing ink to print books that gradually fade away over the course of two months. Dubbed “The Book That Can’t Wait,” the format — an intriguing one in a world increasingly dominated by Kindles and Nooks — is being pioneered by independent Argentinian publishing house Eterna Cadencia, which is using it to promote new authors. As the promo video (below) points out, “if people don’t read their first books, they’ll never make it to a second.”
The specially-developed ink used in the books works via a chemical process, starting to disappear as it comes into contact with light and air.
Via.
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Remember when they tried this kInda thing with DVDs, only to stop after they realized it wasn’t the slightest bit “Eco-friendly”?
No – but they’re not going for eco-friendly – it’s just a marketing thing.
I don’t get it…what’s the point? It’s a marketing thing, fine, but what are they trying to achieve here?
Maybe just that people – like ourselves – are talking about it?
What if you’re a slow reader? What if two months pass and you’ve finished reading it, but you want to read it again?
I like the idea but it should be brought back by heat, cold, or a way to get the ink back. Sometimes you buy a book and just dont have time to read it that quick.
I think this is a really creative but impractical solution. It doesn’t “ensure that [the] authors will be read”. I don’t think people change their reading habits just because they are pressured to do it. I think the best thing about books is that you can go back and read them when you have different life experience and perspective. I wouldn’t buy a book that becomes an expensive journal after two months. I like to take my time and am usually reading several books at once.
On the other hand, the right solution for getting new authors read is better advertising, and on that front, this was an absolute success.