1836: I Became a Literary Giant in Great Britain

Chapter 140 Making fun of the whole of America

The line outside the bookstore was longer than the line at church on Sundays.

Harper Publishing Group's book delivery wagons didn't even make it to the bookstore.

Halfway there, the carriage was surrounded by a group of frenzied citizens.

"Don't wait! Let's sell it here!"

"I'll pay double! Sell me one copy first!"

The driver and the salesman were quite taken aback by the scene; they had never seen such a crowd so eager to buy books.

They weren't buying books; they were looting gold.

On the other hand, Harper did not place all its bets on traditional bookstore channels.

Following Michel's plan, he employed hundreds of newsboys.

These children, carrying large sacks filled with "A Study in Scarlet," infiltrated every corner of the city like ants.

"Take a look! Look at this! A book banned by the King of England!"

"Sherlock Holmes battles the vengeful killer! The final outcome of the Scarlet Letter case revealed!"

"Top-secret Scotland Yard files leaked in their entirety!"

They hawked their wares loudly at train stations, docks, factory gates, and outside pubs, using the most common and inflammatory slogans.

And every window of the bookstore was occupied by the cover of the same book.

Those were covers meticulously designed by Harper.

Against a dark background, there is a silhouette of a man wearing a deerstalker hat and smoking a pipe, with sharp eyes, and below him is a line of blood-red book titles.

Such an overwhelming visual bombardment and pervasive auditory propaganda were virtually unheard of in America in 1837.

It created a powerful social pressure.

It seems that if you don't talk about Sherlock Holmes or buy a copy of "A Study in Scarlet" today, you're considered an out-of-touch country bumpkin.

If you don't support "A Study in Scarlet," you're unpatriotic and a lackey of the British.

Not to mention, Harper's paperback editions are very inexpensive.

Even workers at the bottom of society can afford to buy a copy if they grit their teeth.

Moreover, the United States is still on the rise and has abundant resources.

Their situation was much better than that of the workers in Great Britain who were relentlessly exploited.

Therefore, even those who are completely illiterate will buy a copy to show off because of herd mentality.

100,000 copies.

This initial print run, which Harper considered astronomical, was largely consumed by eager American readers within just one week.

From scholars in Boston to businessmen in Philadelphia to plantation owners in the South, almost everyone on the East Coast of the United States had a copy of "A Study in Scarlet".

It's estimated that all 100,000 copies will be sold out in a few days.

The printing press machines were running 24 hours a day, continuing to print "A Study in Scarlet".

And when readers finally got their hands on the complete book and greedily read the second half...

When I read that tragic story about the Mormon Church, about love and revenge, I felt a deep sense of sorrow for Hope's fate.

They found an afterword written by the publisher at the very end of the book.

The postscript reads: "To our dear readers:"

"Thank you for reading this story. Now, we're going to reveal the last secret to you."

Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, the Lauriston Garden Street massacre...

...This is not a real case file.

"They are all fictional works by a British genius writer who was only twenty years old."

"With rigorous logic and unparalleled imagination, he has built a world for us that is more real than reality itself."

"If you are deceived by this story, please do not be angry, because this is the highest praise a novelist can receive."

When American readers saw this passage, their first reaction was shock and disbelief.

fake?

Was all of this fabricated?

The all-knowing Sherlock Holmes, the upright Watson, the thrilling chase—it was all a lie.

And Michelle, the recorder of that file, is the creator of all of this?

After a brief moment of surprise, no anger appeared in the reader.

Instead, there was a stronger, almost worshipful, sense of submission.

After all, Americans have always been a people who greatly admire strength.

When faced with someone far superior to themselves, they not only don't get angry, but instead admire them.

"My God! How could this be made up?"

"I bet even Scotland Yard's best detectives aren't as smart as Mr. Michel!"

"This is terrifying! What's going on in this young man's head? He can write a fictional story that sounds more real than anything I've ever experienced!"

Americans did not feel fooled.

Just two years ago, The New York Sun's "Moon Hoax" exploited people's ignorance of science; it was a complete fraud.

Although I wasn't angry after it was exposed.

People should still read newspapers.

However, this Scotland Yard Scarlet Files hoax is completely different from the previous ones.

Michelle wasn't just deceiving their feelings; she was openly challenging their intelligence.

He used a fictional story to engage the entire United States in an intellectual game.

And they won!

This is utterly a mockery of the entire United States!

What terrifying talent it takes to write a fictional story that is more rigorous, more exciting, and more gripping than all the real cases combined.

In an instant, media outlets across the United States turned their guns on the issue.

They stopped discussing the fictitious blood-written file and instead showered all their praise on the young writer from across the ocean.

"A literary magician who has fooled all of America!"

"This is the smartest brain in all of Britain!"

"With a pen, he orchestrated the most successful conspiracy in American publishing history!"

The name "Michelle" is no longer associated with a mysterious archivist.

He was remembered by all Americans for his kingly arrival.

He was no longer an unknown British writer, but had gained a truly unique and unshakeable reputation in the New World.

Just when the whole of America was being mocked by Michelle.

Fletcher Harper was sitting in his luxurious office in Manhattan.

The table was piled high with bundles of banknotes, the huge profits from "A Study in Scarlet".

He was holding another manuscript in his hand.

It was the manuscript he brought back from London, with the title "The Great Gatsby" on the cover.

Harper now finally understood the confidence and foresight hidden beneath the calm expression of the young man who had forced him to promise an initial print run of 100,000 copies in that small London apartment.

Sherlock Holmes was merely an appetizer used to pry open the American market.

With its current formidable fame and fervent fanbase, the publication of this work will no longer be a gamble.

Michel's fame in the New World was more than enough to guarantee the book's bestseller status.

Harper's gaze fell on the title page of the manuscript, and he seemed to hear again Michelle's words to him in London.

Do you think that ten years from now, I'll still only have this one book?

He shivered, then picked up a pen and wrote the title "The Great Gatsby" on a blank publishing plan.

In the column for the first print run, he hesitated for a moment, crossed out the 100,000 he had originally filled in, and wrote a new number with trembling hands.

Two hundred thousand.

This is a terrifying number unprecedented in the history of American publishing!