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Interview with David Eckhoff, author of The Royal Factor

Prince Harry parties naked with girls in Las Vegas. The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton is snapped topless in France. Finally, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom has enough and deposes the royal family – and replaces them by means of a TV talent show?!

Front page news segues seamlessly with fiction in David Eckhoff’s new book, The Royal Factor. However, when Eckhoff sought to publicise his novel by leaving cards in his local branch of the booksellers Waterstones it led to a drawn-out war of attrition that ended up jostling for national newspaper inches with the royal scandals he was satirising.

Indie Author Land scored an exclusive interview with David Eckhoff.

Tell us about your run-ins with Waterstones.

It was one extended run in, punctuated by troll reviews every now and then.

I am amused by the outcry over Amazon; Waterstones never mentioned this as an issue during the whole time it was dealing with me and, whilst this was going on, it signed a partnership deal – with Amazon. I like to think I was a catalyst for this marriage!

[Read a full account of his Waterstones battles here.]

Do you hold Waterstones responsible or was this just the actions of some rogue members of staff?

I believe that it was a staff issue, there was no corporate desire to carry out this negative campaign. However, I had to work hard to prove that it was Waterstones’ staff, and they carried on even after they had been caught.

Did you place your leaflets at other bookstores?

Just two others and there have been no complaints, my email address is on the cards. And they are 2”x3” business cards rather than leaflets. In fact, one branch of WH Smith displayed them for months, they might still be there.

Are there any other guerrilla tactics that you have used to market your book?

I have left the cards on trains, on notice boards, in gents toilets (!) and, much to the embarrassment of my daughter, handed them to people with Kindles. Actually handing over the cards has been great, people are really interested. I use twitter and approach people who are interested in the royals, and republicans. Again this polite approach has helped me develop a lot of relationships on twitter. I go to forums where the royals are discussed and post it there too.
I am careful not to spam (repeatedly post the same thing again and again) and have had one complaint in nine months, but that was from a ‘social-media guru’. I never take anyone seriously who uses the ‘g’ word.
Has the nationwide publicity helped your sales?
There has been a small blip.
What are the challenges that independent writers face publicising their books?
Gaining publicity and trolling! It’s all too easy to leave awful reviews of something that has not been read. But the publicity thing is the biggest challenge. I deal with journalists all the time in other sectors but I don’t know any who write about books, getting their time was impossible. And it’s virtually impossible to get reviews in mainstream press of ebooks that aren’t available in hard copy. I was approached by a high-circulation woman’s magazine after they linked The Royal Factor with Prince Harry’s Vegas performance but as soon as I said Kindle-only they would not cover it. There are as many Kindles as books on my commute now.
Tell us about The Royal Factor.
It’s a tale about a prime-minister who is desperate to be seen to solve an issue that he thinks the public cares about. Some of the royals become unpopular so he decides to replace them all through a TV talent show. However, he has misread the situation badly and ends up with an ‘alternative royal family’ that’s even worse, so he finds himself having to get back the original incumbents in order to quell mass disobedience and rioting.
What genre is it?
Comedy-thriller.  Is that a genre?
What kind of readers will it appeal to?
People who like comedy, thrillers, current affairs and tv talent shows. Anyone who watches or reads Have I Got News for You, Mock the Week, Private Eye and or X-Factor.
How long did it take to write?
Just over two years. I wrote it on my commute. UK railways are so awful that the broken trains, rails, points, staff, etc, gave me more time; it would have taken twice as long if I was a commuter in mainland Europe.
Tell us a bit about yourself?
I am the most average person I know. I’m a PR consultant with a family and a dog. I did stand-up for a few years but realised that I could convert the comedy-act writing for a novel and not have to suffer pre-performance nerves.
I’m writing a sequel to The Royal Factor currently. The prime minister is so unpopular that he is the first PM ever to lose his constituency in an election. He ends up presenting a Jeremy Kyle-type show but only for middle-class issues.
Where can readers keep up with your work?
My blog. And Amazon, of course. Not Waterstones though!

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  1. Pingback: Interview with John Donoghue, author of Police, Crime & 999 | Indie Author Land

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