The world’s first truly interactive book club (From The Argus)

The world’s first truly interactive book club

2:20pm Saturday 2nd February 2013 in News By Siobhan Ryan

A Brighton author is to become the first in the country to release an interactive novel online.

Peter Jarrette’s new e-book, Brighton Babylon, is being released using new technology that allows readers to communicate directly with the author and with each other.

Links are embedded within the book on various subjects connected with the chapters and readers will be able to join online forums, ask Mr Jarrette questions or give their opinions in various structured discussions.

Mr Jarrette, who lives in Brighton, said: “I already use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter so I am used to talking to people about what I do but this is something different and I'm really looking forward to seeing the reaction. It should help us to reach a much wider audience and be really interesting.

“It could also help with tourism and boosting visitors as places in the city are referenced in the book.”

The system, called WeJIT, has been developed by technology specialist Democrasoft. Mr Jarrette’s publishers, Dynasty Press, said readers can forward the URL link for any embedded WeJIT to anyone, even to those who do not yet have the book.

Discussions

A spokesman said: “Readers themselves are actually positioned to increase book sales by inviting others to join in discussions launched from within the ebook.

“We believe this is a genuine first in the publishing world.”

The novel is based on Mr Jarrette’s experiences living in Brighton. The author meets a motley crew of unsavoury hobos, webmasters from nearby Crawley, mistakenly racist London hairdressers, strangely scripted market researchers, pushy airline First Officers and many more.

The novel has been praised by crime writer and fellow Sussex resident Peter James, who said: “Snap Peter Jarrette in half and you’ll find the name Brighton repeated in his bones like in sticks of rock.

“His glorious evocation is so rich and vivid, you can taste and smell the city on every page.”

Brighton Babylon is officially launched next month and available from www.dynastypress.co.uk/books-brighton-babylon.html or via Amazon and Apple’s iBookstore.

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