Oprah raves, books zoom to best-seller lists, authors find fame and fortune. For the third time, there has been a twist to an Oprah favorite book. The story is a fake.
Herman Rosenblat said he met his wife while she was in a Nazi concentration camp. Oprah raved that it was the most romantic love story ever, but now the publisher has stopped printing and announced it was all a total fabrication. The other Oprah favorite book that was a fake was from Margaret Seltzer, "Love and Consequences," a fake story about her life as a white girl in gangland in South Central L.A.
The Oprah book favorite, "A Million Little Pieces," was also proved to have been exaggerated by James Frey.
Faking Hit Literature
Oprah Duped Again By Author For Her Book Club List
Trend Themes
1. Fact-checking Authenticity - The rise of fake literature is creating an opportunity for fact-checking and authenticity validation services to ensure that published literature is indeed based on true events.
2. Increased Skepticism in Publishing - The publishing industry is likely to become increasingly skeptical about accepting submissions from unknown authors and will need to invest in technologies that can verify author claims in order to maintain their reputation.
3. Shift to Verified Self-publishing - The rise of fake literature is prompting a shift to self-publishing platforms that only host content that adheres to a strict verification process to weed out literary frauds and produce a library of authentic works.
Industry Implications
1. Publishing - The publishing industry is presented with an opportunity to invest in technologies that can verify author claims to maintain their reputation.
2. Fact-checking Services - Fact-checking and authenticity validation services are presented with an opportunity to capitalize on the rise of fake literature by providing a much-needed service to ensure that published literature is indeed based on true events.
3. Self-publishing Platforms - Self-publishing platforms that implement a strict verification process are presented with an opportunity to establish themselves as a trusted source for authentic literature and attract genuine content creators.