Book sensation starts on social networking

Meet John Green, an extraordinary writer with an extraordinary ability to use social media to sell his just-released young-adult book, “The Fault in Our Stars.” Pre-orders began racking up six months before publication.

“Sell” is too neutral a word. Craziness is more like it. Before it was released, the book had reached No. 1 on Amazon’s best-seller list. A short time later it hit the top spot on BarnesandNoble.com, all this from pre-orders. The pre-orders grew from Green posting the title of the new book on Twitter (he has 1.1 million followers), on Tumblr and on YourPants.org.

Then Green said he’d autograph all pre-orders and the entire 150,000 first-edition copies. Job done. Right hand OK.

	“The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green Dutton, $17.99, 313 pp.

The book’s lead character is Hazel Grace Lancaster, a teenager, who has thyroid cancer that’s traveled to her lungs. At a support group she falls for Augustus Waters, 17, who’s lost a leg to osteosarcoma. They have more in common than cancer.

“I wanted to write an honest story, but it was always sentimental, self-indulgent and I couldn’t find an effective way into the story,” Green said in a phone interview. “Then three, four years ago I met Esther, a reader of my books. She had terminal cancer. Through our friendship I could see a different way into the story.”

Esther Earl died in August 2010.

Green’s earlier young-adult book “Looking for Alaska” won awards and hooked his readers online. Motivated by the upcoming book, readers submitted some 1,000 proposed book jacket designs. In the end, Rodrigo Corral, a professional book designer, was picked to do the cover.

“I think my readers trusted me to write something that they would enjoy,” Green said. “But it’s certainly a challenge to sell a book that’s not in a series that hasn’t come out yet. I enjoy a very close relationship with my readers. They also watch videos I make and follow me on social networking.”

Green said the Tuesday event at the KiMo Theatre won’t be an ordinary reading/discussion. His brother Hank, who’s with him on tour, will sing some songs about “The Fault in Our Stars” and some about other people’s books.

The brothers have a popular video log on YouTube.

John Green discusses, signs “The Fault in Our Stars” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the KiMo Theatre, 423 W. Central. To be admitted one must purchase the book from Alamosa Books in advance or at the event.