Intelligence, dumbed-down

Not exactly TV-related, but it traversed my Email in-box alongside a TV-related Email, so:

(By the way, this one is absolutely true.)

“One publisher is attempting to answer today's decline of in-flight readership with One Flight Fiction®, a six-book series designed with busy travelers in mind. A new imprint from Banda Press International, One Flight Fiction® offers a refreshing alternative for travelers who constantly find themselves wishing they had time to read-and finish-a good book by the time their plane touches down. Featuring "read times" of 0-1, 1-2 and 2-3 hours, One Flight Fiction® delivers a complete and entertaining story to fit any busy schedule or literary taste.

"‘We would find ourselves purchasing novels during our travels, many of which were abruptly set aside afterward, never to be picked up again,’ says Amber Skoubye of Banda Press, who, along with her husband Dan, is the publisher and creator of One Flight Fiction®. ‘We wanted to create a series of books that can be read in three hours or less: during a flight, lunch break at work or even while waiting for your child's activities to end.’

“The six new titles from One Flight Fiction® include Breaking Stride, a modern story of two dedicated runners giving their all for a race; Home to Wyoming, a journey through the Wild West; The Looking Glass Call, a timeless and mysterious coming-of-age story; Dreamers, a futuristic tale exploring issues of genetics and evolution; Summersville, a haunting tale of ghosts and folklore; and Perceptions, a small-town mystery.

“Each title features a personalized book length depending on the amount of time you have in your schedule to relax and read a book. Hopping a short, one-hour flight from Los Angeles to San Francisco? Pick up a title with a 0-1 hour read time. Been meaning to pick up a book but lack the time or attention span? (Italics mine.) Try Breaking Stride, an inspirational tale of teamwork that can be finished in two hours or less.

"‘One Flight Fiction® opens up the true joy of reading to a much broader audience,’ says Skoubye. ‘People who thought they might never be able to finish a book again can sit down and read a story cover to cover, no longer frustrated by time constraints.’”

Oh, Jeez: Where to begin? Do people really buy books based on their length, not whether their subject matter might possibly be of interest? (Notice how only one paragraph glibly skims through what the books are about, while all the others trumpet the fact that the books don’t take long to read – well, the press release seems to be saying, the books may be crap but they won’t eat up too much of your time, and at that next cocktail party you can impress that potential special someone with a desultory chuckle and the phrase “I read a book the other day.”)

Aren’t novels with a “0-1 hour read time” actually called short stories? Isn’t there some sort of paradox in dumbing-down something that’s supposed to make you feel smart?

All that said, do they want me to author one? What do they pay? If it doesn’t take long to read, how long can they take to write? I could probably expand upon my powerful evisceration of caveman-directed prejudice in a day or two.