“I’ve declined to do direct endorsements of products a couple of times over the years - e.g. Scott Turow, whose best-sellers include “Presumed Innocent” and “The Burden of Proof,” said he couldn’t even “conceive” of working with a sponsor.
A recent e-book, Hillary Carlip’s “Find Me I’m Yours,” was funded in part by the makers of Sweet’N Low. Julia Alvarez wrote a poem for Absolut vodka and several authors, including Elmore Leonard and Lisa Scottoline, contributed essays for a 1990s Coca-Cola campaign. In 2001, Fay Weldon was commissioned by Bulgari to write “The Bulgari Connection,” in which she worked in references to the jewelry company. The literary community has mostly shunned commercial endorsements, although there are precedents for Boyd’s book. The Land Rover logo appears at the top of the screen and the occasional word or phrase, such as “river” or “cross country,” links to a picture of a Land Rover or a real-life story about a Land Rover user. If “The Vanishing Game” itself cannot be called “a Land Rover story,” the company provides other reminders. Photographs and moving images provide a backdrop to the words. An audio track features a voiceover and soundtrack music. Boyd’s story can be read as a traditional book, or as an interactive narrative through the dedicated website.
