Few of us would turn down media attention. Publicity helps sell books, is what we believe, and it’s what we know.

Look at Tina Fey. Her “Saturday Night Live” impersonation of Sarah Palin goes viral, and a publisher hands her five million dollars (or, at least, that’s the latest figure I’ve read) to write a book on — well, something. That’s how it works: you get the media’s attention, and then you sell books. One plus one equals two. Fey’s publisher believes it. Book publicists believe it. Every author and publisher I’ve ever worked with believes it.