Fault Lines

By David Pryce-Jones

Published by Criterion Books (NY)

In this memoir, David Pryce-Jones narrates the story of his family starting from his grandparents, Eugène Fould from Paris and Mitzi Springer from Vienna (on his mother’s side) as well as his paternal lineage, Harry Pryce-Jones from Wales and the English Vere Dawnay.

Fault Lines paints both a human and a historical picture of the XX Century: David’s family members – far and near in time – are described in their complexity and many contradictions. The international background against which they move also comes to the fore as a testament to the tragic events which were to transform Europe and the world radically.

The challenge

Capture journalists’ attention in the run-up to Christmas. Since I was briefed only a few weeks before the launch, I had to devise the PR strategy ‘thinking on my feet’ and I had to implement it as fast as it had been devised.

The solution

Get to know the book inside-out: I couldn’t afford to be vague when discussing it with journalists, and I needed to think about any imaginable angle so as to capture the media’s imagination at this particularly hectic time. Moreover, identifying the various ‘stories’ emerging from the book, allowed me to contact a wide range of relevant publications in many different fields including literary, current affairs, and religious.

The result

Fault Lines was reviewed/ featured in a variety of national media including The Literary Review (circ. 44,750), The Times Literary Supplement (controlled circ. 25,214), The Spectator (circ. 55K+) and Church Times (circ. 65K)… David was also interviewed on BBC London’s religious programme ‘In Spirit’, and was invited by Oxford University to give a talk about his book.