What makes a hit a hit? In Hit Makers Atlantic Senior Editor Derek Thompson puts pop culture under the lens of science to answer the question that every business every producer every person looking to promote themselves & their work has asked Drawing on ancient history & modern headlines
- from vampire lore & Brahms&s Lullaby to Instagram
- Thompson explores the economics & psychology of why certain things become extraordinarily popular With incisive analysis & captivating storytelling he reveals that though blockbuster films Internet memes & number-one songs seem to have come out of nowhere hits actually have a story & operate by certain rules People gravitate towards familiar surprises products that are bold & innovative yet instantly comprehensible Whether he is uncovering the secrets of JFK & Barack Obama&s speechwriters or analysing the unexpected reasons for the success of Fifty Shades of Grey Thompson goes beyond the cultural phenomena that make the news by revealing the desires that make us all human While technology might change he shows our innate preferences do not & throughout history hits have held up a mirror to ourselves From the dawn of Impressionist art to the future of Snapchat from small-scale Etsy entrepreneurs to the origin of Star Wars Derek Thompson tells the fascinating story of how culture happens
- & where genius lives