When those around me knew I was going to launch 15 books at the Hong Kong Book Fair this year, they were all taken by surprise. They were mostly worried that I would be spreading myself a little too thin. Haven't you heard of the law of diminishing marginal returns? They said.

In the case of a normal, healthy book market, yes, every writer should be 100% devoted to producing a literary tour de force. But when playing by the rules can no longer arouse people's interest, we need to forget about common sense or doing things by the book. It's because, in turbulent times, there are simply no hard and fast rules.

The best way to generate publicity in such a muddled book market is to do what others can't or something crazy. Throughout Hong Kong history, no writer has ever launched 15 new titles in the same book fair. No one has ever done, nor will there be anyone who are likely to do the same in future.

This crazy idea alone was enough to make me forget about eating and sleeping and give it my all in the last few months.

Sometimes, to get a kick out of being young, the passion of youth needs to be kindled.

By Yi-hing Ong

* Translation from Chinese article.