The book was launched at Blackwells Business
Bookshop, Holborn, London on 15th June 2010. David entertained
guests
with the following speech:
'It’s so great to see so many of
you here tonight – thank
you so much for joining me to celebrate the launch of The
Magic BlackBerry.
A number of people have asked me where
the idea came from for The Magic BlackBerry, because it
is an unusual
concept, and
one that makes everyone smile, even before they open
the pages of the book. Thankfully, when they start reading,
they
keep
smiling! So, I‘d like to share with you, the story
of how The Magic BlackBerry came about.
As many of us do, I switched on my BlackBerry
as I began a train journey into London, one morning. Answering
the various
emails that had come in overnight was pretty uneventful,
except
for one, which received an uncharacteristically terse
reply. But, as soon as I hit Send, I regretted it. I instinctively
knew I had done the wrong thing. It was a little close
to
the bone. And I’m sure all of you know what that feels like!
So, as I watched the little clock icon turn alongside the outgoing – and
now irretrievable – email, for a little longer than usual
despite being in a full signal area, my mind wandered for a
moment. I thought about how cool it would be if my BlackBerry
was somehow vetting my emails, and would save me from myself
by returning the email, deeming it unfit for human consumption!
I played around with the idea in my mind, and by the time the
train arrived at London Bridge station, the idea of The Magic
BlackBerry was fully formed. Subsequently, I have discovered
that JK Rowling dreamt up the idea of Harry Potter on a train,
and Walt Disney the same with Mickey Mouse on a rail journey
across America. So, whilst I’m not for a moment comparing
myself to those two great iconic figures, you have to admit
that I’m in pretty good company! So, the moral
of the story is that if you need to get the creative
juices flowing,
jump on a train!
The journey to publish the book has been
more challenging that usual, due to the complications around
using
the word
BlackBerry
in the title. I want to give my publisher, Martin Liu,
my heartfelt thanks for his tenacious support of the project
over the last
18 months. Martin has successfully steered the book through
the publication process, and it wouldn’t be sitting on
the shelf today if it wasn’t for his continued dedication.
Although the book has only been on sale
for less than four weeks, it has enjoyed considerable success
so
far – which
I hope is going to be indicative of the future of the
book! Currently in the Top Ten in the business book chart
in WHSmith
Travel bookstores across the UK, the book has already
had a second print run in the UK, as well as in Asia. International
translation rights have been sold for many languages,
including
Korean, Chinese, Italian, and Portugese. So far, so good!
I would like to give a special thank you
to Neil Hoskings, to whom the book is dedicated. Neil gave
me
an opportunity
over a decade ago which took my professional life in
a direction that has subsequently given me the most amazing
of opportunities – and
I’m delighted that Neil has flown all the way over
from Switzerland to London so that he can join us for
this evenings
celebrations. An amazing man, Neil has been an exceptional
mentor, and friend, to me, and it means a great deal
to me that he is here to share in this evening.
And, as always, a big thanks to my readers,
for their continued support. I hope that enjoy The
Magic BlackBerry,
and that
some of that magic rubs off on your own career!'
