A king's ransom.

The rise and fall of a 19th-century French media mogul.

You’ve likely never heard of Alexandre Dumas.

But, you’ve certainly heard of his work. He is the author behind the masterpieces The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers.

But, here’s what’s fascinating...

Dumas had help.

In 19th-century France, newspapers took a fascinating approach to publishing novels. They released them in series. Readers would get a single chapter at a time.

Think of it like a television show before the days of streaming. Back when you had to wait each week for the next episode.

Dumas understood the model and capitalized on it. He ended each chapter with a cliffhanger to keep his readers hungry for the next. Newspapers adored Dumas. He was sought after by every publication in France.

To meet the commercial demand, Dumas built a content machine.