The thing about fandom — especially when it evolves (or devolves, if you want to be crotchety) into a cult — is that it doesn’t even wait for the cover to judge a book. For fanatical followers of American pop star Taylor Swift — “Swifties” — their obsession with her music and persona is coupled with a penchant for conspiracy theories.
Swift is known to leave “Easter eggs” in her music, which prompts Swifties to try and solve puzzles that, sometimes, simply aren’t there. Earlier this week, this penchant led to millions of dollars of profits for a publishing company, and the Swifties losing out to another ARMY of fans.
As it turns out, Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS is a memoir by members of the eponymous Korean boy band, written by Myeong-Seok Kang with the seven members of the group.
The BTS ARMY is among the largest online fan groups, and will likely be disappointed that so many copies of this memoir have been bought up by the Swifties. Perhaps they can ensure a buy back. Or maybe, given their penchant for finding clues in random places, Taylor Swift’s fans will find something to obsess over in the BTS book. Either way, the publisher will be encouraging the fanatics as it counts its millions.
