Were there such things as "knock-off" books in the time before cinema? I'm thinking of authors who would try to ride the popularity of new works by churning out similar, but not as meaningful books. Did such a job exist?

by mrtenorman

In other words, was there a kind of B-movie-esque industry that copied fads? Was the market not big enough for something like that?

tanstaafl90

There were companies that would print a exact copy and sell it, calling for a greater need for and expansion of copyright law internationally. Simply put, they would pirate books, especially in the US. Edgar Allen Poe was a big critic of this practice and wrote at great length about it. Source:Edgar Allan Poe in Context By Kevin J. Hayes