Rich Shapero

Rich Shapero is an American venture capitalist and author. After a career in the computing industry, he joined Crosspoint Venture Partners in 1993 where he was recognized for his successful investments in the broadband industry and related internet companies. In 2004, he spent more than $450,000 to promote and distribute his first novel, Wild Animus, which was self-published through his own vanity press. He distributed 40,000 advance copies through the BookCrossing book exchange website to a largely negative response. He went on to distribute thousands of copies for free at public events in several countries and on American college campuses. Shapero has continued this self-publishing and mass-distribution model for several subsequent novels.