What if you just KNOW
you have a blockbuster,
Reader's-Digest-book-selection, TV/cable-movie (or
even big-screen) story?
Well, maybe
you do! And then again, maybe you should take a few
moments to reconsider.
Let's say
that you truly believe your life has been a soap
opera, talk show and movie of the week, all rolled
into one. Indeed, you've watched all those
made-for-TV flicks about tragedies, diseases,
courtroom disasters, and the like, and you feel that
what you've been through is worlds more grueling than
all of the above. You believe your story is a sure
thing for the best-seller list or a movie-of-the-week
producer. But you're not really a writer. So who you
gonna call -- a ghostwriter?
Well, hold
on a moment. First, please understand that we are not
attempting to make light of your predicament; we are,
instead, trying to present a realistic look at the
marketplace. The stories that get published and
produced are not merely tales of tragic victims.
After all, tragic victims are everywhere. We see them
on the talk shows all the time, and of course, if the
tragedy is big enough or dramatic enough, it may make
the front page of the papers or the top story on the
local news -- only to be forgotten by the next day.
This is not
the stuff of which best-sellers are made.
Ask any
experienced literary collaborator, and he or she will
tell you that in order to be successfully published,
a tragic story must have a redeeming virtue: a
victimized person who triumphs over their
victimization or tragedy. Look at the book section of
any issue of Reader's Digest, for example, and
you will find moving stories of people who have
overcome all sorts of misfortunes or catastrophes --
but you won't find tales of tribulation just for the
sheer masochistic joy of it. The same goes with the
books that make the best-seller lists. Few, if any,
book buyers are going to plunk down their hard-earned
money for a book that makes them feel more depressed
than they already may be.
To make
matters worse, many people also nurture the hope that
their dramatic story will reap instant huge profits,
thereby allowing them some compensation for the
tragic losses they may have suffered.
The truth is
that no matter how good your book is, there's no
guarantee it will be a cash cow, and even if it does
eventually make money, don't expect instant results;
the publication process can be long and arduous. You
can realistically expect that it will probably take
two years to complete your book, find an agent, and
see the work published or produced -- and that's if
you get lucky.
Publishers,
too, are often notoriously slow in paying; even if
you win a large advance, more than likely you will
not get the entire amount up front (one-third is more
the standard). And don't forget that you will
have to pay the ghostwriter up front for his or her
labors; few, if any, ghostwriters work on
speculation. (For more information on what to expect
from editors, ghostwriters and publishers, see our "Reality Check ~
What To Expect" page.)
In any case,
if your tale of tragedy is completely lacking in that
silver lining, it will be a very hard sell. Trade
publishers are, after all, in business chiefly for
profit, not out of altruism. Says award-winning
playwright, screenwriter and novelist Karen Mitura, "That is why
books and scripts are referred to as
'properties.'"
If, on the
other hand, you feel your story does contain that
element of hope for which the reading public is so
hungry, and you have realistic expectations
for your "property," you may be well on
your way to a successful new career as an author. If
you're still in doubt, check out Schmidt Kaye &
Company's exclusive Author Questionnaire.
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Want more information? Give
us a call at (713) 463-9263 (serious inquiries only,
please).
We recommend that before
calling,
you read this page and the other pages listed
directly above,
as well as our Fees page.
Or e-mail us at moonshad@swbell.net
