#1 New York Times Bestselling Author & TV Producer
My friend author Lewis Perdue, in the midst of his legal tussles with Dan Brown, actually found time to read a galley of THE MAN WITH THE IRON-ON BADGE and had some good words for the book on his blog.
Get this book. Read it. And if you’re in the doldrums, suffering from the
heartbreak of psoriasis, the humiliation of herpes, or the agony of a lawsuit
with Random House, you will feel better after the first chapter.
Now that would make a one-of-a-kind blurb!
Author James Reasoner flattered me today with some very nice words about THE MAN WITH THE IRON-ON BADGE on his blog.
This book starts out as a fine example of the humorous “lovable schmoe” school of detective fiction, and Goldberg does a good job with that part of it, but then it takes a sudden turn into darker and more dangerous territory and becomes even better. The plot becomes more complex and so
do the characters, and while Goldberg plays scrupulously fair with his clues, nothing and nobody turns out be exactly that they seemed at first. Add to that some very smooth prose and a sense of compassion for
the people he’s writing about, and you’ve got one of the best books I’ve read so far this year. Highly recommended.
Thanks so much, James!
Variety reports that a new screenwriting team has been brought in to take a whack at Dreamworks’ update of "Matt Helm," the spy-spoof franchise that starred Dean Martin back in the 60s. The Dean Martin movies were very loosely based on the 27 dead-serious spy novels by Donald Hamilton.
Dreamworks first announced the project back in 2002 with director Robert Luketic ("Legally Blonde") at the, um, helm. It’s been in development hell ever since. The "new contemporary take" will be written by Michael
Brandt and Derek
Haas .
…my foot, my mouth. My foot spends a lot of time there, I’m ashamed to say.
A reader wrote this comment about my blog post "Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams" on Tess Gerritsen.
Reading that, I felt like a total schmuck. Why didn’t I see it that way from the get-go? Tess wasn’t at fault, it was me. I was way out of line. Tess, I owe you a sincere apology.
Variety reports that Michael C. Hall of SIX FEET UNDER has signed to star in Showtime’s pilot for DARKLY DREAMING DEXTER, based on the acclaimed novels by Jeff Lindsay. The SIX FEET UNDER connection doesn’t end there… Michael Cuesta, a regular director on the HBO series, will helm the DEXTER pilot. Dexter is a Miami PD forensics expert who also happens to be a serial killer.
Writer Lynn Viehl’s adult son has been arrested for committing a double-murder in Florida and her website guestbook has become a focal point for people venting their outrage over his actions. Lynn talks on her blog today about her son and the situation she finds herself in. I can’t imagine what it must feel like to have one of your children commit such a horrible crime. My sympathies go out to her and to the families of the victims.
There are some folks who think I was too hard on Tess Gerritsen (A writer whose work I admire and enjoy, by the way) for lamenting on her blog that her latest book only reached #17 on the New York Times bestseller list. She also wasn’t too pleased about my post. She wrote on her blog:
It seems that writers who reach a certain level of success aren’t allowed to
have any insecurities, any doubts about our careers. We shouldn’t be allowed to
wonder if our sales are in a death spiral, whether we’ve lost "it". We should
simply smile and wave and feel like, well, the untouchable queen of England.
I think Tess missed my point. Sharing her insecurities is great (I find it very endearing, actually) it’s what she said and how she expressed it. Can she really expect people to sympathize with her angst about only hitting #17 on the NY Times bestseller list? If that’s a problem, I think it’s one all writers would like to have.
My agent calls those "champagne problems." It’s like a lottery winner saying he’s depressed he just won $500,000 because he won $1 million before… or a TV producer with the highest-rated show in America who is miserable because his series didn’t get an Emmy nomination for Best Drama. On the other hand, I think any writer can appreciate the insecurities Tess feels when she begins each book:
The truth is, I’ve never conquered my insecurity as a writer, and having hit
the list doesn’t change that. I’ve never lost touch with the feeling that
success is a never-ending struggle. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I
slogged my way up as a paperback romance writer, that I wrote nine of those
before my first hardcover, and I’ve never forgotten what rejection feels like.
Every time I sit down to start a new book, I’m always hit with that panicky
feeling of "How on earth did I do this the last time?"
That’s refreshing to hear coming from someone with the kind of success Tess has had…and it’s good for other writers to know, particularly those struggling to make it. So please, Tess, don’t let my comments stop you from being so open, honest, and helpful on your blog. God knows I’ve certainly made the mistake of saying exactly the wrong thing on my blog… in fact, I do it almost daily. I may be doing it again right now.
My Mom is going through chemotherapy for a third time and wrote about the experience on her blog. She was delighted and touched to get this email this morning from a DIAGNOSIS MURDER fan. So was I.
Dear Mrs. Curran,
You don’t know me, but I know you through your son Lee. I am a big Diagnosis Murder fan and a devoted reader of Lee’s books. Sometimes I click on your blog and read how you are. Today I read that you are facing a chemotherapy again. I am sending you my best wishes and hope that the new therapy doesn’t make you sick! Keep strong!
Sincerely Yours,
Ute
Ute was also one of the many Diagnosis Murder fans who inundated me with get-well cards, letters, emails and stuffed animals with bandaged arms when I had my bad accident a year ago. I dedicated my DM: THE WAKING NIGHTMARE to them but, in truth, all the DM books I write ar for them. They’re the best!
Author Tess Gerritsen is saddened because her book only reached #17 on the NY Times Bestseller List.
I’m sorry to report that I didn’t drink champagne on Wednesday
night. Alas, the first partial week’s paperback sales of BODY DOUBLE
only got it to #17 on the NYT list. Sigh. Then I looked at the other
authors whose books debuted the same week: Nora Roberts. Dean Koontz.
Clive Cussler. Catherine Coulter. Janet Evanovich. And I realized —
whoa, there’s some pretty tough competition there! I’m going to hang on
tight this coming week and see what happens next Wednesday. And hope
that there are enough readers out there who care enough about Jane and
Maura to want to find out what happens next in their lives.Publishing lesson: Success is never a sure thing in this business.
Ever. This is what keeps me humble and always feeling like a struggling
writer.
Gee, life is tough. I guess when you reach a certain level of success, you lose all perspective. Having a book reach #17 on the NY Times bestseller list may put Tess in the doldrums…but for the vast majority of published authors, cracking the list at all would be cause for celebration. Surely, she knows that, right?
On the other hand, here’s a peek at the real world that most authors have to live in. Author Beth Ciotta has had three mass market paperbacks published but isn’t making a living at it.
Last week, I visited my family in Indiana. When I mentioned this box
office gig and the one I’m waiting to hear about, my mom said, "What do
you mean you had to get a job? Don’t you make money from your books?"Last
night my husband and I met up with a group of musician
friends. Everyone asked if I was still gigging a lot, to which I had to
answer ‘no’ and then I mentioned the ‘jobs’. Again I got a strange look
coupled with comments like, "But I thought you had another book coming
out." The thought behind it… can’t you live off of that?Well…
no. Not yet. Just now I need to supplement my writing income to make
ends meet. It’s a reality many writers face. Another reality is
juggling the alternate job, writing, and promoting multiple
books–building a ‘name’. It ain’t easy. Every now and then I allow
myself to dream and think, someday I’ll be writing full time and all
this angst will be history.
I bet if Beth reached #17 on the NY Times Bestseller list, she’d not only be drinking champagne, she’d be bathing herself in it.
Screenwriter John Rogers offers some excellent screenwriting advice on his blog today.
Your scene descriptions and actions — don’t waste time on specifics. Somebody
else is going to visualize the set, someone else is going to design the set,
someone else is going shoot on that set. Don’t write for the storyboard, write
what the TONE of the set is, conveying how it informs the actions, creates the
context for the characters within. Is this limiting? No, it’s freeing. It’s
paradoxically MORE power. You’re creating the world, mood, story — let other
people sweat the window size and wallpaper pattern.Character intros:
gahhhh. I never, ever want to read a line of character backstory again. The
audience will know this character by what he says and what he does. (in that
sense, in-script backstory is actually cheating) The actor will create whatever
mindspace/backstory for the character they need to work the person up on screen.
Just get the best, snappiest description of who this person is — not how they
dress or how they talk or how their goddam hair’s cut, but who that character
is in the
script-world– and move the fuck on. Again, not saying we’re just typists. Not
saying it has to be bland. The challenge is to create the most telling
impression in the fewest words.Don’t sit their like so many screenwriters
and try to jam whatever central casting idea of a character you have into the
reader’s head — create the notion necessary for the reader to complete the
image of the script in his head, to personalize it, and move on with the
read.
Great stuff. And there’s more, much more. Check it out.
I’m a huge fan, both of Tess and her blog, and frankly, she’s given me, as a
new kid on the block, a lot of hope and inspiration.
The unpublished treat the published like ungrateful, whiny children should we
dare to even HINT that all is not Nirvana in our publishing journey.
Publisher didn’t promote your book?
Too damn bad, at least you HAVE a book. At least you HAVE a publisher.
Worries about meeting your sell through?
Too damn bad, at least you HAVE book. At least you HAVE a publisher.
Worries about revisions, or the fact your agent didn’t negotiate a small
enough reserve against returns, and now you have a $186 royalty check?
Too damn bad, at least you HAVE a book. At least you HAVE a publisher.
It gets to the point you just shut up and don’t say a thing because of the
jealousy. Now why would we, as other writers, do that to Tess? We know, or are
learning, the ropes. She’s open, she’s honest, and let’s face it, the bigger you
are (industry-wise, of course), the bigger the problems.
It’s refreshing to read a New York Times bestselling author willing to ADMIT
IT!
You go, Tess. Keep it up.