Another Big Book Deal (Helped by Internet Buzz)

[cgronlund]

I recently mentioned Gary Vaynerchuk's huge book deal.

Without his Web presence, it would have never happened.

While not as big, the Pride and Prejudice and Zombies author just got a two-book deal.

Without Internet buzz, neither person would have hit it big.

Comments

[thethirdjournal]

I saw a story on Jezebel recently regarding an interview Margaret Atwood made where she commented that bloggers "all blog about brushing their teeth". I posted that I disagreed with that and thought a lot of earlier authors would have started with blogs had the technology been around during that time - it's an excellent way to practise your writing skills, and to get a built in audience.

[cgronlund]

A lot of early authors published tiny newspapers and other things. There was always a mix of non-fiction and fiction. So I think you're definitely right: they would have had blogs back then.

There seems to be a lot of resentment when others make it in non conventional ways. There's also a lot of resentment when people make it because they are fortunate enough to know the right people. To many, there's this strict code that hasn't necessarily worked for a long time, but people want to hold on to it because it's what they know.

I don't like a lot of the changes in the ways people have been getting published in recent years. People Magazine recently admitted that an attractive author stands a much better chance of getting reviewed than others. Many agents and publishers expect a writer to not just write fiction well, but come to them with a built-in audience, and be able to write non-fiction and speak

[mfelps]

I will kill you.

[cgronlund]

This makes me laugh every time I read it.

And it makes me fear the next Write Club meeting a little bit...