3 Big Reasons Why Hollywood Wants Your Self-Published Book Now

For the past five years in my role at Author Solutions, I have been working with our team to build relationships and partnerships in Hollywood and help create events like the Book-to-Screen Pitchfest to expose entertainment executives to self-published titles and give our authors unique opportunities to put their books in front of people who are making decisions about what makes it to the screen.

Now more than ever, producers, managers, directors and even studios are looking more closely and intentionally at self published titles. In fact, I have noticed a significant change in the past year in terms of how many entertainment industry people are calling us, wanting to attend our events and get access to our author’s books. What’s created this increased interest? Here’s what I think has changed

1. The number of scripted shows being produced has nearly doubled in the past five years.  

The rapid expansion of media outlets including cable channels and streaming services like Netflix, Amazon and Hulu have led to explosive growth in the number of scripted shows being produced. In a widely quoted study from FX Networks Research, Variety noted this past year the number of scripted shows totaled 409, which is nearly twice as many as were green lit just five years ago.  

Julie Piepenkotter, exec VP of research for FX Networks commenting on the report said, “This was the third consecutive year that scripted series count has grown across each distribution platform – broadcast, basic and pay cable, streaming – led by significant gains in basic cable and digital services. This statistic is staggering and almost unimaginable from where they were a decade ago.”

2. Two significant movies from this past year started as self-published books.

Books have always been a source of inspiration for movies, and self-published books have been a starting point for a number of films in the past. In fact, People magazine recently ran an article highlighting seven films that first came to market as self-published titles. One of the more widely known examples is Legally Blonde. The book, originally self-published with AuthorHouse, became a starring vehicle for Reese Witherspoon and spawned sequels and even a Broadway show.

An Oscar winning performance started as a self-published book

However, this past year, I believe two things happened that have caused entertainment executives to look even more closely at self-published books for ideas. First, Julianne Moore won the Oscar for her performance in the movie Still Alice.  An international best-seller for Simon and Schuster, Still Alice began as a self-published book with iUniverse.  Second, the movie, The Martian was a box office success and it too started as a self-published work.

3. These two developments have made the hunt for fresh ideas more critical than ever.

With so many time slots to fill on the small screen, producers and writers are looking for new ideas more than ever before. Self-published books can be a vast source of inspiration and often they can find these books before they are widely known to the public. That makes the acquisition of the material more feasible because they can typically avoid bidding wars, but still reward the authors appropriately.

On the big screen, successful sequels are still a focus, but movie studios are also looking for the next franchise movie, like The Hunger Games or Twilight, plus they are looking for great stories they can produce for a reasonable amount and recoup their investment.

While Disney had great success with The Force Awakens, lest we forget they lost millions on flops such as Tommorowland, The Lone Ranger and the infamous, John Carter.  From a business standpoint, each of these movies cost $200 million or more to produce, which means their breakeven point was well above that amount. That is why they are also looking for movies they can make with a much more modest production budget, which tells a great story and make a profit, which is still the goal for studios.

Now, while I believe this is all very good news for self-published authors, I have also seen these new opportunities squandered. In my next post, I am going to share 3 Key Reasons Why Hollywood Will Reject Your Self-Published Book.

Lisa Genova: From self-published author to being thanked on Oscar night.

Still Alice started as self-published book and look where it ended up.

If you have read this blog before, you know I have mentioned Lisa Genova in previous posts.  She is a gifted author in her own right, but her own story is amazing. Recently Kevin Gray wrote about her journey on the Archway Publishing blog. I thought it was a great summation of the path she has traveled from being a first-time, self-published author to having Oscar winner, Julianne Moore, thank Lisa in her acceptance speech. As I have said many times when I speak to writers groups and at publishing conferences; “changes in publishing doesn’t mean everyone will be successful, but it means everyone has the opportunity to be successful”.  I can think of no better example of what that can mean for authors, than Lisa. Enjoy.

Still Alice” author Lisa Genova is living a dream. The night before the 87th Academy Awards, she posted a picture on her Facebook page all smiles, standing next to an ebullient Julianne Moore at a party hosted by Sony Entertainment. It’s an unusual setting for a Harvard-educated neuroscientist, to be sure, but perhaps an equally unlikely place to find a self-published author.

Long before Hollywood parties, celebrity meet and greets or a seat at the Academy Awards; Genova queried publishing’s gatekeepers, seeking a publisher for her novel, “Still Alice.” Agents and publishers alike told the unknown author the audience for a book about Alzheimer’s disease was too small. One agent even cautioned Genova that self-publishing her story would “kill her career.”

Despite that warning, Genova took the plunge and the book in 2007.

Fueled by her dedication to researching dementia and other neurological disorders, Genova tirelessly spread the word about her newly self-published work. Her diligence, and a little bit of luck, resulted in hitting the jackpot: a review in one of America’s top newspapers – The Boston Globe.

Beverley Beckham’s expectations for “Still Alice” were meager, but Alice’s story captured her: “It had arrived in the mail a week before; I’d promised to take a look and that’s all I was doing – just looking–but I couldn’t put it down,” Beckham wrote in her May 16, 2008 review for the Globe. Beckham led her piece with a ringing endorsement: “After I read ‘Still Alice’ I wanted to stand up and tell a train full of strangers, ‘You have to get this book.’

This blog post first appeared in the Archway Publishing blog.

Fast forward to early 2009 – shortly after Beckham’s piece – a literary agent took another look and agreed to shop the novel and several publishers expressed interest. Simon & Schuster, owner of Archway Publishing, came to terms with Genova to acquire “Still Alice,” and to rerelease it through its Pocket Books imprint. Upon its 2009 rerelease, the book debuted high on the New York Times Bestseller List, where it would stay for more than 40 weeks.

In the ensuing years, Genova’s released two more bestsellers: “Left Neglected” and “Love Anthony,” becoming to novels about neurological disorders what John Grisham’s become to legal thrillers. The rise of Lisa Genova and “Still Alice” from self-publishing to silver screen feature film is not typical. Luck was part of the winning equation, but Genova did so much more to advance her book.

• She wrote about a specific topic about which she had vast knowledge and a deep personal passion.
• Despite warnings that her book’s appeal was too narrow, she developed and filled previously unrealized niche.
• She believed in her work, ignored negativity, and took the self-publishing plunge rather than letting her manuscript gather dust on the shelf.
• She was relentless. She networked, she spread the word. She convinced a reviewer from a prestigious outlet to glance at her book.

First and foremost though, Genova wrote an exceptional book; a book that is bringing attention and changing perceptions about a devastating condition.

And anyone who reads it will never, ever forget Alice.

From book to screen in 8 years: Still Alice movie released this weekend

For those of you follow this blog, you will know I have periodically mentioned the book Still Alice written by Lisa Genova. It was originally self published with iUniverse and then went on to be a best seller in multiple countries for Simon and Schuster. This weekend, it is being released as a major motion picture.  It is a compelling story and I hear there is Oscar buzz for Julianne Moore’s performance. In fact, this past weekend, she won the Golden Globe for best actress.

I really enjoyed the book and am looking forward to seeing the movie. Also, I wanted to bring this to your attention because I think it is a great example of  how long it can take for a book to be made into a movie. Still Alice was first released in 2007. Eight years later the movie comes out. Still worth the wait.  Enjoy.