Wednesday, May 2, 2018

The Book to Screen Debate, part 1 by Toi Thomas

Image from Pinterest via Buzzfeed.com
 “The book was better.”

I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but have you ever wondered just how often this is true? Some people will argue that by definition, a film adaptation is always worse than the book because anything based on something else is always lacking. Others will argue that sometimes getting to the point is more important than the journey and that a visual presentation is naturally more entertaining. To some degree, I agree with both these generalizations. While I feel most books are better than their film adaptations, I’ve experienced it the other way around as well (that’s an installment for another day 😉).

To get to the heart of the book-to-screen debate, there are a few questions you must consider. First, why turn a book into a movie?

What most people fail to acknowledge, even if they know it, is that movies need scripts before they become an enjoyable audio-visual experience. It’s slowly becoming less and less the norm for people to write original screenplays (a story written specifically as a movie concept). There was once a time when only original screenplays became films, but that has changed. People argue and complain that Hollywood has run out of ideas, but in all honesty, that is part of the problem.

Now, I’m not saying that there aren’t any new ideas out there to be explored, but I am saying that as a business person, I’d rather invest in something that I know people like as opposed to taking a gamble on something never before seen (taking risk can be good or bad based on your approach). Basically, Hollywood looked around at their piles and piles of original screenplays and compared it to the thousands and thousands of best-selling books, and a lightbulb went off that changed things forever.

The second question to consider, what purpose does a film adaptation serve?
Image from Pexels.com

If books are written for people who like to read, and movies are made for people who like to watch films, it would appear that the purpose of a film adaptation is to turn textual content into a visual medium. It’s all about entertainment. However, it can be more than that. How often do you think someone, who doesn’t read on a regular basis, go out and read a book because they know the movie is coming out or they've seen the movie and want to do a comparison? In this respect, film adaptations are just like song covers and retellings. One pays homage to the other and gets people talking about both. Adaptations are a great way to reach a new audience.

The last question you should consider is, why do so many readers dislike the movie?

The first issue with the whole book-to-screen debate is that readers aren’t looking at the medium in the right light. As I stated already, film adaptations are just that; they are retellings with lots of leeway. As much as we may not always like it, a film is a completely separate entity from a book, even if it is based on a book. The second issue is the obvious matter of time and details. Books have all the time in the world and hold all the details the bring about the plot. Films don’t have the luxury of putting in all the details. And lastly, there is the matter of individual perception. No matter how detailed an author may be, people are still going to see things the way they want to in their minds. Putting people and places on screen that differ from your perception of a particular story can be tough to accept.

For me, whether I like the film version or not, I’m always happy to know that there is an author, somewhere, receiving a pretty nice royalty for their big or small screen debut. Find out more about me, my work, and my inspiration at the following links:

Amazon | Goodreads The ToiBox of Words | YouTube | See a list of my other posts here.

#book2screen, bookvsmovie, 
COMMENTS

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Cindy Smith via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
 
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Cindy Smith

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
For the most part I dislike movie adaptations because they have very little to do with the actual book. They change the timeline and the characters and when it gets in the middle seem to rush to make it to the correct ending.  If you want to see a movie adaptation, watch it and then read the book!
 
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C. Lee McKenzie

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
What a great post, Toi! So glad I followed your link and had to chance to read your discussion. You've really made me think more about this film adaptation issue differently. Thanks.
 
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Ruth de Jauregui via Google+

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Which is better, the book or the movie? Toi talks about how they really aren't the same thing at all!!
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Ruth de Jauregui

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Great post. And remember, if a studio offers you money, you want your payments based on the gross, not the net, because some movies never make a net profit.
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Jamalul Haque via Google+

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
Joe Bonadonna originally shared this
 
Today on A Small Gang of Authors, Toinette Thomas discusses adapting books into screenplays.
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Joe Bonadonna originally shared this
 
Today on A Small Gang of Authors, Toinette Thomas discusses adapting books into screenplays.
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Rebecca Tran

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
I never thought about it that way Toi I just got annoyed when it wasn't right. But you are correct movies aren't designed for readers. I will look at book to film in a new light.
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E.M.A. Timar

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Great insight into book-to-screen, Toi. Although, I miss the originality and creativity of older movies, with the monetary investment required to make one, I can't blame the industry for being risk-averse. Personally, I try to treat the movie and book as separate entities, much like I try to view movie remakes as separate entities. (Sometimes, it even works.) For me, the most important part is story. If the movie veers far off the book's original path, as long as the story arc is there and there are no truck-sized plot holes, I enjoy it. When the movie strays and fails to create a consistent and compelling story, I start grumbling.
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I agree. The story is key.

Rebecca Tran

8 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Join the debate on Our Author Gang. Film vs Book which is better?
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Erika M Szabo via Google+

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
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Erika M Szabo

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Great post Toi! I've experienced this a lot and made me angry, but now I'm looking at it from a different perspective. You're right, it's entertainment with leeway and not just following what the author wrote. "The first issue with the whole book-to-screen debate is that readers aren’t looking at the medium in the right light. As I stated already, film adaptations are just that; they are retellings with lots of leeway. As much as we may not always like it, a film is a completely separate entity from a book, even if it is based on a book."
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Thanks.

Joe Bonadonna via Google+

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Today on A Small Gang of Authors, Toinette Thomas discusses adapting books into screenplays.
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Joe Bonadonna

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Excellent topic and an excellent post, Toi!
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Thank you. Been reading about screenplays and thought it would make a good topic.
 
+Toi Thomas -- I wrote 3 screenplay and co-wrote 2 others between 1997 and 2002. On spec. Never sold. I turned into a novella -- part 3 of Mad Shadows 2; 1 turned into Three Against the Stars; 1 turned into a Sinbad novella; and 1 turned into a space opera that will soon be published. My zombie script I'd like to turn into a novel, but need a good hook, a good gimmick.

Mary Anne Yarde

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
You cover some interesting points, Toi. Great post.
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Thank you.

Ellen Jacobson

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
It does make sense when you point out that from a business perspective it makes more sense to invest in a proven commodity already, i.e., a book that's selling well.
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Chris Weigand

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Interesting. I like you have a mixed opinion on this topic. For the most part I think the books are better for the reasons you stated, but there are times when I have seen a movie be better than the book. I'm not sure why that is the case, but it does happen.
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I'll admit that I was shocked the first time I experienced it. I think some stories, a small few, have a greater impact when told visually.

Chris Weigand via Google+

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Book or Movie: Which is better? Explore this with Toi.
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Nikki McDonagh via Google+

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
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Nikki McDonagh

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Thanks for an interesting piece. Toi. Film adaptations can never be 100% faithful to a text since the medium is so different. Like you say, you can take time to read a book, but a film has a limited amount of time to get the story across. As for royalties earned by the author, Margaret Atwood has had very little for the adaptation of A Handmaids Tale. From an article in Variety Magazine: "...author Margaret Atwood reveals that she has made little profit off of the hit Hulu series adaptation.She says that the show, which has won Emmys, Golden Globes, and Critics’ Choice Awards for its first season, “was not my deal. I sold the rights to MGM in 1990 to make a movie — so when the TV rights were sold to Hulu, the money went to MGM. We did not have a negotiating position.”
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That's terrible; but, you have to wonder why she sold the rights without a contractual clause allowing her to earn royalties on future adaptations or have at least have a say in the form in which her work is adapted. Saddly, I feel that a lot of artists, not just writers, sell or giveaway their rights, only to be angry later on when someone else profits off it.
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I've read about this in other blog posts. Movie studios come in offering a lump sum and a contract for a potential movie deal and buy an author's book rights then shelve it till they need it or never use it at all but they're stuck in a contract. The contract almost always is exclusive and buys all rights without the author knowing because its all legal speak and the author doesn't get a lawyer to read it before signing it. so beware.

Grace Au

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Very interesting take on this,Toi! Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you.

Rich Feitelberg via Google+

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Rich Feitelberg

9 months ago  -  Shared publicly

Tuesday, May 1, 2018

Book Stuffing - Amazon hits back. #OurAuthorGang








It has never been easier to self-publish, thanks to sites such as Amazon, Kobo and Draft 2 Digital. All you have to do is write something, get it into a suitable file, and upload. Within minutes you are a published author. However, whether self-published or not, selling your book is not so easy.

The market is flooded with fiction and non-fiction titles, now authors must find ways to get their book noticed and create revenue from sales. Most authors do this legitimately through intensive marketing, but others, resort to underhand measures to make a quick buck. The latest scam is book stuffing.

This is when authors cram all of their books into one file at the back of one of their books but market it as a single book. The reason? To artificially bump up their page count when they opt into KU or Koll options on Amazon and so receive more royalty payments as a result.

 (The number of Kindle Edition Normalized Pages (KENP) read determines the royalties you earn from KU (Kindle Unlimited) and KOLL (Kindle Owners’ Lending Library). 

These ‘authors’ aim to get all of their income from these KU reads. They can do this because of how the system operates. The page read algorithm works by taking data from the farthest page read. Most people skip to the back of a book to see if there are any offers, to look at other books in a series, or get additional information. So, a book that has at least five other books stuffed into the back, will get a ton of ‘page reads’ and a lot of revenue.


This is wrong because the KU fund is a fixed sum. When these scammers take all the funds available in KU, they can earn up to $100,00 a month, there is nothing left for genuine authors.

Thankfully, Amazon has taken action against these unscrupulous writers, and have issued this statement:

“Authors are not permitted to publish the same work multiple times with only minor changes or a reordering of content, regardless of whether the book includes bonus content. When we determine authors are publishing undifferentiated titles like this, the titles are subject to removal from the Kindle store and the author is subject to potential account-level action.”

They have also closed down over 3,000 accounts suspected of using this method, and filed suit against one author. You can read an in-depth article about it here:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamrowe1/2018/04/07/amazon-has-filed-suit-to-stop-the-six-figure-book-stuffing-kindle-scam/#320095bc7344

Let’s hope that Amazon’s stance on this will help to protect honest authors trying to make a living legitimately. 

Don't worry if you have a Box Set of your books with a bonus title inside, I do, it doesn't apply. If you want to take a look at my Box Set for The Song of Forgetfulness, click below:


For more information about me and my books, please visit my website: www.oddlybooks.com






Monday, April 30, 2018

Women in Science Fiction – Connie Willis

By Ruth de Jauregui

Peering into the past and future, author Connie Willis  ranges from humorous to serious in her tales of humans, aliens, love, technology and the environment.

She has won more major awards than any other writer, with 11 Hugo Awards and seven Nebula Awards.

Her career as an author began in 1970 with the publication of "The Secret of Santa Titicaca" in the winter issue of Worlds of Fantasy. After at least seven more short stories, she and Cynthia Felice published Water Witch in 1982. She also became a full time writer in that same year.

Her first solo novel was published in 1987, Lincoln's Dreams. It won the John W Campbell Memorial Award. While Lincoln's Dreams and her time travel series, which began with Nebula and Hugo award winning "Fire Watch" (Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, February 1982), are serious works of science fiction, my favorite is Uncharted Territory (1994).

Set on a distant planet with its own indigenous people (aliens), Uncharted Territory combines elements of the Old West, modern technology, romance, ecology and sociology of both humans and Bult, their alien guide. Satirical and beautifully written, the story follows Findriddy "Fin" and Carson on their survey of the planet while Bult fines them for every conceivable transgression and shops online for more umbrellas and shower curtains. Joining them in their survey is a visiting socioexozoologist that specializes in mating rituals of Earth and alien species. At only 162 pages, the novella is a quick read, yet Willis takes you on a journey that twists your assumptions and dumps them upside down by the end of the book.

Willis continues to publish. Her latest books are Crosstalk (2016), A Lot Like Christmas (2017), a short story collection, and I Met a Traveller in an Antique Land (April 30, 2018).



Amazon Author Page: Connie Willis

#ConnieWillis
#OurAuthorGang
#RuthDJ

Sunday, April 29, 2018

Our Guest Today is Author CJ Baty #ourauthorgang

Welcome, CJ! We're so glad you could join us today!



CJ Baty lives in southwest Ohio with her very patient husband and two encouraging children. Her heart, however, lives in the mountains of Tennessee where she hopes to retire someday. The mountains have always provided her with inspiration and a soothing balm to the stresses of everyday life.

The dream of writing her own stories started in high school, but was left on the back burner of life until her son introduced her to Fan Fiction and encouraged her to give it a try. She found that her passion for telling a story was still there and writing them down to share with others was much more thrilling than she had ever expected.

One thing she has learned from  life and she is often heard to say is, "You are never too old to follow your dream!"

You can reach CJ at:

Due to the subject matter, CJ's books are for mature readers 18 yrs. of age and older.


BOOK ONE: THE PINKERTON MAN
    Stiles Langberry leaves England under the dark cloud of blackmail. He resettles in America with a new name, becoming a Pinkerton Agent. His new employer sends him undercover to a brothel that serves homosexual men, where prostitutes are being murdered.
    In the course of his investigation, he becomes involved with Paul, one of the prostitutes. Complicating matters, one of the suspects draws Stiles like no man before him. Stiles knows he must stop the killer before he strikes again.

BOOK TWO: HOME ON THE RANGE
     Pinkerton Agent Stiles Long is sent to the Circle W Ranch to uncover who is killing the ranch's cattle. In order to discover the truth about the goings on at the ranch, Stiles has to prove to the ranchers he's more than a good-looking city slicker.
     Savage Beare, the head ranch foreman, is far from happy that Stiles is there to check things out. He has secrets of his own. Stiles finds Savage incredibly good-looking, but cold and aloof. He's also a suspect. One of many.
     When Stiles' best friend and partner, Lizzie Ferguson, is kidnapped, things begin to shake apart. Stiles doesn't trust anyone and he needs to find Lizzie before it's too late.

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