I have this great idea for a story...

... and I want you to write it. Then we'll split the royalties down the middle.

I'm going out on a limb here and guessing that a healthy portion of writers have heard this line at least once. While I am very flattered that someone feels I have the chops to take their baby and make it into a bestseller, I'm afraid they haven't quite thought through the process of actually writing the beast, finding an agent to love it (or convincing the agent they already have), garnering a book deal, editing the aforementioned beast into publishable prose, promotion after the book is released and subsequent book tour away from family and friends. All to give half of whatever you make to a guy you met on a bus with an idea.

Maybe I've been doing it wrong all along though? What if that idea did turn me into an couch-jumping Oprah book club Franzen-clone? I'd better start paying closer attention to the subway walls (and tenement halls) or the incoherent babbling from Palin. You just never know.

 I'll take my chances with the walls.  ;)


photo credit: getentrepreneurial.com

5 comments:

  1. The walls don't complain if I do things a little differently than they'd like. I am with you... a writing lone ranger.

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  2. Splitting the royalties down the middle always ruins the deal for me. I want 80 percent.

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  3. "Tell you what, you whip up a synopsis and outline, and pay me a couple grand as a retainer, and I'll see what I can do."

    ;)

    Adam

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  4. haha, this is fantastic!! I've started responding "that sounds great, you should write it!" ;)

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  5. What? This is how Hollywood has worked since it started. :)

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