The industrialisation of novel writing?

[Brian G Turner]

This Ebook Publisher Doesn’t Have Authors. It Has Writers’ Rooms

Serialized book publication, of course, requires a quick turnaround. When FSG Originals tried it, Lian Hearn wrote all four Tales of Shikanoko before publication; Jeff VanderMeer wrote the second two books in his Southern Reach trilogy in rapid succession. Serial Box has a different approach: do away with the idea of the lone author.

“Traditionally, it takes 24-36 months to get a book written and published,” says Barton. “With a team of writers, we can turn out a serial from idea to publication in six months.”

First, Serial Box finds a lead writer, or showrunner, who writes the initial pilot episode and a show bible. Then they bring together four or five scribes for a story workshop. That group then gets to work on future installments just like a TV writer’s room—right down to the bulletin board covered with notecards. The writers—mostly novelists, but some TV writers, as well—spend three days on plot and character development in person. At the end of the workshop, each author has a few episodes to write; over the next few months, they share ideas and collaborate on Slack.

Serialised novels have been done before - the quote below goes into that. However, this process of putting together a novel with speed for profit may be something we see more of in future. Especially considering the James Patterson seems to do something similar as a showrunner writer.

Will it work? I'm personally not convinced - screenplay writing is not novel-writing - there are clear technical differences, needs, and expectations between the media.

But I think we are going to see further attempts to try and leverage the industrial production of novels for increased profit.

 

[Boneman]

James Patterson takes it one step further - I heard it said that the writers he co-writes with, pay him to do so...

 

[AnyaKimlin]

I'm unclear as to how many novels they get out in six months?

 

[Gonk the Insane]

James Patterson takes it one step further - I heard it said that the writers he co-writes with, pay him to do so...

Huh. I didn't know that. And now I do, I feel a little bit sad (but also a bit enlightened, so, you know, karmic balance and all that).

I wonder how that works for the collaborator, and whether it does help their career? I can't help wondering if I entered into something like that I'd come out of it feeling like an Olympic horse: yeah, buddy, I did all the work, but you go ahead and get your medal and take the glory with your name in a massive font.

Which gives me an idea... We could stump up the cash, strike a bargain with a small clause that gives me creative control over a single chapter, write the book with Patterson then just casually mention as we start the final chapter, "oh, yeah, did I mention this is the chapter where the dragon eats the detective and the villain's sacrificed to the gods in a frenetic elven festival of the clothing-optional variety?"
Granted, it's a long prank, but the payoff...

 

[Tirellan]

Can see how it would work if it was all plot and no characterisation or world-building. Don't think you're going to get a great novel out of the process.

 

[Dave]

I recently went to a talk about the Sexton Blake stories. The original author, Harry Blyth (under the pen-name Hal Meredeth), sold, not only his story, but the whole concept itself to the publishers in 1893. There have since been over four thousand stories published by over two hundred authors, with varying degrees of quality, but not all of them were poor. No mistake, this was 'pulp fiction,' but some of it was reasonably good. In the 1880's compulsory elementary education had been introduced for everyone and an unintended consequence was that the masses needed something to read.

Sexton Blake lived on Baker Street (a few doors down from Sherlock Holmes - but why not? We have Harley Street doctors and Saville Row tailors.) He also had a gruff housekeeper and an assistant, Tinker, so you can see why he has been called "the poor man's Sherlock Holmes." Stories were aimed at young schoolboys and his assistant was always 17-years-old (still is, over 100 years later.) He also had a Bloodhound called Pedro. The character also evolved as time passed depending on the fashion for detectives at the time. He may have started out as a copy of Holmes but later became more action orientated influenced by Phillip Marlowe.