LitHub: The 25 Authors Who’ve Made the Most Money in the Past Decade
Some takeaways: 1. Franchises make money, and so do adaptations, but if you want to be a literary millionaire, you really have to write a) for children or b) a mystery (or romance) that strikes fear (or lust) in the hearts of the world. 2. It’s hard to beat James Patterson, but a true phenomenon (Harry Potter, Fifty Shades of Grey can do it). 3. Some years were good for writers in general, others were (relatively) lean across the board. A full accounting follows. Good luck, aspiring writers.
Maybe you really should be going after the “older woman younger man humorous romance where the younger man has a really cute dog” niche.
The Millions: Women and Small Publishers Dominate 2019 Man Booker International Prize Longlist
The prize honors the best translated fiction from around the world and splits the £50,00 prize evenly between authors and translators. This year, the longlist features authors from 12 countries and books translated from nine languages; it is dominated by women and independent publishers.
This is the first year in a while where I haven’t read any of the books on the Man Booker longlist. Do you have any recommendations?
The Indicator From Planet Money: The Economy Inside Your Head
LEIGH CALDWELL: American adults are now spending 11 hours a day consuming media. And media is the ultimate immaterial good. It’s something that really plays within your head. You might — it’s triggered by something outside, but really, all of the benefit that you get, all the enjoyment you get is inside your own mind.
What about the enjoyment you get while consuming media WITH FRIENDS? Is that inside your own mind, or outside of it?
What about when media moves you to laughter or tears? Or when you talk to the characters on the screen because they’re about to go into the abandoned house full of zombies and THEY REALLY SHOULDN’T GO INTO THE ABANDONED HOUSE FULL OF ZOMBIES? Is it “just inside your head” when your head is making sounds that come out of your head?
For that matter, why isn’t a live concert or sports game something you only enjoy “inside your mind,” since the sitting-and-watching principle is the same?
And what about actual sports? You feel the running and jumping and stuff in your body, but you enjoy it in your mind — because most of the time your body is like wow this is a lot of work you’re asking me to do right now and your brain is like wheeeeeendorphins!!!!!
Anyway I enjoyed this podcast episode but I have a LOT OF QUESTIONS about its “inside your mind” assumptions, PLEASE DISCUSS. ❤️