better than jk rowling.pdf

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Home CNN Trends U.S. World Politics Justice Entertainment Tech Health Living Travel Opinion iReport Editor's note: CNN contributor Bob Greene is a best-selling author whose 25 books include "Late Edition: A Love Story"; "When We Get to Surf City: A Journey Through America in Pursuit of Rock and Roll, Friendship, and Dreams"; and "Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen." (CNN) -- The J.K. Rowling/Robert Galbraith tale is a great and irresistible publishing story -- but it's only the second-best I've ever heard. You may have read about Rowling and Galbraith last week. Rowling, whose Harry Potter books have sold more than 450 million copies, is the most successful author in the world. Galbraith, whose new detective novel "The Cuckoo's Calling" had been selling dismally, doesn't exist. Rowling is Galbraith. Fast facts: J.K. Rowling She wrote and published "The Cuckoo's Calling" under Galbraith's name, to see what would happen if readers and critics didn't know she was the author. The book received glowing reviews, but few readers purchased a copy. Then, last weekend, the secret was revealed, and "The Cuckoo's Calling" zoomed to No. 1 best-seller status. Massive reprintings were ordered. Rowling, in a statement, said, "It has been wonderful to publish without hype or expectation, and pure pleasure to get feedback under a different name." Part of complete coverage on Opinion on the news Part of complete coverage from Bob Greene A better story than J.K. Rowling's By Bob Greene, CNN Contributor updated 9:50 AM EDT, Sun July 21, 2013 SET EDITION: U.S. INTERNATIONAL MÉXICO ARABIC TV: CNN CNNi CNN en Español HLN Sign up Log in TV & Video Money Sports Rowling's secret is out, sales are up STORY HIGHLIGHTS Bob Greene: J.K. Rowling used pseudonym to publish book that didn't sell, but critics liked She was outed as author, sales of the book soared Greene: If publisher hadn't known it was Rowling, it would have been a more telling tale He says once an unknown author retyped a famous novel; no publisher would take it Sen. Al Franken says we can't debate the legality of domestic spying if it's a secret program authorized by secret legal opinions issued by a secret court. We need transparency on domestic surveillance updated 11:41 AM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013 Tom Delbanco says there's a risk that a flood of new patients would overwhelm the already- besieged primary care work force. Will Obamacare help primary care? updated 11:54 AM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013 Tom Rogan says Will, Kate and new son put a modern spin -- relatable, but royally distant -- on the monarchy, key to sustaining its relevance in the 21st century. Baby helps make a monarchy matter updated 11:48 AM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013 Dan Jones says it makes sense for England to rejoice over a new royal baby: it's a living link with its national history. Why Americans care is harder to figure out. U.S. has Kardashians, Brits have royals updated 7:42 PM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013 'Wicked' author: Royal baby stands for SHARE THIS Print Email Recommend 6.5k More sharing Opinion: A better story than J.K. Rowling's - CNN.com http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/21/opinion/greene-rowling-author/in... 1 of 6 7/24/13 12:42 PM

Transcript of better than jk rowling.pdf

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Editor's note: CNN contributor Bob Greene is a best-selling authorwhose 25 books include "Late Edition: A Love Story"; "When We Getto Surf City: A Journey Through America in Pursuit of Rock and Roll,Friendship, and Dreams"; and "Once Upon a Town: The Miracle ofthe North Platte Canteen."

(CNN) -- The J.K. Rowling/Robert Galbraith tale is a great andirresistible publishing story -- but it's only the second-best I've everheard.

You may have read about Rowling and Galbraith last week. Rowling,whose Harry Potter books have sold more than 450 million copies, isthe most successful author in the world. Galbraith, whose newdetective novel "The Cuckoo's Calling" had been selling dismally,doesn't exist.

Rowling is Galbraith.

Fast facts: J.K. Rowling

She wrote and published "The Cuckoo's Calling" under Galbraith'sname, to see what would happen if readers and critics didn't knowshe was the author. The book received glowing reviews, but fewreaders purchased a copy.

Then, last weekend, the secret was revealed, and "The Cuckoo'sCalling" zoomed to No. 1 best-seller status. Massive reprintings wereordered. Rowling, in a statement, said, "It has been wonderful topublish without hype or expectation, and pure pleasure to getfeedback under a different name."

Part of complete coverage on

Opinion on the news

Part of complete coverage from

Bob Greene

A better story than J.K. Rowling'sBy Bob Greene, CNN Contributorupdated 9:50 AM EDT, Sun July 21, 2013

SET EDITION: U.S. INTERNATIONAL MÉXICO ARABIC

TV: CNN CNNi CNN en Español HLN

Sign up Log in

TV & Video Money Sports

Rowling's secret is out, sales are up

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Bob Greene: J.K. Rowling usedpseudonym to publish book thatdidn't sell, but critics liked

She was outed as author, salesof the book soared

Greene: If publisher hadn'tknown it was Rowling, it wouldhave been a more telling tale

He says once an unknownauthor retyped a famous novel;no publisher would take it

Sen. Al Franken says we can'tdebate the legality of domesticspying if it's a secret programauthorized by secret legalopinions issued by a secretcourt.

We need transparency on domesticsurveillanceupdated 11:41 AM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013

Tom Delbanco says there's arisk that a flood of new patientswould overwhelm the already-besieged primary care workforce.

Will Obamacare help primary care?updated 11:54 AM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013

Tom Rogan says Will, Kateand new son put a modernspin -- relatable, but royallydistant -- on the monarchy, keyto sustaining its relevance inthe 21st century.

Baby helps make a monarchy matterupdated 11:48 AM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013

Dan Jones says it makessense for England to rejoiceover a new royal baby: it's aliving link with its nationalhistory. Why Americans care isharder to figure out.

U.S. has Kardashians, Brits haveroyalsupdated 7:42 PM EDT, Tue July 23, 2013

'Wicked' author: Royal baby stands for

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Yet top-echelon executives at Rowling's publisher knew allalong that she was Robert Galbraith -- that she had writtenthe book. And they presumably knew that, once the wordgot out, they would have an enormous and profitableblockbuster on their hands.

But what if Robert Galbraith really had been RobertGalbraith? What if an unknown author by that name hadtried to sell "The Cuckoo's Calling" to a publisher?

Best-selling female authors with male monikers

As good as the book is, would a publisher have taken a chance on it?

Before you answer "Of course," consider the case of Chuck Ross --the protagonist of the most instructive, the most damning, and themost hilarious true story about publishing there ever has been.

I interviewed him and reported on his story almost 35 years ago.Ross, in the 1970s, was a young would-be author who was tryingwith no success to get his first novel published. He was receivingnothing but rejection slips.

He wondered whether his writing really was that unappealing, or ifpublishers were simply turning him down because he was anunknown.

So he decided upon a clever, if highly unconventional, way to findout.

In those pre-personal-computer days, he sat down at a typewriterand copied every single word of the novel "Steps," by Jerzy Kosinski."Steps" had won the National Book Award for Fiction in 1969, hadreceived superlative reviews and was a big best-seller.

Once Ross had finished typing up the manuscript, he made sure notto put a title on it. He did put a byline on it: his own.

He made copies, and he mailed them off. The recipientswere 14 major publishing houses. Four of those houseshad published books by Kosinski. One of them hadpublished "Steps."

The manuscript was turned down by all 14 houses.

None realized that it was rejecting "Steps."

Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, which had publishedKosinski's "Being There," wrote to Ross:

"While your prose style is very lucid, the content of thebook didn't inspire the level of enthusiasm here that apublisher should have for any book on their list in order todo well by it."

Houghton Mifflin, which had published three of Kosinski's books,wrote Ross to say that it did not wish to publish what Ross had sent.Not that the editors thought he was a bad writer -- they said theyadmired his style: "Jerzy Kosinski comes to mind as a point ofcomparison when reading the stark, chilly, episodic incidents youhave set down." But, they said in their rejection letter, what Ross hadsent them "doesn't add up to a satisfactory whole. It has some veryimpressive moments, but gives the impression of sketchiness andincompleteness." They wrote that they would be happy to considerfuture efforts by him, but that this one just didn't work.

Random House, which had published "Steps," sent a form letterrejecting the retyped "Steps."

Ross thought that maybe the problem was that he was submitting his

Bob Greene

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Bob Greene says the J.K.Rowling/Robert Galbraith taleis a great and irresistiblepublishing story -- but it's onlythe second-best one

A better story than J.K. Rowling'supdated 9:50 AM EDT, Sun July 21, 2013

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novel -- that is, Kosinski's novel -- without the assistance of a literaryagent. So he sent the manuscript to 13 top agents, asking if theywould represent it.

Not one of them was interested.

Some excerpts from the agents' rejection letters:

"I'm afraid the novel's episodic nature and the lack of strongcharacterization would not allow this book to compete in a very toughfiction market."

And:

"From the section I read of your untitled novel, it seems toofragmented and dreamlike to be a good commercial bet."

And:

"Thanks for having sent me your untitled novel. You write clearly andwell, but I felt that the novel jumped around so much that it did nothold interest, and I would not be the right agent for it."

When Ross went public with what he had done, he expected thepublishers and agents to be a little embarrassed that they had turneddown a National Book Award-winning novel.

But, he told me when I interviewed him at the time, "I guess not. Iwent to the American Booksellers Association convention to talk tothe publishers about what I did. They all thought that it was veryamusing or silly. They agreed that it probably could happen againtomorrow. But the attitude was, 'So what?'"

As lovely as the J.K. Rowling/Robert Galbraith saga is, what wouldhave made it even better, and turned it into more of a cliffhanger, is ifRowling had gone the Chuck Ross route:

If she had, without revealing her identity, sent "The Cuckoo's Calling"to publishers cold -- if she had submitted it and let them think that itreally was by a novice named Robert Galbraith.

Would any of them have snapped it up?

It may be a terrific book -- but so was "Steps." And without Kosinski'sname on the manuscript, "Steps" couldn't find a publisher. Or anagent.

Even though it had already won the National Book Award.

What a business. It's enough to drive even Harry Potter to drink.

Follow @CNNOpinion on Twitter.

Join us at Facebook/CNNOpinion.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Bob Greene.

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633 comments

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Reply

kwiky • 2 hours ago

Eh...Song of Ice and Fire series is superior.

1

Reply

Evenstar • 2 hours ago

Good to know, thanks!

Reply

Evenstar • 3 hours ago

Doesn't give me much hope of getting mine published

Reply

WisdomKing • 3 hours ago> Evenstar

Many authors right now are self publishing ebooks and putting them directlyonto sites like Amazon. I don't remember all the details of the articles I've readbut you can google for tips and videos on how to do it.

Some of them, fiction and non, have been big sellers so much so that they laterbooks were picked up by big publishing houses.

Reply

Alexander Hamilton • 5 hours ago

All of the book agents and publishers who turned down these books should be fired.They do not know talent. The same happens in every industry. There are gatekeeperswho stand in the way of true talent. It even happens in sports. After seeing Chinesebasketball sensation Jeremy Lin torch the NBA, Kobe Bryant said, "Every GeneralManager who passed on Jeremy Lin and did not see his talent should be fired." Thishappens everywhere. This world is filled with mediocrity. JK Rowling could not get abook deal for her first Harry Potter? Really? Any agent or publisher who passed on hershould be fired and banned from the industry. This just goes to show, it is not abouttalent. It is not about working hard. Its about who you know and working smart. Getmediocre people out of this gate keeper roles.

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uredumm • 19 hours ago

Bob, read the foreword to A Confederacy of Dunces. Yore guise inn second plays.

Reply

Eric Olson • 21 hours ago

Well lets be honest its not hard to best the Harry Potter story... Twilight, HungerGames, Harry Potter are not good. They are however popular which is quite tellingabout who reads and what level of intelligence they possess.

1 3

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WisdomKing • 3 hours ago> Eric Olson

And that's were the personal opinion comes in. Just like the example of theKosiniski book in the article, a reader at a publisher decided it was no goodeven though it had won awards.

For you Harry Potter was no good and you are absolutely right - for you. I mightthink its the best thing I've read in years and I'm absolutely right - for me.I'd rather let the market decide.

2

Cornelia_LO • 19 hours ago> Eric Olson

Twilight is not "good". Harry Potter and Hunger Games are multi-layered,smart, engaging, and well executed.

1★

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