From CNet: There’s a lot that’s familiar about Netflix’s new limited series Kaleidoscope. It’s the story of a heist, and as such, it comes with many of the story beats you might expect: old grudges, team assembly, smaller missions that set up for the big one. But there’s one key way Kaleidoscope, which dropped Jan. … Read more
From Publishing Perspectives: On Thursday (August 4), it was announced to members of the Writers Guild of America that a case of arbitration with Netflix has resulted in a huge win for screenwriters, coming to some US$42 million in residuals. As the pace of development of books to film picks up—and as many international book … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: IF YOU’VE NEVER read Daphne du Maurier’s “Rebecca,” you’re in for a surprise. Initially dismissed by critics as women’s romance fiction, this 1938 bestseller delivers plot twists, promiscuity, dark secrets and, best of all, backstabbing servants. But it’s since been celebrated by feminist scholars for its critique of gender roles. On … Read more
From The Verge: The estate of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has sued Netflix over its upcoming film Enola Holmes, arguing that the movie’s depiction of public domain character Sherlock Holmes having emotions and respecting women violates Doyle’s copyright. Enola Holmes is based on a series of novels by Nancy Springer starring a newly created teenage … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: “My box office has been terrible,” says screenwriter and director Charlie Kaufman, describing the commercial flop that led to his first novel, “Antkind,” a 705-page comedy about a failed film critic and a destroyed movie. Mr. Kaufman’s playful, mind-bending screenplays for other directors, including “Being John Malkovich” and “Eternal Sunshine … Read more
From Fast Company: Black Mirror creators may have wanted viewers to choose their own adventure on Bandersnatch, but they ended up somewhere unexpected—in a lawsuit with the owners of the “Choose Your Own Adventure” trademark. Chooseco, LLC, the publisher behind the “Choose Your Own Adventure” series and owner of the trademark, has filed a lawsuit against Netflix … Read more
From Bloomberg Technology: Walmart Inc. has a vast arsenal at its disposal in its battle with Amazon.com Inc.: stores, trucks, warehouses, even a blockchain-enabled supply chain of fruits and vegetables. But there’s one weapon it’s barely deployed: Vudu, the video-on-demand service it bought eight years ago. Back then, Netflix was available only in the U.S. and Canada, Amazon was … Read more
From Hugh Stephens Blog: Let’s say you are Netflix and you have been very successful in promoting your content subscription service, and have succeeded in signing up roughly half the households of a given country. And let’s say that this country is concerned about preserving its means of cultural expression in an audio-visual world largely … Read more
From DNA Info: We’ve got bad news for anyone who assumed the wildly popular “Stranger Things” pop-up bar would get an extended run. Netflix won’t let the Logan Square venue at 2367 N. Milwaukee Ave. stay open past the six-week mark. The streaming/production company’s legal team sent an adorably nerdy — yet firm — letter to the folks behind … Read more
From Bookriot: Anne, the new CBC/Netflix adaptation of Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, has been getting a lot of hype. The series premiered on CBC on March 19th, and it’ll be available on Netflix on May 2nd and already there have been subtle differences between how the series is marketed towards CBC audiences versus the … Read more
From recode: You probably know someone who makes sniping remarks like: Old media is dying! They were too stupid to notice the internet! They’re snobs and stuck in the past! The real story is much more complicated, journalist Gabriel Snyder said on the latest episode of Recode Media with Peter Kafka. In the latest issue … Read more
From Inverse: When author Daniel Handler spoke to Inverse about the inherent difficulty in adapting his Lemony Snicket novels to television, he said “a commitment to literature is always a challenge.” Is the culture of binging streaming TV philosophically opposed to reading books? Because if so, Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events is the first … Read more
Passive Guy figured we were all out of Amazon news for awhile, but he was wrong. From MarketWatch, a story that may or may not have any substance: After a week in which Netflix Inc. shares shed more than 38% of their value, one of Wall Street’s most-bearish analysts raised his rating on the company, … Read more
This is what disruptive change looks like: One of my working premises is that the ebook and associated infrastructure that enable easy and profitable self-publishing is a disruptive technology that will change the world of authors and publishers. Netflix vs. Blockbuster is instructive in several ways: Blockbuster dominated its market 60,000 employees 6,500 stores … Read more
From BookTrib: I launched my podcast Making It Up nearly three years ago with the goal of interviewing writers not for any particular work of theirs, but to talk to them about their lives. I didn’t want to ask them what famous author they want to have dinner with or what their top five favorite … Read more
From The BBC: The release of Netflix’s series 3 Body Problem has been watched millions of times around the globe since its release late last month. It has even found an audience in China where Netflix is unavailable, sparking much chatter among viewers of the series. But many fans of the three-book series, credited with … Read more
From Unherd: In every culture, in every era, you will find the archetype of the cantankerous old man. He’s ubiquitous in cinema — the aged, scowling hero of Gran Torino; the feuding codgers of Grumpy Old Men; the dementia-stricken patriarch of The Father — but no less so in real life, where you can find … Read more
From Writer Unboxed: Fight Club, the book and the movie, comes at you like a right hook. In my experience, you love it or you hate it. But unless you’re tragically hipster or a Gen Z nihilist, the last thing you are is ambivalent. Which brings us to the topic of today’s post. Welcome to the … Read more
From Publishers Weekly: Two leaders of Worldcon Intellectual Property (WIP), the nonprofit that holds the service marks of the World Science Fiction Society, have reportedly stepped down from their posts following accusations of censorship in the voting process for the 2023 Hugo Awards. In a January 30 statement, WIP officials announced that director Dave McCarty … Read more
From Newsweek: You can’t make this stuff up: Stockton University investigated a college student for the crime of making Donald Trump his Zoom background. American University launched a harassment investigation against pro-choice students who criticized the Supreme Court’s abortion ruling. Syracuse University investigated another student for a slightly risqué scavenger hunt. And these colorful incidents … Read more
From The Harvard Business Review: The theory of disruptive innovation, introduced in these pages in 1995, has proved to be a powerful way of thinking about innovation-driven growth. Many leaders of small, entrepreneurial companies praise it as their guiding star; so do many executives at large, well-established organizations, including Intel, Southern New Hampshire University, and … Read more
From Vulture: In September, The New Yorker published a story by Clare Malone that detailed five moments from comedian and then-rumored Daily Show host candidate Hasan Minhaj’s specials where he appeared to distort facts in ways that centered himself in stories of racial discrimination or exaggerated his victimhood. In his 2017 Netflix special Homecoming King, for example, Minhaj talks about a white date … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: Fewer new shows in production. A higher bar to get shows renewed. Rich paydays going only to an elite few. The labor pact writers struck with studios and streamers this week, ending a five-month strike, will likely accelerate the retrenchment that was already under way in Hollywood for more than a … Read more
From Learn2G2: As G2’s General Counsel, it’s my job to help build and protect the company, so it’s likely no surprise that generative AI is top of mind for me (and lawyers everywhere!). While AI presents an opportunity for organizations, it also poses risks. And these risks raise concerns for all business leaders, not only … Read more
From The Daily Yonder: Small-town crime is big. There’s never been a time when readers of mystery and crime novels didn’t like stories in rustic and rural settings. James M. Cain’s 1934 crime novel The Postman Always Rings Twice was grabbed up by readers — and banned in Boston — for its torrid story of a murderous … Read more
Iona08:05 Hampton Court to Waterloo Until the point when a man started dying right in front of her on the 08:05, Iona’s day had been just like any other. She always left the house at half past seven. It took her an average of twenty minutes to walk to the station in heels, which meant … Read more
From Jane Friedman: This summer, Wattpad is running their 14th annual Watty Awards, the company’s annual global writing competition. It’s open to writers in nine languages across 11 genres. In addition to cash prizes, one winner will receive a book deal from the Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group, and nine winners will receive adaptation opportunities with Wattpad … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: “When we see serial killers as nebulous killing machines,” author Clémence Michallon says, “we almost give them more power.” In her debut English novel, The Quiet Tenant, Michallon examines a murderer’s double life through the eyes of his daughter, girlfriend, victims and longtime prisoner (who’s plotting her escape). The genre-bending thriller, out … Read more
From Kristine Kathryn Rusch: For most of you, the main issue in this year’s Writers Guild of America writers strike is whether or not your favorite TV programs will be affected. Already, some of the streaming shows, such as Stranger Things and Cobra Kai have shut down due to strike issues. The broadcast shows haven’t started next fall’s season … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: My late father-in-law detested vague or imprecise language. “Don’t tell me you saw a person,” went his typical complaint. “What kind of person was it? A man or a woman? Tall or short? Old or young?” He, like his contemporary Roald Dahl, came from an era when people valued clarity … Read more
From Writer Unboxed: When I said I was majoring in Creative Writing, it began. “Do you know how hard it is to make a living as a writer?” Then, when I said I was applying to graduate school programs, they said, “Do you know how hard it is to get into an MFA program?” When I said I … Read more
From The Nation: The United States can be a harsh place to be a child. There are guns galore and bullies in school. Suicide is on the rise, homelessness is rampant, and many school budgets have been scraped down to the bone. In New York City, almost one in five children are poor. One in … Read more
From Slate: I’ve read Roald Dahl’s books to little kids for years. Let me tell you how that really goes. As it happens, I have spent quite a lot of time over the past decade reading Roald Dahl books with small children as part of a side hustle in tutoring English. Matilda, The BFG, Charlie and the Chocolate … Read more
From Publishing Perspectives: You’ll recall that in our November 2022 China bestsellers update, we looked at the arrival in China of a new animated adaptation of Liu Cixin’s Hugo Award-winning The Three-Body Problem (Chongqing Publishing House). As anticipated, the production has driven Liu’s trilogy to the top of Beijing OpenBook’s fiction list. And, furthermore, there’s … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: Canada is days away from passing a law to force digital platforms such as YouTube and TikTok to showcase more Canadian content. While that might sound like good news for Canadian artists and content producers, many see it as about as welcome as a polar vortex. “I prefer not to … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: Prince Harry’s book is odd. There’s even something half-mad about it. He opens with a dramatic meeting at Frogmore, his former mansion on the grounds of Windsor. It is just after the death of Prince Philip, Harry’s paternal grandfather. For months Harry has been estranged from his father, Charles, and his … Read more
From The Honest Broker: I’ve written too many negative stories about digital media platforms in recent months. I’ve started to worry. Am I turning into Dr. Doom and Mr. Gloom? In all fairness, my predictions have proven sadly accurate. After I served up these dismal forecasts for Facebook, Spotify, Netflix, and others, their share prices took a steep dive. … Read more
From The Wall Street Journal: Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” is an evergreen delight for a host of reasons, not least for its length. It’s the ideal, modest size. The book’s events—which track the elderly, prosperous, stingy Ebenezer Scrooge’s psychic transformation from grouchy bear to purring pussycat—unfold in the course of one night. And, likewise, … Read more
From Writer Unboxed: The actor Louise Fletcher passed away a few weeks ago (September 23rd), and though she had a career spanning over half a century, much of it in television, her signature role, the one for which she is most remembered, is that of Nurse Ratched in Milos Forman’s adaptation of the Ken Kesey … Read more
From Written Word Media: Kindle Unlimited (KU), a subscription service through Amazon that allowed readers unlimited access to books for just $10 a month, was unveiled by Amazon in July 2014. The reception by readers was mostly positive, finally a Netflix for Books! The reaction from authors and publishers was mixed. Kindle Unlimited was doing … Read more
From The Illusion of More: Welp (as the kids say), it looks like Katherine Trendacosta of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) found an old PowerPoint deck from 2012 and used it to write a new post ominously titled Hollywood’s Insistence on New Draconian Copyright Rules Is Not About Protecting Artists. Typical of the EFF playbook, Trendacosta devotes an entire … Read more
From Wired: EBOOKS HAVE NOT swept away traditional tomes the way streaming services for music, movies, and TV shows have slashed sales of discs. Physical book sales are booming, but ebooks and audiobooks have a dedicated, appreciative audience. If you love to read, an ebook subscription service is a great way to discover new titles, … Read more
From LifeHacker: It’s finally time to admit streaming apps and digital distribution have ruined most creative media industries, and maybe physical media was the right choice all along. Okay, that’s a tad dramatic. But it’s not exactly wrong. To be fair, streaming apps aren’t all bad. Streaming services and digital storefronts make it easy to … Read more
From Publishing Perspectives: There may be something in the British water supply driving people to start Book Clubs. Less than a week after London’s Booker Prize Foundation announced its new “Booker Prize Book Club Challenge”—devised to draw social-media attention to its shortlist—TikTok has announced a TikTok Book Club, capitalizing on the success of its #BookTok … Read more
From Kristine Kathryn Rusch: [W]riters should consider their IP a living breathing entity that has a lifespan all its own; IP is not something to be easily discarded or sold for a quick buck. Writers who do that will live to regret it. In the previous post, I discussed how the most valuable intellectual properties … Read more
From Counter Craft: In the 18th-century, a specter was haunting Europe—the specter of “Werther Fever.” Goethe’s 1774 epistolary novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther, was so popular that it catapulted the young Goethe into international fame and set off a trend of young men wearing yellow trousers and electric blue jackets… and also, allegedly, thousands of imitation … Read more
From Smithsonian Magazine: The opening of “The Courtship,” USA Network’s newest foray into the canon of high-concept reality dating shows, ends with a cheekily revised quote from a beloved author: “It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in search of a husband must go to Regency-era England and live in a castle … Read more
From Vice: For years, the digital media service Hoopla has given library patrons access to ebooks, movies, and audiobooks through bulk subscriptions sold to public libraries. But more recently, librarians have started calling for transparency into the company’s practices after realizing its digital ebook collection contains countless low-quality titles promoting far-right conspiracy theories, COVID disinformation, … Read more
From Kristine Kathryn Rusch: Let’s talk money for a minute, because really, copyright and copyright licensing translates into money, if you do it correctly. Copyright is one of those lovely assets that will continue earning for writers if the writers manage the copyright correctly. A short story can become a novel (more money, different licenses), … Read more