Of Dreams, Making them Real and What We Are Willing to Pay…

I recently read two articles on acclaimed mystery author, Janet Evanovich, the first stating that she had requested $50 million from her then publisher St. Martin’s Press to renew her contract, the second, published some weeks later, announcing that in response to St. Martin’s had refusing the requested amount, Evanovich had subsequently returned to Ballantine Bantam Dell Publishers where she first began her career.

While the first article had ended with ponderings of whether Evanovich would receive her request from St. Martin’s, particularly in this poor economy, the second article carefully stated that no one privy to the proceedings had released details of what Evanovich would receive from Ballantine Bantam Dell.

My husband, on hearing the details of the articles, responded with, “$50 million dollars? You must have your numbers wrong. Are you sure you read the article correctly?”

Questioning the figure myself, or rather my ability to remember what I saw, I returned to the website where I had read the articles then announced to him that I was indeed correct. “Wow!” He shook his head, adding, “She must sell an awful lot of books,” referring to Evanovich.

And she has done that. But obviously not enough for St. Martins to grant her request.
Whether they could not afford the price or did not want to take the risk is anyone’s guessing game.

I have no idea how many books must be sold to recoup $50 million.

To be specific, the contract Evanovich was attempting to renegotiate with her then publisher, St. Martin’s press, was for her next four books.

At this rate she would have received $12.5 million for each title up from the $10 million they had promised for her last five books.

All this talk involving huge 7 and 8 figure prices for writing a book brought home one simple truth that few of us authors and writers want to realize and accept.

Writing and publishing books is big business.

Evanovich, the author and artist creates the novel that she then hands over to her publisher who has purchased form her the rights to own and do whatever they wish with the book.

Beyond printing and selling the book, the publisher also has the rights to shop the story to movie companies who, if purchasing those rights from St. Martins, can then put the story on the big screen or perhaps a television channel such as Lifetime or TNT.

Presently a movie, based on one of Evanovich’s novels is to hit the big screen in the near future. Katherine Heigl will play the protagonist, Stephanie Plum in a movie based on Evanovich’s novel, One For the Money.

While the intricacies of the negotiations between Evanovich, St. Martin’s and then Ballantine Bantam Dell House provided interesting and important reading regarding the state of publishing, more precisely the business of writing and publishing in America, the comments left by readers of the two articles presented an even more informative side of the triangle or square, if you will.

While Evanovich has many fans and even more to spare, reaction to request to St. Martin’s was decidedly unfavorable. 



Most, like my husband, though not unaware of the large figures involved in hiring big-name authors such as Evanovich, found her actions egregious.

Whether that is the case rests with the reader. Each of us must decide for ourselves–how often and what we are willing to pay as consumers for work we consider lacking.

We must also choose what we are willing to demand from and give of ourselves to others when asking them to pay for our creations.

And then there is the matter of what we need to live to fulfill our dreams, and that with which we can live in having or seeking to make them real.

What are your dreams?

What do you need to make them real?

How much are you willing to sacrifice to make them real?

What will you ask in return?

From others?

And of yourself?