Happy Wednesday everybody!
I used to love Wednesdays because it meant I didn’t have long to wait for the weekend. Now, Wednesdays usually have me spinning because by that time of the week, I’m finally starting to get back into the routine of the work week, but what’s the point? It’s almost over.
Le Sigh.
But that’s not what I wanted to post about. I wanted to post about the Grande Dame of romance, Nora Roberts, for a moment. Starting Jan. 29, Lifetime Movie Channel will be premiering the first of four movies made from her books. They’ll be shown pretty much one right after the other (day after day), and surprisingly, the movies are based on her newer titles, not her long ago back list. I believe (she’s so prolific I could definitely be wrong here) that Angels Fall is her most recent book, and yet it the kick-off movie for this Nora-thon. (You can see the line up and great photos taken on set of her movies here.)
So why am I writing about Nora? Well, she’s a fellow Berkley author, and yeah, she’s a master at the publishing game, but I’m writing about her because I’m wondering how effective the "based on the novel by __________" really is to those who watch movies. Danielle Steele has had countless movies made of her books. As has Stephen King, John Grisham, and countless others. I love to see a "based on the novel by ________" when I watch a movie because if I like it, I have a new author to buy. I like it, too, because if it’s based on a book I’ve already read (i.e. Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Eragon) I get to see how closely the movie-makers came to matching the descriptions I pictured in my mind.
But what if the movie sucks? DOes that taint an author’s name? Do movie-watchers even care who wrote it? If a watcher sees "Based on a book by _________" in the movie credits and hates the movie, she’s likely to never buy a book from that author, right? So, that being said, the potential to LOSE readers comes with having your story translated into another artform. Not that it’s hurt Danielle Steele, Stephen King, or John Grisham one bit.
So I’m curious. If a movie is being released that was originally a book YOU’VE ALREADY READ, do you look forward to seeing the movie or not?
If you watch a movie that’s originally been in book form and you hate it, does it turn you off that author? If you love it, would you go shopping for their other books?
JUst curious 
From my experience, I don’t look forward to see movies, where I already know the book, because I would expect too much.
Comment by Danny — January 24, 2007 @ 1:22 pm
I recently read The Devil Wears Prada, then watched the movie. I must admit I liked how the movie ended better than the book. I like to read books that have movies made about them afterwards. I’m looking forward to the Lifetime movies.
Comment by Teresa W. — January 24, 2007 @ 5:59 pm
Hi Heather!
Thanks for the heads up on the Norathon! You know, it’s funny…I always seem to enjoy the book more than the movie. I think a bad movie would in fact put me off the book. On the other hand, I think the general public buys a lot of the book BEFORE the movie comes out. If you want to see an experiment along those lines watch the amazon sales of Reservation Road, a literate thriller that’s not on the map at the moment. BUT it’s filming now with Joaquin Phoenix. Once the word starts to get out, the sales of the book will no doubt skyrocket. That alone is worth having the movie made of your story, even if it’s a lousy one! Sound mercenary? Yep. I work for a living!
Luv,
Cleo Coyle
Comment by Cleo — January 24, 2007 @ 6:29 pm
I love to see a movie after I’ve read a book, but not vice versa. The last time I bought a book based on a movie I loved, I was incredibly disappointed by that author’s writing. I’d never buy another one of thier books–but I would watch thier movies!
Comment by Alyssa Brooks — January 24, 2007 @ 6:43 pm
There have actually been a few books where I ended up liking the movies better–Queen of the Damned for one, The Devil Wears Prada for another. For the most part, I try to separate the two in my mind because I know the page-to-screen process is so convoluted that they’re really two different products.
Yasmine
Comment by Yasmine — January 24, 2007 @ 6:54 pm
It never turns me off an author. Usually I just think, “they always ruin books when they turn them into movies.” Then I go read the book again.
Comment by spyscribbler — January 25, 2007 @ 11:50 pm