About the time I started planning this series, I got an email from a writer friend. The writer friend is one of those people who think they know business, but have never really bothered to learn much about it. Or maybe they’re the kind of person who reads the how-to, remembers the details, but misses the overall point. The result is the same—complete cluelessness. I […]
Business Musings: Writing Screenplays (Hollywood Part 3)
The short version of this post: Don’t. Just don’t. Don’t write screenplays, even if someone tells you “you’ll make more money if you do.” The medium version of this post: Write screenplays only if you want to work in Hollywood. Otherwise, write the next book. The long version of this post: Brace yourselves, and settle in for the read. Before I go any farther, let […]
Business Musings: Content, Content, Content (Hollywood Part 2)
A few weeks ago, I got a survey from the Global Licensing Group, the people in charge of the Las Vegas Licensing Expo. They wanted to know my opinion (and probably hundreds of other people’s opinions) about content. Is it important? Why is it important? How should I/we/they handle it? Oh, and am I a content provider (licensor) or someone who licenses content (licensee)? I […]
Business Musings: A Cautionary Tale (Hollywood Part 1)
I’m starting a tiny new series because of everything that’s been in the news of late. But first, let me give you a caveat. For decades, Dean and I have said “Hollywood” when we really mean the film and/or TV industry. That word wasn’t accurate 30 years ago; it’s less accurate now. The industry has mushroomed. It’s not even one industry anymore. You can do […]
Business Musings: The Kickstarted Game Changer (Part Three) (Licensing/Copyright/Contracts)
So, I’ve just spent the past two blog posts talking Brandon Sanderson’s Kickstarter as a game changer in the publishing industry. I know that my posts inspired a few of you to take our free class titled “Kickstarter Best Practices for Writers.” I also know that many of you looked at my posts and mentally bookmarked them for the future, thinking this Kickstarter—and this changed […]
Business Musings: Then And Now
Recently, Dean told me about a conversation he was having on Facebook with a group of writers who, in the 1990s, shared the table of contents in an anthology featuring stories about the X-Men. Apparently, that anthology has just gotten an audio edition, and one of the authors in the anthology was thrilled about that. Then Dean threw some cold water on the excitement. Who’s […]
Business Musings: Money 2 Licensing Out (Rethinking The Writing Business Part 11)
So, those of you who regularly read this blog are thinking, now are we going to talk about how much we can earn? Yeah, kinda sorta. I want those of you who haven’t yet read this series to read two posts: the decision tree and the first post on money. (Actually, I’d love to have you read the entire series, but that’ll take some time. […]
Business Musings: Expect Success
I’ve been doing a series on licensing for writers, which is subtitled “Rethinking the Writing Business.” Normally, I would put this particular blog as Part 8 of the series, but I’m afraid that would prevent a number of people from reading the post. And I think all writers need to read this blog post, whether they’ve read the previous licensing posts or not. Initially, I […]
Business Musings: The Licensing Business (Rethinking The Writing Business Part Two)
When a writer dies, usually one of three things happens to her writing estate: It goes dormant. This is the most common thing. Most heirs have no idea how to deal with the mass of writing and published materials left over. The heirs might noodle with it for a while, but after that, they’ll accidentally or maybe even purposely forget about it. It gets subsumed […]
Business Musings: Rethinking The Writing Business (Part One)
When the disruption hit the publishing industry ten years ago, I watched with a wary eye. After I finished The Freelancer’s Survival Guide in the summer of 2010, I repurposed this weekly blog to help me understand the changes the publishing industry was undergoing. It seemed, in those heady days, that everything changed daily. And there was a large contingent of brand-new writers who knew […]
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