Thanks, Doug! You hear that a lot from TV newscasters here in the Deep South. They haven’t yet picked up on “fish could swim in that air,” but that could be coming 😎
It’s true, but I mind it less if the money at least rewards quality. If Renee Fleming makes far more than other opera stars, she’s worth it. But James Patterson and Taylor Jenkins Reid aren’t the Renee Flemings of books.
An even better example might be Bruce Springsteen. He earns a fortune, and he isn't just worth it but gives a vast amount back to NJ and his community: his time, his money, his loyalty. Patterson also gives a lot of money to charity, too, apparently. But Springsteen is on another level because it's not just money he gives but so much more.
I would never have chosen it but was at the airport and had read Malibu rising which is probably the next palatable book she wrote (I could get through it and it was a fun beach read). Atmosphere was really cool. I was v impressed with her research and found it really gripping. The love story was sweet and realistic not annoying like normal. And thank god she’s stopped trying to write black and Latina characters as that was just embarrassing. I still don’t get her popularity. Personally I couldn’t get through Evelyn and Daisy, her supposed “best” books which were so cheesy and badly written. Just boring. But atmosphere was a different level. She stepped up the game.
That’s a fascinating glimpse of what goes on in a writers’ room. I didn’t know about the “color blind” writing, and I’ve read McKee, Goldman, and others. I’d love to read a full post on writers’ rooms. Thanks again.
The color blind writing really happens because we have v little control over casting. I’ve written characters as black and they were cast as Indian, or white, or… so I do make a point of insisting on diversity but I often find the studios just change it up. They wouldn’t do this for a writer like Michaela Coel who is writing about the black British experience, but I’m sure she probably gets a mixed bag over her non black characters in a similar way…
Im not an expert as I usually write solo. (Not by choice it’s cheaper for them!) But I will write soon. I teach screenwriting at ucla so it will be good for my students! the writers room survival guide is a great book on the subject
This is helpful not just to me but others who may be thinking of reading “Atmosphere.” The Carrie Soto character troubled a lot of people for the reasons you suggest. Thanks again!
I am pretty shocked that her publishers did not talk her out of the bad decisions regarding race. It was a wise idea of her to come out as bisexual as I would have been troubled about the constant depictions of queer relationships without it. I’m a screenwriter and we either write “color blind” and have casting choose a race which the producers will approve, or we choose a writers room which reflects diversity and allows us to have different characters reflected authentically. For a long time I personally kind of wrestled with the questions TJR wrestles with, but ultimately we white writers are not helping by calling a white character black “to help diversity”. She can help by making efforts to support and showcase black, Latino and Asian writers and lift them up.
Also I realize color blind is a problematic term. Once casting is done, if an actor is non white I usually work directly with them to help make the character their own and authentic. I couldn’t do that with little disasters sadly. (The last show I wrote) TV is def not great at this but we would def not do a Carrie Soto
Let’s face it…this is a consequence of mass literacy itself…novel writing was better when fewer people could read…reading has become like another mass entertainment medium.
I personally loved DJ+6 (because let’s be real it’s Fleetwood Mac) and I enjoyed MR as a fun summer read. Sometimes reading just…isn’t that deep and serious, sometimes it’s just fun to just smash a book and enjoy it, no deep thoughts required. I don’t agree that authors should have to hop publishers and that whoever is currently “number one” should demand an insane amount whilst the rest of authors peck for crumbs however- I feel there should be room in the industry for better advances and fairer contracts for all authors, regardless of genre.
It's been feeling like the publishing world (with it's top favorites continuously circulating the top best seller lists for decades) has fallen in step with the music and blue chip art world. True diversity has been lost.
Yes, book publishing is far from alone in this cycle. Movies are also in a similar situation. Instead of giving disproportionate attention to a few bankable authors, they give it to Disney and Marvel remakes.
Taylor fucking Jenkins Reid? Not just bad for writers, especially women writers, but bad for readers too. The trash that ends up on bestseller lists, that clutters the shelves of bookstores and libraries, is all part of the dumbing down of America.
The idea of a lesbian love affair on a space station gets a couple interest points but more for the lesbian love affair than outer space and the juvenile repetitive swearing completely turns me off. I haven't seen a movie in theaters in so long I don't remember. I rarely watch TV and only cable. I loved our specialty theatre's in LA that showed foreign films but I certainly don't have that locally here. I guess I'm a bit of a snob.
I just finished Malibu Rising. It was fine. I mean, it contains sentences like, “he had swam every day” and, call me a pedant, but that kind of shit drives me to distraction. However it had good parts. For example her description of Kit trying to figure herself out was moving and it rang true to me. But yeah. It was fine. Not exceptional.
I read 7 Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and loved it. Then I found out she is not Latina. A lot of her books are based on Latin characters, including Carry Soto is Back, with her main character being Argentinian, like me. Latin authors don’t get published as much as white authors, and if we do, the rate is lower. I just wished they let us tell our stories, instead of paying millions of USD to someone who holds the privilege but not our voice.
Thank you for writing this. As a reader who is in a book group, we choose a wide variety of books to read, from classics to current fiction and non fiction and many books translated into English. After reading a book by a very well known author who puts out a hefty, new book yearly, we all said never again. Name recognition does not equal excellence. BTW, if you’ve ever noticed, many times a baseball player who receives an astronomical salary then goes on to tank. The pressure to perform must be incredible.
The difference, when it comes to authors, though, is that even if the book is terrible, the publishing company has put in enough money to ensure that it does well, whether that's with the best possible edit it can get or by putting major money into its promotion. A lot of the "biggest" books of the last couple of years have been pretty much guaranteed to do well, regardless of whether or not they deserve to. Whereas you can put as much training and promotion behind a sportsperson as you like, and if they don't perform, they don't perform.
You have my sympathies about that book-club choice. I suspect every group has been burned by at least one of those. You are so right: Name recognition doesn't equal excellence.
Excellent piece! Glad to have discovered this newsletter
Thanks, Ira!
"air you can wear" - a great phrase!! I had never heard that one.
Thanks, Doug! You hear that a lot from TV newscasters here in the Deep South. They haven’t yet picked up on “fish could swim in that air,” but that could be coming 😎
Well, everything these days is winner-take-all. Just a handful of musicians make all the money, too.
Economically and artistically and financially, a few win big and the crowds of others scratch for scraps.
It’s true, but I mind it less if the money at least rewards quality. If Renee Fleming makes far more than other opera stars, she’s worth it. But James Patterson and Taylor Jenkins Reid aren’t the Renee Flemings of books.
An even better example might be Bruce Springsteen. He earns a fortune, and he isn't just worth it but gives a vast amount back to NJ and his community: his time, his money, his loyalty. Patterson also gives a lot of money to charity, too, apparently. But Springsteen is on another level because it's not just money he gives but so much more.
Omg I had the exact same thought while reading Malibu Rising re: the boobs lol
Further proof of the saying about “great minds” :)
I actually really liked atmosphere but her other work is unreadable. So boring. But lowest common denominator wins the day in our world.
You may be the only commenter on this post who’s actually read the book. Thank you!
I would never have chosen it but was at the airport and had read Malibu rising which is probably the next palatable book she wrote (I could get through it and it was a fun beach read). Atmosphere was really cool. I was v impressed with her research and found it really gripping. The love story was sweet and realistic not annoying like normal. And thank god she’s stopped trying to write black and Latina characters as that was just embarrassing. I still don’t get her popularity. Personally I couldn’t get through Evelyn and Daisy, her supposed “best” books which were so cheesy and badly written. Just boring. But atmosphere was a different level. She stepped up the game.
Yes! It would be great for your students!
That’s a fascinating glimpse of what goes on in a writers’ room. I didn’t know about the “color blind” writing, and I’ve read McKee, Goldman, and others. I’d love to read a full post on writers’ rooms. Thanks again.
The color blind writing really happens because we have v little control over casting. I’ve written characters as black and they were cast as Indian, or white, or… so I do make a point of insisting on diversity but I often find the studios just change it up. They wouldn’t do this for a writer like Michaela Coel who is writing about the black British experience, but I’m sure she probably gets a mixed bag over her non black characters in a similar way…
Im not an expert as I usually write solo. (Not by choice it’s cheaper for them!) But I will write soon. I teach screenwriting at ucla so it will be good for my students! the writers room survival guide is a great book on the subject
This is helpful not just to me but others who may be thinking of reading “Atmosphere.” The Carrie Soto character troubled a lot of people for the reasons you suggest. Thanks again!
I am pretty shocked that her publishers did not talk her out of the bad decisions regarding race. It was a wise idea of her to come out as bisexual as I would have been troubled about the constant depictions of queer relationships without it. I’m a screenwriter and we either write “color blind” and have casting choose a race which the producers will approve, or we choose a writers room which reflects diversity and allows us to have different characters reflected authentically. For a long time I personally kind of wrestled with the questions TJR wrestles with, but ultimately we white writers are not helping by calling a white character black “to help diversity”. She can help by making efforts to support and showcase black, Latino and Asian writers and lift them up.
Also I realize color blind is a problematic term. Once casting is done, if an actor is non white I usually work directly with them to help make the character their own and authentic. I couldn’t do that with little disasters sadly. (The last show I wrote) TV is def not great at this but we would def not do a Carrie Soto
Let’s face it…this is a consequence of mass literacy itself…novel writing was better when fewer people could read…reading has become like another mass entertainment medium.
I agree with this. I always think that Reid has fantastic concepts but the writing is too clunky to pull them off.
I personally loved DJ+6 (because let’s be real it’s Fleetwood Mac) and I enjoyed MR as a fun summer read. Sometimes reading just…isn’t that deep and serious, sometimes it’s just fun to just smash a book and enjoy it, no deep thoughts required. I don’t agree that authors should have to hop publishers and that whoever is currently “number one” should demand an insane amount whilst the rest of authors peck for crumbs however- I feel there should be room in the industry for better advances and fairer contracts for all authors, regardless of genre.
“Pecking for crumbs” is what a lot of authors feel they’re doing. Thanks for putting it so succinctly.
It's been feeling like the publishing world (with it's top favorites continuously circulating the top best seller lists for decades) has fallen in step with the music and blue chip art world. True diversity has been lost.
Yes, book publishing is far from alone in this cycle. Movies are also in a similar situation. Instead of giving disproportionate attention to a few bankable authors, they give it to Disney and Marvel remakes.
I’d disagree on this. Check out the ten films nominated for best picture last year.
Taylor fucking Jenkins Reid? Not just bad for writers, especially women writers, but bad for readers too. The trash that ends up on bestseller lists, that clutters the shelves of bookstores and libraries, is all part of the dumbing down of America.
What on earth could she have written to be worth that kind of money? I'm not attracted to the cover so don't know that I would read it.
Her movie deals may help publishers justify their vast sums in their own minds.
The idea of a lesbian love affair on a space station gets a couple interest points but more for the lesbian love affair than outer space and the juvenile repetitive swearing completely turns me off. I haven't seen a movie in theaters in so long I don't remember. I rarely watch TV and only cable. I loved our specialty theatre's in LA that showed foreign films but I certainly don't have that locally here. I guess I'm a bit of a snob.
I just finished Malibu Rising. It was fine. I mean, it contains sentences like, “he had swam every day” and, call me a pedant, but that kind of shit drives me to distraction. However it had good parts. For example her description of Kit trying to figure herself out was moving and it rang true to me. But yeah. It was fine. Not exceptional.
I read 7 Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and loved it. Then I found out she is not Latina. A lot of her books are based on Latin characters, including Carry Soto is Back, with her main character being Argentinian, like me. Latin authors don’t get published as much as white authors, and if we do, the rate is lower. I just wished they let us tell our stories, instead of paying millions of USD to someone who holds the privilege but not our voice.
Carrie Soto also plays a small role in "Malibu Rising." So you might want to avoid that book, too.
I know 🥺 Thanks for the warning!
Thank you for sharing the dialogue that earns millions and makes me cry in my sleep.
You think when you read that dialogue: This must be satire.
Yes, Jan! It’s reminiscent of The Gilded Age — the opulence of gauche rewarded by millions whilst prose of depth receives pennies … if that.
😭😭😭
Thank you for writing this. As a reader who is in a book group, we choose a wide variety of books to read, from classics to current fiction and non fiction and many books translated into English. After reading a book by a very well known author who puts out a hefty, new book yearly, we all said never again. Name recognition does not equal excellence. BTW, if you’ve ever noticed, many times a baseball player who receives an astronomical salary then goes on to tank. The pressure to perform must be incredible.
The difference, when it comes to authors, though, is that even if the book is terrible, the publishing company has put in enough money to ensure that it does well, whether that's with the best possible edit it can get or by putting major money into its promotion. A lot of the "biggest" books of the last couple of years have been pretty much guaranteed to do well, regardless of whether or not they deserve to. Whereas you can put as much training and promotion behind a sportsperson as you like, and if they don't perform, they don't perform.
Agree with all of this. Publishers have a lot of what economists call “sunk costs” that you seldom see discussed. Appreciate your bringing them up.
You have my sympathies about that book-club choice. I suspect every group has been burned by at least one of those. You are so right: Name recognition doesn't equal excellence.