Is it fair that celebrities have fiction books published?

More and more celebrities are bringing out works of fiction. From TV presenter Holly Willoughby and actress Ruth Jones, to gardener of the small screen, Alan Titchmarsh and journalist Fearne Britton – a whole lot of celebrities are writing books and having them published.

Our nation’s obsession for celebrity means that a well-known name sells. And in the cut-throat world of fiction-writing, publishers, unsurprisingly, love a guaranteed seller.

I can understand perfectly why many excellent writers find this terribly frustrating. Their work, which is every bit as good as anything created by a celebrity author, may never get noticed—or even published—whereas if they were famous, well, it would likely be a very different story.

Celebrities, especially those who write children’s books, when approached with this objection, will often cite that anything that gets children reading is a positive. Hmm, maybe. But if their work wasn’t published, then someone else’s would be. Awesome kids books would still be published and children would still read.

Celebrities’ books will often get pride of place on bookshops’ shelves. They will almost always be supported with a huge marketing budget, and the celebrities often have copious opportunity to promote their books through media appearances as broadcasters are receptive to having these stars appear on their shows.

The same cannot be said for most authors, or wannabe authors, who don’t possess the privilege of the celebrity status.

From this blog, I think it’s pretty clear I’m not a fan of a celebrity author who has been published purely on the basis of their popularity in an area other than writing. Of course, if a celebrity is a brilliant writer, and there are no doubt many who are, then they should have every chance of being published, just like everyone else—but wouldn’t it be nice if that’s what it was; a ‘chance’ rather than a certainty? What if everyone had to submit their manuscripts anonymously, so they were judged on merit rather than on the popularity of the writer?

Working in PR, I realise this is an idealistic viewpoint, which will never be realised. Because celebrity rules. Because money rules. This means talent often takes a poor second place, and it means celebrities have a huge advantage over the average writer.

For these reasons, I would rarely opt to read a book penned by a celebrity. I prefer the idea of making a celebrity of a previously unknown writer because their work is awesome!

Having said that, my son, who ‘quite likes’ reading, enjoys David Walliams’ books. And I have to say, so do I! We’ve just returned from the theatre—the third David Walliams’ show we’ve seen based on his kids’ books. Billionaire Boy, just like Gangsta Granny and The Midnight Gang, was a good story, great fun and contained lots of colourful characters.

So, some celebrities do create fantastic books, no doubt. I just wish this didn’t have to mean there’s less room for the unknown author who, due to the already rich and famous celebrity bringing out a book or few, might sadly always remain unknown.

Sooner or later, the rhythm is gonna get you

I had the best afternoon and night out in ages a couple of weeks ago as a few of us ventured into London for my lovely friend’s 40th birthday. Armed with tickets to see Gloria Estefan’s musical, ‘Get on your Feet’, and a restaurant reservation at The Port House on The Strand, we were like pigs in muck.

The Port House is a Spanishy/Portugesey tapas restaurant, which serves – wait for it – sangria cocktails! Mmm, delicioso! We ordered loads of different dishes, which we shared, all of which were scrumptious – especially the pork belly.

When it came to dessert we had something I’ve been wanting to try for ages – pastel de nata – or Portugese custard tarts. Oh my goodness – divine. I was so upset we’d decided to share. We also had churros with chocolate sauce, which my friend went completely ‘gooey’ for, and vanilla ice cream with sherry. Who’d have thought something so simple could be so utterly amazing!

We then waddled down the road to the Coliseum Theatre for the show. Never make the mistake of asking a stranger where ‘The Coliseum’ is. He’ll tell you it’s in Rome, which is exactly what happened to me when I enquired about the location of said establishment to a man outside a pub.

Luckily, we found it just in time, and took our seats for the performance. And what a performance it was – so much energy, great Latin tracks and some incredible salsa dancing.

We all absolutely loved it. Although it’s finished now in London, the show is touring the UK, so plenty of time to see it. If you’re looking for a super day out with friends, which is fun and frivolous, I can heartily recommend it.

HOME

https://www.onyourfeetmusical.co.uk/

Dead Interesting

Next week I’m going to the theatre in Worthing to watch the latest book-turned-play from crime writer, Peter James. This will be third play I’ve seen from the Sussex-based author, who sets all his books in the county, especially in and around the city of Brighton, and I’m very excited to see it.

Unlike the others I’ve seen, which have been murders, this one is a ghost story. Last week I went to the Ropetackle Centre in Shoreham – close to where Peter James was born and raised – to listen to him speak and sign copies of his new book, Dead at First Sight.

I understand Peter James often does talks and I’d say, even if you haven’t read any of his stuff, if you get the opportunity to go, go! He didn’t particularly talk about book writing, but rather about his experiences of working with Sussex Police. His accounts of dating fraud (the topic of his new book) were fascinating, as was hearing about some of the inspiration behind his characters.

The most interesting for me was listening to him talk about how he based The House on Cold Hill around his own haunted house. Some of the stories he told were extremely creepy so although I’m really excited about seeing the play, I’m seriously considering taking a cushion to hide behind.

Peter James’ plays always attract a good – and often famous – cast, and are usually a sell-out, so if you see one advertised and fancy it, don’t hang about.

Here’s a pic of me getting my book signed. We were first in the queue, even reaching the table before he did, and last, as my friend decided she wanted more books signing. Maybe his next book will be about crazy lady fans!

The joy of procrastination

As I wait to find out the release date of my debut novel, The Virgin’s Gamble, I’ve been thinking about the next big project.  I’ve got a couple of ideas burning for my next book – and they’re both completely different from each other, as well as from anything I’ve written before.

I have been seriously considering doing a Creative Writing MA so I could learn some more tools of the trade, meet people in the business and generally achieve support from a network of like-minded writers.  While I’d love to do this, I have come to the sad realisation that while working full-time, I genuinely do not have the time.

It would comprise a three-hour tutorial once a week plus an additional 12 hours per week study time.  I’ve worked out I could do this if I got no sleep or hardly ever saw my family, neither of which seems like a wise idea.  So, for now at least, I’ve decided to put the MA on the back burner, which is a shame but the right decision at the moment.

So while I ponder which direction to go in for the next book (gritty humour or psychological thriller), I’ve been avoiding making the decision by keeping myself busy with doing all manner of things that don’t involve writing, and having a jolly good time in the process.

Yesterday I took my son to see the theatre performance of David Walliams’ ‘Gangsta Granny’ at Worthing’s Pavillion Theatre.  It was great fun, and my son absolutely loved it.  It was a marathon though – three hours, which is a long time for kids (and adults!), but it was definitely worth it, as it was so good.

We’ve also recently seen Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One.  Another mammoth performance at 2.25 hrs (why does everything have to be so long?), but it was brilliant, and we (both 37) and our son (7) loved it.  It’s a bit scary at times for small children, but it’s so exciting, and clever too.

I really must get back on with the writing, and finally make a decision about which path to follow, but it’s hard when procrastinating is so wonderful!