By Jennifer S. Wilkov, host of the “Your Book Is Your Hook!” Show on WomensRadio
www.yourbookisyourhook.com
As authors and writers, we’re always learning about resources and industry tools that we can use to improve our book project performance and the enjoyment of our writing and marketing experiences. Today let’s talk about the reality show for books as an idea whose time has come.
If we were to go back in time, one could argue that books have been around for centuries. From the biblical stories and books from the different religions to the logs of Christopher Columbus and Ponce De Leon, we as a human race have been writing and reading for years.
In the 1900’s, modern book publishing took a huge jump after being around for several centuries. Books as we know them today as bound books with hardcovers or paperbacks became more common.
In 1939, television was first introduced and became popular around 1948.
In the late 1940’s, Allen Funt brought television to life, real life, with his Candid Camera and the advent of the reality show about real people was born.
From game shows in the 1950s like Beat the Clock and Truth or Consequences to the 1970s productions of Chuck Barris including The Dating Game, The Newlywed Game and The Gong Show, participants have sacrificed some of their privacy and dignity in a televised competition.
In the 1980s and 1990s, MTV hit the airwaves with The Real World and America’s Funniest Home Videos became a long-running hit show that continues to entertain television viewers today.
Fast forward to the year 2000 when reality TV shows started to explode in global popularity with the advent of Big Brother and the introduction of Survivor.
During the last decade, even the Emmy Awards have recognized reality shows as their own categories and these days offer 3 different awards in this genre.
There are shows now for chefs, entrepreneurs, clothing designers, models, adventurers and even dog grooming and the food trucks on the sidewalks in New York City. From losing weight on The Biggest Loser to Changing Rooms and Trading Spaces, and from Dancing With The Stars to singing your heart out on American Idol, there is quite a smattering of shows to choose from.
There are still shows about dating in terms of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. There are also comedy shows like Last Comic Standing and Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Among the vast landscape of reality shows that have come and gone over the years, none of them were ever about books.
Does the viewing public, who years ago used to read books because there was no television, really know what it takes for an author to present and pitch their book? Do they realize the challenges and innocent mistakes often exuberant people make when approaching the industry decision makers who will determine whether their carefully crafted novel, non-fiction or children’s book will make it to the proverbial big time?
Nope. There is no show that demonstrates the advent of the author and their book. And there never has been… until now.
The television pilot for the reality show for books has been conceived and you as an author who wants to get published, wants to see your book go to Hollywood film or television and who wants to be interviewed on your favorite morning talk show have the opportunity of a lifetime to be a part of the making of it.
Isn’t it time we came out from behind the private pitching sessions in the industry and showed authors everywhere the nuances of a good book – presentation, that is. The issue is that these pitches are often done behind closed doors in private sessions. There is no opportunity for an author to learn how to professionally pitch their book.
But now… in 2010, a television pilot is coming to pass and a shot at really learning to become The Next BestsellerTM is at hand. To grab your spot for this groundbreaking opportunity, go to www.TheNextBestsellerTV.com. There you’ll immediately begin to get the training you’ve been seeking to properly and professionally prepare your pitch to the industry experts who could opt to agent your book to the big houses. Beyond that, you’ll find the chance of a lifetime to at last be trained by the industry experts themselves to pitch your book right and right into the right hands of the book publishing industry, Hollywood and the media.
It’s time books had their chance in the spotlight. It’s time for the convergence of book pitching and reality TV. If people can watch and learn how to dance, sing, cook, shop, make a dress out of something they never imagined, rearrange and makeover their image and house, and exercise and lose weight, and even fall in love, then surely the 81% of Americans alone who feel they should write a book can learn to properly present their projects to the ever changing book industry and Hollywood whose agents are always on the lookout for a good book.
After all, we read books for entertainment before television came on the screen. Isn’t it time for books to come back to the forefront of our entertainment consciousness?
The reality show for books. It’s an idea whose time has come.
© 2010 Jennifer S. Wilkov. All Rights Reserved.
Jennifer S. Wilkov: Media personality, host and producer of the #1 radio talk show “Your Book Is Your Hook!” on WomensRadio. Jennifer is a best-selling award-winning author who has been published five times, an award-winning freelance writer and a respected book business consultant in her business by the same name, “Your Book Is Your Hook!” She has both self-published and been published by a traditional publisher. Jennifer has been called the quintessential writer and teacher for the 21st century. She supports first-time and seasoned authors in their book writing, publishing and marketing endeavors through coaching and training in her “Your Book Is Your Hook!” consulting practice. www.YourBookIsYourHook.com www.JenniferSWilkov.com