The writers and agents working behind the scenes tell us how it actually works.
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In early October, Reese Witherspoon announced she was collaborating with the best-selling thriller author Harlan Coben.
But what does it mean when a celebrity decides to write fiction?
Here, the writers and agents working behind the scenes on similar books tell us how it actually works.
The reality star had no part of this world; it was really just a business opportunity for her.
The publisher recommended me, and her team was just like, Okay.
We didnt even meet until the photo shoot for the cover of the second book.
It was a really smart marketing decision.
It was a New YorkTimesbest seller for like four weeks.
I couldnt get there on my own, but I got there with her for the first time.
My name wasnt on the cover, and I didnt give a shit.
I knew I had written this book.
I knew people were buying it because they loved it.
I dont know if I ever could have been at that level on my own.
So yeah, Im a ghostwriter, but within publishing, Im pretty well known for it.
And then I felt definitely screwed over on the second novel.
I wrote the whole thing.
They hired a book doctor to work with me on a new outline.
We connected through my agent.
So that was cool.
People will ask, Am I offended that people are putting their name on a book I wrote?
But a lot of the time, it doesnt feel like mine because its all their ideas.
She had a very general idea of what she wanted it to be about.
I think she wanted to tell some of her story in a way that still kept it private.
And she wanted to up the creativity of it and make it more like magical realism.
We worked together on how to put it into a plot, etc.
I wasnt paid up front.
Were close to earning out, so hopefully more in the future.
I got to go on the book tour.
I have a couple of books out under my name, and this was a very different experience.
We got marketing support, which is an unfamiliar feeling for me.
Her media team put together appearances onGood Morning Americaand theTodayshow, that kind of stuff.
Another one of my friends had signed up to write a novel for a former child star.
Ultimately, she got paid a kill fee, and the project never went anywhere.
It comes down to money.
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