[00:00:00] In this particular session, what we're going to talk about is whether or not your story is commercial and some of the criteria that you can use to test whether or not your story would have commercial appeal. Now, When I ask that question, is it commercial, I have to say at the outset that a lot of artists are really snotty when it comes to this.
[00:00:33] And it's because there's this underlying belief that in order to be commercial they must have sold out. That somehow they are not living up to the integrity of their artistry. Somehow they have sold out. In order to have mass appeal, but that's actually not the case mass appeal That's all commerciality means and this is something that we should want We should want everybody to be drawn to our stuff and i'll tell you why Because if they are it means there is something truly profound in that work Because the only way we can have mass appeal is if we are universally connecting with people Which means there must be an element Of truth to the material that we're creating to the world, to the story.
[00:01:20] It means it connects, it resonates, and that's a good thing. In fact, it's a good acid test to see if your story even has merit in the first place. Commerciality. Just means that it has mass appeal and there are certain things that we can do To help that be the case the number one being that you tell a story that tells the truth about the human condition and about the world as God really Created it that it rings true to your readers that when they read what's happening to your character or the reactions that they're having That it is somehow ringing true to what that character would do or should do in that particular case.
[00:02:02] It should ring true. That is always a good way to be commercial. And of course, making sure that your main character is somebody that we are attracted to. Now, we will get into that more later because developing a story with an incredible main character at the center is imperative for all good storytelling.
[00:02:25] And that, of course, informs the structure of your story because the story unfolds according to the choices that your main character makes. So we're going to get into that more at a later date. In the meantime, here are a couple of other criteria that you can use to test whether or not your story idea is commercial.
[00:02:44] Keep in mind, there are plenty of other things that in the book marketing or publishing world you would probably need to look at. We're just talking about those particular things that apply to Hollywood and what Hollywood looks at as a potentially commercial project. So is it commercial? Well, number one.
[00:03:05] The first thing you might ask yourself is if there's any name recognition. Is this story based on anything famous? Is it based on a trend or a comic book hero or something popular in pop culture? A historical event that maybe got a lot of airplay? That is name recognition. Now, why would name recognition be important?
[00:03:25] Well, because it means more people are going to be interested in that subject. If it's based on something that people recognize, they're already going to be intrigued and we want them to be interested in the subject, right? So that's why that can be a good thing. Now, by the way, you're never going to have all these things.
[00:03:43] things. I'm going to go through, you know, 10 or so criteria that you could use to test whether or not your story idea is commercial. You'll never have them all, but the idea is that you would have at least a couple of these that will give your story a leg up. And also what you're going to find out is when it's commercial, it helps you on the back end of it, meaning it helps you find publishers.
[00:04:06] It helps you get your story in front of more people that are going to be able to say yes. Because it has some built in factors that means that they can sell it. It's all about whether or not they can market it to an audience and get that audience to purchase your book. So commerciality is also very important in terms of you ultimately being able to sell your book to a publisher, an agent, or any other particular place in the marketplace.
[00:04:35] And ultimately an audience who is meant to read your material. So number one is their name recognition. Number two, is it a tentpole story? Now we ask this in the film business a lot. Is it a tentpole movie? And I think a lot of people don't really even know what that means. But it just means that it tends to sell because it's got something already supporting it.
[00:04:57] Something that's already propping it up. Such as thrillers. In movie world, thrillers, small casts, lots of suspense, person to person violence, they're much more cost effective to make, and that helps prop it up, because that means when I sell it in the ancillary markets, or when I try to get a distribution deal for my movie, it means that since it didn't cost as much to make this film, because it's a thriller, I don't need to make as much from the selling to make back my investment.
[00:05:33] I don't need to have as much profit in order to reimburse me for my investment. And that makes my investors very happy because they're much more likely to be able to get a return on their investment if it didn't cost so much to make the movie. So thrillers tend to be what we call a tentpole movie because that's already helping to prop it up.
[00:05:53] By the way, the reason these things are important is because of the risk factor. See, It is expensive to make a movie. It is risky to make a movie. It is so hard to get a return on your investment. So the powers that be are looking for ways to mitigate the risk. They want to make sure that they can make their money back.
[00:06:14] So these are the types of things they look for. Also, in movie world, we're talking action adventures. This is the opposite, in a way, of thrillers. Thrillers has a lot of person to person violence, which makes it a lot less expensive. On the other hand, action adventure movies have big blow up scenes, things that are car chases, really exciting things that are probably very expensive to film.
[00:06:40] So you're thinking, well, that's the opposite. Yes, it is. But the reason why those tend to do well in the Marketplace is because people go to see those films and they tend to want to see those types of films on the big screen. It's more exciting to see an action film on a big screen than it is at your little screen at home, even if you've got a nice home studio.
[00:07:01] So that's why in Hollywood, the powers that be like action adventures. And the other thing that tends to do really well in terms of marketplace for films are comedies. Romantic or broad. In fact, if you have a good romantic comedy, man, those are great because people will rent them over and over and over.
[00:07:22] They'll go several times, they'll watch them and re watch them, they'll buy the movie. And the reason they'll do that is because everybody loves a good romantic comedy. The problem is it's really hard to find any good ones. They're so cliche now, it's so formulaic that it's really hard to find something like When Harry met Sally, something truly fresh that the audience wants to see over and over.
[00:07:45] But comedies in general tend to do well because they're always a great date movie and they're fun. They tend to attract people who want to go out and have a good time. But again, they're hard to do well. So, Hollywood wants films like Saving Private Ryan and Jurassic Park, but not from you. Because the truth is, you probably aren't experienced enough if you're trying to write those movies from the get go.
[00:08:12] But, you can write a book. You can write a novel. That is Jurassic Park level expense for a movie, and it may get done because if you have a hit project on your hand, that's any of those things. That's great. Hollywood loves to adapt movies from previously published material. Why? Because it mitigates the risk.
[00:08:33] It says that there was already an audience for that was interested in that story. And that's why I'm bringing up these three criteria, or tentpole type movies, is because you might have an idea for your novel that fits one of those categories. A thriller, an action adventure, or a comedy. Those tend to do really, really well in Hollywood world.
[00:08:55] They want to maybe adapt those. So, if you can do any of those categories well, hey, why not give it a try? Because that gives you a better chance of getting picked up by Hollywood. But also, people tend to read those books. Why else do we have so many Jack Reacher novels? My goodness, I mean, how many is he up to?
[00:09:16] 27? 28? I don't even know. People love Jack Reacher novels. They're kind of the same story over and over again, but people love the Jack Reacher novels. They are adventures. They are thrillers in a lot of ways. And they have a great central character at the forefront. And so they're very, very attractive to people and people keep buying them.
[00:09:39] Just look at the book Gone Girl. Right? Gone Girl, which became a movie with Ben Affleck and the writer of Gone Girl said that when she wrote that book she Envisioned Ben Affleck as that character, which is pretty cool that she got to see that happen. But that's a thriller It was very very intriguing. It did really well among book clubs, right?
[00:09:59] Book clubs are gold in terms of the kinds of books that they usually read people like those Now, another category that tends to do well in terms of audiences for novels are fantasies and sci fi, but only if they're good. It is very, very difficult to find good fantasy and sci fi stories. But notice, those are much more difficult to get made into movies because they're so much more expensive.
[00:10:26] So, it has to be smart. So successful, so successful as a novel that it warrants adapting it into some sort of project. So like I'm thinking of the new Red Rising series, which is fabulous. Oh, if you haven't read the Red Rising series, it is absolutely incredible. I love it. I love every single one of them.
[00:10:47] There's six so far. There's another one that's about to be released. I can't wait. I've read them all several times because they're so good and I get to be a better writer when I read good material. So I love those. I love the Dresden files. If you're into fantasy at all, this is about a A detective named Harry Dresden, who is the only wizard detective in Chicago, very much a fantasy mythology world that he's established that's brilliant and he's a very good writer.
[00:11:15] But they've had difficulty adapting those, regardless of how successful the books have been. They tried to adapt it into a TV series and it just didn't do well. And I don't know if there's any other plans to adapt it. It's expensive and it's hard to do fantasy in sci fi. Look at how long it has taken them to finally come up with a good adaptation of Dune, and how long has Dune been available?
[00:11:38] Right? Dune has been on there. Now, they did have the old one back in the day, and I think it was okay, but these new ones they're doing are absolutely fantastic. But they are expensive, and that is why it is harder to get those made. Now, that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. If you have a great fantasy sci fi, you should write it.
[00:11:57] Just know that it's actually more difficult to get those made or adapted into a movie. These are the types of genres that tend to do well in terms of adaptations. Okay, number three. Remember, we're talking about is it commercial? Well, one of the things that makes something commercial is if it is previously published material.
[00:12:19] Now, I tell this to my screenwriters, of course, if you can write a story based on previously published material, that's really, really good stuff because that Automatically tells the powers that be that there's a market built into it and it means that it mitigates the risk. But if you're writing a novel, how do you write something based on previously published material?
[00:12:42] Well, there's a lot of times when people will find say a newspaper article that then they write a novel from. Because it's such an intriguing subject matter. So sometimes that can be the case. But the real thing for you to remember, since this is Hollywood story structure and Hollywood storytelling, the real thing for you to think about is the fact that when you can publish, and really legitimately publish, not self publishing, but legitimately publish, Your novel, you have a really good chance of having something that Hollywood will at least give a good once over.
[00:13:19] They'll at least take a look. And again, the reason is, if something actually made it to book form, then Hollywood will give it a good once over because a book means that somebody actually saw some merit in this project and was willing to take a risk on it already. In Hollywood, everybody is terrified of being the person that takes the risk.
[00:13:40] They are terrified. And so if somebody else already took a risk on that project, then that automatically means that they're more willing to take a risk. And they're sharing the burden of risk with somebody else. They're not the only one that saw merit. See? Now it mitigates their risk. They're maybe not going to get fired if it doesn't do so well because somebody else saw it.
[00:14:00] It's all about mitigating risk. So Keep writing your awesome novels, and you'll have a better chance of being the previously published material that Hollywood wants to take a look at. Okay, number four. Another thing that makes good commercial material, and that is really, really hard, by the way, both in Hollywood and in the normal market of novels.
[00:14:23] is finding good holiday material, but holiday material does well if there's a tie to Christmas or Thanksgiving, they are always looking for holiday fair, something that they can put out on the bookshelves at holiday time to try to sell that particular story, but it has to be good because this is an area where they have had an overabundance of material produced or written.
[00:14:48] There are so many Christmas movies now and most of them are crap. So you have to really have something good that's going to help it rise above all of the crap that is out there right now. But if you can have that, it does mitigate the risk and it means commerciality. Okay, number five, will it appeal to the young adult market?
[00:15:11] Now, this is important because in movie world, the largest demographic of moviegoers are people 16 to 35 years old. That is the young adult market. For moviegoers, and they are remarkably Undiscriminating in their tastes a good date movie is always commercial. They love thrillers They love horror films, by the way when I talked about thrillers in the category above you could have substituted Horrors depending on how well it's written.
[00:15:45] So Stephen King all of his stuff is considered to be thrillers And I don't know if there's even a single Stephen King novel that has not been adapted into a movie at some time or at some point. So they tend to do well. And a lot of his movies, or a lot of the movies based on his books, are better than his books.
[00:16:06] It's incredible. They've been Academy Award nominees. So, you want to look at what's going to appeal to this particular demographic. Do you have a story that appeals to 16 to 35 year olds? If you do, that means that you have something that is probably more commercial. And what's amazing is that people in this age demographic continue to read.
[00:16:30] I am so surprised by that with all of the video games and all the stuff like that. They still read if it's good enough, but it has to hook them. It has to be amazing, which we'll get to when we get to story structure. Okay, number six, true stories, true stories. Hollywood is looking for true stories. Not yours, however, unless you're already famous or unless you're giving the inside scoop about something that's already well known because you were actually there.
[00:17:02] If that isn't you and it's just your memoir, those don't tend to do very well. Memoirs don't tend to do very well in either markets. Now, there are some exceptions like Orange is the New Black. where she went to prison for a year for smuggling drugs. And then that became an amazing tv series that's won all these awards.
[00:17:24] Or you've got Wild, which was about the gal who took the California Pacific Trail and walked and she was trying to get over her mother's death and divorce and all this stuff. And then it became a major motion picture with Reese Witherspoon. Those were both memoirs. But typically speaking, Those don't do well.
[00:17:43] And notice, both of those had clear stories, a beginning, a middle, and an end in a particular amount of time that the adventure was structured around. Most people tend to do memoirs poorly, which again, I'll get back to at another time. But the question is, is it a true story? Have you ever noticed that sometimes, you'll go to movies that aren't even that great?
[00:18:05] Like Captain Phoenix. Phil, I believe is the name of the movie with Tom Hanks about the pirates, the modern day pirates that are taking over these commercial ships, that sort of thing. It wasn't great, but I watched it because it was based on a true story and so I was interested. True stories are fascinating, but they have to be a worthwhile story and it shouldn't be yours.
[00:18:30] It shouldn't be yours. It should be something that really is true. By the way, World War II stories, if you can find a good World War II story, there is always a market for World War II stories. People cannot get enough of those, but it has to be really, really good. So you want to make sure you have the right one.
[00:18:47] Okay, number seven. The urgency of your story. Why does this story need to be told? And, why does it need to be told now? You need to be able to answer that. Sometimes there's an urgency to your story because it is so relevant to what's happening now. And if you wait too long, you've missed it. Now, it might come back around.
[00:19:09] It might come back around, but sometimes there is a real urgency, and you'll need to find that. Now, if you look at some of the stuff that's done well in Hollywood, you'll notice that there are some trends, like when the stuff was happening with 9 11, and there were a couple of movies that came out right away about that.
[00:19:26] Those were relevant. They had to happen then. They couldn't happen 20 years down the road. They needed to happen pretty quickly after that event. So those would have been good stories to write at that particular time. So you want to look at even truth based dramas and find a justification for telling it now.
[00:19:47] Usually that means tying it into something that's happening socially now. Something that makes it relevant now. Something that makes it compelling to audiences today. That's the key. And that's where you might have to tweak the story you're telling so that you can make sure that it's relevant to today's audience.
[00:20:07] But the urgency of your story is significant and it's one of the factors that plays into whether or not it's commercial. Is there a justification for telling your story now? Is there a special reason why it will resonate with your audiences today? That is important in terms of commerciality. Okay, number eight.
[00:20:29] Is it visual? Now this is something that novelists tend to overlook or underestimate or undervalue truly. They know that in their novel they can do a lot of things in the head, right? Everything that happens in a novel happens through your character's observations. Even if it's told in third person, it is still being told from the observations of the main character and everything gets filtered through the brain of that main character.
[00:21:00] It's what he sees, feels, thinks, all those things. Now, the problem is, is that a lot of times that doesn't amount to visual storytelling. It's a lot of inner looking rather than outward looking. And what tends to do well and what tends to be adapted into movies are stories where it is much more visual.
[00:21:24] Where it's stories, where it's active, where you've got a main character who is active and they're pursuing stuff and they're going through active steps to try to get what they want. Objectively, not just internally thinking. A lot of times I see these stories where it's characters sitting on their porch and rocking and thinking.
[00:21:43] That doesn't make for a good movie. So you kind of want to think what makes for a good movie and it's always action oriented. Which is another way of saying visual, because I can see it unfold. So if you have a story that you're telling, and you can see it as a movie in your head, then you are already ahead of the game.
[00:22:03] It means that you've got something commercial. And guess what? Audiences in the novel world tend to prefer that as well. We actually like to be able to visualize it ourselves and see what's happening, see it unfold. Again, that's why stories like Jack Reacher tend to do well or all the ones based on Jack Ryan, for example.
[00:22:25] Those tend to do well because we're getting to see things unfold. There's action that manifests itself in visual images. So, you want your story to be visual. Okay, number nine. What is the budget? Now, this is one where most novelists never even think about this because you don't have to worry about the budget in a novel.
[00:22:48] Right? You don't have to worry about it. You want a big chase sequence with helicopters? You can do that in a novel. But guess what? If it's going to be adapted into a screenplay and made into a movie, all of a sudden that got really expensive. My advice is to consider this when you're writing, depending on the genre that you're writing.
[00:23:08] Now, if you're writing an action adventure, and it's truly a great action adventure, then maybe don't worry about that. But if you're writing a thriller, then maybe be cognizant about the budgetary constraints that have to be in place if it gets adapted into a screenplay. It's just something to think about, because That will help you in the long run now that won't necessarily make it any more commercial for your book or less commercial for your audience out there in the book, but it will make it a difference if it's ever going to be considered as an adaptation to a movie.
[00:23:47] Okay, the final thing I want to say in this is I want to ask the question, are you the best one to tell this story? Not every person can tell every story. You might be too close to it, or you might be too unfamiliar with the world, or you might not be good at writing women and yet it calls for a female protagonist at the center.
[00:24:10] So you have to be honest. with yourself. You just have to be honest with yourself. Are you the best one to tell it? But I'll tell you something. If you are passionate about your story, if you truly love your story and you are passionate about what you're telling, then you probably are the right one to tell it.
[00:24:28] But that is a criteria you have to ask yourself. Am I truly passionate about this story? Don't underestimate that because. Passion goes a long way. If you are not in love with your characters, if you are not in love with that world, then how do you ever expect an audience to fall in love with the characters of that world?
[00:24:47] You must be passionate about the world that you're creating. If you are passionate, then you probably are the best one to tell this story. And if you're not, you can get help. This is where you can get help. But that is an important criteria to ask yourself in terms of whether or not you will end up with a commercial product.
[00:25:08] Okay. So these were 10 criteria that you can look at to determine whether or not you are writing a fiction story that has commercial appeal. If you apply the Hollywood criteria to your story, then you've already upped your game and made it more possible to find an audience in the marketplace for your novel.
[00:25:31] And that is what we're looking at. At the end of the day, it's all about finding an audience. For your story and here are some ways to help you do that. Okay. I hope this has been helpful Now, obviously your assignment is to look over your own story and see what areas apply in terms of commerciality. If you don't think you have any of these categories, then maybe you need to rethink your story.
[00:25:57] But if you do have these categories, great! That means you're off to a good start. It doesn't mean you're gonna have a commercial story. It just means you have the ingredients to have one, which ultimately is important in terms of your overall success as a writer.