How Gal Gadot Made Me Look Smart (I know…), Author Blurbs, and Making it Official

Gal Gadot as Wonderwoman

Friends & Readers:

I’m taking a different approach this month -- filling everyone in on some interesting publishing & entertainment updates as we’re only a few months away from publication. 

Don’t forget -- To Catch a Spy is now available for preorder! You can get it by clicking on one of these links: Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon.

Gal Gadot Made Me Look Visionary

I recently posted on LinkedIn about news I became aware of a while ago, when I was writing my sequel to To Catch a Thief. 

I was just about done with my book. To my surprise, I discovered an article saying Gal Gadot had obtained the rights to remake To Catch a Thief, the Oscar-winning film by Alfred Hitchcock. By the way, that film was based on David Dodge’s book, to which I currently have the rights to create sequels.

At first, I saw this as a threat. Gal Gadot is the #1 actress in the world, and she secured the rights to that awesome story. I felt exposed. I didn’t have a contract with an agent, although I’d been negotiating with one for a few months. Would that agent take me on with this news? Or would they try an end-around and move the property to another author? To Catch a Thief was incredibly valuable with Ms. Gadot involved; who knew what would happen? 

Once I settled down, I saw this as an opportunity, one that I was uniquely positioned to capitalize on. Here’s why:

• It’s a remake, and I’ve written the sequel. Those are two separate works that are complementary, not competitive

• The remake will introduce a whole new generation to the story

• My book was a logical -- and marketable -- extension of the original story, and I was nearly done

• Should Ms. Gadot make the film, she might be in the market for the sequel, and I happen to have one

A wonderful mentor of mine at Pfizer always said, ‘There’s no good news or bad news. There’s only news.’ It’s a great principle; it ensures ALL news makes its way to leadership. Within hours, I reached out to the agent, and my instincts proved correct -- she also saw it as an opportunity! In fact, the announcement did nothing to deter her; just the opposite, and my contract came shortly thereafter.

Being Hollywood, there’s no guarantee that any remake will be produced. However, Ms. Gadot’s interest in the story made me look visionary, which was no small feat. 

I’ll always be grateful to her for that, and if I can ever repay her by sharing an amazing sequel, well…

Author Blurbs

One custom I’ve become aware of in publishing is the concept of ‘author blurbs.’ 

What is a blurb? It’s an endorsement of your book by another author, and depending on that author, they can be very powerful. It’s also a long-standing demonstration of support in the writing community. 

But here’s the problem -- as a debut author, you don’t know many other authors. And to compound that, the blurb should be from an author who is well-established, if not famous. Also, they should write in the same genre as you. As far as securing them, you’re often on your own. 

Think about that for a moment. It’s an awful feeling having to reach out to authors and ask them to read -- and review -- your book, which isn’t published. To make it even worse, you can’t give them a lot of advanced notice; timelines are tight!

So where do you start? On your knees praying is a good choice. Fortunately for me, I’ve gotten to know a couple of authors on social media, and a few of them offered to do this for me. 

So far, I have three authors who have provided me with blurbs. The first is I.S. Berry, who wrote The Peacock and the Sparrow, which was the best spy novel I’ve read in years. She’s a hugely talented force of nature, and here’s what she had to say…

My second blurb came from an author who is so interesting and intriguing to me -- Lorna Hunting, author of the Shackleton series, among other fine works. Here’s what she had to say:

I enjoyed this book tremendously. After a breath-holding opening the reader’s attention is held throughout…I’ve no doubts it could/will make a great thriller movie. As well as action – of which there is plenty – there is also humour…Mark Oneill has landed well and truly on his feet!

Then I got another one. In the ranking of authors, I’ve been told that J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter) is number one, followed by Harlan Coben, then James Patterson and Stephen King. These people are untouchable; they are asked to provide blurbs thousands of times each year, and they might do it for a select few. 

As luck would have it, one of my brothers knows Harlan Coben, and he told Harlan about my book. Harlan was intrigued and offered to read it. Remember how busy he is (he’s transcended publishing, as we know) and he only had three weeks to do it. 

To my absolute astonishment, he did…

Gotta love it

I did mention to him that if there’s ever anything I can do, I’d be happy to. But seriously, what can I do for him? Wash and wax his car, mow his lawn? But my point is I’m grateful beyond words, and I wanted him to know.

I’m hoping for a few more blurbs from authors I really respect; as they come in, I’ll share. 

BTW, I’ve put them on my website…go to the Reviews page.

Trade Announcement

It’s official! My book deal was announced on Publishers Marketplace. 

It’s really happening

That’s actually a big deal (pun intended); not every book agreement gets announced. Also, the entire publishing world sees this, and many entertainment folks monitor the site.

To me, it represents a badge of accomplishment, a validation. I spent years writing the book, and to see it announced amongst industry insiders and professionals felt fantastic. 

And confidentially, it also meant that no one could renege on their contract! I know that’s not true, but that’s how it felt to me. There’s no going back now.

Less than 3 months to go!