Confession: I found out about Twilight after one of my best friends told me about it.
She said it was a book about a girl who fell in love with a vampire. She said other things about it, too, but only one thing registered with me: vampires.
I've loved vampires all my life. So of course I bought Twilight. After reading it, I was like, "Wait a sec... Didn't my friend say they were going to make a movie?"
I Googled it. Lo and behold, yep. A movie was in pre-production.
Then Edward Cullen got cast. The movie was filmed, edited, and distributed in theaters worldwide. And this guy...
started living this life:
Which makes me think about something casting directors mention frequently. You see, unless you're really, really, really famous, you have to audition for movie/TV roles. Casting directors are the first line of defense for producers and film directors. They get to see the talent, and pick which actors go to the next round of auditions. Or even better, who gets the part.
One thing they're on the hunt for is the "it" factor.
Same goes for agents and editors. Your manuscript has to have "it" in order to make them offer you either representation or a book deal.
But what is "it"?
Why have vampires been so, so popular throughout the years?
Why did Robert Pattinson beat out a bazillion other dudes for the role of Edward Cullen?
Why do certain books get published, while others don't?
I know my answers to these questions. I know why I buy certain books, and completely ignore others.
Now what about you? What gives a book the "it" factor to you?
And more importantly, did you laugh as hard as I did when you saw that first pic of Robbie P??? :)
4 comments:
I DID. I did laugh. So, so hard. And as a side note, I love how much RPattz hates Twilight.
I read a quote one time where an author said something about how books need to be written so that the writing gets out of the reader's way. That's the 'it' factor for me. When you can read a book and forget that you're reading a book, because the writing is just getting translated into images straight away.
I also laughed.
This is a great post. I've been thinking about the subject and why some books click with me while others don't. Some books seem a chore to read beyond even the first sentence. I know that a book has clicked for me when I looked up and realize I've read two pages of it and was instantly sucked into the world. I feel that way every time I pick up a Melina Marchetta or Markus Zusak book.
I laughed. I couldn't help it :)
The 'it' factor for me is if a book sucks me into its world.
Great post :)
Funny pic, and he still manages to look hot. Nice goin', Rob.
I was just thinking about the "it" factor when it comes to books. There are 5-star books for me that another person would rate 1 star. Somehow words relate to different readers in different ways, which is a great thing about writing. We can tap into different souls.
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