1980 My literary era

The premiere date of "The Kite Runner" was determined when Lin Weimin was still in the United States.

There is something different about Arthur Miller's drama production. He never believes that the more rehearsals in a drama, the better, because he believes that it will consume too much the passion and creative desire of the actors.

Compared to "The Intouchables"'s rocky start on Broadway, "The Kite Runner" was much luckier.

This is not only due to the addition of the previous play "Untouchable" produced by Arthur Miller, but also the excellence of "The Kite Runner" itself and the help of investors.

In the first week of the performance, there were eight performances in a row and all the venues were sold out. This result was beyond everyone's expectation.

exploded!

On Broadway, musicals are always the mainstream, while dramas can only be regarded as the younger brother.

Hundreds of musicals and plays are staged every year, and the probability of success is actually about the same.

But in recent years, a hit musical can generate far more box office than a play, which can easily reach hundreds of millions. Not to mention in terms of influence, the musical has completely surpassed the drama.

Nowadays, the enthusiastic response and welcome caused by "The Kite Runner" upon its release is very much like the golden age of Broadway dramas from the 1930s and 1940s to the 1950s and 1960s in the first half of this century.

"The Kite Runner" has become one of the most talked-about topics on Broadway in a short period of time. Everyone talks about the success of this play and Arthur Miller's Midas touch. Naturally, they also talk about it. The original screenwriter of this drama is Lin Weimin.

At the beginning of the performance of "The Intouchables", Lin Weimin was an unknown person on Broadway. After the success of "The Intouchables", Lin Weimin's name began to be circulated on Broadway in a small area, and many people knew that there was such a successful work by a screenwriter from the East.

But that's all. Broadway is not only an art destination, but also a fame fair.

There are so many faces that appear here every year, and many of them are talented and gifted people. Becoming famous in one play has never been a myth on Broadway, but behind the success of one play, few people can be successful in the rest of their careers. Broadway takes hold.

The biggest difference between Lin Weimin and those people is that his two works have been on Broadway consecutively, and both have been successful.

Such a talented screenwriter, no one can ignore him.

——

Lin Weimin put down the newspaper. He could not be more satisfied with the results of "The Kite Runner" on Broadway. It was not in vain that he went all the way to the United States to work on the script.

Nearly a month has passed since the premiere of "The Kite Runner". Arthur Miller's letter and package were sent a week after the performance, and they just arrived in Lin Weimin's hands today.

The newspapers and magazines in the package were carefully collected by Arthur Miller, and every newspaper and magazine spoke highly of "The Kite Runner".

Lin Weimin opened Arthur Miller's letter again, the content was not long.

In addition to saying hello and Lin Weimin's explanation of delivering tickets before leaving, Arthur Miller focused on the popularity and effects of "The Kite Runner".

That was something even "The Intouchables" couldn't match at its peak.

Arthur Miller said that since the performance, various media outlets have issued invitations to interview him. As for Lin Weimin, the screenwriter of the original work, the media’s interview invitations came even more enthusiastically.

Many media outlets heard that Lin Weimin had returned to China after writing the script.

But this group of people did not give up, and they were very excited to catch Arthur Miller, an old fat sheep.

He introduced "The Intouchables" and "The Kite Runner" to Broadway. Naturally, everyone is curious about the cooperative relationship between him and Lin Weimin.

According to Lao Mitou, he has been interviewed by at least twenty media outlets in the past few days during the performance, including three exclusive interviews. A large part of the interviews were about issues related to Lin Weimin.

Lin Weimin could see that the old man was very proud in the letter.

At his current age, he has no shortage of fame and fortune, but the exhaustion of creative thinking is a thing that causes him more pain than death.

The successive introductions of "The Intouchables" and "The Kite Runner" were successful, and they were introduced from distant countries like China. In a way, it satisfied Mr. Mi's inner sense of accomplishment.

Lin Weimin will definitely not be able to see the interview Lao Mi received this time. With Lao Mi’s urine, there will definitely be one in the package next time.

I packed everything in the package and put it in my bag, ready to get off work.

The car drove back to the Shichahai courtyard. Not long after entering the courtyard, Yin Geli came carrying vegetables.

The family is having a dinner tonight, and Yin Geli is the chef. After a year of marriage, her cooking skills have made extraordinary progress, and she can cook Chinese food with style.

Han Dingbang had just completed the retirement procedures in September, so he took advantage of the good weather in Yanjing to come here to stay for a while.

Han Zhuangzhuang is currently filming on the set of "Red Sorghum" and can't spare time for a while.

The two men discussed that they would go back to Shanghai to tidy up the house after the Chinese New Year. Those who could be brought to Yanjing would be brought over, and those who could not be brought to Yanjing would be given away.

Because the house is allocated by the public, it is difficult to sell it right now, so we can only put it there first.

During this period, Han Zhuangzhuang was not in Yanjing. Han Dingbang did not live in Qizuo Hutong, but lived with Lin Weimin to avoid suspicion.

Dishes were served one after another, and after Yin Geli was ready, the three of them sat down at the dining table.

Lin Weimin poured a glass of wine for Han Dingbang, "It's a pity that Zhuangzhuang is not here today."

"At this age, he is busy with his career!" Han Dingbang said, and then said with emotion: "Thanks to you!"

"Brother-in-law, why are you talking about this?"

Han Dingbang's face was complicated, with a hint of reminiscence in his eyes, "Zhuangzhuang, this kid has been incompetent since he was a child. Ten years ago, how could I have dared to think that my son, Han Dingbang, could still play the leading actor in a movie!"

"Zhuangzhuang is suitable for this role. He has been practicing on the Spring Festival Gala stage and in human arts for several years, and has also acted in TV series. Now it is not unusual to play the leading actor in a movie."

Han Dingbang laughed, "This boy has a good uncle!"

"Let's not talk about this anymore." Lin Weimin waved his hand, took two bites of food, and asked Yin Geli how her part-time job was going.

Before Qiao Sen came to China to sign a publishing contract with Lin Weimin, he mentioned by the way that he wanted to introduce some works of domestic writers to the United States. Lin Weimin recommended a number of them to him.

Lin Weimin also found a part-time job for his nephew-in-law Yin Geli as a translator.

"Random House has very high requirements. I have translated the synopses and background introductions of dozens of novels for them, but they have not yet decided on a work to publish."

Lin Weimin nodded slightly, "Normal. It is difficult for the works of domestic writers to meet the appetite of Laomi readers. I think they also have speculative purposes."

Yin Geli couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, why are your novels selling so well in the United States?"

I'm different, I have a problem!

Lin Weimin must not say what he is saying to others, "My works shouldn't be particularly popular, right?"

"You can't compare with the most popular works." Yin Geli said.

"That's right. If you go by your standards, it should be considered popular. I think this is probably related to each author's creative ideas and concepts."

“I don’t know about other authors, but when I create, the first thing I consider is not the meaning or thought, but the reader’s feelings.

But now many domestic authors have different creative thinking. They first set themselves an "ambitious goal" before creating. This cannot be said to be wrong, but overall it will affect the interest and readability of the story. .

What’s more, writing techniques are outdated. Many people’s creative experience does not accumulate as they grow older. On the contrary, they are constantly consuming and repeating themselves. Works written in this way may be popular now, but they are destined to be eliminated after a few years.

Finally, there is another point, which may be due to the mixed elements in some of my works, such as the oriental opera and cross-gender emotions in "Farewell My Concubine", such as the narrative trap and murder elements in "The Murderer".

Each reason cannot be singled out, it should be the effect of superimposition. "

What Lin Weimin said was very pertinent. Yin Geli nodded after listening, and then said: "The avant-garde novels you mentioned like "Chasing the Murderer", Random House is indeed somewhat interested in novels of this style. Qiao Sen also said that this It is a rare novelty among the many works I have translated. Unfortunately, many of those works are short and medium-length works."

Short and medium-length works mean that they can only be published in collections. In this way, it is almost difficult to build a writer's brand image. It is extremely difficult to launch another writer like Lin Weimin.

"Haha, it's good to be published. Although art has no country, readers all have nationalities.

Works that can truly be marketed in various countries are all classics among classics.

If you publish the collection together, you can at least make some money! "

After Lin Weimin finished speaking, he asked Yin Geli: "Have you paid all the fees at Random House?"

Yin Geli nodded, "Random House pays per book and is settled every month. So far, it has paid me two thousand dollars."

Yin Geli translated the story summary and background introduction of a novel for Qiao Sen, and the fee was one hundred meters.

Of course, it is impossible to place this price in the United States, even in Austria, Yin Geli's hometown, but who told Yin Geli to be in China now.

This price was given for Lin Weimin's sake. After all, the translation Qiao Sen wanted was not at the publishing level, and it was not difficult to find translators at Yanjing University.

Yin Geli was also very satisfied with this. When she married Han Zhuangzhuang, she never considered the issue of money, and the two of them never lacked money in Yanjing.

But it's certainly good to make some extra money. Her plan is to go back to her hometown every two years, which costs a lot of money each time.

A dinner, chatting while eating, not too lively, but warm and comfortable.

After dinner, Lin Weimin drove Yin Geli back to Qizuo Hutong.