1980 My literary era

A few years ago, Lin Weimin was unknown in the United States and was not qualified to negotiate terms with publishers. At that time, Random House would choose whichever book it wanted.

But things are different now. Lin Weimin's reputation in the United States is getting better and better. Although he is not well-known to everyone, he is at least well-known in the mainstream literary and drama circles in the United States, as well as among many readers and audiences.

With his current popularity, he can negotiate appropriate conditions and publish some of his books here that do not seem to be in line with the American market and readers' tastes.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s a hit or not, as long as more people can understand that period of history.

Lin Weimin made his attitude clear, and Roger Strauss no longer hesitated. Anyway, Lin Weimin's request was not excessive. Just choose one of the three and publish a book.

Moreover, there are no hard requirements for the number of prints. As long as it is not too outrageous, Lin Weimin can accept it. Roger Strauss agreed to Lin Weimin's request.

The two chatted for more than two hours, and the matter was almost settled. Roger Strauss invited Lin Weimin to dinner to celebrate Lin Weimin's first cooperation with FSG Publishing House.

Today's meeting is just the beginning of cooperation. During this period, FSG Publishing House will learn about several of Lin Weimin's works and finally determine the published works. Then there will be a series of procedures such as translation of the works, application for version numbers, binding design, typesetting and printing, etc., all of which are It will take more than a year and a half to finish, and if the translator catches up with the problem, the time may be extended even longer.

After returning home in the evening, Lin Weimin received a call from Qiao Sen.

"Lin, why didn't you tell me when you came to the United States?" As soon as the call was connected, Qiao Sen's complaints rushed into Lin Weimin's ears.

In the past few years, Qiao Sen would mention the book signing almost every time he called him. Over the past few years, Lin Weimin's works have accumulated a large number of loyal readers.

Lin Weimin is the first writer in the history of Random House who has not held a book signing event in the United States despite his works being so popular.

"If I hadn't seen the interview in The New Yorker, I almost would have let you run away!"

Qiao Sen's complaint contained a hint of happiness.

"Qiao Sen, I'm here for my honeymoon this time."

"You promised me!" Qiao Sen said resentfully.

Lin Weimin knew that he was in the wrong, and under Qiao Sen's pleading, he finally agreed to go to Random House headquarters tomorrow for a detailed discussion.

The next day, Lin Weimin came to Random House's New York headquarters at Qiao Sen's invitation.

The Random House Building, also known as the Empire Park Apartments, is located on Broadway. It is the headquarters of Random House and an upscale residential building.

The apartment and Random House have separate entrances. The entrance to the apartment is on 56th Street, while the entrance to Random House is on Broadway. Lin Weimin saw Qiao Sen when he came to the door of the building.

Qiao Sen enthusiastically pulled Lin Weimin into the elevator. Random House's office was on the 27th floor. He took Lin Weimin around and met with several senior executives of Random House, and then went to the conference room to chat. Lin Weimin’s activity arrangements during this period.

Lin Weimin came to New York for more than a month without contacting Qiao Sen. He still found out about Lin Weimin's coming to New York from the report in The New Yorker, and he naturally complained about Lin Weimin in his heart.

But complaining is all about complaining. Qiao Sen has not been idle since he contacted Lin Weimin last night. He finally got Lin Weimin to come to New York. He must be fully booked for interviews, speeches, and book signings to make up for Lin Weimin's recent days. years of slacking off in publicity work.

Lin Weimin looked at the itinerary that Qiao Sen pulled out for him. If he followed this intensity, he would not be able to take any time off for at least a month.

"Too much! Too much!"

Lin Weimin grabbed the pen from Qiao Sen's hand and scratched it out on the itinerary. Qiao Sen took it and took a look and broke his bones.

Qiao Sen said anxiously: "Lin, there are too few. You haven't participated in an event since publishing your works in the United States. How can these few events be enough?"

Lin Weimin waved his hand, "It's not to build up momentum for winning awards. There's no need to do so many activities. Besides, I came to the United States for my honeymoon, not for work."

Seeing Lin Weimin's tough attitude, Qiao Sen couldn't help feeling regretful, "Okay, let's do this for now. Next time you come to the United States, give me a little more time and be sure to tell me in advance!"

Seeing Qiao Sen's expression of deep sorrow and resentment, Lin Weimin nodded helplessly.

Then he remembered his cooperation with Roger Strauss, and he had to talk to Jolson about it both emotionally and rationally.

When Lin Weimin told Qiao Sen that he was going to cooperate with FSG Publishing House, he was immediately shocked.

"Lin, are you dissatisfied with your cooperation with our publishing house?"

"Well... I can't say I'm dissatisfied. The main thing is that Mr. Strauss is willing to publish some of my works that have not been published in the United States."

Qiao Sen instantly understood the reason why Lin Weimin agreed to cooperate with FSG Publishing House. This was indeed an offer that was difficult to refuse.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel regretful.

Random House should have signed an exclusive cooperation agreement with Lin Weimin at the beginning. Fortunately, FSG Publishing House suddenly appeared. Although it is only publishing a few works selected by Random House now, there is a cooperation like this. Once there is a second time.

Who knows when they will pull Lin Weimin to their side, and by then, Random House will suffer huge losses!

While Qiao Sen was regretful, he couldn't help but curse the senior management who made the decision when he signed the agreement with Lin Weimin.

When Random House wanted to publish Lin Weimin's works on a large scale, it had the opportunity to obtain the exclusive publishing rights for all Lin Weimin's works, including subsequent works.

Everything has pros and cons. If such an agreement is signed, the price paid is to publish all the works that Lin Weimin has created.

However, after deliberation by Random House, it was felt that several of Lin Weimin's works lacked appeal to the American public and were basically a loss, so the contract was immediately revised.

A few years ago, there was nothing wrong with this idea.

Lin Weimin is just a little-known Chinese writer in the United States. It is almost impossible for his works to enter the American market except through Random House. Random House is in the absolute advantage of the cooperation between the two parties, so there is no need to worry.

But no one expected that the cooperation between the two parties would turn offensive and defensive in just a few years.

When Lin Weimin won the Goncourt Literary Prize, Qiao Sen considered whether to renegotiate an exclusive publishing agreement with Lin Weimin, but this proposal was rejected by the senior management again.

The reason why the proposal was rejected is also very simple. If you want to sign such an exclusive publishing agreement halfway, you must pay Lin Weimin a fee. Considering the popularity of Lin Weimin's works in the United States, this fee will not be a small amount. The company is afraid that Lin Weimin will The lion opened his mouth wide.

Instead of doing this, it is better to wait for the publishing contract that is being performed to expire, change the contract content when it is re-signed, and give Lin Weimin a little sweetness. This way, letting nature take its course may cost a lot less.

Qiao Sen smiled bitterly in his heart. The company's idea could not be said to be wrong, but the premise was that no other publishing house would pursue Lin Weimin. The disadvantages of large companies' rigidity and pride were clearly reflected in the cooperation between Random House and Lin Weimin.

Facing the current situation, Qiao Sen had no other choice but to smile bitterly.

The best thing to do now is to immediately give Lin Weimin a sum of money and then sign an exclusive publishing agreement with him.

But Qiao Sen knew that his idea was almost impossible to realize. If he had to sign the agreement that he had not signed at the beginning, the price he would have to pay would only be greater than before.

This also means that the original decision made by the senior management was wrong. Qiao Sen has been in the workplace for so many years and understands that if this happens, he may be the first to become the scapegoat.

Therefore, he wisely chose to remain silent.

Qiao Sen is more concerned about the renewal of the contracts for Lin Weimin's works. According to the current trend, at least two or three of Lin Weimin's novels can continue to sell well. As long as he can hold on to the contracts of these novels, his work performance will be great. Will not be erased.

Faced with Qiao Sen's question, Lin Weimin said easily: "Under the same conditions, your publishing house will of course be the first choice."

Hearing Lin Weimin's words, Qiao Sen felt a little at ease. The previous contract was signed in this way, but hearing such words from Lin Weimin still made him feel at ease.

It takes a certain amount of time for Random House to prepare various activities. Lin Weimin waited for a few days, but instead of waiting for Random House's event arrangements, he received a call from Roger Strauss.

Roger Strauss sounded a little excited on the phone, "Lin, I want to give you a meeting gift this time!"

The news that excited Roger Strauss also aroused Lin Weimin's curiosity.

“I’ve arranged an interview with a writer from The Paris Review for you!”

"The Paris Review, I have read their publications." Lin Weimin said.

After Roger Strauss told the news, seeing Lin Weimin's normal tone, he couldn't help but remind him: "Lin, you must pay attention to this interview. You don't understand the weight of this long interview in the American literary world." !”

"The Paris Review" has the word "Paris" in its name, but it is actually an American literary quarterly. It was born in 1953. The works published are mainly novels and poetry. The publications are mainly divided into art, culture, interviews and literature. There are several sections, among which the "Writer Interviews" section is the most popular among readers, and it is also the biggest feature of "The Paris Review" standing in the American literary world.

Since the first issue of E.M. Forster in 1953, "The Paris Review" has invited a contemporary writer to conduct a long interview in every issue. Over the past thirty years, more than 140 long interviews have been published, covering the 20th century. Almost all the most important writers in the world literary world in the middle and late decades.

There are many writers that Chinese people are familiar with, such as Hemingway, Milan Kundera, Marquez, Haruki Murakami, Stephen King...

The decades-old "writer interviews" are almost synonymous with the publication "The Paris Review".

After giving Lin Weimin some popular science, Roger Strauss concluded: "Lin, this interview represents the recognition of your literary status by the mainstream literary circles in the United States!"

Roger Strauss was not too cautious. The interview with the writer of "The Paris Review" seemed to be an ordinary interview, but it contained a very special meaning.

In later generations of the Chinese entertainment industry, there was a way to create stars called raising stars, and people from the Bay Island were the most skilled at it.

If they want to support a newcomer who has no reputation or works, they will choose to invest in a big production, and then find a bunch of well-known stars to play supporting roles for the newcomer.

When the work is released, the audience will see that so many big names are in supporting roles, and they will subconsciously regard the new protagonist as a big star.

In this way, it only takes a few years and a few works to turn an unknown newcomer into a popular star.

The interview style of writers in "Paris Review" will naturally not be so low, and they will not take the initiative to do this kind of thing. However, if Lin Weimin can be featured in "Paris Review", the effect he will receive is indeed similar to that of "promoting celebrities" wonderful.