Dream Wired
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Celebrity
  • DramaAlert
  • Gossip
  • Movie
  • TV
  • Music
  • Comics
  • Shop
  • Home
  • Celebrity
  • DramaAlert
  • Gossip
  • Movie
  • TV
  • Music
  • Comics
  • Shop
No Result
View All Result
Dream Wired
No Result
View All Result
Home Celebrity

How to make a celebrity memoir a bestseller

rmtsa by rmtsa
October 25, 2023
in Celebrity
0
How to make a celebrity memoir a bestseller
74
SHARES
1.2k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter


You might also like

Marcus Samuelsson Gave McDonald’s Snack Wraps A Spicy Glow-Up

Family Abused & Caged 9 Children In Home

Ray J Addresses Whitney Houston ‘Murderer’ Rumors

New books this month from the likes of Jada Pinkett Smith, Britney Spears, John Stamos and Jeopardy! champion Amy Schneider have made the headlines, often more than once, and not always for happy reasons. Pinkett Smith, for instance, disclosed in her book that she and her superstar husband, Will, have been separated since 2016. Spears revealed, among other things, that she had an abortion while dating Justin Timberlake. Meanwhile Full House alum Stamos recalled catching an ex in bed with Tony Danza, of all people, and Schneider wrote about struggling with her body image before she completed her gender transition. All of this was published before fans had even had time to buy and read the books.

So does this help sales or maybe even hurt them, since people no longer have to buy the books for the juicy stories?

Carrie Thornton, who’s vice president and publisher of Dey Street Books, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers, says it’s the former. And she should know. In the last few years, Dey Street has published memoirs from celebs including Gabrielle Union, Paris Hilton, Pamela Anderson and Jessica Simpson. They’re also behind Pinkett Smith’s book, which Thornton edited.

As Thornton tells it, publishers do sometimes consider the potential for over-saturation. They plot the release of excerpts or audio clips and other publicity carefully, especially when it comes to the very first stories that come out about an upcoming book. They want that to “set the tone” as well as they can, she says.

“But publicity is publicity,” Thornton says. “And when your book penetrates culture and the zeitgeist, that’s a really huge success in a lot of ways… It’s a very noisy world, and it’s great when a book really becomes something that everybody’s talking about. It always feels good.”

“Publicity is publicity, and when your book penetrates culture and the zeitgeist, that’s a really huge success in a lot of ways

Madeleine Morel, whose agency 2M Communications Ltd. represents ghostwriters who collaborate with celebrity authors, cites Prince Harry’s book, Spare, that was released to much fanfare in January. It sold 3.2 million copies worldwide in its very first week, despite blanket coverage of what was in it.

“For the right celebrity,” she says, “people are always interested in reading more.”

Copies of Prince Harry’s Spare are displayed in the Waterstones bookstore on Piccadilly Jan. 16, 2023 in London, England. The royal tell-tale memoir became the fastest-selling non-fiction title in U.K. publishing history with 400,000 hardback copies selling on its first day. (Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images)

It helps too if a book is well written, because it could net positive press. Morel cites memoirs from Viola Davis, who released Finding Me last year, and the late Cicely Tyson, author of 2021’s Just As I Am, as examples of books that received rave reviews.

Not every celebrity memoir is a hit, though. Both Morel and Thornton say that having a celebrity who’s going to work with a publisher to promote a book but who also creates something worth promoting at all, is key.

The 2023 celebrity memoir

Thornton says authors have to be willing to expand beyond what someone can find on Instagram.

“What was a celebrity memoir 20 years ago, 15 years ago, is very from what a celebrity memoir has to be today, because of social media and because of the accessibility that the public has to celebrities,” Thornton says. “There’s just so much more available. Celebrities are very much at our fingertips. We feel like we know them.”

As the host of Red Table Talk, her former show that tackled subjects including race, sex and addiction, Pinkett Smith has experience with this.

Jada Pinkett Smith poses for a portrait to promote her new memoir

Jada Pinkett Smith poses for a portrait to promote her new memoir Worthy on Monday, Oct. 16, 2023, in New York. (Taylor Jewell/Invision/AP)

“She is a deeply spiritual person who’s read extensively and has studied extensively and she’s had this long journey through her life… she’s really given it a lot of thought,” Thornton says. “So she wanted to give back, especially to her female readers.”

When asked about the process of working with Pinkett Smith, Thornton says, “It’s sort of like, well, you’re gonna take this leap and do this. You might as well do it for real.”

The Jessica Simpson example

As Thornton sees it, it all starts with a story that’s relatable to readers and compelling enough that it would work without fame. Then comes the book clubs and fairs and conferences.

“We need to know that when we send somebody out, that they’re really gonna be our partners in the promotion of their book,” Thornton says. “And more and more that means not just the traditional five days of publicity. That means a really long partnership that begins with acquisition that goes for months and months after. If the book is something that they’re incredibly proud of and we’re all partners together, then we can have a really long and successful and fruitful situation where the book is something that they’re promoting for a very long time because it’s changed the public’s perception of them. And that’s a great thing to happen.”

FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE - FEBRUARY 14: Jessica Simpson celebrates #1 New York Times best-selling memoir,

Jessica Simpson celebrates Open Book at Dillard’s CoolSprings on Feb. 14, 2020 in Franklin, Tenn. (John Shearer/Getty Images for Jessica Simpson Collection)

She points to Simpson’s 2021 read, Open Book, in which she addresses public criticism of her body and her failed marriage to former boy bander Nick Lachey.

“She was someone who really was just regarded as like a C-level, blond pop star from the ’90s who had taken this turn into branding and clothing,” Thornton says. “And the book, I think, really repositioned her as someone who is a mogul, a business person who had a really deeply difficult struggle in her journey.”

Simpson’s candidness paid off when her book became a New York Times bestseller.

Thornton says her goal with all celebrity memoirs is to make it much more than a headline, but a beloved book that truly moves people.



Source link

Tags: BestsellerCelebrityMemoir
Share30Tweet19
rmtsa

rmtsa

Recommended For You

Marcus Samuelsson Gave McDonald’s Snack Wraps A Spicy Glow-Up

by rmtsa
July 30, 2025
0
Marcus Samuelsson Gave McDonald’s Snack Wraps A Spicy Glow-Up

Chef Marcus Samuelsson is working with McDonald’s to reinvent the relaunched snack wrap. The celebrated culinary mind and restaurateur hosted a lively demo at Brooklyn’s Duggal House on...

Read more

Family Abused & Caged 9 Children In Home

by rmtsa
July 30, 2025
0
Family Abused & Caged 9 Children In Home

Four members of a Florida family, Brian and Jill Griffeth, Dallin Griffeth, and Liberty Griffeth, have been arrested and charged after allegedly abusing and caging nine foster and...

Read more

Ray J Addresses Whitney Houston ‘Murderer’ Rumors

by rmtsa
July 30, 2025
0
Ray J Addresses Whitney Houston ‘Murderer’ Rumors

Source: Denise Truscello / Getty In what Ray J called his “last interview,” he set the record straight on his relationship with Whitney Houston and rumors that he “murdered” her. “We were...

Read more

LaTorria Lemon Talks OWN’s ‘Heart & Hustle Houston’

by rmtsa
July 30, 2025
0
LaTorria Lemon Talks OWN’s ‘Heart & Hustle Houston’

Powerhouse publicist La’Torria Lemon has long ruled the room behind the scenes; now she’s stepping front and center to shine (Lemon-Lime Light) bright on OWN’s Heart & Hustle: Houston....

Read more

No New Music: Frank Ocean Just Opened An NYC Storefront For His Jewelry Brand, Homer – Essence

by rmtsa
July 29, 2025
0
No New Music: Frank Ocean Just Opened An NYC Storefront For His Jewelry Brand, Homer – Essence

Homer World-renowned musician Frank Ocean has officially opened a New York City storefront for his jewelry brand Homer. First launching in 2021, fans were excited to see what...

Read more
Next Post
Stockton City Manager Under Fire For Abusing Authority — Allegedly Used Former Police Chief To Target Hispanic Business Owners

Stockton City Manager Under Fire For Abusing Authority — Allegedly Used Former Police Chief To Target Hispanic Business Owners

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Browse by Category

  • Celebrity
  • Comics
  • DramaAlert
  • Gossip
  • Movie
  • Music
  • TV
  • Uncategorized

CATEGORIES

  • Celebrity
  • Comics
  • DramaAlert
  • Gossip
  • Movie
  • Music
  • TV
  • Uncategorized
No Result
View All Result

Recent News

  • ‘Social Network 2’ Eyes Mikey Madison And Jeremy Allen White To Star
  • Cardi B’s Stripper Days Off-Limits at Security Guard Assault Trial
  • How Much Money She Has Today – Hollywood Life

Copyright © 2023 DramaWired.
DramaWired is a content aggregator and not responsible for the content of external sites.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Celebrity
  • DramaAlert
  • Gossip
  • Movie
  • TV
  • Music
  • Comics
  • Shop

Copyright © 2023 DramaWired.
DramaWired is a content aggregator and not responsible for the content of external sites.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In