The Making of a Bestseller: From Author to Reader

by Arthur T. Vanderbilt II

Writer F. Scott Fitzgeralds career itself is a metaphor for the vagaries of book publishing. If Fitzgerald would have had his way, we would today refer to The Great Gatsby as either Gold-Hatted Gatsby, Trimalchio in West Egg, or The High-Bouncing Lover. A few years before Gatsby, Fitzgerald had become a literary sensation at the age of 23; Helen Hooven Santmyer, a contemporary of Fitzgeralds, would not have a successful novel published until she was 88 and living in a nursing home. In this book, the author explores that mysterious place in publishing where art and commerce can either clash, mesh, or both. Along the way, a wide range of authors--from the literary greats to todays commercial superstars--editors, agents and publishers share their thoughts, insights and experiences: What inspires writers? (John Steinbeck, for example, wrote every novel as if it were his last, as if death were imminent.) Why are some books successful and appreciated, while others fall into oblivion? The answers are often elusive, never absolute, but the stories and anecdotes are always fascinating.

Paperback

First published April 1, 1999

About the author

Attorney, author, avid gardener, Arthur T. Vanderbilt II served as deputy attorney general of New Jersey and is now a partner in a New Jersey law firm.

Reviews

[Taisha Rucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every writer should read this. I keep looking at the publishing date and thinking how incredibly relevant it still is today.

There are moments that made me laugh out loud. The fact that I share doubts about my writing equal to that of F. Scott Fitzgerald or Ernest Hemingway is both amazing and comforting.

More importantly, this book covers the writing, reviews, advertising and provides overall astute insight regarding the business of books. As an avid reader-and we are not many according to statistics-this behind the scenes, in-depth look at the book business is fascinating.