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Yukon 
"Co-editor of FWFR book"
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 Posted - 09/27/2008 : 19:36:01
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At first Benj and I were keeping our plans quiet but we've decided to open it up to the FWFR community.
Benji and I are putting together a FWFR book and I'm currently writing a book proposal to be sent to publishers. It will be a collection of 2,000 reviews.
Let's start off by saying don't get too excited.
It's still a longshot that this will be picked up by Random House, DoubleDay, etc...
I've been reading books on how to get published and it says most publishers get 1,000 proposals a year and they produce 30 to 50 books. And it can take two or three years before anything happens.
But basically after years of Benj being told "You should make this a book", the two of us are making a serious effort to do it.
So if anyone out there in the FWFR community has a cousin, next door neighbour or friend in the publishing industry or who is a book agent, show them this website and let them know a novel is in the works and they can contact Benj if interested.
In the meantime, Benj and I would like ask everyone for their help in coming up with a title.
Here's a few we brainstormed. Look at the titles and read them in the mindset of somebody in a bookstore aisle who has never heard of FWFR.com. Would this title get your attention and make you pick up the book?
Feel free to tell us which one you think is the worst/best. And if you can think of anything better, please suggest your own title.
1) Four Word Film Reviews: Amusing movie summaries and critiques, all in four words or less
2) Four Word Film Reviews: Movie critiques and summaries that are short on words but big on laughs
3) Four Word Film Reviews: The world's quickest and funniest movie guide
4) Four Word Film Reviews: The hilarious absolute nadir of movie criticism
5) Four Word Film Reviews: Amusingly pithy summaries of all your favourite movies
6) Four Word Film Reviews: Hundreds of your favourite movies as they should have been pitched
7) Four Word Film Reviews: Funny, smart and semi-tasteless movie critiques all in four words or less
8) Four Word Film Reviews: The ultimate movie guide for people with short attention spans |
Edited by - Yukon on 09/28/2008 13:28:31 |
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BaftaBaby 
"Always entranced by cinema."
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 13:40:01
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Great idea! I like #8 
uhm -- you don't really mean "novel" do you? 
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ChocolateLady
"500 Chocolate Delights"
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 13:48:23
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I'm with Bafta - sounds great to me.
And if that Paperclip guy can get his adventures published as a book, then why can't this be a book as well?
(That book was published by Three Rivers Press in the USA and Ebury Press in the UK so I'd approach these guys first - they're open to the strange and unusual.)
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Whippersnapper. 
"A fourword thinking guy."
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 14:41:06
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quote:
Originally posted by BaftaBabe
Great idea! I like #8
Sorry, what was #8 again?
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BaftaBaby
"Always entranced by cinema."
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 14:43:24
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quote:
Originally posted by Whippersnapper
quote:
Originally posted by BaftaBabe
Great idea! I like #8
Sorry, what was #8 again?
Clearly this book is for you 
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Demisemicenturian
"Four ever European"
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 14:46:37
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This has come up lots of times before and I had previously offered to help Benj with it, since I have got all of the requisite publishing skills. I had also put him in touch with one of the most likely publishers.
As I've said before, it would make more sense to self-publish, not in the sense of a vanity press but properly self-publish. It's easy to do everything oneself up to printing if one has the skills, and it's easy to send a book to a printer. The single advantage of going through an established publisher is distribution. However, I would say that that is outweighed by the much lower return and the fact that getting accepted by a publisher in the first place is quite unlikely. |
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Demisemicenturian
"Four ever European"
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 14:58:38
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None of the subtitles is especially grabbing, but you can immediately get rid of any including the word 'favourite' or anything else that varies between British and American English.
That leads onto the issue of what spellings will be used inside. It would be too weird to have them varying like they do here.
And the primary issue to deal with is whose reviews to use. There is a disclaimer here that reviews can be used in any way, but you'll have to check that this is legally binding. Even if it is, it's customary to check with originators all the same. |
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Yukon
"Co-editor of FWFR book"
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 17:44:38
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quote:
Originally posted by Salopian
None of the subtitles is especially grabbing, but you can immediately get rid of any including the word 'favourite' or anything else that varies between British and American English.
That leads onto the issue of what spellings will be used inside. It would be too weird to have them varying like they do here.
And the primary issue to deal with is whose reviews to use. There is a disclaimer here that reviews can be used in any way, but you'll have to check that this is legally binding. Even if it is, it's customary to check with originators all the same.
We're using U.S. spellings first because I'm going to be approaching U.S. publishers first. But it can easily be changed if we approach and British publisher.
Why North America? The market is much bigger, so if we ever do get a publisher, it would be more money.
Also, my newspaper background and journalism contacts allows me to easily promote the book in North America. If you can tell a publisher they are going to get lots of publicity without having to spend a penny, it makes it more likely they'll publish it.
Unfortunately, I don't know any British newspaper reporters or broadcasters.
It doesn't mean we won't approach a British publisher, I just think it's more likely we'd be published in North America.
In fact, if any British publisher is reading this right now and is interested, we'll drop everything and send them a book proposal. Benj and I want a publisher and don't care where the are from.
Thought about self-publsihing and I decided if we can't get a publisher interested over the next two or three years, I'll just pay for a small run of books myself and sell it through the FWFR website. |
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demonic
"Cinemaniac"
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 23:16:19
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I'm all for it. Would be a shame about the Americanisation of words given many of the movies reviewed in the book are going to be British, (and also that the genesis of the site is British not American) - in that instance it wouldn't be entirely wrong to leave them alone.
And I'd vote for #3.  |
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Airbolt 
"teil mann, teil maschine"
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Posted - 09/28/2008 : 23:49:38
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Could we pitch a four pun ? Like " Get four-warned about the movies!" or " Four-play in the Movies" ?
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Yukon
"Co-editor of FWFR book"
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Posted - 09/29/2008 : 02:23:45
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quote:
Originally posted by AIRBOLT
Could we pitch a four pun ? Like " Get four-warned about the movies!" or " Four-play in the Movies" ?
We're going to do joke chapter titles, (The book is divided by movie genre: Action movies, dramas, horror etc).
The book title has to cleary state what the book is about and be catchy. If that can be done in a pun, great! We are open to any suggestions for a title. |
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Beanmimo 
"August review site"
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Posted - 09/29/2008 : 13:37:04
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Great idea!!
I'm with demonic, No. 3's the best of that lot!! |
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RockGolf
"1500+ reviews. 1 joke."
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Posted - 09/29/2008 : 14:53:44
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Ideally the catchphrase itself should be four words long. And contain an outrageous pun. None of these are right but hopefully will inspire something.
"Skipping the dull bits."
"Like Ebert. On speed."
"Short attention span critiques."
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RockGolf
"1500+ reviews. 1 joke."
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Posted - 09/29/2008 : 15:03:42
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quote:
Originally posted by Yukon
We're going to do joke chapter titles, (The book is divided by movie genre: Action movies, dramas, horror etc).
The book title has to clearly state what the book is about and be catchy. If that can be done in a pun, great! We are open to any suggestions for a title.
Action: Four armed.
Dramas: Four-lorn.
Horror: Four-ensics
Four-eign films
Four-gotten classics. (Great puns on very obscure movies, like the classic "Edgar eyes burros" review by noncentz.
Four-skin - Ya gotta have a sex-film section. Some of the best puns on the site are there...
Four-mative years: for children's films
Four-tunes: for musicals.
Y'know, if the title "Four Word Film Reviews" isn't self-explanatory, I doubt a subtitle is going to provide more insight.
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BaftaBaby
"Always entranced by cinema."
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Posted - 09/29/2008 : 15:11:28
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Shorts = Four-shortened
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Whippersnapper.
"A fourword thinking guy."
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Posted - 09/29/2008 : 15:32:10
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Comedies - Four about laughing!
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FWFR:The Book
