Writing Web Novels In America-Chapter 158 - 156 Hard to Decide

Hearing the other party’s answer, Wang Jian’s fingers tapped incessantly on the table.

The writers’ strike and ABC’s slump in the TV drama market must have driven the giant mad!

Indeed, since the simultaneous release of "Star Wars 2," "Blade Runner," and "Star Trek 3" in 1982, and their subsequent profitability, everyone understood the audience’s fondness for space science fiction.

Add to that the popularity of "Friends," "Seinfeld," and "Everybody Loves Raymond," which had sparked a comedy wave in recent years.

At first glance, "Anomalies and Creatures" seems to possess both science fiction and comedy elements, with the potential to be a hit.

However, TV dramas on wireless networks generally use the widest channels for distribution.

These shows all emphasize low investment and high return.

ABC’s desire to shoot the grand world view of "Anomalies and Creatures" is simply abandoning tradition and trying to buy ratings with US dollars!

"Mr. James, I must remind you that even though the serialized "Anomalies and Creatures" already has a vast world view."

"But this is just the beginning."

Wang Jian quickly flipped through the subsequent plot of "Anomalies" in his mind, "In the later stages of this work, the scenes will be no less spectacular than the Rebel Army’s battles in ’Star Wars’."

James asked unperturbed, "Mr. Wang, are you afraid that ABC won’t be able to produce those grand scenes?"

"It’s been 19 years since the first ’Star Wars’ was released."

"There has been significant progress in all kinds of equipment, shooting techniques, and post-production."

"And ABC is prepared to spend a budget of about 2 million US dollars per episode, which is three times the budget of an episode of ’Friends’."

"That roughly equals the total budget for the final battle scene in the first ’Star Wars’."

"I assume ’Anomalies and Creatures’ won’t be all about battles in every episode, will it?"

A budget of 2 million US dollars per episode?

Doesn’t that mean the production cost of a single episode will be higher than the entire season budget of "Prison Break"?

The three major wireless networks are truly like dog landlords!

The tapping of Wang Jian’s fingers became even faster.

Looking at the table and then at Wang Jian, James smiled and said, "Of course, I understand the writers’ concerns about the film adaptation of their work."

"In this regard, Mr. Wang can rest assured. If ABC gets the rights, we will invite several outstanding Hollywood directors for the shooting."

"Of course, today I am just here on behalf of ABC to propose a partnership to Mr. Wang."

"We look forward to a prompt response from the website and Mr. Wang’s side."

Truth be told, this time Wang Jian felt the sensation of being bombarded with money.

Such a massive investment is truly beyond what the current website can afford.

So much so, that even when he returned to the office by car, Wang Jian couldn’t stop lamenting, "This feeling of being without money... is really damn uncomfortable!"

"Wang, that’s one of the three major wireless networks, that’s the American Wireless Broadcasting Company!" Tom offered a word of consolation.

"They are at the top of the food chain in the media world, just like the six major film studios!"

"And we are just a small literary website!"

To be honest, if ABC wanted the rights to "Extreme Heavenly Demon" or "Arcane Throne," Wang Jian wouldn’t be this conflicted.

But the dual attributes of "Anomalies and Creatures" are just too special.

"Wrong! It’s a literary website that is about to reach the IPO standard!" he said a bit reluctantly, pulling out the website’s data.

According to the current backend data, the user count of the website is approaching the IPO minimum standard shown in the Goldman Sachs data.

If "Prison Break Special Forces" has just one-fifth the fan-drawing power of "Prison Break," it can start the website’s IPO process.

Given the current popularity of the internet economy, it should attract enough capital to shoot "Anomalies and Creatures" on its own.

However, although this approach would allow almost exclusivity over the profits, it would also mean bearing all the risks.

On the other hand, by licensing "Anomalies and Creatures" to ABC for production.

With such a high budget, even if it fails, it should still attract a wave of fans, like the failed blockbuster "Waterworld," right?

In that case, the website could gain a larger user base.

And a larger user base could allow the website to achieve a higher valuation right at the start of its public offering.

"What should I choose?" Wang Jian poured himself a cup of black coffee and sipped it slowly, "This is all about money, and a considerable amount of money at that!"

Just as Wang Jian was in the throes of indecision.

In the photography studio he had just left, James was on the phone with his superior.

"Yes, the writer seems hesitant." He recalled the scene just now, "I think he’s more of a businessman than a bestselling author."

"I didn’t see the joy on his face that his work could be turned into a high-quality film adaptation."

A moment later, James furrowed his brows lightly, "Should we launch it now? I think we could still negotiate."

"Alright, I understand."

After hanging up the phone, James thought for a moment and then made another call.

"Hello, is this the deputy editor’s office at the New York Times?"

"It’s James from ABC. You can now publish the article."

"However, some revisions need to be made to the original piece."

"Replace all the severely negative words with neutral ones."

After ending the call, James sat on the sofa, looking up at the ceiling.

"Whether it ends up being a plagiarism of ’Galaxy Guide’ or a tribute to ’Galaxy Guide’ now depends on your choice, Wang Jian."

Inside the editorial room of the New York Times, several staff members were busy with the final layout for tomorrow’s newspaper.

At that moment, the department supervisor rushed in, breathlessly.

He shouted, "Pull down the entertainment section’s front-page headline and replace it with this article."

A young person glanced at the time and looked at the supervisor in surprise, "It’s three in the afternoon, changing the front-page headline at the last minute?"

"What happened? Is it ’Watergate’?"

"Quit your yapping," the supervisor said impatiently. "It’s definitely not ’Watergate,’ but it’s much better in terms of consistency!"

"We’re not the only ones publishing this. There’s also the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and other media peers."

"The deputy editor specifically instructed that it must be published in conjunction with the major peers to attract widespread attention."

"Who is the unlucky one, did they offend Murdoch of News Group or Redstone of Viacom?"

A staff member, curious, glanced at the manuscript.

The title of the article read: "Discussing the Development of Online Literature, Starting with ’Anomalies and Creatures’ and ’Galaxy Guide.’"

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