Unedited: From Idea to Manuscript and Shelf to Screen

Andy Lewis: From Writing Stephen King’s (Advance) Obit to the Rise of Fan Fiction

Inkshares Season 1 Episode 5

We are pleased to welcome Andy Lewis of The Optionist to the fifth episode of Unedited: From Idea to Manuscript and Shelf to Screen. Having been the first-ever book editor at the Hollywood Reporter, Andy has had a first-row seat at the fifty-yard-line of the book-to-film game, something he continues today with his widely read newsletter covering adaptable books old and new.

He joins us to talk about: writing Stephen King’s (advance) obituary; whether New York publishing and Hollywood are as separate as they used to be; documenting (and defending) the rise of fan-fiction beginning with Fifty Shades of Grey; and what novelists should think about in crafting novels that not only command a reader’s attention but set up potential on screen.

Andy Lewis created and runs The Optionist, a newsletter about available IP for Hollywood that is part of the Ankler network. He was the first Book Editor at The Hollywood Reporter, adding coverage of publishing to the venerable trade for the first time in its 80+ year history. Prior to that he was a professor of history at Wesleyan, Hamilton and the University of Richmond and earned a Phd from the University of Virginia.