Claire Tomalin Quotes

I have represented people in book deals.

I'm looking for backing for an unauthorized auto-biography that I am writing. Hopefully, this will sell in such huge numbers that I will be able to sue myself for an extraordinary amount of money and finance the film version in which I will play everybody.

When 'Tracks' first came out, I was courted by Sydney Pollack. I had lunch with him, and he opened the conversation with, 'Honey, you ain't gonna like what I'm gonna do to your book.' I really liked him, but I turned him down, because - well, I was stupid. I also turned down a great deal of money.

In regards to The Haunting, people compared it to the old movie, which is unfair. We didn't have the rights to the movie. I couldn't duplicate a single thing because that would have been legal infringement.

If people have bought something of mine, they know by now that I will decline writing it for the movies.

I think that a really good agent should be able to get the right publisher, which the agent has already figured out, get as much money as she can from that publisher, and make a deal, rather than have the amount of money determine the sale. That's what the best agents do.

I charged Rs 101 for the rights to my biopic.

We are pleased to have acquired remake rights of 'Comali' for all languages in the world.

Even in a perfect world where everyone was equal. I'd still own the film rights and be working on the sequel.

As soon as I finish a book, I sell the paperback rights to different publishers and that's where I recoup my money.

Contrary to what many writers imply about the process, nobody forces a writer to sell his work to the film industry.

Their argument, and I think it's a correct one, is that they'll make more money from the trades and the hardcovers if nobody messes with the creative team.

At the time I attempted to purchase the rights back for the 3 Homestead records, but the owner demanded an outrageous sum in the neighborhood of $10,000, about 10 times more money than I could get my hands on at the time.

Authors need to decide if they want to keep forever to themselves, or share forever with a publisher who takes over half the cover price.

The Tolkien estate owns the writings of Professor Tolkien. 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings' were sold by Professor Tolkien in the late '60s, the film rights.

I've done a gazillion readings that have gone on to be movies that are made without me.

From time to time, just about every 'Vanity Fair' writer has a chance to sell rights to an article or a book to Hollywood.

I'd sold the book first. Actually to a paperback publisher. I had nothing. I just had the idea.

I thought I had the rights to The Lord of the Rings. I don't know how Jackson ended up with the rights.

What people forget is that every movie that gets made keeps making money for somebody FOREVER.

Typically, when you sell your story rights to a movie production company, they can do whatever they want with it. The writer is typically not involved anymore.

I've had many of my books optioned.

I'd like to have had a bigger piece of Thanos than I do, but when the first 'Avengers' movie came out, Marvel and I - we renegotiated some things, so I get a taste out of this thing. I'm not becoming the next Bill Gates, but I'm getting a little something out of it.

The only control you have over a movie is whether or not you decide to sell the rights.

Those movies, Decline I and II and Suburbia, are dearly loved, but they never made any money. I didn't even have the rights for some of them.