TELEVISION AND AWARDS

 

Forget about both. You have worked hard to get a publishing contract, the dream you had when you started out. Focus on that. The other stuff will take care of itself.

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I’ve had some television interest, but I wasn’t bothered that it never got anywhere. All I ever wanted to do was one day look back on my books and be proud of them, not be disappointed because I didn’t win an award or bag a television deal, and that’s how I am now.

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Television deals are a mixed bag, as this is how they work.

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A production company will buy up the television rights. You will be in the local paper, saying how you want Liam Neeson to play the main character, then it will never grace a screen ever. After a few years of the television series or film not being made, you’ll get the rights back.

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You’ll have been paid for the rights, so it is a nice little earner, money for nothing, but don’t ever expect it to appear on screen. There are too many points at which it will fail.

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The production company has to buy the rights for a fee they can afford to lose, so they have enough money left to interest an actor with enough kudos to attract the interest of a TV channel, which has to be willing to pay enough to make the production of it worthwhile. All of these can all be put in place, all ready to proceed, but the TV channel might get a new commissioning editor, who decides that they are going to revamp their output and focus on period drama or whatever.

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So, why be disappointed? Enjoy what you are good at, writing books, and let everything else just happen, as the add-ons are out of your control.

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Awards are something to forget about too.

 

I’ve been long-listed a couple of times, and one was a long-list of ten after a public vote, which pleased me, but I knew I wouldn’t make the shortlist of five. I knew who was judging, and I knew the other people on the list, so I knew I wouldn’t make the final cut. And the eventual winner deserved the award anyway.

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The point about awards though, and particularly the shortlists, is that they are not an indicator of the best books. It's usually just the result of publisher promotions and word of mouth, because the judges don't get to read most of the books that are pushed forward for nomination, with the shortlists filled by the festival bigwigs and various friendship groups. I get that there are just too many to read, but that doesn’t help me when I’m filling my suitcase for my next holiday.

 

And I doubt that the same old writers really produce one of the best books of the year every year. But with new writers always ready to take the limelight, they’ve got to do what they’ve got to do to keep their spot, I suppose.

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So, forget about winning awards. They’re all sewn up, and unless you make the right friends, you won't get a shout. Enjoy your career instead, and don’t worry about the careers of other writers.

 

And nothing is ever as it seems. I’ve seen writers present themselves as being hyper-successful on social media, or so happy with how they are doing, then heard them gripe and worry about whether they’ll be able to pay their mortgage, or whether it’s even worth it at all. You’re not the only one with the imposter syndrome, but no-one on social media talks down their achievements.

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As my brother said, when Friends Reunited started, before Facebook, “no one ever says that they work on the bins.”

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In reality, everyone worries about it all coming to an end, and no one is ever satisfied with how they are doing.​​

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Just enjoy the ride. I did.

 

Neil White

2025