Chapter 22
Chapter 22: Different Brain Circuits
Chapter 22: Different Brain Circuits
…
After leaving the hotel where Guo Shouyun was staying and returning to the car, after some thought, Christopher Ritter took out another mobile phone of his own. After searching the phone book, he found a familiar number and dialed it.
“Barry, do you have time?”
“Christopher, my time is always reserved for you.”
A somewhat hoarse voice came from it.
Christopher Ritter smiled. Since “Harry Potter” became a hit all over the world, he has become the most popular celebrity that major publishers around the world want to make friends with.
“Okay, I’ll go to your office now! Also, I want to drink that 90-year-old Romanée Conti bottle that you kept!”
“Oh, Christopher! You greedy ‘Sherlock’, that’s the treasure I bought from Christie’s for £80,000!” If Rowling’s fifth Harry Potter book is sold to me, I’d love to show you my proudest wine collection!”
“Rowling is still in the process of creating the fifth part of “Harry Potter”. But this work will not disappoint you!” Christopher Ritter said to himself.
“Oh? It seems that you have a new harvest!”
“Barry, I’m driving to you right now. I’ll be there in about twenty minutes.” Christopher didn’t answer directly.
“Christopher, I’m going to wake up the red wine! When you come, we must have a good drink!”
“See you then!”
“See you soon!”
…
“Romane Conti wines are always so captivating!”
After gulping down the fuchsia wine in the goblet, Christopher Ritter sighed and looked at Barry Cunningham, who was indifferent, still focusing on the three novels.
“Three hours, Barry. While that’s not enough time for you to finish three good books, with your level of expertise as a Bloomsbury editor, it’s enough time for you to make a review of them. A relatively fair evaluation.” After speaking, Christopher put down the glass and his eyes became sharp, “Now, should we talk?”
Hearing this, Barry Cunningham sighed and nodded. Although we are all close friends, we all have to do business for the sake of our own interests.
“Christopher, “Pirates of the Caribbean” and this “Fantastic Beasts There”, we at Bloomsbury are willing to buy the copyright, and we are willing to pay 50,000 pounds for the copyright fee, and give 8% of the sales. .But this ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’… doesn’t fit the style of our publishing house!”
Looking at the three manuscripts of “Fifty Shades of Grey” pushed out by Barry Cunningham, Christopher Ritter couldn’t help frowning.
“Barry, we’ve known each other for five years. Don’t put me off if you’re dealing with outsiders! …Bloomsbury’s main business is paperback bestsellers and children’s books. I don’t think Fifty Shades of Grey “There’s something inappropriate there!”
Seeing his old friend’s serious expression, Barry Cunningham sighed.
“Christopher, with all due respect. This set of Fifty Shades of Grey is like a third-rate **** novel written by a third-rate writer at a Notting Hill stall for sale to the homeless and eccentric. I really don’t think so. It has any market! Also, how could you possibly sign such a novel to your name at your level?”
Looking at Barry’s unbelievable expression, Christopher also had words of suffering. He can’t help it, who told him to put up such a weird author?
Recalling his interest in “Fifty Shades of Grey” in his two exchanges with Guo Shouyun, Christopher Ritter said again: “Barry, can this set of “Fifty Shades of Grey” really not be published? ”
“Christopher, you know. I’m not alone in Bloomsbury. Even if I signed it today for your sake, Rosa, who runs marketing, wouldn’t pass it. You know, she’s a big admirer of the Iron Fist Lady.” Barry Cunningham spread his hands helplessly.
Rosa Mond, Christopher is no stranger. The marketing manager of Bloomsbury Publishing House is a loyal admirer of the former British Prime Minister “Iron Lady” Margaret Thatcher, who believes in strict and formalized management and has a tough personality. If this set of “Fifty Shades of Grey” was put in front of her, Christopher had no doubt that this ruthless middle-aged woman would satirize herself mercilessly, and then threw the manuscript under her feet.
Christopher, who couldn’t think of a good solution for a while, said after a moment of silence, “Barry, these three sets of books are temporarily placed with you. After you read it, if you change your mind, call me again!”
“Okay!” Barry Cunningham nodded, “but you better not get your hopes up for this set of “Fifty Shades of Grey”!”
“I know.” After nodding, Christopher stood up, “I’m leaving first!”
“I send you!”
…
The next day, after reading Christopher Ritter’s revised manuscript and processing it, he came to Ritter Publishing Economics again with the revised manuscript.
Christopher Ritter’s attention, however, was clearly not on these manuscripts.
“Bruce, can “Fifty Shades of Grey” be published separately from “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Go”?” Christopher Ritter couldn’t help asking after hesitating.
“why?”
Guo Shouyun frowned.
“From yesterday to now, I have contacted six major UK publishers including Bloomsbury and Random House. They are all willing to give superior prices for Pirates of the Caribbean and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Conditions. But what they say about Fifty Shades of Grey…!”
Christopher Ritter shook his head with a wry smile.
Although he didn’t finish speaking, the meaning of the words has been clearly expressed. However, Guo Shouyun was not surprised by this. In later generations, “Fifty Shades of Grey” first became popular on the Internet before the copyright was bought by Random House, and then it became popular all over the world.
Now without this procedure, in the eyes of the old-fashioned editors of the publishing house with profound literary literacy, “Fifty Shades of Grey” is really just a heavy-duty S~M erotic~ **** novel, which cannot be on the table.
Looking at Guo Shouyun who was in deep thought, Christopher hesitated.
“Bruce, I think it will be relatively easy to publish Fifty Shades of Grey after Pirates of the Caribbean and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and you’re a well-known author!”
“Christopher, how many sales do you think “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” would get if they were published?” Guo Shouyun asked irrefutably.
Combining his years of professional knowledge and thinking about it, Christopher said cautiously: “Pirates of the Caribbean can sell at least 2 million copies worldwide within a year, and Fantastic Beasts Are There at least 8 million copies!”
Apparently Christopher is more confident in the market for Fantastic Beasts There, which is linked to Harry Potter.
Guo Shouyun nodded.
“Pirates of the Caribbean is priced at $45 for three volumes, and 2 million copies is $90 million. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is $20, and 8 million is $1.60. As an author, I can get up to 15% of royalties, That’s 250 million x 15%, which is about $37.5 million. Deduct your 5% commission and 35% personal income tax, and I get $22.5 million! . . . Chris, am I right?”
Although Christopher Ritter does not know what the purpose of Guo Shouyun’s calculation is. But he still frowned slightly, staring at Guo Shouyun who looked calm and nodded.
“Since you agree, then if I borrow 10 million pounds from you for the next year’s sales of these two (books) books, you shouldn’t object? … Don’t worry, I will pay you more according to the rules. 4.5% interest.”
Looking at Guo Shouyun, who made the promise, and what he just said, Christopher Ritter was stunned by his extraordinary brain circuit.
“Bruce, you’re not serious, are you?”
“Do you think I’m joking?”
Seeing Guo Shouyun’s serious expression, Christopher shook his head with a wry smile after he was convinced that he was really not joking.
“Bruce, I really wonder if the person sitting in front of me is an up-and-coming writer? Or a philistine businessman who cares about everything?”
“I’m both a writer and a businessman!”
Christopher Reiter nodded, and after pondering for a moment, he shook his head.
“Bruce, I understand the future of “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, and you can’t ask too much. But I’m just a well-known publishing broker, not a capital tycoon on Wall Street in New York and the City of London, £10 million is a bit too much for me!”
Guo Shouyun is not surprised by this. Of course, the negotiation must raise the price higher at the beginning to make a counter-offer.
“Then £8 million! . . . Christopher, as the agent of the worldwide bestseller Harry Potter, you won’t even be able to come up with that amount of money, will you?”
Christopher rolled his eyes at Guo Shouyun’s words.
“Bruce, Harry Potter sells well, but as a publishing agent I only get 5% of Rowling’s royalties. Also, who keeps a lot of cash in a bank account?”
“Then how much can I borrow?”
“Three million pounds!” Christopher said after thinking for a while.
“6 million! Christopher, you are my agent, we are grasshoppers tied to a rope. I am in trouble, you should help in time.”
Looking at Guo Shouyun who didn’t let go, Christopher Ritter gritted his teeth and said, “5 million, I can lend you 5 million pounds. But first tell me what you want to do with this money?”
Seeing him give in, Guo Shouyun smiled.
“It’s very simple. Since there is no publishing house willing to publish “Fifty Shades of Grey”, then I will buy a publishing house and publish it myself!”
If it weren’t for the $80 million that he had borrowed from Citibank, all of it had been put on the football lottery. Why would he want to borrow money from Christopher!