10 Wildly Successful Books
It is a writer’s dream to write a best-selling novel, or maybe even a best-selling novel with a blockbuster film adaptation. Who wouldn’t want the fruit of his or her artistic labors to reach and influence the lives of millions? The right book can alter the way its readers think. It can inspire them into action. Sometimes, though, that influence reaches farther and in different directions than the author anticipated. Sometimes, authors grow to hate these publications that make them famous.
10 Brokeback Mountain – Annie Proulx
In 1997, Annie Proulx published Brokeback Mountain as a short story. In 2005, it was adapted into the critically acclaimed film that won three Academy Awards and four Golden Globes. The film, which centers around two men who fall in love against a conservative and rural backdrop, has had its fair share of controversy. In the years following the movie’s release, Proulx has given multiple interviews about the hassle she still receives about the content. She says the biggest point of contention is the ending. She receives many letters from men that begin with, “I’m not gay but . . . ” followed by a lengthy explanation of what should have happened and implications that they know better since they are men and the author is a woman. The harassment has bothered Proulx so much that she’s quoted saying, “I wish I’d never written the story. It’s just been the cause of hassle and problems and irritation since the film came out. Before the film it was all right.”
9 Watchmen, V For Vendetta, From Hell – Alan Moore
Alan Moore is the mastermind behind multiple graphic novels that have been turned into box office gold—gold that he refuses to take. He worked with DC Comics to publish some of his most famous works, including V for Vendetta,Watchmen, and From Hell. Moore parted ways with DC Comics in the late 1980s for multiple reasons. He disagreed with rating and labeling the books for “Mature Readers.” He was also furious that he was being duped out of the rights to his work; the company said he would get the rights back when the books went out of print. The catch was they never actually planned to stop printing them.
When the DC Comics movies started coming out, Moore refused to be involved and has refused to accept any profit from the films. He won’t watch the film adaptations of his comics and graphic novels, including those published with non-DC companies like The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Moore even asked for his name to be taken off the credits. While he stands by his stories in their original form, he despises their connection to Hollywood.
8 My Struggle – Karl Ove Knausgaard
Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard is the author of an enthralling six-part autobiographical novel entitled My Struggle. Although it was first billed as fictional when it debuted in 2009, it eventually came to light how unapologetically honest and true the story was. In 2012, the book was translated and published in English. The piece has been considered a literary masterpiece.
Knausgaard let readers into every aspect of his life. Writers, editors, and critics have all praised his novel for how he draws readers into his personal world with his uncensored narration. He has even been fingered as a possible recipient of a future Nobel Prize in Literature.
As it turns out, the tale that turned Knausgaard into a literary sensation is a tale he wishes he never told. He wrote about real people in his life and used their real names. Telling their stories has made enemies out of friends and family. To get away from the controversy, he moved his wife and children into a rural village. He doesn’t like to talk about the book anymore because it makes him terribly depressed and causes him extreme anxiety. He can’t stand the thought that he hurt people and has even compared any attempt at an apology to be like a killer apologizing after the fact.
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