Movies versus Novels

I just saw a rough cut of my movie, Growing the Big One. I still call it "my movie", but at this point, there's not a lot of "me" left.

I may have come up with the story, written the script, and written rewrites of the script, but the final product is far from mine. Lots of people have been involved — actors, directors, producers, and even other writers.

It's a lot different story than I imagined at the start. I might not like all the changes, but it's also a lot more "produced" than it was on my laptop.

I'd always heard that if you want more control, then write novels. It's true. But you say, "I really like to write movies and see my story on a screen." I can't argue that.

Sometimes it's hard to decide. Here's my short Movie Versus Novel list for what it's worth.

	Movie	Novel
Control of story	Maybe some if you direct & product	Quite a bit from start to finish
Money	Better than a book	Not a lot of rich novelists
Ownership	They own it	You own it
Union	WGA	You’re on your own
Respect	Not much – you’re at the bottom of the Hollywood food chain	Quite a bit
Viewing	3D & in living color – very cool	Read it
Breaking In	DAMN HARD	DAMN HARD

It's hardly an exhaustive list, but it covers some of the highlights. If you think I've missed some important ones, please share. Writing is hard work, and it's just a bit easier if you pick the right medium.

Have a great Thanksgiving!