SMH - "Stranger than fiction: A great expectation"

[dededom]

Stranger than fiction: A great expectation
Stay In Touch - Sydney Morning Herald
blogs.smh.com.au/sit/archives/2007/02/stranger_than_fiction_a_great.html


The publisher HarperCollins has announced that it will publish Damien Leith's debut novel.

And if you believe the publisher, its decision had little to do with the Irish crooner's win on Australian Idol. It's been talking to him about the book for, oh, almost a year now.

Its fiction publisher, Linda Funnel, who was introduced to Leith by a mutual friend in 2005, told AAP that she was impressed by his writing skills before every teenager in the land knew who he was.

The blurb on his novel? An "inspiring story of courage and hope".

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NB - the blog is inviting COMMENTS
blogs.smh.com.au/sit/archives/2007/02/stranger_than_fiction_a_great.html

[winterlong]

LOL...I was waiting for the scepticism to start!

I think hes going to face alot of this sort of "tone"...people believing the only reason he would be published is because he's had his face on television.
I think its going to be same with his next album too...to appear on a reality television program to many is seen as an 'unfair' and 'easy' shortcut to quick fame, and there is going to be much dubious raising of eyebrows...as well as very high and possibly unrealistic expectations.

I'm glad at least that the Idol experience has given D somewhat of a thick skin to ride this sort of stuff with. I'm really looking forward to both his new self-penned releases this year...I'm just so glad he's an artist with something to say, and the outlet(s) to say it

[thebraff (Braffy)]

First of all he shouldn't have won Idol because he wasn't Australian. Now he shouldn't be published just because he won Idol. There are bound to be other comments. I agree with you Winter. he has developed a thick skin to handle all this. I wonder how many people will see that article and read (pay attention) to the part where it states that they had been in discussions about the book before he went on Idol. Not too many I would imagine.

[christyl]

oh...Isn't our boy just SO TALENTED!! Fabulous!

[winterlong]

OK, I'm expecting the big stick because of what I'm about to say...and I'm ready.....


I work in a creative field where its very hard to get a foot in, get opportunities and get recognised.
Its been 12 years hard slog, and they'll be many more to come should I chose to continue.
Its hard not to feel bitter when other people with much less experience and credentials get opportunites ahead of me because of someone they know, some relative or bonk or whatever. Its frustrating because you are always saying "why not me? Why cant I get these breaks?".

I can imagine that people, especially people in this industry, who do not know Damien or are not familiar with his time on Idol could see this as just another unfair opportunity given to someone else.
We have the advantage of knowing his history, talent, personality, and how hard he has worked. They just see another reality TV contestant.

I shudder to think how many journos and columnists out there have had writing and novels rejected time and again by publishing houses..and then potentially have to write about some guy they dont know getting a fantastic opportunity.

I'm not saying people SHOULD be sceptical, as I think its only fair to be judged on the work at hand (not that thats going to happen in D's case )..but what I'm saying is that I understand where all the eye-rolling comes from



That being said, yes christyl, its pretty fabulous

[thebraff (Braffy)]

I see your point Winter

[shimmery]

I think the only thing any critic or journo can do is wait to see it and read it. Hopefully the critics will see how much Damien puts into his writing and will read with an open mind. Good critics will at least.

[sunshine]

I doubt Damien will care about the nastiness of one particular journalist. I'm expecting the supposed cool critics will be desperately hoping to write bad reviews of the live gigs and the album, but we know Damien will rise above all the scepticism and bitchiness.

[crushangel]

Thanks Dede...this is great news. I read about this in my local paper today.

[Mysterri]

So, Damien's book has been mentioned in the Sydney Morning Herald before it has even gone to print! What great publicity! I usually don't get to read anything about a new book until after it is published and ready to hit the book stands around the country.

I was thrilled when Damien took out the title of Australian Idol 2006. I voted my bank account almost dry because I totally believed in him and his talent. It's odd and I don't know whether it's an Australian quirk or just human nature as a whole but we are prepared to give anyone a foot-up when they are striving to reach their goal. Once they get there, a lot of people just want to knock them down! It's more commonly known as the Tall Poppy Syndrome.

As I've said before on this forum, I will be happy when Damien is not carrying the mantel of Australian Idol and is solely recognised as Damien Leith, singer/songwriter, (and now) author and a genuinely nice guy. He is gaining this accreditation already and I feel that he is going to be around for a long, long time. There are always going to be the detractors but criticism is good, it helps you to lift your game. It could be a whole lot worse, it could be "Damien who?"

[shimmery]

I really hope for Damien that his book silences the doubters - I suspect it's going to be well received critically because Damien sounds as though he was pretty inspired when he wrote it - it doesn't sound like something forced or rushed - so I'm fully anticipating it will be fantastic!

[Mi chiamano Kami]

Winter, as an aspiring novelist myself ( ) I totally see where you're coming from and I agree. A lot of my friends are writers, many of them incredible, some of them a lot older than Damien and still waiting for their big break. And there are a lot of only somewhat talented writers out there selling books because they have a 'gimmick' of some kind, such as, yes, winning a reality show. Even I've been saying all along, "Well, Damien will definitely get published now." I know he's talented enough to deserve it so I was delighted, but I can definitely understand other people who don't know much about Damien saying it with a different view.

However, I think anyone who is genuinely willing to give Damien a go and who knows a bit about the publishing industry will realise that for a big publishing company to have contacted Damien to discuss possible revisions is a pretty big thing, and meant that they really were interested in him before. Also, he's 31, which is still young but old enough to have had life experiences and to process them, old enough to have worked for some years to get published. He's writing about things that he knows about and that have meaning to him. He's definitely not some teenager writing about the meaning he wished his life had. And anyone who speaks to him about the book should be able to see that this is something he really believes in, as with everything else he's presented to us in the past year.

As Mysterri said, at least people are talking about him and remember who he is. And if there's controversy, there'll be curiosity. I look forward to seeing how this book thing goes, dubious critics and all. I believe Damien's got what it takes right now to rise above it all. Could it possibly be a random coincidence that he had a publishable manuscript and the right technique to win Idol all at once?

[hyperrune]

If people want to boycott his book because he's an 'Idol star', so what, they'll be the ones missing out. If they read it, they might be pleasantly surprised.
For my part, I'm delirious that two things I love - Damien and books - are about to be combined (I'm a total bibliophile and also an aspiring writer ;D )