Books that become phenomenons.

There are some books out there which are every bit as good as the so-called phenomenons. So, what is the difference between them? The popular books, of course, have to be good. If they weren't it wouldn't matter who pushed them. The readership would revolt. Second, there has to be publicity. There have been some self published books which became phenomenons, like The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield or Embraced By The Light by Bettie Jean Eadie. Those books are the exception. It takes some major self promotion and capital to be able to pull this off. The bottom line is that a great book still needs financial backing. When a major publisher backs an author's book, magic happens. Suddenly it is listed on all the literary lists. It becomes nominated for awards and the author hits the road on a major publicity tour. Even couch potatoes know about the book via the television. Then, it becomes a movie. At this point the world knows about it. If the author is lucky, the movie is a hit or at the very least recoups it's investment capital.
Back in the 60's, Richard Bach wrote and published, Jonathon Livingston Seagull. He was a pilot who wrote. He kept to himself and rarely checked in with his publisher. Imagine his surprise, when, one day he stopped at a diner and decided to call his publisher. He was traveling around offering airplane rides for money. His editor told him that she had been trying to track him down because the media wanted to interview him. She told him to check his bank account, which he did. To his amazement, his account was in the six figure category. He only drew what he needed for the week and never bothered to check his balance. Of course, his life changed drastically after that. His book became a movie and he married a movie star and wrote more books.
The lesson here is to show writers to relax. Follow your heart, write with passion and never give up. Some people spend a lot of time looking for Mr. or Ms Right. Eventually they may find their soul mate. The same holds true in other relationships. If a writer is passionate about their work and keeps focused, he just may find his soul agent.
*spoiler alert* if you click on the Twilight cartoon above, there are some major book spoilers. Be forewarned.*