Something only 7 writers have EVER done

DWSTXS · May 22, 2008

Watching Letterman last night, I saw Jimmy Buffet was a guest, and I watched, because Letterman mentioned that Buffet has done something that only 7 other writers have ever accomplished: he has been No. 1 on both the fiction and non-fiction lists.

This, is from Wikipedia:
Buffett has written 3 No. 1 best sellers. Tales from Margaritaville and Where Is Joe Merchant? both spent over seven months on the New York Times Best Seller fiction list. His book A Pirate Looks At Fifty went straight to No. 1 on the New York Times Bestseller non-fiction list, making him one of seven authors in that list's history to have reached No. 1 on both the fiction and non-fiction lists. The other six authors who have accomplished this are Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, William Styron, Irving Wallace, Dr. Seuss and Mitch Albom.
Buffett also co-wrote two children's books, The Jolly Mon and Trouble Dolls, with his eldest daughter, Savannah Jane Buffett. The original hard cover release of the The Jolly Mon included a cassette tape recording of him and Savannah Jane reading the story accompanied by an original score written by Michael Utley.
Buffett's novel A Salty Piece of Land, was released on November 30, 2004, and the first edition of the book included a CD single of the song "A Salty Piece Of Land", which was recorded for License to Chill. The book was a New York Times best seller soon after its release.
Buffett's latest title, Swine Not?, was released May 13, 2008

MY question is this: would J B have become a best-selling author if he hadn't been so well-known to begin with?

Did his writing success come only as a result of his previous successes?

He stated on the show that his first love was writing, not music.

Willowmound · May 22, 2008

Who's Jimmy Buffet?

ACEnders · May 22, 2008

Willowmound said:
Who's Jimmy Buffet?

That's a joke...right?

Willowmound · May 22, 2008

No.

His name sounds like it should belong to a cartoon character...

zegota · May 22, 2008

He's a musician who came into popularity during my parent's generation, I believe. His music is somewhat relaxing, if I recall... he sings about things like margaritas and cheeseburgers.

Willowmound · May 22, 2008

Sounds lovely.

blacbird · May 22, 2008

He's also the nephew of multi-billionaire investor Warren Buffett (the surname is spelled with double-t).

His songs always are tuneful with clever lyrics, so he's definitely got ability with words. I haven't read any of his prose writing, though.

But would he have made these mega-seller lists straight up on the books? Or would he still be sending out queries and getting a steady stream of Notforuses? Which is more likely?

caw

donroc · May 22, 2008

Nothing like having a "platform" which is why I am glad I have not felt the need to write illustrated children's books. Every actor, singer, royal, and politician has "written" one it seems.

DWSTXS · May 22, 2008

Boy, it sure is hard to get a bona fide opinion out of anyone today.

Blacbird almost gave us one. But ended with the exact question I asked up front.

I do NOT think he would have been a best-seller without his previous name-success up front.

MelodyO · May 22, 2008

Ahahaha! For some reason I thought your post said WARREN Buffet, and boy, did that change the story. I thought for sure Warren would have had at least a couple of financial books on the best seller list...and two kids' books?!? LOL!

Ahem. All in all, I think Jimmy Buffet has the best life in the world. ::hands you a margarita::

PS I'd have to read the books before I passed judgement on his success. I mean, not ALL best selling authors were famous singers first.

melaniehoo · May 22, 2008

I don't think he would have had his writing success if he weren't as well known.

DWSTXS · May 22, 2008

MelodyO said:
Ahahaha! For some reason I thought your post said WARREN Buffet, and boy, did that change the story. I thought for sure Warren would have had at least a couple of financial books on the best seller list...and two kids' books?!? LOL!

Ahem. All in all, I think Jimmy Buffet has the best life in the world. ::hands you a margarita::

PS I'd have to read the books before I passed judgement on his success. I mean, not ALL best selling authors were famous singers first.

But, to a publisher, they have to be thinking that no matter how good, or bad, the writing is, let's just say that it's very average, VERY mediocre, that the book WILL sell Xthousand number of copies, JUST because it's Jimmy Buffett and all his fans will buy.

Therefore, it WOULDN'T have even been published without his previous success and built-in fan base.
In other words, if YOU or I turned in that SAME very average and VERY mediocre book, would it have seen the light of day?

NeuroFizz · May 22, 2008

There is an "in-between" here that may be a bit overlooked. The bookends:

His name probably (certainly?) helped get the initial attention of agents and editors, particularly with the non-fiction work, but the fiction as well.

His name probably helped land the books on the bestseller lists.

The "in-between" - either he has some writing talent or help from good editors (or both) to get the books published and read enough to make the lists. And, he certainly has the self-discipline to get the books written and out there.

I say, kudos to him, particularly for the fiction work (which I haven't read). If he does have a beyond-cushy financial situation, I really think he is showing us all something by taking on these challenges (I presume he is not using ghost writers).

DWSTXS · May 22, 2008

NeuroFizz said:
There is an "in-between" here that may be a bit overlooked. The bookends:

His name probably (certainly?) helped get the initial attention of agents and editors, particularly with the non-fiction work, but the fiction as well.

His name probably helped land the books on the bestseller lists.

The "in-between" - either he has some writing talent or help from good editors (or both) to get the books published and read enough to make the lists. And, he certainly has the self-discipline to get the books written and out there.

I say, kudos to him, particularly for the fiction work (which I haven't read). If he does have a beyond-cushy financial situation, I really think he is showing us all something by taking on these challenges (I presume he is not using ghost writers).

His 'financial situation' is that he makes 100 million + per year.
I am sure he has writing talent, I just am not so sure that his actual writing talent got him past the front door of the publishing houses and initial agenting process.

Yes, he is showing us all something by continuing to write even though he is set for life. Like I said, he pretty much said that writing was his first love way back when, before he attained any fame.

blacbird · May 22, 2008

Willowmound said:
Sounds lovely.

"Tripped on my flip-flop,
Stepped on a pop-top,
Cut my heel,
Had to cruise on back home.

But there's booze in the blender,
And soon it will render
That frozen concoction
That helps me hang on."

-- J. Buffett

caw

Phaeal · May 22, 2008

Heh, Buffett has enough fans under his sway to ensure his literary success.

Jimmy B: Attend me, oh Parrotheads!

Parrotheads (in perfect unison): What is thy bidding, our master?

Jimmy B: In order to get tickets to my concerts, you must now show up clutching one of my books.

Parrotheads: It will be done, oh Lord.

Jimmy B: One book per ticket.

Parrotheads: Thank you, Great One, thank you!

IceCreamEmpress · May 22, 2008

Jimmy Buffett's books are quite well-written.

But if he weren't a big recording star, they'd probably be selling in the tens of thousands, not in the hundreds of thousands.

I do think he probably would have been able to sell his books, though, just as Kinky Friedman would have been able to without his (much smaller) celebrity as a performer. The same qualities that make their books interesting are apparent in their songs--clever ideas, good ear for the way people actually talk, goofy wordplay.

mikeland · May 22, 2008

First of all, Jimmy Buffet and Warren Buffet are related? Really? For some reason that strikes me as extraordinarily weird.

But moving past that ....

I haven't read the books. But I wouldn't assume they are awful. I'm not really a fan of his music, but he definitely has a distinct style that might translate well into a beach read. But like I said, I haven't read the books.

There are lots and lots of writers on the shelves who had a leg up to get there. Celebrities, surely. Kids and spouses of famous writers (and other celebrities). People who grew up in NY hanging out with agents and editors. Some of them write decent books; some of them write crap. But lots of bad books get published by unknown authors too. Maybe they caught the trend of the moment or they had an intriguing life story. Who knows?

But moving past that ....

I seriously doubt that Wikipedia is right about the fiction/nonfiction bestseller stat. Only seven in the history of the lists? First of all, that list doesn't include Stephen King and John Grisham, who have both penned non-fiction books (in 2000 and 2006 respectively). You're telling me that those non-fic books, which were released when they were already megastars, did not debut at number 1?

NeuroFizz · May 22, 2008

Celebrities and other "notables" will always short-circuit the system and immediately create buyer frenzy. But so do those well established authors who earned their readership the by-the-bootstraps way. I'm convinced some of the well-knowns could bind a stack of used toilet paper and still hit a bestseller list (some critics claim this isn't too far from the truth for some writers).

Let's see how Buffet's newest book does because he is now entering a land where his reputation may no longer create the same frenzy, particularly if his initial readers don't like the quality of his work.

One sure-fire way to get a good hint about his talent, though--read his books.

DWSTXS · May 22, 2008

mikeland said:
First of all, Jimmy Buffet and Warren Buffet are related? Really? For some reason that strikes me as extraordinarily weird.

But moving past that ....

I haven't read the books. But I wouldn't assume they are awful. I'm not really a fan of his music, but he definitely has a distinct style that might translate well into a beach read. But like I said, I haven't read the books.

There are lots and lots of writers on the shelves who had a leg up to get there. Celebrities, surely. Kids and spouses of famous writers (and other celebrities). People who grew up in NY hanging out with agents and editors. Some of them write decent books; some of them write crap. But lots of bad books get published by unknown authors too. Maybe they caught the trend of the moment or they had an intriguing life story. Who knows?

But moving past that ....

I seriously doubt that Wikipedia is right about the fiction/nonfiction bestseller stat. Only seven in the history of the lists? First of all, that list doesn't include Stephen King and John Grisham, who have both penned non-fiction books (in 2000 and 2006 respectively). You're telling me that those non-fic books, which were released when they were already megastars, did not debut at number 1?

Well, the first thing I thought of, in regards to that stat, is Stephen King.

But, the stat says No. 1 on both lists, so maybe that's it.

I wouldn't really know what sources to use to check it out though, for other names. Surely Stephen King and John Grisham should be on there too.

Isn't Wikipedia the correct source of all knowledge and information on earth? It is infallible, is it not?

LOL

Mr Sci Fi · May 22, 2008

Do you think his success in publishing has anything to do with the fact that he's... um.. Jimmy Buffet?

I've never read any of his work (I like his music, though) so I can't comment on the writing.

Willowmound · May 22, 2008

blacbird said:
"Tripped on my flip-flop,
Stepped on a pop-top,
Cut my heel,
Had to cruise on back home.

But there's booze in the blender,
And soon it will render
That frozen concoction
That helps me hang on."

-- J. Buffett

caw

Nice.

WriteKnight · May 22, 2008

I'm trying to remember if it was Bradbury or Asimov, (or RAH?) who sent out a short story under an assumed name to his publishing house - over the transom. It was rejected. He handed it to directly his editor, and of course they ran it.

Yeah, having any kind of 'name/fame/connection' always is, and always will be a help. Beyond that, its gotta be fairly decent.

Southern_girl29 · May 22, 2008

He's not a bad writer. I don't think he would have been a bestseller without already being a famous singer, but I don't think he would have been a total failure as a writer either.

Kitty Pryde · May 22, 2008

blacbird said:
He's also the nephew of multi-billionaire investor Warren Buffett (the surname is spelled with double-t).

Sorry, but no. Jimmy Buffett is no relation to Warren Buffett.

By the way, he does write cheesy songs, but "Where Is Joe Merchant" is a GREAT vacation book.

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