By John Geddes, USA TODAY
They're not Superman or Batman, but for some readers, the main characters in a recently released series of graphic novels are just as heroic and inspirational.
Writers of the Round Table Press
'Shut Up, Stop Whining & Get A Life' is a new graphic novel by Larry Winget.
Writers of the Round Table Press
'Shut Up, Stop Whining & Get A Life' is a new graphic novel by Larry Winget.
Sun Tzu, Chris Anderson, Robert Renteria, Tom Hopkins, Larry Winget and John Eliot are certainly not household names in the comic book world. These well-known motivators are, however, the latest in a slate of best-selling authors to have graphic novels produced, based on their popular books.
Writers of the Round Table Press, the publisher responsible for the recently released graphic novel translations of such books as The Art of War and The Long Tail, sees the crossover to the comics medium as a natural fit between these authors and today's generation of business readers. CEO Corey Michael Blake says, "The short format is perfect for professionals in the Twitter generation."
Most of the business and motivational authors that Round Table approached with the graphic novel concept were open to the idea of adapting their content for the relatively untested waters of the comics medium. Blake admits that when pitching a new idea like this to a best-selling author, "you usually expect to be ignored."
"Not only were these guys immediately on board," he says, "but they were really excited about getting involved."
Anderson's The Long Tail and Winget's Shut Up, Stop Whining, & Get a Life were the first to get the graphic novel treatment. "Chris was very trusting of us, which was great," Blake says. "Larry was trusting, too, but he was also hands-on ? very involved every step of the way. I think he was excited to see himself in comic book form." He laughs and adds: "I mean, making Larry a superhero is perfect!"
In addition to Long Tail and Get a Life, other graphic novels in the series include Eliot's Overachievement, How to Master the Art of Selling by Hopkins, The Art of War by Sun Tzu, and Renteria's Mi Barrio. Blake understands that there are a fair amount of people out there who question both the motivation and quality execution of these books.
"I've been watching the discussion boards about dumbing down the country," he says. "I love those comments because these are almost always from people who haven't read the books." He adds, "I love hearing from people who complained and then read one and then realized that what we're creating are just great abbreviated versions of already great books."
So far, the feedback Round Table has been getting from business professionals (of all ages) has been overwhelmingly positive. "The ability to read one of these popular books in a single sitting is what people tend to like the best," Blake says.
Readers also will be pleased to see that the art wasn't an afterthought with these books. Blake says he knew from the beginning that Round Table needed to select artists who felt at home in the graphic novel and comic book world. Illustrators Shane Clester, Bob Byrne and Nathan Lueth obviously understand comics and do a great job of making this non-fiction content visually compelling and just plain fun to read.
Round Table already has additional authors lined up to produce similar graphic novels in the months to come. The company plans to keep producing books created by authors who strive to motivate and inspire. "Our place is to help people who are making differences in other people's lives," Blake says. "I'd like to keep working with those types of people."
"We really think we're identifying a new market opportunity for these types of authors," he adds. "We'd really like for every author to say 'I have my hardcover and softcover. ? Now I need my comic or graphic novel version.' "
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