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"Eric, would you allow my publishing house to take care of your novel?" Michael Klaus didn't try to hide his intentions as he directly asked.
Eric looked at the already printed and bounded manuscript that the female employee provided him as he replied, "I'm sorry, Michael, though I appreciate your recognition, but you know, I want to try my luck with some of the larger publishing houses. All parents hope for their children to make it to the Ivy League, right?"
Michael Klaus did not display any hint of displeasure at being rejected as he smiled and said, "Eric, you don't seem to have a very great understanding of those large publishing companies. Maybe we could find a place to talk? I know a cafe not far from here; my treat, how about it?"
Eric put the manuscript into his bag as he straightforwardly said, "I'm sorry, Michael, I'm late for work. If my manuscript gets rejected by those large publishers, I will contact you."
Eric picked up his backpack and walked out of the printing shop. Then, he started his car and drove towards the restaurant.
Michael Klaus hesitated a little, before immediately rushing out of the shop, getting into his car and following Eric. He had a feeling that if he missed this opportunity, he would regret it forever. This feeling he got was slightly because of the Jurassic Park novel but mainly because of the young man named Eric.
Although he had only read a part of the novel's first half, Michael was surprised by the young man's knowledge. It had to be known that most teenagers his age would have never heard of genetic engineering, chaos theory, or nanotechnology used in the novel. Not only did Eric's writing display his vast knowledge, he wrote in a way that didn't make the reader lose interest, and instead added to the fascinating twists of the plot.
He had read various sci-fi novels, but most of them used scientific terms in a very plain and boring fashion such that most readers lost interest quickly and the novel's sales plummeted.
***
Eric arrived at the restaurant and parked his car only to find a black car stopping nearby. Michael Klaus got out of his car and approached Eric.
"Hey, Eric-" Michael Klaus waved his hand and was about to speak when Eric pointed at his watch and said, "Umm... Michael, you see, it's nine o'clock and I work at this restaurant as a waiter. If you don't mind ordering breakfast, the bar and restaurant are basically deserted before 10 o'clock." Michael Klaus nodded and followed Eric into the restaurant.
After changing his clothes, Eric returned to the restaurant and walked towards Michael Klaus who had been sitting at a window seat with an empty breakfast plate in front of him.
"I explained the situation to Mr. Jeff, but you have to hurry," Eric sat across him as he smiled and said, "I might be young, but I'm not that easily persuaded."
Michael Klaus smiled, "I believe after you hear what I have to say you will certainly give your novel to me to publish," He paused before continuing, "As I just said, you probably don't know too much about those big publishers, but I have worked at Simon & Schuster for more than a decade. I did everything from running errands to editing manuscripts. After I failed to receive the promotion to department head, I left and founded my own Night Elves publishing house."
"What does that have to do with me?" Because of his past life as a loser, Eric didn't care to hear about other people's struggles, so couldn't help but interrupt.
"Relax, young man, I just want to make you understand that I'm not messing around and that my words are the truth. You know, during my tenure, I had reviewed hundreds of novels. Every day, I reviewed tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of words from drafts. Although there were a lot of poor manuscripts, there were also a lot of works that got published. Simon & Schuster, and other big publishing houses, publish at least 2000 different kinds of books each year. Even if they did publish your novel, how much promotional marketing resources do you think they would use on a rookie writer such as yourself?"
Michael Klaus said his piece and drank a sip of water, leaving Eric some time to process his words. Eric already had an idea what Michael Klaus was referring to but did not say anything, and instead kept staring at him, indicating for him to continue.
"My publishing house might be small, but thanks to my years of experience and knowledge regarding publishing and marketing, it has been doing well. Although we only publish about a dozen novels each year centered around the genres of science fiction, adventure, and horror, we still have a name in the industry. If you give Jurassic Park to me, I promise to put in all our resources towards promoting your novel in the shortest time possible and helping Jurassic Park gain some fame and recognition. With my help, your novel will have a much higher chance to make it into the bestseller list."
Michael Klaus laid all his cards on the table and quietly waited for Eric's decision.
After hearing Michael Klaus's words, Eric was still unconvinced. Even if a small publishing house put in all their resources, how much would that even be worth?
He still had the mind of a middle-aged man who had experienced a lot and seen all kinds of people. Naturally, he wouldn't be so impulsive as to change his mind after hearing just a few words. However, there was one thing that Michael Klaus mentioned which struck a chord with him: helping Jurassic Park build some fame and recognition in the shortest time possible.
No matter the era, fame had always been an intangible but incredibly valuable asset. From Eric's point of view, the only obstacle to the completion of his plans was his young age that would prevent him from receiving the full trust and support of others.
But with enough fame, that shortcoming would disappear. If an eighteen-year-old young man, fresh out of high school, attempted to become a serious film director, people would simply laugh in contempt. But if an eighteen-year-old bestseller writer attempted to become one, the reaction would certainly be different. Naturally, there would still be some obstacles, but he would also gain a lot of support.
After ruminating over Michael Klaus' words, Eric said, "I have to admit, Michael, your words moved me. However, you have only made claims; I still know nothing about your publishing house."
"It's very easy to change that," Michael Klaus calmly replied, "One of the novels my publishing house was in-charge of made it into the recent The New York Times Best Seller list. Although it just barely made it into the last place, that didn't stop 20th Century Fox from purchasing the novel's film adaptation rights. It will probably be made into a film in a few years."
Eric didn't think that Michael Klaus was lying since he could easily confirm the authenticity of his words.
"So, when do we start talking about the specific details?"
Michael was stunned for a second before stammering, "Y-you, you agree?"
"Yes," Eric nodded and smiled, "To be honest, I just can't wait to see my novel hit the shelves."
"Alright, so how about tonight? I think you may need to work now." Michael pointed at the restaurant's entrance where customers were gradually appearing.
After the two agreed on the meeting spot, Michael Klaus left the restaurant, satisfied.
***
"Eric, what did you talk about with that man? You seem quite happy," Jeff asked.
Eric had just told him that he had to discuss something important with a friend, so he was a bit curious.
Eric handed the menu over to the customers and took their orders to cooks in the kitchen, before replying, "Oh yeah, awesome news, Jeff! That man is the owner of a publishing house. My novel will soon be published."
Jeff was a little confused, and asked as he looked at Eric strangely, "You're publishing a novel? Didn't you tell me yesterday that you wanted to become a film director and that you had even written a film script? Are you going to give up on your dream so quickly to become a writer instead?"
Eric replied, "Of course not, my goal has not changed. Writing won't prevent me from becoming a director, will it? The manuscript is in my backpack in the locker room. Jeff, do you mind taking a look and giving me some feedback?"
Jeff made his way to the locker room only to feel shocked. He had thought that Eric's novel would probably be just a short story, about a thousand words long, so when he saw the thick manuscript, Jeff's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. The novel definitely had more than 150,000 words! Throughout his entire life, he had probably never written so many words!
He spent the busiest hours during lunch time in leisure. The staff at the restaurant were taken aback when they realized that their boss seemed to have disappeared for several hours. For the old man who watched them like a hawk to suddenly go AWOL was definitely unusual.
Just as they were discussing whether they should go look for him, Jeff walked out of the locker room, patted Eric's shoulder and said, "Brilliant novel! *sigh* You'll probably resign soon," After stating these words, Jeff left.
Once their boss was out of sight, all the employees surrounded Eric to inquire as to what had happened.
As a result, during the entire afternoon, from time to time, waiters and kitchen staff would take turns to go into the locker room to read Eric's novel. A beautiful waitress even coyly asked him if she could take the novel home.
Although Eric wasn't indifferent to the beautiful girl's suggestive gestures, he could only decline her request. He had a few copies of the novel, so lending her one wouldn't be a problem, but before the novel was published, he didn't wish for any untoward accidents to happen.