They’re all reborn, what’s wrong with being a little more almighty?

Chapter 289 Who dares to fight Harry Potter?
In the conference room, executives of Xiaoxiang Entertainment gathered together.

"In theory, we should sign all the contestants who advance to the national finals. This way we can maximize the profits we gain from hosting the show 'Coming Soon Boys'." One of them said.

"But as far as I know, there is a very popular contestant who is the champion of other talent shows and has signed a contract with Universal Music. Universal Music has also invested a lot of resources in him." another person said.

"We can go and negotiate with Universal Music and ask them to terminate their contract and sign a contract with us. If Universal Music wants to expand its business in the mainland, it will inevitably have to use our resources. We can cooperate with Universal Music." The leading man spoke, setting the tone.

"There was another one, the champion from the Nanjing division. When he heard that we were going to sign a contract, he directly withdrew from the competition." Someone else spoke up.

"Try to persuade him to come back. At worst, we can just give him another spot in the finals. After all, as long as the regional champion appears in the national finals, the ratings can at least be guaranteed." said the leading man.

"I know this contestant. He is already 30 years old, quite old, and has his own business. He is the regional agent of a well-known international wine brand in China. This kind of contestant has been working in society for many years, has a certain amount of experience, and has some connections. We have to lower the contract requirements to impress him."

"Then let's lower the contract requirements a bit. In short, people have to find a way to stay. If someone quits the competition because they are dissatisfied with the contract, it will affect our reputation if it gets out. The audience will think we are exploiting the artists."

"Leader, do you think it's okay to give him a contract as an artist?" someone asked.

"Notice the artist." The leader thought for a moment and said, "Okay, but they have to sign for at least three years!"

Announcement artists refer to artists who make a living by participating in various programs and activities. The income of this kind of artist mainly comes from event announcement fees. If they participate in an event, they will receive another announcement fee. If there is no activity, there will be no income.

This is equivalent to the odd-job workers among artists, and they are of the same nature as those laborers squatting at the door of the labor market waiting for work. They have no fixed income, and their social security and medical insurance are not paid by their units. If they have work today, they can have food to eat, and if they have no work, they can only live off their savings.

In the labor market, those doing odd jobs are at the bottom of the social ladder. The same is true in the entertainment industry, where those who work as announcers are at the bottom of the social ladder.

Don't confuse the announced artists with the big stars who perform for money. Although many big stars have not signed contracts with entertainment companies and also take jobs to earn some money, they have their own studios and can be considered self-employed individuals in the entertainment circle.

However, being a self-proclaimed artist also has its advantages, that is, freedom, without being restricted by the company.

Even if the company gives you a notice, if you don't go, the company can't force you. It's just like those odd jobs, if you encounter a job you don't want to take, just don't take it.

If you sign a contract with an entertainment company, you will be like most workers. You have to do whatever job your boss assigns you to do, and there is no bargaining.

Of course, some announcement contracts will also stipulate that artists must participate in a certain number of activities each year, or must participate in a certain type of activity. The specific circumstances vary.

In short, for those artists who do not want to be bound by the company, signing a notice contract is a situation that both parties can accept, but their income will definitely be affected.

Music Department Director Hu Li continued, "Also, the champion of the Beijing Division hasn't been signed yet."

"I remember his name is Zhang Wei, right? It's an easy name to remember, and he's an original singer. The songs he wrote are all very good, and they can be considered top-notch Chinese songs. Why didn't you sign him? Has Zhang Wei already signed with another company?" A man in his forties asked in a questioning tone.

"Zhang Wei has not signed a contract with any other company, but he is not willing to sign a contract with us either," Hu Li replied.

"Why? Our company has such good resources, why didn't he sign?" The man frowned and continued, "Director Hu, did you fail to explain it clearly to Zhang Wei?"

Hu Li didn't want to talk about her failed attempt to bluff people, so she said innocently, "I've already made it clear. I told him all the resources the company could provide him. It was Zhang Wei who didn't know how to appreciate it!
You don’t know, he actually asked me for a signing fee. He is an amateur singer, and I don’t know where he got the courage to ask us for a signing fee. He really thinks he is a big star!"

"Asking for a signing fee is indeed a bit too much. Even for famous singers, few dare to ask for a signing fee." Another person nodded and helped Hu Li out.

Hu Li then added fuel to the fire, "Not only that, Zhang Wei wants us to help him win the championship!"

"That's too much!" Another person slammed the table and said angrily, "What do you think of our competition? Other contestants have sponsorship fees and are guaranteed to win the championship, so how could it be his turn!"

"Ahem..." Someone immediately coughed lightly to remind this guy to stop talking nonsense. Things like the shady side of the show can be discussed in private and cannot be brought to the table.

The man also realized that his mouth was too big, smiled awkwardly, and then shut his mouth tactfully.

The leader asked, "Who is this Zhang Wei? Have you checked?"

"He is a sophomore at Tsinghua University. When he was competing in the top ten, he needed to fill out detailed registration information. He took out his Tsinghua University student ID card, which was real."

"He's still a top student!" The leader nodded slightly and then asked, "Have you figured out his family background?"

"We tried to contact National Tsing Hua University, but they said that student information is private and refused to be disclosed." The man paused and continued, "I think the attitude of National Tsing Hua University is not very good. I called them, but they just tried to coax me and hung up after a few words."

"What do you mean? You look down on our 'Soon Come On Boys'! What's so great about it? If someone from other schools could make it to our national finals, they would be eager to promote it and increase its popularity!"

"That's Tsinghua University. They really have the right to look down on us. Let alone, even our provincial Radio, Film and Television Bureau is one level lower than them!"

"Yes, Tsinghua University really doesn't bother to promote our program, and they don't need us to increase their popularity."

Everyone fell silent for a few seconds. Xiaoxiang Entertainment's talent shows were quite popular, but in front of a top university like Tsinghua University, there was really no sense of superiority.

President Gu was extremely reluctant to let Zhang Wei participate in the talent show. He was afraid that Zhang Wei would really run away to become a star, so he had already made arrangements. Tsinghua University had to keep a low profile on the matter and no publicity was allowed within the university. If outsiders came to interview him, they would just turn them down and ignore the reporters.

So when the people from Xiaoxiang Entertainment went to Tsinghua University through formal channels to inquire about Zhang Wei, Tsinghua University was extremely uncooperative and almost kicked them out directly.

After everyone in the meeting room was silent for a moment, Hu Li finally asked, "Then should we sign this Zhang Wei contract? Or should we also give him a notice contract?"

"He is a student of Tsinghua University, so he must have a way out. The notice contract may not be signed!" The leader pondered for a moment and said:
"How about this, let's try with the announcement contract first. If he's willing to sign, then sign it. If he doesn't, we'll eliminate him in the first game of the finals! Since he's not an artist from our company, there's no need for us to waste exposure on him!"

……

Hu Li dialed Zhang Wei's number and it took more than ten seconds before the call was connected.

Another half a minute passed before Zhang Wei answered the phone.

"Hello, I'm Zhang Wei..." Zhang Wei's tone was as if he was woken up from a dream.

"It's broad daylight, why do you look like you're sleeping? I wonder where you went to have fun last night. That's what young people are like nowadays!" Hu Li sighed silently in her heart, then said, "I'm Hu Li from Xiaoxiang Entertainment." "Director Hu, is there something you need from me?" Zhang Wei said sleepily.

"Regarding the contract, I have reported it to my boss. If you don't want to sign a contract with us, you can also sign a notice contract first, which will give you more freedom. We can work together for a while, and if we are both suitable, we can switch to an artist contract."

Hu Li then explained to Zhang Wei what a notification contract was.

"Thank you, Director Hu, for being so concerned about my affairs. But I can't sign now!" Zhang Wei said.

"Zhang Wei, the company is willing to give you a notice contract, which is already a great sincerity."

"Director Hu, don't get me wrong. When I say we can't sign, I mean it actually is impossible. I'm not in the country right now, so even if there is a contract, I can't sign it." Zhang Wei said.

"You are not in the country? Then where are you? Can you come back to sign the contract?" Hu Li asked immediately.

"I'm in Los Angeles, USA," Zhang Wei replied.

"Uh..." Hu Li was speechless.

Zhang Wei is on the other side of the earth, so don't even think about coming back to sign the contract.

The next second, Hu Li suddenly realized that the time between China and the United States was reversed. No wonder Zhang Wei's voice sounded sleepy. It turned out that it was the second half of the night over there and it should be time to go to bed.

After all this time, I still disturbed Zhang Wei's rest!

……

Zhang Wei was suffering from jet lag and slept until noon the next day.

After lunch, Zhang Wei took a manuscript to Amazon Publishing and met his old acquaintance Evans.

"Mr. Zhang, I originally asked you to come here because I wanted to talk to you about the third part of The Thirst Game. I remember you said before that the third part should be the finale, right?"

Zhang Wei nodded: "Yes, I have already written it."

"Mr. Zhang, you are such an efficient author." Evans praised first, then said: "But after studying the market, we still suggest that you wait until next summer vacation to publish the third part of The Thirst Game."

"Is it because of the finale of Harry Potter? I remember you mentioned it to me before." Zhang Wei asked.

"That's right. JK Rowling will publish the last book in the Harry Potter series this summer, which is also the finale of the entire novel."

Evans nodded and continued, "You must have heard of the popularity of the Harry Potter series, even more so because this is the finale of the entire series.

It is no exaggeration to say that any novel will not be able to achieve high sales if it encounters the finale of the Harry Potter series. Although your "The Thirst Games" series is the second best-seller after the Harry Potter series, according to our assessment, if it really encounters the last Harry Potter book, I am afraid that its sales will be greatly reduced.

In addition, although the Harry Potter series is published by Scholastic, this time Scholastic has also reached a cooperation with Amazon in order to boost sales. At that time, we will also have to invest more resources in the finale of Harry Potter, which is bound to affect your "The Thirst Games".

So I sincerely suggest that you wait a year, avoid Harry Potter, and wait until next summer to publish the finale of The Thirst Games. By then, we at Amazon can also focus our resources on promoting your book. "

"Evans, what you said makes a lot of sense." Zhang Wei showed an expression of deep agreement.

The influence of the Harry Potter series is indeed the No. 1 in youth novels. Especially in Anglo-Saxon countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States, it has created a sales legend.

After the accumulation of the first six films and the promotion of the movies, by the time the Harry Potter series reached its finale, there were already hundreds of millions of book and movie fans around the world.

On the day the novel was released, 850 million copies were sold in the United States and 200 million copies were sold in the United Kingdom. Even BJ sold 1 copies of the original English version.

Later, when the People's Literature Publishing House published the Chinese version, the first print run was one million copies, which was also a record for the number of first print runs of literary books at the time.

In the end, the global sales of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" exceeded 100 million copies. At that time, the sales of the tenth edition of the "Xinhua Dictionary" were not as good as "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows".

As a reborn person, Zhang Wei is naturally very aware of the power of the Harry Potter series. Although The Hunger Games series is also a top bestseller in the United States, it is still a level lower than the Harry Potter series. There is no need to go head-to-head with the finale of Harry Potter.

"Evans, I have no objection to delaying the publication of the finale of The Hunger Games for one year. But I also brought another novel with me this time, and I would like you to take a look at it." Zhang Wei said as he took out a stack of manuscripts from his bag.

"Zhang, do you have a new work? Is it a youth novel or a science fiction novel?" Evans looked curious.

"Neither, this should be considered a romance novel!" Zhang Wei said with a smile.

"Romance novels?" Evans frowned. This kind of thing is usually written by female writers. He didn't expect that Zhang Wei, a grown-up boy, could write romance novels.

Zhang Wei added: "To be precise, this should be a romance novel with a heavier taste."

"A romance novel? And a heavy taste? It sounds like it has a color tone! Could it be one of those colored novels? This Chinese man looks gentle and refined, but he is unexpectedly a reserved person!"

Evans said to himself, then took the manuscript from Zhang Wei and took a look at the name of the novel: "Fifty Shades of Grey"!
"Zhang, does this book title have any special meaning? Fifty shades of gray." Evans asked.

"This Grey is a person's name," Zhang Wei explained.

"Oh, I see, Fifty Shades of Grey!" Evans nodded in sudden realization.

The hero of this novel is called Christian Grey. Grey in English is Grey, so it should be translated into Chinese as "Fifty Shades of Grey".

Since Grey also means gray, the Chinese translator gave the book a more artistic name: "Fifty Shades of Grey".

In the United States, if there is any book that can compete with "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", it is probably "Fifty Shades of Grey"!
(End of this chapter)