Comedy scriptwriter Gail Lerner scored a deal with CBS for a new sitcom set in the hilarious world of contemporary publishing.
According to Hollywood Reporter, the show will follow the adventures of a book editor and her friends, and has the tentative title: “Open Books.” Lerner has worked on “Will & Grace,” co-executive produced for ABC’s “Ugly Betty,” and had a stint working on CBS’ “Worst Week.” She wrote what she knew: Lerner worked a stint as a publishing temp and her [older by ten years] sister Betsy Lerner spent 15 years as an editor and now runs a publishing website. [Hello, fact checker, that’s a blog. And I’m now an agent not a website publisher for the record.]
Here’s an inspiring quote from Lerner [the younger] that should cheer all publishers, from the article: “Publishing is a lot like sitcoms. Although both are supposedly dying, that only makes people more passionate about creating the next great novel or show.”
That’s my kid sis.
Filed under: The End of the World as We Know It |
Betsy Lerner 
That was weird! I just clicked to your blog after having read the news on the blog Pimp My Novel. So…will your sister give you a cameo? A walk on? A regular cast member?
She sure as hell better be proud of her big sister.
Awesome. You two should be a writing team.
Talent in that family.
Thanks for sharing our post. Sorry about the mistake, I just corrected it with a link back to your blog. Keep in touch…
This is GREAT! There hasn’t been a book editor on TV since Elaine Benes lost her job at Pendent Publishing! Oh please please please tell me that the Lerner Sisters will take comic revenge on every author they’ve had to rescue from himself … and, for me, will you go after pop stars who write chldrens’ books?
And I want to see every literary cliche come to life: the posh Literary Writer/ scion of an old New York family that doesn’t pronounce their “Rs”, the hard drinking dame who sells a billion romance novels a year, the celebrity dim wit who dictates her book to a seething ghost writer, the best selling wonder boy who all the other authors hate, and of course the pitiful first-time author who calls her agent every day asking if she’s heard from Oprah yet (I’m writing myself in for a walk-on). Will anyone get stalked by a rejected writer, or asked to find a book that will fit into a publisher’s Zombies-in-Love niche , or date a writer whose books she loathes?
When, oh when does this show go on the air?
Oooh….that sounds exciting!