Your Chance to Invest in the 'Next Harry Potter' ?

First Edition Books - Septimus Heap or Tunnels to emulate Harry Potter ?

Autographed First Edition Book - Septimus Heap

In my previous post – Septimus Heap – I mentioned the seven book series Septimus Heap by Angie Sage and the fact that Warner Bros. have just signed the film rights. As a result of this contract people are hoping or expecting that Septimus Heap series will repeat the phenomenal success of the J K Rowling franchise.

Angie Sage's books are already international best-sellers and have been translated into 28 languages and given the public's love of all things magykal the films, which will undoubtedly be well-produced by Warner Bros., may well find as many fans as the Harry Potter films. After all new children are coming along all the time !

Autographed first editions of either the US or the UK edition of the books may well prove to be a sound long-term investment, as it is already becoming increasingly difficult to find signed First Editions of the first three books in the series, Magyk, Flyte and Physik.

In addition the Angie Sage PR machine seems to be getting underway, as she was interviewed on Sky News at mid-day today.


Tunnels

Another book which is causing a great stir is Tunnels by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams. As reported in the Hollywood Reporter, Relativity Media have already acquired franchise rights to develop and produce a series of films

Tunnels was first self-published in 2005 by Roderick Gordon and Brian Wilson under the title The Highfield Mole. It was subsequently published by Chicken House under the name Tunnels after undergoing some editing. Tunnels was released in the UK July 2, 2007 and is due to be released in the United States on January 1, 2008. The authors have already finished the second book in the series and are working on the third.

Their marketing campaign was rather unusual, Roderick Gordon says "I even went around leaving copies on buses and in taxis, and also carefully placing them on benches and in trees in the various parks that I visited with my children so someone would spot them and might take them home to look at. I reckon the squirrels were a little bemused when they chanced upon the tree copies!"

At the moment the only signed copy I can see is on offer at AbeBooks for £1,595.00 maybe I should check out a few parks !

Relativity hope to get several hit films from the novels and replicate the success of the "Harry Potter" series. "Tunnels" has more than $1 million in advance sales and prepublication rights in more than 21 languages.

The original self-published version is obviously the more valuable investment. As far as I have been able to discover there were 500 hardback copies printed and 2000 soft covers. A number of the copies were signed by the authors and 80 copies of the 500-copy hardback run were numbered and signed as part of a "Remarque" edition. These copies have a hand-drawn illustration by Brian Williams, an inscription by Roderick Gordon, and are signed by both authors. There is also a "Colony Leather Bound Edition" of ten hardbacks, numbered and signed, with a hand-drawn picture by Brian Williams bound into the book. (Wikipedia)

The authors on their website say that there are a number of errors in the Wikipedia description, but as Wikipedia is open access, they could just log in, change the errors and give the definitive chronology of events.

The book may well prove to be a good long-term investment of which The Oracle of Omaha himself would be proud if you can find one at a reasonable price. The most expensive J K Rowling on Abebooks at the moment is being offered for £ 245,000 although the second mos expensive is only £ 36,000 !

Angie Sage’s ‘Magyk’ is more affordable, if you can find a copy.

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