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    Laszlo & Laszlo

 

CONTENT EDITING 1: "THE DRUG PROBLEM"

Though this is a "popular science" book written to entertain, it is also a very serious and quite "deep" book designed to help people understand the terrible consequences of supply illegality. I am a drug policy researcher, a fiction writer, and was once the "best student." Furthermore, I have no personal agenda; my sincere desire to help the reader understand makes me the ideal person to write this book. However, while it is a good read, I am no longer at the forefront of the subject (I was until 2011), so even though the text is relatively timeless, there may be inaccuracies that need correction. To edit this text effectively, you need a background in (narcotic) drug policy, and to enjoy or understand the work, you must also have extensive education. An issue is that if you are the right person for this job, I may not be able to afford your services, although you might know the right publisher or double as my agent. Note: In my book The Drug Problem, "drug" refers to "illegal narcotic drugs," and the book is all about why illegality (mainly from an economic and philosophical perspective) is a very bad idea, especially due to the corruption it generates, and in the end the reduced marginal cost for ‘all’ crime that illegality, through the cornering and idle protectors it creates. 

CONTENT EDITING 2: "DRUG ILLEGALITY IS A SCAM"

Everything discussed about "The Drug Problem" applies to this book as well; however, it is much shorter, sexier, more ‘popular’, punchier, and more compelling.

 

CONTENT EDITING 3: "THE TALE OF TWO KNAVES"

This is an unusual combination of literary elements: 50 short stories, 110 years of father-son biography/autobiography, interconnected biographical introductory paragraphs, several stories from a man-eating tiger's point of view, and all arranged along a time axis designed to convey a sense of continuity. The structure is strong (and new, I think), but some aspects can be improved: 1. Continuity between the introductory paragraphs, 2. The individual short stories (so for this you need to be a short story writer/reader), and 3. "Stand-alone": Much of the second half of the chronicles (my short stories) reads more like a continuous adventure than as individual short stories (so you need to identify stories that can be made to stand alone with relative ease, and then suggest how to fix).

CONTENT EDITING 4: "THE CASPIAN CONNECTION"

This is a mega-project, and while the first two books are presentable, I need assistance: someone with strengths beyond my own. This is not just about creating a good read, but about developing cinematic potential. This story follows the adventures of Karli, Odin's son (Karli doesn't know that) in the 21st century, leading up to his "mountain moment" and the possible "end-of-the-world" (unless he fixes things up) approaches. Keywords: Vikings, Norse mythology, Islam, Aisha, Kharijites, French Interpol, CIA, KGB, Sundarbans, tigers, Swedish police, Swedish feminism, Sana Quaran, Arabic texts, and antique dealing. This text also exists in Swedish.

TRANSLATION 1: ENGLISH TO FRENCH: "MOTHER UNKNOWN"

The French 1952 version is dreadful, whereas the new English version is excellent, and a professional translation of the new English version back into French could yield positive outcomes. I believe I hold the translation rights to the French book, and if so, it would be permissible (i.e. legal) to collate the texts, meaning examining the old French text alongside the English text. This text was poised to become a French film at Senior's demise, so if it eventually comes to fruition from the French text, you'd receive credit for that.

TRANSLATION 2: ENGLISH TO SPANISH: "THE COMPLETE WORKS OF ANDRES LASZLO SR."

The English translations are far superior to the original Spanish texts, which never got any proper content editing, making retranslation a viable option. While this may sound like an overwhelming task, there are ways to ease the process: grants may be available, and you would be allowed to use the original Spanish texts as a foundation, as I hold the rights to these.

TRANSLATION 3. GERMAN TEXT-FIX: "THE COMPLETE WORK OF ANDRES LASZLO SR."

Many senior books are published in German (as eBooks or traditional paper books), but the quality is questionable. I would like to see this project managed properly, meaning someone needs to handle the entire German project: 1. Revise all German texts, 2. Translate the one missing text (or I could have that done), 3. Create The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr. in German (or I could do that), 4. Upload the nine different texts (including my Die Herausforderung) to suitable platforms (or I could do that), 5. Promote to sell e-books. Therefore, it's just (at minimum) points 1 and 5 that you would need to manage. Check out my German page and make me an offer. I will not be stingy.

RESIDENT SALES/PUBLISHING PERSON

I am a writer living in the south of Spain (Fuengirola), where I have transformed my house into three apartments. Upstairs, there's space for one more; downstairs can accommodate two. In the middle, there is an upscale apartment that sleeps four. I am looking for one or more individuals with sales and publishing experience to stay, either paying (if you do not wish to work very much), free of charge (if you want to work a little), or getting paid (if you want to work a lot). This, of course, also depends on where you stay and whether or not you bring your family.

PUBLICIST

Even with a fair amount of modesty, I can claim to be quite unusual, and therefore, if unusual in my case (I'm several "possibly world's X") equals marketable, then maybe a publicist could make something out of this. My problem is that as soon as I start "telling how good I am," my knees begin to wobble, and I feel like a jerk, afraid I will be looked at like a liar. Check out my bio (there's much more that modesty forbids me from writing).

IMPROVE MY JOB POSTINGS

If you can tick "1" or "2" below, please reply:

  1. You have the skills of a literary estate agent.
  2. You possess intimate knowledge of platforms such as Upwork, Guru, and Fiverr, as well as insights into how and where to find 'rising talent' at good prices.

My father, a senior writer, was once considered a top European fiction writer, and I, a junior writer, have lived for 25 years on the proceeds of my only published book. I am about to start commercialising a large literary/cinematic project containing new texts/scripts as well as texts/rights dating back to the 1930s.

I need advice on how to identify 'rising talent' (i.e., inexpensive yet skilled) for my project. I have reworked my father's various literary assets and added a few of my own (translating, adapting, finishing, editing, digitalising, etc., predominantly finding talent on Upwork and Fiverr) for ten years. Now, I am about to commercialise the project in the spirit of 'Let's see where I can get good cooperation from individual agents and rising talent', especially in India and Pakistan, as I have spent winters in and around Mumbai.

I will subsequently seek a literary estate agency to manage the remainder of the literary work while I commence work on the cinematic aspect of the project. 

 

FIND GRANTS  FOR DRUG POLICY VIDEO-MAKING

As a drug policy researcher, I have important insights regarding how the illegality of the drug supply undermines the fabric of society and is really nothing but a scam. I would like to give talks on this (in English, Swedish, or Spanish). However, to become "in demand" as a lecturer, I need to produce high-quality videos (60 subpar videos in Swedish and English are available on my YouTube channel; I can do much better), as well as a “TED talk-style videos” explaining why illegality is a scam, how it allows the market to get cornered, produce giand drug lord profits, cheap idle protectors, and ultimately ridiculously low marginal cost for crime, and thus most of the misery of our times. This will be costly, and I require assistance to secure financing for professional help (script development, new illustrations, video shooting, video editing, distribution, promotion, etc.). 

DRUG POLICY TALKS (& TED TALKS)

As a drug policy researcher, I have some important points to convey regarding how illegality corrupts, and I am competent at delivering talks (in English, Swedish, and Spanish). Assuming that I succeed in creating high-quality videos, I will require assistance with: 1. Promotion, and 2. Arranging/booking a lecture tour.

 

 REVIVE SENIOR 1: Ph.D. ON ANDRES LASZLO Sr.

From 1985 to 2002, I was often asked, sometimes more than once a year, if I would assist or provide information to literature and cinema students who wanted to write about Senior. However, I always said: "No" (often quite rudely, as at the time I was rather miffed with my old man). Today, if you are clever and possess an investigative mind, I would be happy to offer you my full cooperation to assist you in obtaining a cum laude Ph.D. or a master’s degree. I am looking to fill the role of finding these students before they are misguided into seeking out a lesser writer. As I am unsure how to locate such students, I am seeking someone who can.

REVIVE SENIOR 2: GRANTS FOR REVIVING MY FATHER’S MEMORY.

My father, Andres Laszlo Sr., was once regarded as a top European writer. However, neither I nor any of his four “mother countries” (France, Spain, Hungary, and Austria) are taking much interest in him, so his memory is fading. I am currently working to change this, primarily through Project Revive Father. The EU offers grants for projects like this – and perhaps some of his mother countries do as well (especially France or Spain) – but although the grants can be substantial, the process is painstaking and prolonged (an utter nuisance, actually, which is why I haven't...). I am searching for someone to manage the complex and time-consuming process of applying for “Revive Senior grants.” If you believe you are the right person for the job, I would like you to continue your work as the person in charge of the project you have successfully applied for, receiving the salary approved by the EU. Thus, you must be adept at both applying for grants and managing the revival project (or be one of them and know the other).

REVIVE SENIOR 3: GRANT FOR TRANSLATING THE COMPLETE WORKS OF ANDRES LASZLO SR. FROM ENGLISH TO SPANISH:

Only two of Senior's five books were content-edited (the books that became films), and only two were translated into English (one rather poorly). As I translated them into English, the books were also adapted, content-edited, and improved, so a re-translation back into Spanish could be a good idea. Perhaps one could persuade a Spanish publisher to undertake this, but a grant would certainly help, especially for promotion.

REMAKE AGENT 1 (NEW MOVIE): "PACO NEVER FAILS"

Andres Laszlo Sr. co-wrote the script with Didier Haudepin, who subsequently directed the film. Due to contractual disputes, the movie was never screened outside of Spain. Twice (2000 & 2002), Gallimard offered me contracts with producers for remakes, but I declined both times. As my agent, your task is simply to locate one of the previously interested producers (or a new one), persuade them to increase their bid by 25%, and claim your 20% of €600,000. This role is only suitable for a GB/US, French, or Spanish agent with relevant experience in the field. There are contractual issues, which is why the price is so low; however, if these could be resolved…

REMAKE AGENT 2 (NEW MOVIE): "MY UNCLE JACINTO"

Andres Laszlo Sr. wrote My Uncle Jacinto/Mi Tio Jacinto in 1955, and it quickly became a blockbuster film (produced by Ladislao Vajda and starring Pablito Calvo). Today, the film is a regular contender for the Spanish or Hispanic number one (or top-five or top-ten) spot of all time in film festivals. Considering how popular it was and remains, it’s odd that nobody has asked me to permit them to adapt it into an animated film. I regard it as one of the most popular children’s books or films that has yet to be animated. I would like an agent to find someone to adapt My Uncle Jacinto into an animated film.

REMAKE AGENT 3 (NEW MOVIE): "SIN UNIFORME"

I do not know whether Senior wrote this from scratch or based it on someone else’s text that has now been lost (Senior was a passionate pacifist and anti-uniform individual, so I believe there may have been an underlying text that originated with him), but he is credited as the scriptwriter (excluding dialogue); Ladislao Vajda directed, and Warner Brothers produced. I have finally managed to watch the film at Filmoteca Española in Madrid. Casablanca profoundly inspires it, and therefore, it should have a place in ‘fringe festivals.’

REMAKE AGENT 4 (NEW THEATER): "DOÑA JUANA"

Doña Juana must have once been a theatre script, but the original score has been lost. What was published in Spanish instead was "a script dressed up as a novella" (Senior's Spanish publishers probably didn't publish theatre scripts). Senior worked as an actor and a theatre director in his youth, but I do not think Doña Juana was ever staged; if it was, it must have been back in the 1930s. However, it was performed as a mime by Marcel Marceau in the 1960s. I have had this text transformed back into a theatre script (it should have music added or even become a musical). The script is well developed, hilarious, and ‘feminist’. Senior’s friend, Simone de Beauvoir, was said to have influenced it, but I cannot ‘see’ that. As my Doña Juana agent, I would like you to assist in staging it, perhaps initially on a small scale, so that I can develop it myself.

SCRIPT TO MOVIE 1: "THE CHALLENGE"

The Challenge is my adaptation of my father’s bestselling blockbuster My Uncle Jacinto. In my adaptation, bullfighting becomes boxing; Madrid/La Quinta, Cape Town/Mandela Park, and white faces become coloured or black. The script has been submitted to IFFR/International Film Festival Rotterdam, where I applied for production grants to produce the film in Cape Town with Tim Spring (Raw Target, Reason to Die, etc.) as director. They called it “a near miss”. The script is currently available in English, Spanish, and Swedish.

SCRIPT TO MOVIE 2: "DOÑA JUANA"

Senior likely wrote it as a theatre script in the 1930s. The script has been lost, but only after it was adapted into a novella. Senior was advised by his publishers, Gallimard, to present this novella to the Spanish film industry, something I do not believe he ever did (but Marcel Marceau performed it as a mime-drama as Dom Juan). Although I have recast this novella back into a theatre script, it now requires adaptation from a theatre script to a film script.

SCRIPT TO MOVIE 3: "PACO NEVER FAILS"

Whereas the original book text of Paco Never Fails emphasised the anthropological aspect and was presented as a historical drama, the film focused on a strong, dark comedy element. The original text contained crime undertones, and one can sense how Senior contemplated adding a murder-mystery dimension, a genre that was not particularly popular at the time. Although new producers looking to acquire the adaptation rights could easily be on the horizon, I have begun, albeit in very early stages, to re-adapt the original text into the murder-suicide mystery it nearly became. I have some thoughts about setting the action in Goa, India; not merely because I spend the winters there, but because it, particularly "Portuguese Goa", would provide a far better backdrop than even the original: Madrid. With or without an Indian setting, the format should be a 5 – 9 episode television series, as (even if Didier Haudepin persuaded me into agreeing to it) a film could never capture the most essential elements of Paco Never Fails: the peña, the wetnurses, the relationship to Paco’s manager, the wealthy upper-class ladies, and the murder angle. 

NOVEL TO SCRIPT 1: "MOTHER UNKNOWN"

Karl, a sculptor and the protagonist, escapes World War II to Tangiers (Morocco). One day, he finds what is clearly his (3-4-year-old) son on his doorstep along with a letter: You always wanted a son without a mother: here he is. Do not try to find out who I am. XXX. As the war comes to a close, the boy asks his father to find his mother. There are three possible women, and Kurt sets off to find the right one: Naples, Paris, and Avila. This is the first of my father’s three major novels and the only one that has not been adapted into a film. It has been significantly improved (easy, considering that no content editing had been provided). As it was translated into English for the first time, it was also adapted for the cinema. A straightforward/traditional timeline is not an option, and I am looking for something "a la Tarantino" (see below). Despite being ‘untranslated’ and ‘unedited’, and with an at the time impossible timeline, Mother Unknown was about to become a film at Senior's demise. However, the script was lost, although I still retain Senior's synopsis. I am considering adapting this book into a synopsis or scenario myself, but I require ideas regarding its structure, which will have to be somewhat unconventional.

NOVEL TO SCRIPT 2: "THE SEAL CASTLE"

Before leaving his homeland (Austro-Hungary), Senior, in a bid to save on rent, alleges that he took up residence in the famous Turkish Baths of Budapest (the "castle"). This novel, primarily a dark romantic comedy, follows the protagonist, a handsome actor, as an upper-class girl falls in love with him, set against the backdrop of the girl's life, the other "seals" of the Turkish Baths, and their survival scams. Although I am not particularly good at love stories, I can see that there is ample potential, but I require assistance to make it work cinematically. The Seal Castle is now available in English for the first time.

NOVEL TO SCRIPT 3: "THE CASPIAN CONNECTION"

This is a massive project - encompassing Odin, Vikings, adventures, detective work, terrorism, Islam, Swedish feminism, and more - and its two initial, presentable book drafts are now ready to be published (in English and Swedish). These texts are written to become films eventually, but as I, foolishly, have been working in two languages simultaneously (resulting in more headaches than high-quality finished text), the most pressing questions are, “Shall I proceed in English or Swedish?” and “Should I keep home base as Sweden/Birka and 830s or should I change it to Norwy or Denmark?” I would not be able to develop these books to the script standard I desire without the assistance of a director, a better-suited writer, or a production company.

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 1: "THE LITTLE WOODEN HORSE"

The story is about a wooden horse that escapes the merry-go-round when everyone at the amusement park is asleep. He then sets off for the continent where he believes all horses roam free: America. As he gallops off into the night, we follow him on his adventures and get to know his (pretty shallow, quite human-like, and easy-to-identify-with) personality through his reflections on the nature of the world, his fellow animals on the merry-go-round, us bipeds, and the slavery we have forced upon him. Yes, of course, he ends up going in a circle. I love the story, which could become a “deep” animated family/children’s movie, and I would be happy to provide it with a pre-discussed treatment to serve as the foundation for further talks, treatments, and scripts. 

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 2: "MY FRIEND IN THE PHOTO"

is a vampire story that I would like to see developed into a film. It is set in a traditional "vampire-country," and in “a proper vampire setting." Senior had some dubious branches on his ancestral tree (ok, so I have them as well, but I am presently symptom-free), and his disbelief in the supernatural becomes severely unsettled.

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 3: "A BEAUTIFUL GIRL"

is a love story with an amazing and modern yet undecidable twist that could be adapted for either cinema or theatre. It is set in post-war Germany, where it delves deep into the nature of "the beautiful feminine's" psyche—something I am not particularly skilled at, so I could, at best, offer assistance.

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 4: "THE MAN IN THE BLUE TUXEDO"

is primarily about a casino heist and could be adapted into a compelling film. Additionally, it features a character who, with proper development, could become ‘worthy of his own TV series (as in a wicked version of The Persuaders). Furthermore, while the story can stand on its own, there is a casino scam element that could enhance an action movie in which the "I've-given-up-hero" fortuitously discovers a clever way to earn a significant income in a casino. Although the situation might be somewhat challenging to set up, the quality would be excellent.

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 5: "THE SPY"

Here we follow a day in the life of a US spy in Italy in the late 1940s. His girlfriend is a spy too (though he doesn't know that), and in this short story—which provides great insight into the day-to-day drudgery of spies' lives at the time—we (well, the smartest among us) see how our hero is set up to be framed for murder, although he remains unaware of this. This could be developed into a full-length mystery-thriller, perhaps in the spirit of North by Northwest. 

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 6: "THE DOMINANT MALE"

I have a fascination with man-eating tigers, and this is one of several short tiger stories (where we see things from a tiger's point of view) set in the Sundarbans (an Indian/Bangladeshi beach jungle). The stories are all quite entertaining, somewhat continuous, and reasonably well-researched. I don't really know what to do with them unless someone wants to make a movie starring a man-eating tiger, with events seen from the tiger's perspective. Actually, maybe that's not such a bad idea...

SHORT STORY TO SCRIPT 7: "SAHARA 2"

Imagine a giant of a man hitchhiking through the Sahara because it's on his bucket list, while a small, feminine man, full of hatred, raises a stone at midnight to crush the sleeping giant's skull. The giant awakens just in time to raise his hands to protect himself, and the small man throws the stone beside him. "Scorpion!" he exclaims, sitting atop the stone so the big man shall not lift it to check. There they sit: the hitchhiker desperately trying not to fall asleep (and thereby be killed), and the small man refusing to budge because he believes that remaining on the stone until dawn is his only way to survive. We follow their somewhat strained discussion, with additional insights and murder attempts that could be inserted. Perhaps this story could become theatre; it contains amazing possibilities, especially if one could just get the discussion right (or if I could remember it).

CINE BOLLYWOOD 1: "PACO NEVER FAILS" SET IN GOA

Paco Never Fails is set in Madrid in the early 1940s, just after the Spanish Civil War. Here we meet Paco Garcia, who makes his living by mating with young girls from the countryside: girls who have come to Madrid to forge better lives for themselves as wet nurses (after unwanted pregnancies) and sooner or later need to boost the milk flow. Though this impregnation is an occupation that seldom gets discussed, at that time (allegedly, it still is) it was a very real profession, and the impregnator most likely to succeed, i.e., ‘who never failed,’ was the one highest in demand. However, Paco has failed once, so when his wife finally becomes pregnant, this father of thousands realises… This impregnation was also an occupation in India, and since I stay in and around Mumbai (mainly in Goa, which, with its Portuguese influence, is probably a better setting than Mumbai to make the story more dramatic, contrasting, and believable)... I would like to develop/adapt a Goa script for Bollywood, and I need expert assistance both anthropologically (for reality-check) and "Bollywood style dramatization".

CINE BOLLYWOOD 2: GOA 1930s/40s WET-NURSE INFO

In Goa, during the 1930s and 40s, girls from the countryside with unwanted pregnancies became wet nurses. These women needed to be re-impregnated when their milk flow stopped. There were (if not, let's invent one) men specialising in this impregnation; I am seeking assistance to understand the mindset of such a man and to learn everything about him: his life, his background, his socio-economic position, his peers, his values, his issues, his pride, and so forth. I need to grasp what his life would have been like so that I can write from his perspective. Additionally, I need to explore how to do this in a way that will make the story captivating for Bollywood.

CINE BOLLYWOOD 3:  BOLLYWOOD/GOA CONTACTS

I am a writer who has just finished sorting out (digitalising, improving, adapting, translating, and completing) my and my father's (who was once considered top-Europe) fictional texts. Now, I am about to start adapting these texts into treatments and scripts. As an Indiophile, and as I spend much of my winters in Mumbai/Goa, I am seeking all sorts of text-to-script contacts, including advisors, co-writers, agents, and producers.

SUNDRY CINE 1: TANGIERS PREP

Andres Laszlo Sr. wrote Mother Unknown/Mere Inconnue, and at his death in 1984, this book (just as his other two major novels had been) was poised to be adapted into a film. Today, this book has been translated into English, and Sr. wrote a synopsis (as well as a script, which has unfortunately been lost). I am considering producing a treatment, perhaps even a script, and I am looking for someone local to get involved: to conduct some preliminary scouting, seeking out and identifying locations (help with financing and local interest would also be appreciated). If you're interested, I'll send you the book, and then I'll drop by for a cup of mint tea (I live just across in Malaga).

SUNDRY CINE 2: TARANTINO-STYLE SCRIPT STRUCTURING

Year 1 (1936-37). Kurt (sculptor) has relationships with three women, Y3. Kurt escapes WWII and settles in Tangiers during the war, Y4. A young boy (3-4) with a letter appears at Kurt's door: "You always wanted a son without a mother: here he is; don't try to find me. XXX" Y4-Y9 Kurt and the boy live and bond in Tangiers. Y9 As the war ends, the boy desires to find his mother but does not know who she is or where to look. Y10 Kurt, with or without the boy, goes in search of the mother. Woman 1 - no, Woman 2 - no, and Woman 3 - ... Obviously, a straight timeline would be rather dull, and, naturally, something Tarantino-esque springs to mind. I envision a Kill Bill-like structure would be highly effective: structural advice is needed.

SUNDRY CINE 3: FRENCH OR SPANISH FILM AGENT(S).

My father’s films (3), un-filmed script (1), and theatre (1) are all produced by or directed towards the French or Spanish film industry (in the case of My Uncle Jacinto, also the Italian). French Gallimard had French (I think) producer-customers to make a new Paco Never Fails twice. Senior negotiated to make a film out of Mother Unknown with a French producer at his demise, and Doña Juana has theatre and film potential in either Spain or France. My portfolio ought therefore to be interesting for a French or Spanish cinematic agent.

SUNDRY CINE 4: FILM-DISTRIBUTION AGENT & ROYALTY COLLECTOR

There are film distribution companies that are reluctant to pay for films they have shown (and should have paid a royalty for) in Luxembourg and Madrid, and I believe I own the unexplored viewing/showing rights of Paco Never Fails for the Scandinavian countries: assistance needed. 

SUNDRY CINE 5: ANY COOPERATION

If you have read about my project and understood my situation - top European writer-father, one art book to set myself up for life (?), drug-policy researcher, twenty years of adventures, ten years of text work, now moving from books to film - you might feel that you can be of assistance to me or utilise my skills in a way not listed here. If so, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

 

 

LANGUAGE AGENTS

You have seen a sample of the texts that I can offer in different languages above, and you can click "your flag" and then "books" for information about what books I have in your language (or go to Amazon to enter Andres Laszlo Jr.). Of course, I would be delighted if you offered to take over something that is hard for me to work on (especially "German Books") but more reluctant to "part with" something in an attractive language (so in such a case you would have to convince me that you are good). For individual-language-agency: Read More

GENRE AGENTS

My fictional genres are general fiction, historical novel, biography/autobiography, children's novel, adventure, murder mystery, short stories. Some keywords: vampire, irony, feminism, Viking, Norse mythology, Islam, man-eating tigers & Sundarbans. For individual-genre-agency: Read More

E-BOOK/PoD PROMOTION AGENTS

The books, especially those for which I will not find traditional publishers, will be promoted as e-books/PoD (Amazon: enter Andres Laszlo Jr.). If you feel "I know exactly where I want this book listed, priced, described, and promoted!" contact me.

ESTATE MANAGEMENT AGENT

I own the rights to the texts of my father’s books (7 books + 25 translations), and films (3), as well as some distribution rights and scripts, and I am an ok writer myself with 20+ books (counting translations). For 12 years I have worked on advancing “The Laszlo & Laszlo Project”, without commercializing it, but now I have decided to do so, and as I want to keep control, I plan to use platforms such as this. Yet, in a way, what I want, is someone with the skills of a literary estate agency who could manage several aspects of my project, (preferably sitting on the desk next to me and my photo/computer guy here in Fuengirola, Spain). But then, with such skills, you wouldn't be reading this, would you...

BOOK-FAIR BOOKINGS AGENT

I am looking for someone to set up/book meetings at the big book fairs in Frankfurt, Bologna, and (maybe) London. Though I am not good at promoting myself (i.e., at begging and bragging), I am okay at meeting and negotiating with publishers & agents. I need someone with a magic touch to contact publishers and agents for esp. English, Spanish, French, Swedish, Italian, or German books: to match books to publishers/agents, use magic, and be my booking agent. Let's meet in real life, and take it from there.

LITERARY COMPETITION/GRANTS AGENTS

Three children's books, 50 short stories (15+ suitable for competition), two books on drug policy, seven top-European-writer-texts that I have improved so much that maybe one could call them "new books", a Viking adventure series, and family chronicles like nothing ever written before. These are all looking for competitions to enter into, as well as grants to be published and promoted.  

ADULT FICTION

As Senior has six adult fiction titles out of seven, and I have five out of seven - actually, it could be argued that we are both seven for seven - this is the bread and butter of the project. As to Senior's titles, the most interesting are those that have been changed/adapted/upgraded the most: Mother Unknown (as much improved), Paco Never Fails (as turned into a murder mystery), The Seal Castle (as much improved) & Doña Juana (as much improved and turned into a theatre script). As for Junior: The Tale of Two Knaves (as a new form of literature), and The Caspian Connection (as an epic adventure series full of potential). 

JUVENILE FICTION

1. Senior wrote My Uncle Jacinto which became a bestselling children's book, 2. Senior wrote a collection of short stories, where one was The Merry-go-Round Horse: a deep, philosophical, and unexplored children’s story. and 3. I have adapted Senior's bestseller: The Challenge which is a well-illustrated children's book. 

SHORT STORIES/BIOGRAPHY

Senior wrote a collection of 24 short stories - Only the Landscape Changes - and I added 25 to produce a collection of short stories covering 110 years. Then I translated-adapted-edited Senior's stories, ordered things along a timeline, while giving each story an introductory/biographical paragraph, and called it a biography: The Tale(s) of Two Knaves. These short stories could easily be turned into 24 Short Stories by Andres Laszlo Sr. and 25 Short Stories by Andres Laszlo Jr. 

COMPLETE WORKS

Senior wrote seven fictional texts in Spanish that are all available in Spanish (unedited), and in English (edited/adapted). Six out of seven are available in German, and four in French.

 THE DRUG PROBLEM

This I believe is an important book on drug policy. However, though I was the fastest student in my country and the writer of a well-received book on art, I never got any Swedish publisher interested in translating and publishing the English text. Therefore I have popularized my research into The Drug Problem. There’s also a “half book/half video script”: Drug Illegality is a Scam.

 

ENGLISH 

English is the project's main language, with more than 15 titles, and apart from my Swedish art book Svenskt Konstglas, all books come in English, and all the English texts are publishable (except The Caspian Connection which needs polish). Of Special Interest: The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr, Mother Unknown, Doña Juana: Script, The Tale of Two Knaves, The Caspian Connection, The Challenge, The Drug Problem & Drug Illegality is a Scam. Agent Info. 

SPANISH 

Spanish is the project's "2nd language", with eight titles by Senior, and four by Junior. As Senior was considered "a Spanish writer", and as Junior nowadays lives in Spain, this is an important language. Senior's titles (except The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr.) are all paper-published with Plaza Janez (at the time Spain's most prestigious publisher). Of Special Interest: The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr. (as previously not available), The Laszlo & Laszlo Chronicles (needs work), The Challenge (as an adaptation of Senior's bestseller) & The Drug Problem I (as "Spanish"/liberal in spirit). Agent Info.

FRENCH 

Neither Senior nor Junior wrote in French, but we are both French citizens, and Senior was published with the most prestigious French publishing house (Gallimard) and was agented by the most illustrious French agent (Jenny Aspenwall Bradley: James Joyce’s agent). Senior has six titles in French and Junior three: the translations are all “ok plus”. Three books are paper-published of which two are still in print, and France is an important market. Of Special Interest: Laszlo & Laszlo Chronicles (as both I and Senior are French), and The Challenge (as it is a new high-quality and well-illustrated children's book based on a classic). Agent Info.

SWEDISH 

I count myself as a Swede, my only paper-published book, which has kept me in champagne (or, beer, rather) for 25 years was in Swedish, and my written Swedish is ok. Also, Sweden is the only place where a reader/publisher/agent might know who I am. I have six titles of my own in Swedish, and I have translated three of Senior's texts. Of Special Interest: Laszlo & Laszlo Chronicles (as I am Swedish), The Caspian Connection (as much of the action is set in Sweden and Swedish is an alternative to English as I move this towards CINE), Doña Juana: Script (as I believe there could be Swedish theater companies interested in staging/developing it because of its poignant humor and feminist content), My Uncle Jacinto (as it is a 'classic' and previously not available in Swedish & The Challenge (as it is a high-quality and well-illustrated children's book). Agent Info.

ITALIAN 

Italian was for long "the lost language" with only My Uncle Jacinto (the movie was an Italian-Spanish co-production) translated. I have changed this, translating also Paco Never Fails, The Family Chronicles, and my own The Challenge. The translations are allegedly between "high quality" and "professional", and my feeling is that Italian is a language where both the Laszlos ought to be successful. Of Special Interest: The Challenge (as it is a high-quality and well-illustrated children's book). Agent Info.

GERMAN 

Senior has two paper books published in German, of which one has been retranslated. Six out of seven Senior-books have been translated, of which I own the rights to five, so there is an opportunity (with some work) to publish The Complete Works of Andres Laszlo Sr. I can imagine great possibilities on the German e/PoD-market but the problems are 1. I do not speak German & 2. The translations are said to be poor (but not terrible). I am very much looking for a way to improve "The German Situation". Agent Info.

CATALAN 

My only Catalan title is Paco Never Fails. Translation quality has been questioned, and I am willing to accept basically whatever offer comes my way (33% reserved for the translator).

BULGARIAN 

The only title in Bulgarian is My Uncle Jacinto. I am told that the translation is very bad, and with nothing whatsoever to recommend myself or the Bulgarian part of my project, I am, of course, willing to accept whatever offer comes my way.

JAPANESE

The only title in Japanese is My Uncle Jacinto. I am told that the translation is excellent and that the book was a big hit. The text, though scanned, has not yet been turned into digital text.

My literary and cinematic assets and projects are so many, and varied, that the (at least economically) cleverest option could well be to look for a literary estate agent, and hand it all over (but what fun would that be), and that could be what will happen to the parts where I find no way to advance in any other way. If you are looking for something to do inside my project, please read 1-5 below, have a look elsewhere at my homepage, and then check out 6. THE JOBS below.

 

As both the Laszlos (Senior/Dad and Junior/I) are fiction writers with cinematic ambitions that is what most projects/jobs are about: books and cinema. However, whereas the book part is mainly finished (and ready to be commercialized), the cinema part is just about to get started (yet, there are three existing movies, one screenplay, and one theater script that are already looking to be commercialized). Though 1. BOOKS and 2. CINE is the main source of projects/jobs, but there is much more: 3. REVIVE SENIOR is about applying for grants, etc., to revive Senior’s memory, 4. DRUG POLICY wants to promote my drug-policy texts and videos, arrange lectures & get me a TED talk, and, in 5. SUNDRY there's even more - editing, translating, publicist, finding the right people, applying for grants, in-house salesperson, etc. - it all comes together and becomes specific in 6. JOBS.

1. BOOKS – finishing my own books as well as translating and making Senior’s better/more commercial – is where I have slugged away for the last 10 years. This has resulted in 9 texts by Senior and 7 by Junior; counting translations, that make for well over 60 books, all either available right now or at the push of a button as e-books and print-on-demand (enter "Andres Laszlo Jr." on Amazon). My main question is “Traditional publishing or e/PoD?” The answer will probably be that I will go for both, and I will be looking for traditional agents (to interact with publishers, book me at book fairs, etc.), as well as e/PoD agents (to advise, take responsibility for the promotion, etc.). This “book part” of the project I have divided into "language" and "genre" with links to details. See 1. BOOKS below (follow the language/genre links), and then 6. JOBS.

2. CINE – remakes of old movies, sale of finished scripts, and moving stuff along: idea >> structure >> synopsis >> scenario >> treatment >> script >> movie – is where I intend to focus from now on. I was tempted to start here 10 years ago, and the only reason I didn’t was that I figured that I had better first get our texts in order/prepared-for-the-process-outlined-above. This “cine-part” of the project falls into many sub-projects. See 2. CINE below, and then 6. JOBS.

3. REVIVE SENIOR. Andres Laszlo Senior was once considered a top European writer, and until twenty years ago, Ph.D. students frequently contacted me, asking for my approval/assistance in their thesis writing. The reason that he is being forgotten, apart from that most of his texts never received any proper content editing (and me not having made an effort until now), is that neither of his four home countries (born Austro-Hungarian, nationalized French, writing in Spanish) has "adopted" him. However, today all these countries are members of the EU, an organization that sometimes is willing to finance projects designed to revive the memory of its forgotten artists (and, so are the French). I am looking for someone to find the grants, apply for them, and then lead the revival project. See 3. REVIVE SENIOR below, and then 6. JOBS.

4. DRUG POLICY. As a drug policy researcher, I came to the conclusion that though drugs presently probably are more 'bad' than 'good', the consequences of supply-illegality are much worse than anything that could follow from a liberal/pro-legality policy. In my own narcotics-conservative Sweden, nobody wanted to listen, and as I am a fiction writer, I turned my intended thesis into popular science (The Drug Problem), and wrote a video script (Drug Illegality is a Scam). I want the book, the script, my videos, and myself (as a speaker) promoted. See 4. DRUG POLICY below, and then 6. JOBS.

5. SUNDRY. This is about the jobs/projects that cannot fit under any of the four headings listed above: "Editing", "Publicist," "Resident salesperson," "literary assistance," etc. See the last part of 6. JOBS.

6. JOBS. If you think there is something in my project that might fit you, take a tour around my homepage, get to know more about whatever interests you, then check out the job listing: 6. JOBS.

If you want to know more about my project and our texts/movies, let me send you a copy of The Tale(s) of Two Knaves, which will not only give you a deeper insight into the project but also into our writings.

 

  • 1. BOOKS

    BOOKS, unlike CINE, is mainly about sales. There are jobs such as: "Language-agents," "Genre-agents," “Present texts to publishers agent”, “Book me for book-fairs agent”, and “Take on a language agent.” So “BOOKS” covers a lot, and you will find all the corresponding job offerings below, under "6. JOBS".

     BOOKS BY LANGUAGE

    Senior wrote in Spanish, and I write in English (and Swedish). Counting all translations we have over 60 books, with an average of 10 in our six main languages: English, Swedish, Spanish, French, German, and Italian. Regarding some languages, I either do not speak the language or I am uncertain about translation qualities (Japanese, German, Catalan, Bulgarian). Read More

    BOOKS BY GENRE

    Our texts can all be categorized as fictional, apart from my two books on drug-policy, that are dealt with separately. The fiction falls into the sub-genres of adult fiction, juvenile fiction, short stories/biography, and "complete works". Read More 

  • 2. CINE

    CINE - unlike BOOKS, which deals largely with finished stuff - is mainly about "developing" (and only a little about selling). I have plenty of cinematic assets - many ideas, a dozen treatment-like short stories, half-a-dozen movie-prepared books, one finished script plus two initiated, re-make rights to three movies, showing-rights, and unpaid royalties - so even if only starting up, there are already plenty of CINE projects. Yet, this CINE-part of the project will focus mainly on pushing the various text assets from ideas and towards new movies. What to push and how to push will depend on 1. Where I find interest, 2. Where I enjoy working, and 3. Where I find interesting people to work with. Unlike BOOKS, the CINE-part of the project is thus very open-ended, and there are often other aspects than simply “Pushing towards movies, and cashing in” (aspects such as "nice places to work", "clever people to work with," and "having fun"). As I am moving away from BOOKS and towards CINE, I will be looking for all sorts of assistance, not only on how to find buyers but also on how to improve/develop texts: “How to structure?”, “What to keep/ditch/add?”, “Where to send?” and “Whom to engage?” I plan to arrive at Mumbai/Goa around December 15th. 2021 and leave in early February with a lot of new contacts established. You will find all the jobs below under the heading "6. JOBS".

     

    REMAKES (OLD MOVIE >> NEW MOVIE)

    There are three produced movies: My Uncle Jacinto that became a blockbuster, Paco Never Fails that got "contracted away" to Spain, and Sin Uniforme that I have never seen. In addition, there's Don Juan a performed mime-drama, as well as a possibly performed theater play, Doña Juana.

     

    SCRIPT >> MOVIES

    There is a "Hollywood quality" script of The Challenge in English, as well as the first draft of a Spanish translation, there's a to-be-improved first-draft theater script of Doña Juana, and there's also the beginning of the first draft of a new script for Paco Never Fails.

     

    IMPROVED TEXTS >> TREATMENT/SCRIPT

    This is where I hope to spend a lot of time the next couple of years because as I spent the last ten years improving and developing my own and Senior's short stories and novels, it has always been with "the silver screen" in mind. Apart from the already started projects mentioned above, I expect treatments/scripts to evolve mainly from these improved novels and short stories.

    1. IMPROVED NOVELS >> TREATMENT/SCRIPT

    One of Senior’s novels was about to become a movie at his demise (Mother Unknown), Senior’s French publishers recommended him to approach the Spanish film industry with another novel/novella (Doña Juana), his first published book also has movie potential (The Seal Castle) as a love story, and Junior’s adventure series (The Caspian Connection) is designed to become cine.

    2. IMPROVED SHORT STORIES >> TREATMENT/SCRIPT

    I have lots of ideas but as my project moves from BOOKS to CINE I am so overwhelmed by what seems to lie ahead of me that I have decided to put all other ideas on the back burner and focus on developing my now finished texts. Regarding short stories - that often have been rewritten so as to read closer to cinematic treatments - these are picked mainly from the 49 short stories that make up The Tale of Two Knaves.

    There's a lot of other CINE jobs: Rewriting a script for Mumbai or Goa, Bollywood representation, Tangier location-scouting, French & Spanish agents, Staging of a long-lost theater play, etc. You will find it all under the heading "6. JOBS".

  • 3. REVIVE SENIOR

    European writer looking for a home 

    Dad/Andres Laszlo Sr., in his heydays, was seen as a top-European writer, and a rising one at that. He had written My Uncle Jacinto that in the hands of Ladislao Vajda had become a blockbuster movie, and with Paco Never Fails Senior felt that his authorship had taken another big step. This book, in Senior's mind - a totally decent anthropological history-drama about a totally taboo subject written in generalissimo Franco dictatorship - had said; "Look at me! I'm pretty darn good!" However, though the text was great and unimpeachable by the sensors, the subject matter was one that the Spanish critics did not enjoy commenting on. Senior, after maybe getting a little too appreciated (thanks to Ladislao's superb cinematic interpretation) for My Uncle Jacinto (that competes for "best Hispanic movie all times" at film festivals) felt that he was not given the credit he deserved for Paco Never Fails. Thus, when he should have been (and, in a way, was) ready to take on the world, the success story ended. Bereft of the self-confidence so essential for a writer, he put writing on the back burner, and instead, he devoted himself to family, and pushing forged old-master paintings to museums; he forgot about writing, and - as he had no mother country to keep his memory alive - so did the world, about him. Read More 

  • 4. DRUG POLICY

    This Project, which has three parts, has its origin in my life as a drug policy researcher at the University of Lund, and my time at Oxford University. The project has three parts:

    The Drug Problem is a popular-science book that looks at the drug problem (drugs = illegal narcotic drugs) from a mainly philosophical/economical perspective, and though it is written to entertain, yet it is pretty profound: a drug-policy book like no other, which I so far have not succeeded to get one single publisher to read. Read More. 

    Drug Illegality is a Scam is a "sexy condensation" designed to conclusively argue that the consequences of narcotics' supply-illegality are not what we think they are. I believe that the videos that I intend to make - professionally produced (with or without me as the speaker) - actually could contribute to change things. 

    My lectures. I would like to promote The Drug Problem and turn Drug Illegality is a Scam into the video series they were meant to become, I would like to give a lecture tour based on its content, and I would, of course, love to give a TED-talk. I have no ax to grind in this, I am not even a drug user myself, but as I, as a researcher, feel that I have understood the consequences of supply-illegality better than most, I feel an obligation to explain these in a way that people can understand. Read More. 

  • 5. SUNDRY

    Beneath this heading is hidden not only what the heading suggests (i.e. what cannot be squeezed in under any other heading) but also writing-jobs.

    The truly "sundry" jobs are for example a publicist to find out whether I am promotable, a resident salesperson to sit next to me, a computer guy, and a rising-talent finder to locate the right people to do other jobs.

    "Writing-jobs" is partly about translation, as some texts could do with an English-to-German, English-to-Spanish, or English-to-French translation. Another writing part is about editing, which I have hidden here in order for those visiting other parts of my homepage not to understand that my English is not always as good as I might pretend that it is and that maybe some of my texts could do with a wee bit of editing.

  • 6. JOBS

    If you have read the above, you now have a pretty clear picture of my assets, and what I am up to, and if you think you could be the right person to join one of my projects, here are the associated jobs as I see them. The job listings are designed to "stand by themselves", so if you read several, you might find the first parts repetitive.

     

    BOOK JOBS

    Most book projects are described in the "By Language" and "By Genre" links below. I have also listed some other book jobs that I hope to find an interest in either from 1. "Rising talent," 2. Traditional agents or 3. Publishers/producers. Read More

     

    CINE JOBS

    As I am moving away from working on BOOKS and towards CINE, I do not intend to do all the hard work myself; instead, I will look for rising talent and agents for help, and I will make a point of staying much of the winter(s) in India (esp. Mumbai and Goa). Read More.

     

    REVIVE SENIOR JOBS

    As I started to "fix" (digitalize, improve, translate, adapt and improve) Senior's text I realized that my original thinking - "His two last books must have been ok as they became movies, but his five first must have been less good" - was wrong. Rather, his five first texts were on average better but they hadn't been given any content editing. However, whereas Dad wasn't all that logical, I am, and I have provided the content editing that his five first books never received. Read More.

     

    DRUG POLICY JOBS

    As a young research student, I was different from the other guys (in a good way) and I sat out to do something in return for the "magic" life I had furnished with. Drug Illegality is bad, and in addition, it is a scam. I tried to tell the world this at the age of 20 plus but as nobody wanted to listen I instead sat out to do "all-those-things-a-man-should-have-done" in order to be "listenable to". Today I've done it - today I am listenable to, and can eloquently corroborate the proposition that "drug illegality is a dysfunctional discourse" - but today I no longer have the energy and enthusiasm that it takes to fight my way onto the main drug policy scene: assistance needed. Read More.

     

    SUNDRY JOBS

    This is not only where I list projects that don't fit anywhere else (mainly promotion) but also where I hide jobs that I feel awkward about admitting that I am not good enough to do myself (like editing, translation, etc.). Read More

With a list such as the one below, you would be excused for thinking; “Most or at least the best parts are probably taken.” Not so; I have managed (mainly indirectly) to make a living from my book Svenskt Konstglas during the last few decades, and it is not until now (spring of 2020), that I have started to (commercially) develop The Laszlo & Laszlo Project. Over 60 titles are either published or publishable on Amazon (15 in English, though unpublished, as paper-publishers seem not like "e-published books" even if unsold). This goes for books in some other languages as well, so for all practical purposes: "nothing" is published. Also, there are 3 movie rights - as well as 1 finished script, 4 books begging to be turned into films, close to a dozen “treatments,” as well as a theatre play lost for 70 or 80 years. Yet, no efforts have been made to find publishers or producers.  Everything is in place and "ready to roll" and the texts and projects below - as well as texts/projects in other languages - are all more or less unexploited (at least since the 1970s).   VIDEO

NB. As the Laszlo & Laszlo Project has non-English aspects, you can read about the Spanish, Italian, French, German, and Swedish similarly-sized projects and their possibilities (though normally only the English and Swedish get continuously updated). 

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(ANDRES LASZLO SR.: EUROPEAN WRITER LOOKING FOR A HOME)

 

1. ANDRES LASZLO SR. WAS A GREAT EUROPEAN WRITER.

He probably started writing in Hungary, but if so, none of his early texts (probably theater plays) seems to have survived. He wrote several books on Goya’s engravings before he (again?) started to write fiction. His two first books were period pieces, depicting war and pre-war life in Budapest and Paris; irony as well as an ability to see “light” where most would have seen only darkness were his trademarks. His fourth work – after a short relapse into theatre (Dona Juana) - was a collection of short stories, followed and preceded by his three major novels: Mother Unknown, My Uncle Jacinto, and Paco Never Fails.    VIDEO

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