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Novelization



 
 
A novelization is a novel
Novel

File:2009 stapelweise Neuerscheinungen im Buchladen.JPGA novel is today a long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern Romance and in the tradition of the novella....
 that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.

Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplay
Screenplay

A screenplay or script is a written work especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing works....
s. Similarly, material from the screenplay or filmed scenes that are cut from the final production may still be present in a novelization, often because the novel is completed for publication while the film is still being edited for release.






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A novelization is a novel
Novel

File:2009 stapelweise Neuerscheinungen im Buchladen.JPGA novel is today a long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern Romance and in the tradition of the novella....
 that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.

Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplay
Screenplay

A screenplay or script is a written work especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing works....
s. Similarly, material from the screenplay or filmed scenes that are cut from the final production may still be present in a novelization, often because the novel is completed for publication while the film is still being edited for release. The practice was particularly popular for successful films and television series before the advent of home video
Home video

Home video is a blanket term used for pre-recorded media that is either sold or hired for home entertainment. The term originates from the VHS/Betamax era but has carried over into the current DVD/Blu-ray Disc age....
, which gave people the ability to record programs or buy commercial releases for repeated viewing.

Novels


A novel as a tie-in to any successful major film release is considered an important marketing strategy. If a film is based on a novel, the novel is generally reissued with a cover based on the film's poster (sometimes with pictures from the film included) but if it is an original screenplay or based on a novella
Novella

A novella is a writing, fictional, prose narrative longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. While there is disagreement as to what length defines a novella, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000....
 or short story
Short story

The short story refers to a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, usually in narrative format. This format or medium tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels or books....
 a novelization is often commissioned to fill the marketing niche. Novelizations have been published since at least the 1920s; for example, the 1928 film The Fleet's In! starring Clara Bow
Clara Bow

Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress and sex symbol who rose to fame in the silent film era of the 1920s. Bow was renowned for her sexual magnetism, vivaciousness and high-spirited personality, and became known around the world as "The It girl", where "It" was commonly understood to mean sex appeal....
 was novelized by Russell Holman.

Comics


A similar practice is an adaptation of a film in comic book
Comic book

A comic book is a magazine or book of narrative artwork and dialog and descriptive prose. The style was introduced in 1934. Despite the term, comic books do not necessarily feature humorous subject-matter; in fact, it is often serious and action-oriented....
 form, essentially an illustrated novelization. The art in a comics adaptation can vary from original perspectives to directly copying still scenes from the film, though issues of actors' personality rights
Personality rights

Personality rights is a common or casual reference to the proper term of art "Right of Publicity." The Right of Publicity can be defined simply as the right of an individual to control the commercial use of his or her name, image, likeness or other unequivocal aspects of one's identity....
 may prevent exact likeness of film characters. The majority of Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics

Marvel Comics is an American comic book and related media company owned by Marvel Publishing, Inc., a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, Inc. Marvel counts among as its List of Marvel Comics characters such well-known properties as Captain America, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk , Iron Man, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and many others....
' Super Special
Marvel Comics Super Special

Marvel Comics Super Special was a series of one-off comic books published by Marvel Comics from 1977 to 1985. The first issue featured the rock band Kiss in Kiss ....
 series featured film adaptations; DC Comics
DC Comics

DC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. A subsidiary of Warner Bros....
 customarily prints adaptations as stand-alone, one-shot issues. Sometimes a comic book adaptation can lead to an ongoing licensed
License

The verb license or grant license means to give permission. The noun license refers to that permission as well as to the document memorializing that permission....
 series by the same publisher; examples of these include Marvel's Star Wars
Star Wars

Star Wars is an epic film space opera Media franchise initially conceived by George Lucas. The first film in the franchise was simply titled Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, but later had the subtitle Episode IV: A New Hope added to distinguish it from its sequels and prequels....
 series based on the Original trilogy and DC's various series based on the first six Star Trek
Star Trek

Star Trek is an American Science fiction on television entertainment series and media franchise. The Star Trek fictional universe created by Gene Roddenberry is the setting of six television series including the original 1966 Star Trek: The Original Series, in addition to ten feature films with Star Trek to be released on May 8,...
 films, both of which featured stories set during the "gaps" between the films.

Sequels


It has recently become common for authors who write novelizations to write original novel sequel
Sequel

A sequel is a work in literature, film, or other media that portrays events following those of a previous work.In many cases, the sequel continues elements of the original story, often with the same characters and settings....
s in between novelizations. The novels Halo: The Fall of Reach
Halo: The Fall of Reach

Halo: The Fall of Reach is a 2001 science fiction novel by Eric Nylund based on the Halo series of video games and acts as a prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved, the first game in the series....
 and Halo: First Strike
Halo: First Strike

Halo: First Strike is the third novel in the Halo and the second Halo novel written by Eric S. Nylund. Published in 2003, it serves as a bridge between the events of the video games Halo: Combat Evolved and its 2004 sequel Halo 2....
, which serve as prequel
Prequel

A prequel is a work that portrays events and/or aspects of a previously completed narrative, but is set prior to the existing narrative. The word is a neologism, formed as a portmanteau from pre-, meaning before, and sequel, a work which takes place after a previous one ....
s and sequels to the video game Halo: Combat Evolved
Halo: Combat Evolved

Halo: Combat Evolved is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie Studios. The first game of the Halo series, it was released on November 15, 2001 as a launch title for the Xbox video game console, and is considered the platform's "killer application." With more than five million copies sold worldwide as of November 9,...
, were written before and after the novelization of the game. Author Greg Cox
Greg Cox

Greg Cox is a science fiction writer. He lives in Oxford, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States.He has written numerous Star Trek novels, including The Eugenics Wars , Star Trek: The Q Continuum, Assignment: Eternity, and The Black Shore....
 wrote the original novel Underworld: Blood Enemy after writing the novelization of Underworld and before writing the novelization of the sequel film Underworld: Evolution
Underworld: Evolution

Underworld: Evolution is the second film in the Underworld , following Underworld in 2003. Evolution continues the feud between Vampires and Lycans, but highlights glimpses of their origins some centuries ago....
. Also, while novelizing the Resident Evil
Resident Evil (series)

Resident Evil is a survival horror and science fiction video game series and media franchise consisting of comic books, Novels, four films, and a variety of collectibles, including action figures, strategy guides and publications....
 video games, author S. D. Perry
S. D. Perry

Stephani Danelle Perry is a novelist living in Portland, Oregon. She is the daughter of writer Steve Perry .S. D. Perry is currently living in Portland, Oregon with her husband, Myk, her two children Cyrus and Myk Jr, and their two dogs....
 wrote original novels that took place between the novelizations. With the rise in recent years of films based on comic book properties, the publishers of the adapted properties have also started producing prequel comics as supplemental material, set in the canon
Canon (fiction)

Canon, in terms of a fictional universe, is any material that is considered to be "genuine," or can be directly referenced as material produced by the original author or creator of a series....
 of the films rather than that of the source material.

See also

  • Tie-in
    Tie-in

    A tie-in is an authorized product based on a media property a company is releasing, such as a film or video/DVD, computer game, video game, television program/television series, board game, web site, role-playing game or literary property....
  • Target Books
    Target Books

    Target Books was a United Kingdom publishing imprint, established in 1973 by Universal-Tandem Publishing Co Ltd, a paperback publisher. The imprint was established as a children's imprint to complement the adult Tandem imprint, and became well known for their highly successful range of novelisations and other assorted books based on the popu...


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