Ready Player One hasn't been turned into a movie just yet, but author Ernest Cline is already doing well for himself.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Cline has signed a seven-figure deal with Crown Publishing for his currently-under-wraps third book. His second novel, Armada, was released on July 14.
The site reports that the deal is in the mid-to-low seven figures. Though details on what Cline's third novel will be about are a closely guarded secret, Cline is expected to continue working in the sci-fi genre that has catapulted him to the top of the book world.
His first novel, Ready Player One, is a 1980s pop-culture-filled video game adventure. It follows a poor young gamer who spends the bulk of his days living in a virtual world called OASIS, on what quickly becomes a life-or-death treasure hunt for secrets left behind by the game's creator. The book became a swift bestseller and is being adapted into a film, set to release in December of 2017. Steven Spielberg is slated to direct.
Armada keeps in tune with Cline's love of old-school video games and science fiction. It follows a gamer who has long spent his days blasting virtual spaceships, only to soon find himself protecting Earth from alien invaders who look surprisingly similar to his video game foes. Armada is also becoming a movie, with Universal Pictures picking up the rights to a film adaptation.
It seems like a safe bet that Cline's third book will also get the film treatment. It just might be a little while until we learn what the book and inevitable film will be about. In the meantime, Cline can rest easy knowing no matter how successful the film adaptations of his novels are, the money coming in from his books should last him a long, long while.
Photo: uncle_shoggoth | Flickr
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