The Upcoming Novelization of Peter Jackson's THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING

So, I've been doing some background research on Peter S. Beagle for an encyclopedia article, and I found the following gem of a story while browsing through this interview:
Aaron [interviewer]: I’ve actually seen this so I know that this is true—when the original Lord of the Rings movie came out, The Fellowship of the Ring, the Peter Jackson version…somebody, one of the publishing houses, commissioned a writer to do the novelization of the movie.

Peter [S. Beagle]: I heard that story!

Aaron: And got seven chapters in before somebody said, “You do know it’s a book, right?!” And I’ve read those seven chapters, and they’re terrible…!

Connor [Cochran, PSB's business manageer: I have not heard that story! That’s wonderful. That’s absolutely wonderful.
 That's the main Tolkien-related bit; the whole long interview is here. It's actually a pretty fascinating account of the financial side of contemporary book publishing and licensing. Beagle, apparently, despite his fame, had been in dire straights financially before meeting Connor Cochran in 2001, who had enough savvy to really begin advocating forcefully for Beagle's various rights.

The story, alas, has a sad ending. Just a year after this interview, which happened during 2014, Beagle would sue Cochran for $52 million dollars for fraud and various other things. After a four-year legal battle, Beagle was eventually awarded $332,500 in damages just a few months ago for fraud, defamation, financial elder abuse through constructive fraud, and breach of fiduciary duty.

In any event, now I really want to read those 7 chapters of the Peter Jackson novelization.

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