The surge of television adaptations of Irish works has left bookstores breathless, as if every page were a potential script. When Louise Kennedy saw her debut, "Trespasses", come to life on Channel 4, the reaction was one of collective enthusiasm, but also a warning for those who track the market's pulse.
Kennedy, who spent three decades in the kitchen before picking up a pen, shows that creativity can spring from unexpected paths. Her leap from chef to award-winning author challenges the myth that only those born into literature have a place on the shelves. Yet, the speed with which her novel became a series reveals a conversion logic that has become the norm.
Independent publishers feel the pressure to offer “adaptable” titles, as the promise of TV visibility seems to guarantee sales that the book alone would not achieve. This race creates a filter that favors narratives already compatible with visual formats, sidelining more experimental or regional projects that fall outside the mold.
The danger lies in turning literature into a mere source of content for other media. When a title’s success is measured by its television version, the writing can be reduced to a skeleton ready to be dressed in production, and the authorial voice loses its strength.
We do not want to condemn all adaptations; they democratize access and bring new readers to works that would otherwise remain confined to niches. However, indiscriminate celebration of series versions should be accompanied by an editorial commitment that preserves diversity of styles and themes.
At JVA Publishing, we believe the curator’s role is even more crucial: supporting authors who seek to innovate, even if the path to the screen is uncertain. By balancing the quest for visibility with the defense of literary integrity, we create an ecosystem that values both the book and its possible extensions.
If we continue to measure a book’s value by its adaptation, we will lose literature’s very purpose, which lies in its ability to provoke, question, and transform without needing another screen to validate its existence.
