Latest news with #Stephen King
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Gorgeous historic Maine home three doors down from megastar's house lists for $1M
A beautiful home in Maine three doors down from Stephen King's iconic mansion has hit the market for just under $1 million. The five-bedroom, four-bathroom home in the small city of Bangor has 5,400-square-feet of living space and sits on almost an acre and a half of land. And although it was built in 1896, extensive renovations have been done in the last five years to modernize the property while also preserving its unique historical charm. 'It's a stunning home in a prestigious area where these houses don't come on the market very long. Here's the opportunity,' said Grace Nash of Realty of Maine, the listing agent for the property. The house went on sale last weekend for $940,000, which Nash said was typical of a home its size in the area. The property was first owned by local newspaper titan Millard E. Mudgett. He was a partner in J.P. Bass and Co., which published the now defunct Bangor Daily Commercial and the Bangor Weekly Commercial. He lived in the house until his death in October 1900 from complications related to a botched appendicitis operation, according to The New York Times. He was 45 years old. Nearly 125 years later, Mudgett's former home stands among a portion of West Broadway typically reserved for Bangor's most prominent residents. The most well-known homeowner on the street is King, who grew up in Maine and has written countless classics, including The Shining and The Shawshank Redemption. King no longer lives at the home; instead its the site for his foundation, which focuses on giving back to community-building projects in the state. Homes in this quiet (with the exception of the occasional King fan driving by) section of Bangor rarely go up for sale, Nash said. No homes on this stretch of West Broadway sold last year. Only two properties — one of which was the Mudgett house — sold in 2023, she added. The home was designed by Wilfred E. Mansur, one of Bangor's most prominent architects in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. And typical of his creations, the home has his signature wraparound porch and distinctive turret on the left-hand side. The exterior of the home got a fresh coat of white paint last summer, an eye-catching red door and much-needed maintenance to its slate roof, a design choice that fell out of favor in the early 20th century. Starting in 2020, the previous owners updated nearly every corner of the home's interior. The most notable renovations were the kitchen and the master bedroom. Also included is a gorgeous en suite bathroom that features double sinks and a walk-in shower with updated, high-end fixtures 'My favorite part of the interior of the house is definitely the kitchen,' Nash said. 'High end counter tops, gorgeous hardwood floors, an eight burner stove. It's just a great space for entertaining.' The master bedroom on the second floor has a double-sided fireplace that shares the same chimney. One side faces the bed and the other side is inside the giant walk-in closet. In total, the home has six fireplaces. Also included is a gorgeous en suite bathroom that features double sinks and a walk-in shower with updated, high-end fixtures. There are three additional bedrooms on the second floor, with another bedroom on the third floor near the unfinished attic. Down below, the basement has a full bathroom and a complete wine cellar. Other endearing aspects to the home include its detailed crown molding, pocket doors, built-in bookcases and a second staircase for servants. The property also has a spacious backyard. It is adjacent to Mansfield Park, home to a baseball stadium, tennis courts, a skate park and a playground. 'What sets this apart is that it is on a double lot, so you have a very large backyard, for privacy, or for any sort of outdoor entertaining and recreation. You don't see that often in the city,' Nash said. Nash, who was born and raised in Bangor, said the best part about living in the city is its proximity to many attractions in the state, including the scenic ocean town of Bar Harbor or Acadia National Park. 'Within an hour's drive, you can access mountain ranges, you can access the ocean or larger cities. So, it's a really convenient and diverse area to live in for accessibility,' she said. Bangor also has plenty of great restaurants and breweries to try, Nash said. One of her favorite things is the outdoor amphitheater that hosts concerts right on the banks of the Penobscot River. Nash described Bangor as a 'family-oriented city' that has a reputation of being safe, with low crime rates and a good public school system. The house itself, she said, 'lends itself to being a great space for families because of all of the room.' She said she could also see medical professionals choosing to snap up the home because of how close it is to Bangor's community hospitals. 'There's been a little bit of interest so far,' she said. 'I think it's a unique property. It's going to take an individual that respects, understands and wants an older home and all that goes into taking care of an older home.' 'I suspect it may be a few months before we find that you know the right buyer for it,' she added.
CNA
21-07-2025
- Business
- CNA
Commentary: Tough to make a living writing books, but Singapore needs storytellers
SINGAPORE: As an author, one question I always get when I give talks at secondary schools is: How much does an author earn? I usually smile and say, 'It can vary widely for different authors and well, most of us are not James Patterson or Stephen King.' Authors earn royalties, which means we get a small percentage from every book sold. In Singapore and globally, royalties typically fall between 5 to 15 per cent of the book's selling price. That price could be based on the gross retail price or a net figure after costs. So if a book sells for S$20, a 10 per cent royalty earns you S$2 per book. And if that royalty is based on the net price, it's even less. Then there's the big question: How many books can an author sell? That depends on many things – whether the book is sold locally or internationally, how many titles the author has, their audience reach. But generally speaking, lifetime sales often range from a few hundred to a few thousand copies. Some books never even sell out their first print run of 1,000 copies or less. That first advance – which is basically a prepayment of royalties for a projected number of sales – might end up being the only money an author ever sees from their book. They only earn more once their book has 'earned out' the advance. So when aspiring writers ask if this is a sustainable career, my answer is: Honestly, not usually; many authors write while holding down a full-time job. Of course, there are occasional headlines about Singaporean authors landing lucrative book deals overseas. Jemimah Wei's The Original Daughter recently sold at auction for more than US$500,000. TOUGH LOCAL MARKET Singapore writers face some unique challenges. First, the market is small, so there are only so many people to sell to. Authors don't have many publishers to choose from, which limits their bargaining power during contract negotiation. Add to that Singapore's well-stocked libraries, which make readers more inclined to borrow than buy books. On top of it all, bookstores are dwindling, which means fewer places for local writers to sell their books. Singapore has made efforts to support its literary scene – largely through the National Arts Council and various grants. The SG Culture Pass, a scheme that will give each Singaporean S$100 to spend on the arts, including local literature, is a positive step. Organisations like Sing Lit Station and the Singapore Book Council have helped fuel ground-up initiatives, from school programmes and mentorships to community events. Major festivals like the Singapore Writers Festival and the Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) have provided vital platforms for local authors to connect with readers and showcase their work. While these efforts have opened doors, sustaining a writing career in Singapore is still tough. Grants are helpful for specific projects, but they don't solve the bigger issue of long-term sustainability. What local authors need are more direct and consistent forms of support like better book advances, more robust marketing efforts and broader distribution channels. One area that was recently talked about is Public Lending Right (PLR) – a system used in countries like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and across Europe. Through government funding, it compensates writers when their books are borrowed from libraries. This could provide a modest but meaningful income stream for local writers, especially in a market where book sales are limited. WHY SUPPORT SINGLIT? For every person who champions SingLit, there's probably someone else who doesn't read local books, nor sees the need to. But to say we can do without SingLit is shortsighted. When a country lacks stories written by its own people, it begins to lose its place in the global narrative. Without those voices, people grow up surrounded by borrowed perspectives, which slowly shapes how they see themselves and their culture. Young readers, especially, start to feel invisible. If no one in the stories they read looks like them, talks like them, or faces the same challenges, it sends a quiet message: Your life isn't worth writing about. That kind of absence chips away at self-worth and imagination. The impact of local stories is hard to measure – but it's real. I've seen it firsthand with my middle grade series, My BFF Is An Alien. The story follows a Singaporean girl and her unlikely friendship with an alien, and the adventures they go on together. Is this the kind of story that would score me a massive publishing deal? Probably not. Is it Booker Prize material? Again, probably not. But I've had young readers come up to me and say that my books made them want to become writers. I've had parents tell me it was my books that finally got their children hooked and sparked their interest in reading. That's not nothing. There are so many great middle grade books – but what made mine hit home for these readers wasn't just their fun plot or relatable themes. It was the fact that the readers could see themselves in the pages. They connected with my stories because it reflected something true about their lived experience. The voices sounded familiar. The setting felt like home. And that recognition – that 'hey, this is about me!' moment – is powerful. THE LOVE OF STORYTELLING One might ask: If writing pays so little, why do it at all? The simple answer for most is that we do it for the love of storytelling. We write stories we wish existed, stories we want to read and see out in the world. For me, My BFF Is An Alien was the story I wish I had when I started secondary school. That period in my life was incredibly lonely, and I would've loved to lose myself in a book that felt like it understood me. I also wrote it for my own children, so they had more choices beyond the Eurocentric stories I grew up with. Representation matters. When you see someone like you – a kid from your neighbourhood, someone who sounds like your friends – as the hero of a story, it changes what you believe is possible. That's not just fiction. That's hope. But for those stories to keep coming, writers need support – whether it's PLR schemes, grants, or just making sure their books are on shelves and in homes. Without enough backing, even the most passionate authors can burn out. In a time when artificial intelligence is creeping into creative spaces, the human voice has become even more precious. There's a soul behind stories that only people can bring – our humour, heartbreaks, quirks and lived truths. And in Singapore, that voice is rare. That's worth preserving and supporting.
