Plot Idol

Just heard there's to be a new TV reality show based on Pop Idol/the X Factor/Dragons Den. Aspiring authors will pitch their ideas for a novel to a panel of judges to include Jackie Collins and Jeffrey Archer. Now, I'm not a fan of reality TV shows as I can't bear to see people's dreams smashed under the guise of entertainment. But on the rare occasions I do catch one, watching the demise of budding singers and entrepreneurs was somehow distanced from me, although I feel for them as they are routinely demoralised and rejected. But watching writers pitch their ideas and seeing them brutally rejected will be far too close to home and doubly hard to swallow because, although the makers of this show are promoting it as giving writers a chance to shine through in the increasingly difficult arena of getting published, I can't help but feel it's just another cheap shot to improve ratings at the expense of belittling those courageous and vulnerable souls who put themselves out there in the hope of achieving their dreams.

TJ