Transforming and adapting texts: ta-da!

There is a lot of media in the world, with plenty more being produced and published as we speak – and a lot of demand for different types of media, too. What was once a market just for physical books quickly became films, then eBooks, and further blossomed into audio books and beyond!

In this article, we’ll cover the hows, what’s and why of adapting texts into other formats, the decisions to make when considering creative choices and the ways of going about it! It’s good stuff to know just in case you fancy giving a new lease of life or a new look to one of your own or a public domain work.

Why adapt works?

There are many reasons to adapt works, and it may even differ on who’s creating the work and what demand they’re trying to meet. From a marketing and distribution perspective, directors may want to take on a text to flex their skills, increase their profile and rake in the bajillions!

Or, it may be based on audience demand and preference – as though some readers do like that physical book smell, it may end up being more convenient for commuters to use audiobooks, or for someone to take an eReader on holiday with them, rather than a stack of books.

Of course, older works which have been released to the public domain are fair game so are good choices for the more scrupulous production companies who are keen to adapt new works. A lot of the reasons outlined so far seem to be profitable and market-driven, but there are also use-cases for passion project rejuvenations, created by people who want to reanimate ancient texts and bring them back into public focus, often in more accessible ways!

There’s a fair bit of similarity between adaptations and transcriptions too, though for the sake of ease, adaptations will feature more on changing a media form into another one, and can vary in how traditionally they stick to the point of origin, whereas transcriptions usually involve translations or other forms of modernisation that aim to keep the original as close to the source material as possible.

Audiobooks

Turning something into an audiobook comes with a lot of considerations – first and foremost, who is going to narrate? It’s not always the author who is able to lend their voice to the story, sometimes famous faces or people who are the best fit to really convey the tone of the piece will step in to bring the storyline to life.

Some audiobooks include sound effects, and depending on how long the original text was, the recording process can take a while – not to mention any edits, cleanup or other tweaks. If the audiobook contains multiple characters, these will then have to be stitched together and then this will be checked for any quality issues before being released.

Screenplays

Films created by well-established companies are often high production-value – though of course there are indie and low-budget creations – as these will often take a lot of elbow grease to get them into shape. The very process of melding a text into a screenplay will often mean that in essence a new piece of content is created, as there will be differences in the screenplay and the original to get it in the right format.

Again, there are multiple areas to consider here – who is cast as characters in the eventual final film, the scenes to include and which ones to leave on the cutting-room floor, whether or not the film is a standalone or series…

Stageplays

Depending on whether you’re looking to create an adaptation of a well-known text, this may net you interest from fans of the author or the previous versions, keen to see your spin on their cherished favourite – no pressure! If not, you’ll likely be choosing a new text (maybe even creating your own stageplay specifically) to adapt, where your skills will be put on show.

Things to consider with stageplays include formatting, as based on whichever style you’re adhering to, there will need to be directions, subtitles and the like to keep track of. If working from a pre-existing medium, you’ll also have to work out which sections you’re going to keep, how to interpret them for the stage and a whole heap of other tonal, performative and other decisions.

Finishing touches!

That was a little run-through of the main types of adaptations and how to go about changing up the format of texts. Depending on which format you’re working with and aiming for, you’ll want to look for inspiration from media of the same type of mood, tone or content – even if you’re wanting to subvert a lot of these expectations, it can be useful to know what the audience is expecting to see.