Talk Show Host turned Author

Actors turn singers, singers become producers, and musicians turn into talk show sidekicks. How do you feel about the constant crossover? People spend years perfecting their craft, and then here comes someone who is already successful that jumps right in and takes the spotlight. I'm seeing a trend...

Recently talk show hosts have been dabbling in writing. Many hosts, both daytime and nighttime, have released books.  Oprah Winfrey has co-authored 5 books:
1. "In the Kitchen with Rosie: Oprah's Favorite Recipes" (1994 with Rosie Daley)
2. "A Journal of Daily Renewal: The Comparison to Make a Connection" (1996 with Bob Greene)
3. "The Uncommon Wisdom of Oprah Winfrey" (1997 with Bill Andler)
4. "Journey to Beloved" (1998 with Ken Regan)
5. "Make the Connection: Ten Steps to a Better Body and a Better Life" (1999 with Bob Greene).

But we'll just skip over Oprah because she has crossed over to every medium...I wouldn't be surprised if she introduced a new medium...but let's come back to recent book releases.

Last week Ellen DeGeneres released her third book, "Seriously... I'm Kidding."

It's a journey of Ellen's life. Her first book was published in 1995, titled, "My Point... And I Do Have One," and the second was published ten years later in 2005 and was titled, "The Funny Thing Is..." She has done so much work in television--currently "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" is its 9th season. The previous 8 seasons won 35 Daytime Emmy Awards...but clearly that's not enough. Ellen's first two books hit the New York Times Best Seller List, and the first one ("My Point... And I Do Have One") became No. 1.

Last November, Chelsea Handler signed with Grand Central Publishing for her own imprint, "Borderline Amazing/A Chelsea Handler Book." In May 2011, she released "Lies That Chelsea Handler Told Me," where her friends and family tell the untruthful tales she spread throughout the years.  It is one of the three books she is signed on to write for the imprint.

In May 2005, Chelsea wrote her first book, "My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One Night Stands."  Her second book, "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" was released in 2008, and her third book, "Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang" hit the shelves in 2010. It hit No. 1 on the New York Times Nonfiction Bestseller List the same week her first two books became No. 2 and No. 3 on the paperback list.

The second book with the imprint is in preliminary stages, but will apparently be written through the eyes of her dog, Chunk. And the third is currently undecided.

Hosts aren't the only ones who can write a book. Chelsea's very own sidekick, Chuy Bravo also released a book in one month after "Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang," in April 2010. In his first book, "Little Nuggets of Wisdom," Chuy gives tidbits of advice across many topics including friendship, food, family, and finances.

David Letterman's sidekick and musical director, Paul Shaffer wrote a memoir of his life in the music business, which was released it in October 2009 titled, "We'll Be Here For The Rest of Our Lives."

There are many more instances where television personalities have become authors on the side. As we've seen there has been a lot of crossover throughout the industry. How do you feel about that? Do you think it's fair that a book is awarded a very prestigious best selling award just because the author is successful already, while millions of people are trying to make a living waiting for a company to even purchase their material? Or do you believe if a person's talented, they have the right to do whatever they want?