Samuel Richardson = George Lucas?

I read up on George Lucas's first movie, THX-1138, this week for my TA work, including some info on the changes he made to the recently released Directors' Cut (which include some rather silly looking CGI monkeys). In his defense, Lucas's film was recut by the studio and he was prevented by the lack of technology from fully realizing his dystopic, futuristic world. However, there is a certain charm to the 1971 version; it's not as slick, it's more claustrophobic, and the special effects are better integrated (as you would expect). And really, once a director releases a movie, he/she must be able to just let it go. The movie, like any piece of art, takes on a life of its own and will produce meanings that its creator never intended or considered. That's part of being an artist. (On the other hand, I do sympathize with any director whose movie is recut behind her back by the studio head).

But film directors were certainly not the first artists who could not let go. Samuel Richardson, author of Clarissa, was notorious for not being able to leave well enough alone. His first novel, Pamela, was immensely popular, but Richardson continued revising even after it was published. A second edition followed, and then a third, fourth, fifth... all the way up to a posthumous 11th edition edited by his daughters. The editions, by all accounts (no, I haven't read every edition of Pamela), differ in the representation of the eponymous heroine. In the first edition she's definitely a servant girl with a sharp, witty tongue who speaks with a lower-class accent. The heroine's rough edges are gradually worn down as the edition numbers increase, and some of the more titillating bits are removed. Richardson also corrected some of his factual errors regarding persons of rank (titles and whatnot), which he learned about because, ironically, Pamela's success enabled him to rub elbows with persons of rank. Also, Richardson wrote two sequels to the novel, partly in response to someone else's unauthorized sequel.

There are also some notable differences between the first and third editions of Clarissa. I've read only the 1st edition (twice), but my understanding is that the third edition makes Lovelace even more villainous because, to Richardson's shock, some readers still wanted Clarissa to marry her rapist.

Of course, the only reason Richardson was able to release multiple, different editions of his works was because he was his own publisher and editor. Now that's vertical integration.