Article at IGMS details the pros and woes of book to movie adaptations

Here’s how it works: a producer or production company “options” a book — that is, buys the rights (typically for several thousand dollars) to adapt the book for a period of time (typically from eighteen months to two years). If the producers have not adapted the book when agreed-upon the period of time lapses, the rights revert back to the author. [3] Books are optioned far more than they are produced, and some books have been optioned more than once. But sometimes, a book manages to slog its way through the development process and get filmed.

Is this a good experience for an author?

The rest of the article can be read here.