Sometimes I ask myself why (WhyWhyWhy?) do I spend time on Twitter? And then, in a puff of magic smoke--oh wait! I write SFR: make that an unscheduled arrival in my transporter room--something really, really amazing pops up.
Such was the this article Why Your Novel Won't Sell via the TerribleMinds blog, via Deborah Nemeth's (of Carina Press) retweet of Chuck Wendig's tweet. (Gotta love Twitter.) It's a straight-to-the-heart, tell-it-like-it-is summary of ten reasons why you're novel won't sell. Oh, and it's also a chucklefest delight, whether you have to laugh at yourself or gaffaw at personal observances, it's fun and oh so frank advice.
But, that said, we know there are exceptions to every rule. Reason #6 made me laugh out loud because I know of one huge exception. To quote the article:
6. What Genre Is That, Again?
Ask yourself this: “Where will this go in the bookstore? In what section? On what shelf?” If that has no clear answer, then you’re throwing up a red flag. “It’s horror paranormal romance mystery, with sci-fi elements. Oh, and it also has recipes!” [Emphasis mine.]
In fact, "a horror paranormal romance mystery with sci-fi elements" (sorry, no recipes) is going to be the subject of an upcoming interview with an amazing debut author that you won't want to miss.
So check out the TerribleMinds article and stay tuned.
More soon. (Promise!)
~*~
Yeah, I've obsessed over most of those reasons over the past few months (and years, with past novels). The problem is, you can do something about some of them (by improving your technique, listening to your critics, knowing your market, etc.), but the thorniest issues--commercial viability, for example, or is it the book or the query--are just impossible to sort out. Few agents have the time to tell you. And, as all those who rejected J.K. Rowling can tell you, they can be wrong. Then, of course, there's dreaded reason Number 10, the one that lurks in the back of every decent writer's mind: maybe I really suck and no one will tell me. (I say "every decent writer" because the truly horrible ones seem to be blithely unaware no matter how many times people tell them they suck. Or is that me? ARRRGGGHH!!!!)
ReplyDeleteNo, don't think it's just you. :/
ReplyDeleteThat's why I love contests. They help give you a sense if your writing is up to par and/or what you need to work on.