The next big thing

Sage said:

Oh thank goodness. Because we in this thread can say that we hope trends are over, that it looks like they are, but hearing it from an industry professional makes it feel less speculative.

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This would be a godsend for a lot of people if it turns out to be true. I can't always 100% what people in the industry say because sometimes people have said X while the opposite was happening, but I know I can't write contemporary to save my ass and the books I write will probably never catch a 'trend.' It was scaring me a bit when people were talking about how JG-style books were all the rage to be honest. So for me it really gives me hope that perhaps my weird little mss might continue to see the light of day.

Looking at Publisher's Weekly (I don't have a subscription to PM) it seems that different types of books are being acquired every week (I think?) so this is hopeful for a lot of us.

Edit: from the Newleaf blog

What is selling: manuscripts that are really well written with awesome characters and tight pacing; manuscripts that are new and unique

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New and unique yay I hope they really mean that!

Definitely great news if true. Genre chasers (or avoiders for that matter) only ruin things for the rest of us who might have a good book that will never get view because of the glut.

Put the good books out and let the public decide.

Roly said:

Sometimes what you market your book as makes all the difference. There have been a few dystopians acquired, but called sci fi thrillers etc. But yes it does suck to worry about whether your ms might not even get a chance just because of what trend is considered 'over' or at least 'not in.' Good luck! Are you about ready to sub?

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Thanks, Roly! We subbed a thriller this summer; I'm not allowed to talk about what's happening with that yet , but the premise (contemp setting, minor paranormal element) seemed well received. The hopefully-not-dystopian still needs a major rewrite.

I would love to see the end of these huge trends. I do think anything-with-romance will continue to sell well in YA (that's always the element I'm asked to pump up), but that's not a trend so much as an ever more common expectation of the genre. (Which sucks for those who don't want to pair up their characters, period.)

But, trends or not, I think agents will continue to pitch books as "X [previous successful YA novel] meets Y [hot TV show or other trendy cultural property]." Timely comparisons will still help sell books, regardless of the book's uniqueness.

Now I'm off to write "Welcome to Night Vale" meets John Green .

Y'know, Fuchsia, I've been thinking that light paranormal might be in. I'm thinking Witches of East End & Buffy the Vampire Slayer where everyday people are dealing with paranormal stuff. I have a couple of incomplete mss like that in the cupboard. Ya never know what'll catch fire, so I might give that a whirl.

Also, anything mixed with "Welcome to Night Vale" sounds bound to be entertaining so I'll cross my fingers for that one.

Nicole River said:

Great. Now what will we blame our failures on?
*is sarcastic. Or is she?*

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Ha! I was thinking something similar.

Here's the thing, I never-ever go against industry professionals usually, but I still find it hard to think that trends are over.

Oh thank goodness. Because we in this thread can say that we hope trends are over, that it looks like they are, but hearing it from an industry professional makes it feel less speculative.

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This is definitely true - and yet, and yet, while it does look like the time of the Mega Trend is over (featuring its 10000 Twilight/THG comparatives), I stil think that trends themselves never really are. If only because it's an inherent that, when something is a success, even only a middling success, it's natural for readers to want something similar, surely?

Kayley said:

Suzie Townsend mentioned this on the New Leaf Literary tumblr, which I think is relevant to this thread:

"This is not a time for trends. We worked our way through a lot of trends and now everything is about the particular book. "

I think this statement is encouraging for a lot of authors - for me it is, at least - because it means trends won't destroy us as much as they might help us. Rather than letting trends dictate the marketability of a book, the book's individual merits are tantamount. This doesn't mean it'll be easy to sell a book in a dead genre, but it gives hope to authors whose books are in other genres (which mine are.)

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I really hope this is true, but I think it might be a bit of an exaggeration. We may not see Twilight-Level trends anymore--though we could--but I don't think trends are "dead".

IdrisG said:

Also, anything mixed with "Welcome to Night Vale" sounds bound to be entertaining so I'll cross my fingers for that one.

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Hee. I'm not really writing that (yet), but I'd read it, so I am batting around some ideas. I don't know how many agents/editors know about it, but doesn't WTNV have a big teenage audience? Just combine paranormal lite with a touch of the genuinely creepy, humor and a sweet and quirky m/m romance, et voila, Next Big Thing (OK, maybe only in my dreams).

Kayley said:

Suzie Townsend mentioned this on the New Leaf Literary tumblr, which I think is relevant to this thread:

"This is not a time for trends. We worked our way through a lot of trends and now everything is about the particular book. "

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This is so inspiring! I love it!

Good to know that "trends" are going away. I wouldn't want to be on either side of a trend--either you're being overlooked because your book doesn't fit the mold, or worse, your book is seen as just another clone of some bestseller.

Liosse de Velishaf said:

I really hope this is true, but I think it might be a bit of an exaggeration. We may not see Twilight-Level trends anymore--though we could--but I don't think trends are "dead".

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I don't think Suzie is claiming trends are dead; just that they're less important than they've been in recent years. At least from her perspective as an agent.

Kayley said:

I don't think Suzie is claiming trends are dead; just that they're less important than they've been in recent years. At least from her perspective as an agent.

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I agree.

Trends help sell books, so I'm sure some publishers are really hoping for new ones to emerge or old ones to be revamped.

Sage said:

From WriteOnCon:

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Thanks for the info, Sage. So things are still 'trending' with publishers after all.

Contemporary, horror, humor, epic fantasy (secondary world). Seems about right in terms of what I've been hearing coming out.

I've seen a lot of asking for Game of Thrones, YA version, which I think is really interesting. I think they probably mean more along the lines of "something with really awesome and complex worldbuilding, grey morality, and a gripping plot with twists like every five seconds." But when they phrase it as "like GoT," I've seen people say "oh well I have six gajillion characters and it's medieval so it's like GoT!" This harkens back to what I always think when I see these things...it's not the "window dressing" that counts. The "next GoT" could and very well may look superficially very different.

To quote Ben Wyatt's impassioned mini-rant from Parks & Rec (on GoT): "It's not just for fantasy enthusiasts--they're telling human stories in a fantasy world." I think that's what she means by "approachable," which really, there are hundreds of ways to do that.

(there are lot of quotation marks in those paragraphs, sorry)

As a side note, I've noticed that ASoFAI/GoT also has one of the hallmarks characteristic of almost every Big Thing: groups (in this case, houses). In my theorem-that's-not-really-a-theorem about what makes things resonate with lots of readers, having groups/factions/districts/families that you can sort yourself into is a big one. So I predict the next big thing, regardless of genre, will have that.

Man, my current project is YA epic-ish fantasy. I need to get in gear on it. It's also a bit literary; I wonder if that would be an issue.

Maramoser said:

As a side note, I've noticed that ASoFAI/GoT also has one of the hallmarks characteristic of almost every Big Thing: groups (in this case, houses). In my theorem-that's-not-really-a-theorem about what makes things resonate with lots of readers, having groups/factions/districts/families that you can sort yourself into is a big one. So I predict the next big thing, regardless of genre, will have that.

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This. I agree, this is a really big part of "next big things." Harry Potter, Edward vs. Jacob sort of counts, Divergent, GoT... the only recent big thing that doesn't *really* have much of this aspect is Hunger Games. But it could've. I'm surprised there wasn't more "I'm District X!" marketing.

Liosse de Velishaf said:

Man, my current project is YA epic-ish fantasy. I need o get in gear on it. It's also a bit literary; I wonder if that would be an issue.

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I don't think so. Might actually be a selling point; as a counterpoint to ASoIaF's prose being so utilitarian.

Shall we both write faster? My WIP is a YA gender-bent Night's Watch (meets Gray Wardens meets religious order).

*types faster on that paranormal/horror WIP*

KateSmash said:

I don't think so. Might actually be a selling point; as a counterpoint to ASoIaF's prose being so utilitarian.

Shall we both write faster? My WIP is a YA gender-bent Night's Watch (meets Gray Wardens meets religious order).

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Sounds interesting.



My project is basically three(or four or five--but currently three) companion novels (rather than a true series) about a group of characters in a non-European setting with an equivalent time period of about 1500 years before your standard medieval fantasy. It's literary in terms of themes and style. Might also be epistolary. Each book only focuses on one or two main characters, and they're staggered throughout the over-arching story timeline.

So it's fairly different to ASOIAF in those ways, but similar in others.

Lord of Chaos said:

Put the good books out and let the public decide.

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Quote above! To all publishers. Please.

Fuchsia Groan said:

Now I'm off to write "Welcome to Night Vale" meets John Green .

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Recently read some one online request something similar to WTNV. Can't remember if it was a teen, though they wanted it in YA.

So NA is pretty difficult now and days. I figured that window would be pretty small after 50 Shades.

Seems like contemporary is the main thing right now, but I think at this point you can get away with writing anything (as long as your trend isn't considered 'tired'/'over'/'a hard sell') and still have a chance. I think "strong hooks and a really compelling, unique, interesting voice" basically applies to anything.

Good luck guys~

Sage said:

Watching the Ninja Agents on WoC, they definitely focused on reading the contemporary YA queries first before looking at anything else in YA. MG was a mix though.

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This makes me soooo relieved and excited. Hopefully it bodes well for when I go on sub. Eeek.