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The Steve Laube Agency

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Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Writing Craft » Page 3

Writing Craft

The Anatomy of the Publishing Cycle

By Steve Laubeon November 25, 2024
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If you ask an editor or an agent, “What’s hot right now?” you are too late with the question. The nature of the publishing business is that what you see selling today are books that were conceived, written, published, and marketed over the past couple of years or more.

That is why we, on this side of the table, avoid making pronouncements on current trends. In some ways, the agent and the acquisitions editor are like the scout who is sent ahead by the main patrol or army to figure out the lay of the land so they can form a strategy for the future.

Publishing often follows a cycle that becomes the engine behind a trend. Some are concept or genre-specific, while others are more generic in nature. Let’s explore, in a simplified fashion, the anatomy of the publishing cycle.

Something Hits Big

Whether it is the “parable” business book (Who Moved My Cheese?), Edwardian settings (i.e., Downton Abbey), heavenly visitation stories (Heaven Is for Real), the Amish novel, Twilight, Jesus Calling, or dual-timeline fiction, a book or genre will hit big. It can be either fiction or nonfiction. No one can predict how this happens or when it will happen. If they could, they would manufacture the next big thing every week.

To the Races

When something does hit, the readers clamor for more; and the machinery of writers, editors, and agents are galvanized to see if they can capitalize on the phenomenon after determining if what is selling has staying power. And not everything has staying power.

Chick-lit is the perfect example. Twenty years ago, it was a “can’t-go-wrong” genre … until it wasn’t. The interest in that type of book died so quickly it caught a bunch of publishers holding contracts and forthcoming books by the dozens that were doomed.

Some writers are fortunate in that their interests and work is suddenly “hot,” even though they had been laboring without success writing that type of book for years. This can be a wonderful serendipity.

Eventually, chick-lit was resurrected; it was simply given a different name to avoid the negative market connection. See this article from 2021: “Chick-Lit Isn’t Dead and Why We Should Still Be Talking About It.”

The Inevitable Glut

Within a year or two, the machinery noted above has lumbered its way to producing massive amounts of books that follow those trends.

Think of the number of “vampire” books that came out after the success of Twilight. Or the number of Amish novels that came out after 2006–so much so that it was no longer a trend but created its own genre! Or the number of YA dystopian novels that followed the success of Hunger Games, Divergent, and Maze Runner.

The danger here is that editors can become fatigued by all the “me too” proposals. To the point that editors will cry, “No more of those novel proposals, please!” The irony is that the readership for that type of story may still be strong, but the publishers and booksellers are less enamored. Why?

The Winnowing Begins

Eventually, the fatigue becomes real; and whatever was hot is no longer hot. This means a new book of that type may sell half or less than what it would have if it had been released two years ago. It doesn’t mean the genre is dead, just that the threshold for a book to sell well is more difficult and the stories have to be much better written.

Writers who stop selling as well are not resigned by their publishers. Their modest sales numbers become part of their writing sales history, making a new publisher reluctant to try them out. This is an ugly reality. I wish I could be a cheerleader and make everyone feel good, but this is what happens. We who’ve been around a long time have watched it time and again. Some writers adapt and shift gears and can restart in a new or tangential genre. Others give up, fade away, or go indie and publish on their own. Each author’s situation is different, and it is one way a good agent can guide you.

The Cycle Begins Again

I still remember a time when no publisher wanted new historical novels. No, I’m not talking about last week. I’m talking about the Summer of 2004, right after I started this agency. I had a historical novel proposal by a bestselling author, and we shopped it around the industry. No one wanted it, with rejection after rejection filling the inbox. They all wanted contemporary chick-lit (see above). After seven months of effort, we finally sold the proposal. But that is not the “rest of the story.”

Ironically, a couple of years later, I was talking to an editor who said, “I’m really looking for a strong historical project by a top author,” and then named my client. I sputtered and said, “You could have had the author, but you turned the project down two and a half years ago!” We nervously laughed and talked about the inevitable cycle of publishing.

Chase the Rabbit or Stand Firm?

Trying to chase the trends as a writer is a bit like trying to catch a rabbit who doesn’t want to get caught. You might get lucky, but usually you’ll come up empty-handed.

Instead of chasing the rabbit, my encouragement is to stand firm in what you are called to write and to your strengths as a writer. That doesn’t mean there will be a magic moment when everyone lines up to buy your book. You may need the time to learn the craft or the industry. I know of one author who spent ten years going to writers conferences, learning the craft and the editors. One day, one of those editors moved to a new publisher; and in a meeting someone said, “We should be publishing this type of book.” The editor raised her hand and said, “I know someone who’s been writing that very thing and he’s not under contract.” The phone call was made and that author subsequently won two Christy Awards and published nearly twenty novels.

At the same time, there is a difference between standing firm and being stubborn. There are proposals I’ve seen that simply do not have the commercial “zing” that publishers are looking for. But the author doesn’t hear that and doubles down on the same manuscript, hoping that the market will change. Unfortunately, I can only render my opinion based on experience and an understanding of today’s marketplace. You must exercise wisdom and discernment to determine if your project should be set aside for another time or if it is truly something that will work someday.

 

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Category: Book Business, Branding, Career, Creativity, Indie, Marketing, TrendsTag: publishing, The Publishing Life, Trends

Point of View #4

By Lynette Easonon November 13, 2024
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Last time I talked about Deep Point of View. Now, let’s jump into some practical tips for application. Eliminate “Distance” Words Eliminate “distance” words like “saw,” “heard,” “felt,” “thought,” “wondered,” “noticed,” and so on. Is there ever a time you’d use those? Of course, but for now, let’s try not to use them. I call them “distance” words because they distance the reader from …

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Category: Craft, Writing Craft

Writing Out of Your Mind

By Dan Balowon November 6, 2024
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To be a successful working author, at some point in time you need to write about things that don’t already exist in your mind. Even Christian writers are not immune to this. If you write about something in the Bible and never learn the context or study the actual meaning of the text, you might be missing something important. Relying on memory or thinking, I know this stuff, can be dangerous. …

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Category: Creativity

Developing Characters’ Inner Conflicts

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 30, 2024
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My husband and I just read The Pursuit of Christian Maturity: Flourishing in the Grace and Knowledge of Christ by A. W. Tozer, compiled and edited by James L. Snyder. Steve Laube represents a portion of Tozer’s literary estate. The book offers many excellent points and is worth reading. An overarching lesson on obstacles to a fulfilling relationship with God made me think of writing about the …

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Category: Craft, Writing Craft

Why Does It Take Editors and Agents So Long to Read My Proposal?

By Steve Laubeon October 28, 2024
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Recently, a writer posted this question: I submitted a proposal to a publisher 6 months ago. The guidelines said that a response would be provided at the end of 4 months. At the end of 5 months I sent an email query to confirm that they had actually received the submission–still no response. Now I am at the end of 6 months.…Do I give up? I wish I had a magic wand to solve this problem for …

Read moreWhy Does It Take Editors and Agents So Long to Read My Proposal?
Category: Agency, Book Business, Book Proposals, Common QuestoinsTag: book proposals, Rejection

Point of View #3

By Lynette Easonon October 24, 2024
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I’m back to talk a little more about point of view, continuing to build on what I talked about in the last post. If you’ll remember, last time I dissected POV into three different types—the ones most often in fiction. Today, in this last post on point of view, let’s dig a little deeper and talk in depth about deep point of view since this is the preferred POV in fiction writing. Someone asked why …

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Category: Craft, Writing Craft

When Characters and Settings Go Wrong

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 10, 2024
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A few months ago, I didn’t finish a general market book because of the setting and characters. Here’s what I believe happened: The author did not want to write about where she lives, but she needed: A police force allowing a crime scene to be contaminated, along with other sloppy police work. A police force with corrupt and adulterous officers. A remote vacation spot. A coffee shop within walking …

Read moreWhen Characters and Settings Go Wrong
Category: Rejection, Writing Craft

Point of View Post #2

By Lynette Easonon October 9, 2024
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Welcome back to our discussion about point of view (POV). I want to continue to build on what I talked about last time. In the last post, I explored what point of view actually is. Now I’m going to break down three different types of POV. Note that these are not the only other points of view, but ones used most often in fiction. First Person Point of View This is when the narrator is a character …

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Category: Craft, Writing Craft

A Scrivener Flunky Weighs In – Guest Post

By Guest Bloggeron September 30, 2024
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A Guest Post by Deborah Raney Deborah Raney’s first novel, A Vow to Cherish, inspired the World Wide Pictures film of the same title and launched Deb’s writing career. Thirty years, forty-plus books, and numerous awards later, she’s still creating stories that touch hearts and lives. A RITA and ACFW Carol Award winner and three-time Christy Award finalist, Deb is represented by our agency.  She is …

Read moreA Scrivener Flunky Weighs In – Guest Post
Category: Book Business, Guest Post, Technology, Writing CraftTag: Scrivener, Technology

When You Don’t Feel Like Writing

By Steve Laubeon September 23, 2024
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Multi-colored paperclips

“I don’t feel like writing today.” Ever said that to yourself? I’m saying it today. But if I followed through on the impulse, this page would be blank. Why You Won’t Write Today (1) Physical Illness can strike without warning. And some people suffer from chronic conditions. I have clients who pray for a “good” day so they can put a few words on the page. …

Read moreWhen You Don’t Feel Like Writing
Category: Career, Craft, The Writing LifeTag: Career, The Writing Life, Writing Craft
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