I've commiserated with a few fellow writers when we've had books with disappointing sales. Sometimes the books were independently published but others were published by small presses or even the big NY boys. And reports from RWA National Conference in July and two weeks ago from the NJRWA conference, that editors and agents no longer want paranormal romance. A lot of my friends write what RWA categorize as paranormal but RWA defines it broadly so it includes any kind of speculative fiction. The national organization, and I assume editors and agents, lump sci-fi, fantasy and futuristic in with vampires, angels and demons. Yet, the most recent Romance Writers Report has the 2013 statistics showing that over 22% of readers claim paranormal romance is their favorite sub-genre. This is of interest to me since my most successful romance novels are science fiction romances. I haven't heard of any small presses claiming paranormal is dead. Romantic suspense is the leading category.
Other stats shared include that 21% of the adult fiction market goes to romance and that publishers generated over a billion dollars of revenue last year. Only the thriller genre edged out romance for most sales dollars. Almost half that revenue comes from E-book sales.
What do these stats tell me? Popularity of genres waxes and wanes. I will continue to write what I enjoy reading and not try to follow a trend. Christian Romance and YA romance had the lowest percentage of readers, yet there is and will always be a market for books in those categories. With almost half of romance readers buying a book every week or even more often, a lot of books are being sold. When asked, romance readers claim the most important factor in selected a romance to read isn't the sub-genre but the story itself.
The lesson of the stats? Write the story you want to write. If only 22% of readers are interested in your novel's category, then make it a great story so that all those millions that make up that percentage will want it.
Have you heard any recent reports of a certain genre gaining or losing popularity? Do any of the things I've shared above surprise you? Are you surprised how much of the book market is romance? When do you think E-books will outsell print?
Please remember to visit the rest of the IWSG participants. You'll find lots of interesting posts.
39 comments:
Hi Susan .. you're right about writing for those who want to read your genre ... and making sure it's the best story for them .. and then engaging with your readers .. cheers Hilary
I usually just write the story - or let the story write its way through me - and then figure out what genre is. Maybe not the best way to go.... :)
Madeline @ The Shellshank Redemption
Seems everyone I know is writing paranormal, so there still must be a demand.
Space opera isn't really popular, but it's what I write.
22% is a lot of readers. I'd be happy with that.
You're so right!! Write what you love. The market is always topsy-turvy. I hear differing opinions all the time. Pub houses don't want vamps, and lately I heard Contemporary is out---What! That through me for a loop. If they don't want paranormal or contemporary what do they want? Sales are down for me, but I see a lot of success stories out there with indie writers.
I've already had people tell me that they didn't think there was an audience for my book. The thing is, this story just keeps forming in my head and it isn't going to stop or change based on what people tell me will be popular. And by that I mean that my imagination doesn't seem to care what would be more popular. This idea just keeps growing and I feel like I'd be a fool to stop it. Of course, this could all lead me to a giant tangled up knot of pointless story that no one reads. There's always the risk of that. But so far it has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Its just that the end keeps moving further back as the story grows. 6 books, that's how long it has grown to in my head. And it's a good thing its in my head because every single backup method I've tried so far has failed me at one time or another. I can't tell you how many version of my story have been lost so far due to hard drive and backup failure. It's insane.
Nothing surprises me anymore in publishing. Especially not people complaining about poor sales, when you figure what the competition has become with ebooks.
I think writing in a genre that interests you is a wise choice and as readers come to know you, they'll read more and want more. I know that's true for me as a reader. When I find an author I enjoy, I keep going back to them to find new books to read.
I'm surprised that paranormal romance is waning, but I do think that scifi romance is doing ok - I'm basing this on both the books I've seen on the shelves and the shows that seem to be on TV - I think that there's a crossover of readers and viewers.
I read the figures on romance about three months ago in comparison to other book sales, and I realized that I need to work on my romance writing skills. It's not something I feel comfortable writing, but I'm working on it in short story form and then trying to apply it to my third and fourth novels (both in different states of drafting).
Best wishes on all your writing!!!
That's so interesting that they say your genre is losing steam. I guess I'd really only let myself start to worry if the news was that 'people are not reading anymore'. That would be distressing for so many reasons!
Happy IWSG day. :)
Write what you enjoy and screw the trends, as they do go up and down.
I am having difficulty deciding how present the genre of my novel in my query. Yes, I am now working on the query letter... aacchh. So much fiction isn't "just one thing" any longer. People long for variety in their books. I think of it as a Paranormal Mystery Romance. Does such a category exist???
Absolutely, always write what you love first and foremost. Good luck!
Wise advice, I think. If you chase the trends, you will always be behind them. If you write really clean you might manage to have novellas catch--I have a romance writing friend that ended up in several anthologies that way, but I think for full books it can't be done well fast enough to have that be your strategy. Write what you love.
I've published two romantic-suspense eBooks, so it would seem I'm right there in that niche, but I don't see huge sales. FAR from it. I wish I did, though. ;)
I read recently that romance writing is where the money is. I don't read romances, but I can see that.
"Write what you like reading." That's key.
I've always heard that romance readers are avid readers, so it makes sense that the sub-genres of romance would have built-in audiences. Keep writing what you love!
Writing sci-fi/spec fic w/o romance, obviously I don't write for what's popular. We have to figure out how to appeal to that audience. Commiserating is so important in this business.
I don't write based on popular genres, I just write what I like to write and let the chips fall where they will. I've been hearing for the last 3 years that paranormal was out, but I don't see any evidence of that. Interesting stats. Thanks for sharing :)
Popularity and what I like rarely intersect. I don't really care. I'd be bored and unhappy if I did anything different.
As I don't have much to contribute to this topic, I'll just say howdy, and happy almost weekend.
"Write the story you want to write." Amen! It is absolutely the only thing we can do.
I write in paranormal, and for me it's the hardest to market (of the genres I write in) because it doesn't have a strong romantic aspect. I think there's also a lot of assumption that when you say paranormal, you mean paranormal romance--and I've met tons of people who like paranormal romance.
Genres are always a problem for me, I write the story, then figure out the genre. I should probably follow stats and figures like you mentioned here more often, but I'm afraid the characters in my head wouldn't listen to anything I told them about my findings anyway.
That's something I've come to learn lately. There's a market for everything. If your book's not selling well, chances are it's not a bad book, you just haven't found your market yet.
Over the years I've repeatedly heard write what you love. These stats just confirm that. I agree with Michael, sometimes it takes time to find your audience.
If it's a good story, then it won't matter what genre it belongs to.
I'm surprised. I thought romances sell at a much greater rate.
You're right, Susan. We shouldn't write based on numbers. We should write what we want to write regardless. I rarely look at statistics regarding publication - or anything, for that matter.
Cheers!
I'm surprised. I thought romances sell at a much greater rate.
You're right, Susan. We shouldn't write based on numbers. We should write what we want to write regardless. I rarely look at statistics regarding publication - or anything, for that matter.
Cheers!
I'm absolutely with you...write what we want to write, despite reports. I know that the real money is also in writing a series, but I haven't written a series. Don't know if I have a series in me. But that won't stop me from writing standalone books!
The way I see it is that if you the writer likes what you've written then surely someone else will now or sometime in the future. Sometimes we have to create our own place and generate the interest on our own. If we stick with the mainstream then we might be forfeiting our own originality hence brand.
Lee
Wrote By Rote
Great post! I write paranormal romance and am yet to self-publish any of my work. I seriously hope that the genre isn't dead. But I agree with you. We should write what we like to read.
the best part is exactly what you said. even if the percentage is low in your genre, you write the story you want! romance isn't dead :D
So far, everything I've written has been completely different (and looking at my future plans, that isn't going to chance). Writing the story you want to write should be the most important concern, because trends and fashions are always going to change.
One of my publishers stated that paranormal is losing popularity. I bet there are many readers who'd disagree. I write the story I want to read.
Thank God I write thriller. I've written one romance novel and it's 50% good and 50% awful. Not sure I'll ever go back to it. MaybeI should sell the rights to someone who could save it!
Thanks for the info Susan. Very helpful.
I don't follow trends either. I just write what I like. I think that's the best way to go.
Heather
I think chasing trends is a lost cause. Write a good enough story and readers will find it.
Excellent advice, Susan. We must have passion for what we're writing. Definitely.
I heard paranormal was out just moments before my angel romance came out, hehe. But I totally agree with what you say -- the story is most important. If readers connect with it, it doesn't matter what genre it is. And hey, you never know which book is going to be the one to capture readers' attention enough to start swinging the trend back.
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