What’s Old Is New Again

By Writer X

When I’m not writing, I’m reading. And when I’m not reading, you’ll usually find me at a bookstore. And it’s not just because one of my favorite local bookstores serves the absolute best snickerdoodle cookies and iced coffees, although that certainly doesn’t hurt. It’s just that I consider reading and visiting bookstores as much a part of my “day job” as writing books.

I make it a point to get to know the people who work at my local bookstores (chains and independents) as well as the books they like to sell. Although I’m not a bookstore stalker or anything, I do kind of like to watch which books customers pull off the shelves. And which ones they take to the cash register. I call it “market research.” It sounds less certifiable.

You might be surprised to learn that most of what’s displayed on the shelves of your local bookstore are the books that were popular 18 months to two years ago. In a way, when you peruse the shelves, it’s like going back in time. The books that are selling today are the books that editors thought were so hot almost two years ago. That might as well be eons in a book’s life cycle, kind of like how we calculate dog years. And sometimes much can happen in two years, depending on the genre; although sometimes nothing seems to change at all. Example: Vampires and forensic scientists. Those two plotlines show no real signs of taking a bow anytime soon.

Indeed, what the editors are buying today (for publication in approximately two years) might have nothing to do with what’s gracing your bookstore shelves now. In that sense, editors have to predict what readers will want to buy two years hence and fill their lists accordingly. Will readers want to buy happy stories? Sad ones? Futuristic? Apocalyptic? Doom and gloom? Gore?

While the same genres remain (e.g. Non-fiction, Thrillers, Mysteries, Romance, Literary Fiction, Young Adult), some of the plotlines have changed and/or expanded. The following are simply my personal opinions and observations about what’s selling in the various genres TODAY (or, really, two years ago). Are you following me, Camera Guy?

1. Thrillers. There are fewer thrillers with Russia and China in the plotlines and more centered in Middle Eastern countries like Iran, Iraq, and Israel. No big surprise here. Throw in a despot dictator, an angry former CIA or FBI agent, a technology gizmo, and you’ve got yourself the making of today’s thriller. A subset of the Thriller genre has to be anything involving forensic science, sometimes called True Crime. Any story with a forensic scientist is red-hot and doesn’t show any signs of slowing, as I stated earlier. It’s no coincidence that those CSI shows continue to mass-produce exponentially. I believe the television executives have every major city covered and why not? It sells. People can’t seem to get enough of all things forensic.

2. Mysteries. Where thrillers tend to be more action-oriented, the mysteries that sell today tend to be more suspense-oriented. That formula really hasn’t changed. The time period doesn’t matter either—past, present, or future. Currently, any mystery with a zombie flies off the shelves. Throw in a zombie love story and you’ve probably got yourself a bestseller.

3. Horror. Stephen King continues to dominate this genre, although I’m admittedly not a huge fan. Can’t stand the gore. And there always seems to be a poor, pathetic character that gets picked on or tortured mercilessly. Yuck. One change I’ve noticed with horror is the addition of many plotlines with a technical component—e.g. cell phones that take over the world, creepy robots, or laptops that become smarter than people. It’s almost become a prerequisite. In order for horror to be successful, in my opinion, it has to be action-oriented as well as suspense-oriented. Most of the protagonists continue to be men. There doesn’t necessarily need to be a love interest for it to sell either.

4. Romance. Romance books never seem to lose steam, regardless of the economic climate. They’re selling like hotcakes, probably because people want to escape more than ever and they’re usually priced cheaper than most hard cover books. If anything, there are more subsets to Romance than any other genre—paranormal, fantasy, historical, Amish, NASCAR. If a romance book can be turned into a series, all the better. Vampires are still hot, although I’ve read that in two years time angels will become the go-to plotline. And that means that the books involving angels as main characters are being purchased by editors today. Additionally, not to sound like a walking pun, but erotica is another subset of romance and it too is extremely hot. Gay and Lesbian romance has also become increasingly popular.

5. Literary Fiction. Stories involving baby-boomer characters undergoing major life changes (cancer, divorce, death) and World War II story lines are popular plots found in today’s literary fiction. Literary fiction, however, is the one genre that can be the most unpredictable. That’s because, I think, great writing and storytelling will always find a home in literary fiction, regardless of the trend du jour. That’s part of what makes literary fiction a little more exciting, in my opinion.

6. Young Adult. Stories for teenagers overwhelmingly remain dark and bleak. Apparently children’s editors don’t hold much hope for today’s youth. If your story doesn’t contain a messed up teenager from a broken home (bonus points if there is a drug addiction) with a body covered in tattoos and piercings, you might have a difficult time getting it published. Or at least have to try harder than usual.

7. Non-fiction. Speaking of red-hot, conservative political books are being scooped up like free cotton candy at the fair, thanks to Levin, Coulter, Malkin, and Beck. Dare I say that it’s cool to be conservative? Conservatism is one of the hottest trends that I see right now. Who knew two years ago that it would become this hot? Of course, it doesn’t hurt that these writers already have mega-huge audiences. Without their audiences, I doubt the books would have been put under contract in the first place. Still, they pave the road for others itching to break into this genre. As an aside, on my last visit to the bookstore, I noticed stacks of John Kerry and John Edwards biographies on the bargain shelves for $3.99 and less. And there didn’t seem to be too many takers, even at the smoking sales price.

So, since I can’t stalk you in your own hometown bookstores (unless you live in Phoenix), what do you see in your bookstores? What would you prefer to see? What are you tired of seeing? Inquiring minds just gotta know.

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If you’d like to see something particular in the Commentarama Writing Series, don’t hesitate to email Commentarama or leave a comment in this post. If you’re afraid that LawHawk or Andrew will publicly ridicule your suggestion, then don’t hesitate to email me at writerx@cox.net.