 For Authors: January 18, 2017 Issue [#8087] |
  For Authors
This week: Writing to Market Edited by: Jeff  
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"In three words, I can sum up everything
I've learned about life: it goes on."
-- Robert Frost
Trivia of the Week: Romance author Penelope Halsall was so prolific (200+ novels written, an estimated 70-90 million+ copies sold) that she had not one, not two... but five different pseudonyms for all of her work. Caroline Courtney was her regency romance nom de plume, Penny Jordan her contemporary romance persona, Annie Graves her historical romance alter ego, and added the aliases Melinda Wright and Lydia Hitchcock for good measure.
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WRITING TO MARKET
In this new age of self-publishing, where anyone can publish a book anytime and there's no extended wait to make it onto a publisher's release schedule, one of the most popular business strategies for authors has been the write-to-market strategy. Basically, the idea is that instead of writing what you want, you write what's currently selling in the marketplace. This strategy is most effective in small niches rather than large genres, so an effective write-to-market strategy wouldn't necessarily be, "I'm going to write romance!" or "Wow, mystery books sell really well!" as much as it would be analyzing very specific story and character trends to find specific areas that are very popular for a limited amount of time. It's more along the lines of, "Oh, vampire paranormal contemporary teen romance is big right now" or "For some reason, mystery books that have female private investigator protagonists and mix thrills and comedy together are selling really well." The idea is that you can capitalize on the trend of that particular type of fiction, hopefully get a fair number of sales while it's popular, and then move onto the next thing when that trend starts to fall out of favor and another starts up.
The nice thing about the self-publishing space is that a prolific writer can capitalize on this strategy fairly early on. Unlike traditional publishing, where it could be months or even years from the time you complete your manuscript to the time you see it released, self-published titles can be published shortly after they're finished since the release pattern is up to the individual author. Combine that with the fact that independently-published offerings can compete on price, and the conditions for making a short-term profit are pretty good.
The downside, though, is that you have to write fast and not necessarily in a specific genre that you're interested in. It's also incredibly difficult to draw connections between your various works, as there won't be as much overlap as someone who stays in the same genre, and it's difficult to do a series (which is one of the best ways to build a following). On top of all that, it takes an immense amount of reading, analysis, and planning to figure out the trends and then generate comparable material.
Write-to-market is a scalable strategy that is entirely dependent on what you feel comfortable doing. Some authors have no problem writing in a variety of genres, even if that means penning regency vampire romance novels followed by low-magic urban fantasy followed by espionage thrillers with strong female protagonists. Other authors, though, prefer to stay in a more specific wheelhouse and explore the nuanced trends within a genre like horror or science fiction or erotica.
For some, this write-to-market can be a great way to inspire yourself to write the kinds of things that already have a demonstrated audience. For others, it might sound like a grotesque betrayal of the tried and true "write what you're passionate about" advice. I think most, though, find themselves somewhere in between, and that's where the write-to-market strategy can really benefit the most authors. It's not an all-or-nothing approach that means you either ignore the market entirely or slavishly churn out works you're not passionate about or proud of just to capitalize on a trend. Rather, I think it's an invitation to look at publishing with a new perspective.
In most cases, we write something and then go out looking for an audience. Writing-to-market simply means that you consider the audience first, and then write something that fits what they're looking for. As I mentioned above, that doesn't even necessarily mean that you have to operate outside your wheelhouse. If you're passionate about mystery stories, it could be as simple as using a popular type of protagonist, or setting, or set of circumstances surrounding the crime that are demonstrably popular at the moment.
When you think about it, contest entries on Writing.com are a great example. Regular writing (writing what you want and then finding a market) is like writing a short story and then trying to find a contest that fits the story. Writing-to-market, on the other hand, is like finding a contest looking for a particular type of story and then writing one that fits those particulars. There's no right or wrong way to write... but there's a definite chance that the story you wrote prior to identifying the market/contest - even if the subject matter is similar - may not be a perfect fit. The rating might be too graphic, the length of the story might be too long, or there might be a particular component of a prompt that your story is missing. By contrast, figuring out what the judges are looking for in a contest and then crafting an entry will ensure that you've written the exact kind of thing that audience is specifically looking for.
It's worth considering a write-to-market strategy in some way, shape, or form. You don't need to be a grand plan or to even necessarily venture outside your comfort zone. But every once in a while it might be worth considering the market or audience before you start writing. Depending on the circumstances, that shift in perspective could end up saving you a lot of time and possibly even result in finding a bigger audience for your work than you would have otherwise had writing the story independent of market considerations.
Until next time,
Jeff
If you're interested in checking out my work:
"Blogocentric Formulations"
"New & Noteworthy Things"
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This month's official Writing.com writing contest is:
I also encourage you to check out the following items:
EXCERPT: "I have a dream," Jeff said placing his hands on the desk. He looked around the oval office before landing back on his Vice President, Jinxy. "That I am not impeached."
"What did you think was going to happen when you tried to seduce Prince William by saying you would sign the country back over to England for as you put it, his 'tea and crumpets'?"
"How many times do I have to apologize for that?"
"Once would be good." Jinxy brushed a dread from behind her ear.
EXCERPT: The rocking horse had been sitting untouched for years discarded as junk in the corner of a basement. The house above was empty like most along the block, the only real occupants consisted of rats, pigeons and the occasional homeless looking for a night out of the weather. The rocking horse sat facing the wall, caked in dust and bird droppings. It had been built to rock, to take little boys and girls on journeys, to fight dragons, compete in races and to chase the sun as it sank behind the mountains. The rocking horse was full of magic but without a rider it was crippled and could go nowhere as the world fell down around it.
EXCERPT: I'm Esme and this is my story, unexpected Incidents and events who have shaped me into the stronger person I am today. I'm starting not at the very beginning, but at age 11, this is when Depression and anxiety started to rear its ugly head. Everyone put it down to just typical teenage hormones, it will pass, but in the years to come it would be realised that it was more than just hormones changing... let me not get ahead of myself, first a bit more about me, my name as I said is Esme Partridge... oh the names and jests my surname caused during Secondary school were soo funny... NOT although some of the attempts to insult did amuse me after a while.
EXCERPT: The scents of Autumn followed Rich as he limped through the door of his house. He closed it and paused to allow the potpourri of feelings to wash away as the scent dissipated. As always, that smell brought with it the memories of better times, of fraught times, and now it seemed to herald the chronic pain in his leg which throbbed with every step.
EXCERPT: Finding her was all that was on Merrick’s mind. She must still be alive, since the hive Queen had not to the best of his knowledge wasted a body that it attained. It frightened him to no end as he tore down the lonely stretch of road at 600 kph, as the pistons roared in the fusion engine of the Harpy 3. The dead of night the only comfort on the lonely road as Merrick tore his way to the mega-troplis sprawling still several thousand kilometers in the distance. They had no right to come here 11 years ago, let alone the things they have done to me and those they have taken from me.
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Feedback from my last newsletter about social media platforms ("For Authors Newsletter (December 21, 2016)" ):
Quick-Quill  writes: "thank you for this bit on social media. I'm basically a social media outcast and have been wondering about this aspect of being an author for a VERY long time. Frankly, it frightens me. Hopefully this will encourage me to find something which suits me.
thanks again."
The great thing about social media platforms is that there are all kinds. All you have to do is find the one that speaks most to your interests (posting photos, short or long text, sharing other people's posts, etc.) and then deciding how much or how little of your personal life you want to share. Once you find a platform you like and set some ground rules for yourself, it can be a great way to interact with others! 
Elycia Lee ☮  writes: "Hi, Jeff. I like to share with you my favourite author's social media platform. Trying looking for Maggie Stiefvater. I love her social media platform and she is so creative. She is also an artist. She shares what she is up to from time to time.  "
She's got a great platform! And proof that you don't have to be everywhere online at the same time. It looks like she's picked a few key areas that work for her (her own website/blog, Twitter) and primarily uses those to interact with her fans.
hbk16 writes: "It is an interesting spectrum of different writing web sites.This depends on someone freelance writer and how kind of shape she or he wants to give to the writer.Indeed someone can write for many purposes and because of this, there are writings and not writing. Thanks a lot for such advises."
You're very welcome!
DB Cooper  writes: "I use FB under my real name and they are very DANGEROUS people!"
I keep my Facebook strictly real-life friends, family, and colleagues only. If I don't know you or recognize your name, you're probably not getting friended.
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