I think I agree with Amy here. A "big book" is something a publisher thinks will sell a lot of copies and make them money. These can include literary fiction like James, nonfiction like Careless People, and genre fiction, like women's fiction or psychological thriller. How to become a big book is the question. Do we write to the market? Or do we write our hearts out and then hope for the best. It's a conundrum. In a way, I think romance writers have figured it out. They write books they know will appeal, and make regular money from them. They're not looking for bestseller lists or awards; they want to bring pleasure to readers, and have an income besides. Trouble is, not everyone wants to write romances. And so the question keeps going...
Thanks for your thoughts, Gabi! Definitely selling a lot of copies seems to be a key component. I don’t think you can necessarily set out to write a big book, even if you’re writing in a popular genre, but I do think you can at least think bigger as you begin to brainstorm, and also, as Amy says, make sure you leave everything on the page and hope the rest works itself out.
Thank you for this! I'm steeped in this conversation right now both internally and with my team as I prep for potential Book 3 conversations. I so want to push myself into the category of whatever a Big Book means, but I'm also hesitant to chase the market. Nailing the Venn diagram of "Big" for me and "Big" for everyone else is such a task... Wishing you all the best in your own process to define the term!
It’s absolutely a Venn diagram, isn’t it? With like 20 interconnected circles, and we’re all trying to figure out how to get to the middle. Wishing you all the best too. I hope you land in the center!
Interesting convo! For trad publishing, it seems like the publishers decide the big books. They pick the lead titles, they write those "major deal" sized advance checks, they allocate the marketing budgets. That's not to say that breakouts can't happen or lead titles can't underperform, but bestsellers are just as bought as they are made. And at least in the romance genre, trad can predict big books by buying the rights to indie bestsellers.
As an indie author, I don't think about the "bigness" of my books, necessarily, but I do try to challenge myself with each release. For my next series, I'm focused on improving my craft and expanding my skill set. I want to tackle dual POV, add elements of suspense and mystery, and write more high-concept. I want to think bigger, even if I can't control the bigness of the dollar and cents.
Agreed about publishers deciding lead titles hoping those become the “big books,” but I always wonder what makes them choose the books they do. I think high-concept is very much a factor especially for newer authors. But my feeling is very much in line with yours. We can’t control the market, only the work!
I think I agree with Amy here. A "big book" is something a publisher thinks will sell a lot of copies and make them money. These can include literary fiction like James, nonfiction like Careless People, and genre fiction, like women's fiction or psychological thriller. How to become a big book is the question. Do we write to the market? Or do we write our hearts out and then hope for the best. It's a conundrum. In a way, I think romance writers have figured it out. They write books they know will appeal, and make regular money from them. They're not looking for bestseller lists or awards; they want to bring pleasure to readers, and have an income besides. Trouble is, not everyone wants to write romances. And so the question keeps going...
Thanks for your thoughts, Gabi! Definitely selling a lot of copies seems to be a key component. I don’t think you can necessarily set out to write a big book, even if you’re writing in a popular genre, but I do think you can at least think bigger as you begin to brainstorm, and also, as Amy says, make sure you leave everything on the page and hope the rest works itself out.
Thank you for this! I'm steeped in this conversation right now both internally and with my team as I prep for potential Book 3 conversations. I so want to push myself into the category of whatever a Big Book means, but I'm also hesitant to chase the market. Nailing the Venn diagram of "Big" for me and "Big" for everyone else is such a task... Wishing you all the best in your own process to define the term!
It’s absolutely a Venn diagram, isn’t it? With like 20 interconnected circles, and we’re all trying to figure out how to get to the middle. Wishing you all the best too. I hope you land in the center!
Interesting convo! For trad publishing, it seems like the publishers decide the big books. They pick the lead titles, they write those "major deal" sized advance checks, they allocate the marketing budgets. That's not to say that breakouts can't happen or lead titles can't underperform, but bestsellers are just as bought as they are made. And at least in the romance genre, trad can predict big books by buying the rights to indie bestsellers.
As an indie author, I don't think about the "bigness" of my books, necessarily, but I do try to challenge myself with each release. For my next series, I'm focused on improving my craft and expanding my skill set. I want to tackle dual POV, add elements of suspense and mystery, and write more high-concept. I want to think bigger, even if I can't control the bigness of the dollar and cents.
Agreed about publishers deciding lead titles hoping those become the “big books,” but I always wonder what makes them choose the books they do. I think high-concept is very much a factor especially for newer authors. But my feeling is very much in line with yours. We can’t control the market, only the work!
Thanks for sharing all this - so interesting to hear about your thoughts process.
Thanks for reading!