Blogger: Janet Kobobel Grant
The other day I was talking with an author who has written more than 70 books over the span of several decades. She was telling me about another well-established writer who decided to just…write whatever he wanted. That might not sound like such a big deal until you ponder that the woman author had envy in her voice when she used the words, “whatever he wanted.”
She asked him what it felt like.
He responded, “Like magic.”
Writers are like the pendulum of a clock: They hit the perfect balance between writing what they think the market wants and writing what they want only for that millisecond when the pendulum hits the exact middle between the two extremes.
I’ve often said, when asked whether a writer should write his passion or what’s hot, that an author needs to incline one ear to the market’s needs and one ear to his own sweet spot. And I know that, long-term, I’m correct in saying that.
But today I’d like to play my own devil’s advocate and ask, Why shouldn’t a writer create whatever makes her heart sing? Isn’t that a significant part of the joy of the task?
Let’s talk about market vs. magic.
- What percentage of your writing motivation is based on what you think the market wants and what percentage on what fires your imagination?
- What part does passion play in staying the course when publishing progress is slow?
- Do you think one force–the market or the writer’s sweet spot–is more significant than the other?
- When do you feel the magic?
- Can you set the stage to make the magic happen (writing in a certain place or under certain conditions), or do you think it happens spontaneously?
- This question is for you to answer for yourself: Is your WIP magic for you? If not, do you want to change course in search of the magic?
Great thoughts and questions. I’ve considered some of the questions you’ve brought up.
My story is magic for me. Considering 2 1/2 years ago, I never thought I could write a book, I’m pretty excited that I’ve finished one, and have many others incubating in my heart. The process has been long, but I’ve learned a lot, and that has continued to fuel the passion for my story and for writing.
Aw Jeanne, I WISH I was going to ACFW and then I could meet you!
I love that you said “incubating”. My youngest was in one for a week or more. That little cocoon sustained his frail lungs and heart until he was ready to be out in the air.
Our stories have been safe in our hearts, and now YOU are going to take your baby to the world and show off like the proud mama that you are! You go and take on Dallas, I’ll be praying for you and cheering you from here!!
Thanks, Jennifer. For the analogy and the prayers. I look forward to meeting you one day too!
Having discovered the magic, you can never go back, can you? Nor would you want to.
So aptly said, Janet. 🙂
I’m a newbie, Janet, and at this point I can’t envision “the market.” As I write (my genre is non-fiction) I attach specific people to certain sections. Some writing sessions evolve into prayer for the people I’m picturing. That brings me joy and satisfaction.
I defined a market in my book proposal and I know intellectually that it exists. But it doesn’t resonate with my heart. Perhaps it should. Thank you for raising the question.
Picturing the reader is key to thinking about the market for you book, Lee. Some writers never do manage to envision what a potential reader would look like. Kudos to you for taking that important step.
I sat down at the computer on December 26th at 10pm. The house was silent, the woodstove was roaring and I had come to my Rubicon. Decades of wanting to write but not having the courage had come and gone.
It was time.
“Market” had no voice, no influence. The Story awaited me, with great patience and conviction that someone could tell it. Someone who ignored all the other voices and chose to walk alone with a respectful silence toward a great deal of hurt.
Now that I have completed one story and am working on the prequel, the passion is wavering. But only because I need to rest a moment after a long fight. But all I need is to think for a moment about those that had no voice, and I pick up my pen and go back into the battle.
I am driven to tell this story. The “sweet spot” of telling the story can carry me through the drudgery of dealing with running the long gauntlet of the industry.
I felt the magic in my imagination, but it ignited in Fort Sumner, New Mexico when I set foot on the grounds of Bosque Redondo. Walking where the broken and dying had been, looking across the vast nothingness of their outdoor prison broke my heart and set fire to the words that waited.
If I feel dry, I close my eyes and take myself back there.
I can do that, I can pretend to be there. And
I must do that for the people who closed their eyes and pretended to be free, to be home in their hogans with their families and friends. Not starving to death 450 miles from home under the guns of an army who thought they were wild dogs worthy of bullets and target practice.
Yes, my WIP is magic for me. And I think the passion is evident!!
You’re passion both for your book and for the history that inspired it is indeed obvious. I think that will help sell the book. Is there a market for historical fiction? Yes. Is there a market for novels about Native Americans? In the U.S., yes. So I think your passion may have been the magic that led you to a good place.
It moves me to read about your passion for your story–and especially the people whose real stories are behind it. God bless you, Jennifer.
Ahe’hee Kiersti!
This is beautifully said, Jennifer. Having talked with a friend who wished he had written down his grandmother’s story (she was in the walk of tears), I know how important this story is. I’m so glad you’re the one telling it.
Fortunatley, I think what’s in my heart to write intersects nicely with the market. (Of course, all writers are at least slightly delusional.)
I tend to think passion trumps market. You CAN write what’s popular, but if you don’t have passion for it that will show. I’m trying to trust that God spurred me to write my stories for a reason. And while I hope it’s publication, maybe it’s something else. And if it is–well, that’ll be better, won’t it?
I take huge offense to that!! I am NOT slightly delusional!!!
More like “way totally”.
Sarah, I completely agree that if you are writing ONLY for the market, it will show. It’s like formula song lyrics. If a person is not writing from his / her heart and experience, the end product will be flat and soul-less.
Sarah,
I believe you are right when you say passion trumps market. Passion shines through in a writer’s work. I am drawn to those types of books. God gives us that passion. We write because He gives us that creative desire. It may end up being a gift from Him or we may use it as a gift–or sacrifice–TO Him.
I’ve blogged about this conundrum before. Write your passion or write to the market?
I think every writer who’s been rejected b/c their topic doesn’t fit into the acceptable boxes (whether it be genre, time period, location, etc), regrets writing such a difficult-to-place book. But then you have to pick yourself up and keep pushing. Push till every door slams in your face, then write something else.
There are tons of stories of people who write the 2nd or 3rd book, get it published, then later on, someone is looking for the exact genre/location/theme of that first (shelved) book.
I am a big believer that EVERY book you write needs to have your passion behind it. Otherwise, why bother working so hard to that 80,000-100,000 word mark? Why celebrate when you write THE END? Who cares? I always write what I’d want to read.
Yes, I’ve definitely been tempted to go the Amish route (no offense to Amish writers–I know that’s your passion!). But I just have different stories to tell. So those are the ones I’ll keep telling, whether I can fit in a box or not.
THE HELP didn’t fit in a box. THIS PRESENT DARKNESS didn’t fit in a box. Even TWILIGHT didn’t fit in a box. I want to be one of those forward-thinking writers who make the box everyone else wants to squeeze into! Lofty goals–but I think that’s when writers are the strongest–when they’re dreamers!
I’m with you, Heather. My current WIP fits into a very tiny box, but fortunately the few books that have gone before have done well.
Recently I heard it said that writing trends are caused by writers who wrote their passion and it caught fire in the market. That sure makes you think, doesn’t it?
I really like what you’re saying. The market tends to fluctuate so much, that even if you’re writing what’s popular now, by the time it’s published it might no longer be. I think it’s good to be aware what’s currently selling, but to write what you really want to and what you’re passionate about.
Who knows? Eventually there might be the perfect opening for the manuscript.
I’m with you, Heather! I am writing what I like to read but it also happens to be in a odd genre that i believe is gaining popularity. I may be naive to say this but my genre seems to just be breaking into the christian market with only a handful of authors that i know of writing it like a few works from Susan meissner and Lynn austin. The genre is Christian Contemporary-Historical Fiction. The weaving of past and present day in a story. Secular bestselling authors who write it are Susanna kearsley, Tatiana de rosnay and Tia obrecht to name a few. Does anyone know any other Christian authors who write in this genre?? Thanks!!
I think that, because I want to reach readers with a message, I have to pay attention to the market. Have to or the book will never see the light of day (unless I self-publish, which isn’t the road I’m pursuing). But like Sarah, I’m fortunate that my writing and stories seem to fit in with the market well.
It helps to realize, too, that the market is a swinging pendulum. What you’re writing now might not be in tremendous demand, but next year that could completely change as the pendulum swings.
I actually hate that about our market. I mean, why is historical fiction the end-all-and-be-all one year and contemporary fiction the must-buy for publishing houses? If publishers bought a strong mix of each genre every year, writers wouldn’t have to live with the vagaries of what I consider false trends. After all, those who like to read historicals don’t switch allegiances to contemporaries and vice versa. But that’s another soap box for another day.
It’s funny…as a reader, I like both historical and contemporary. I read suspense and romance and women’s fiction…and dystopian, occasionally.
So maybe I’m just weird! 😛 But I guess I don’t notice the trends because I read such a variety.
I’d be interested to hear you on that soap box one day. 😉
I can’t comment on Lindsay’s comment below, but I kept thinking how helpful it would be to have a running list somewhere on trends the CBA publishers are buying, just to help those debut authors decide on genres BEFORE writing a book. BUT it’d have to be updated about every day– there’s such a rollover, like you said, Janet!
“If publishers bought a strong mix of each genre every year, writers wouldn’t have to live with the vagaries of what I consider false trends.”
Indeed! Yet another example of the intrinsic problems of the industry which puts the writer at a disadvantage (which really, really doesn’t make sense, as that limits the market potential of the publishers themselves in that they aren’t able to maximize the assets of the content creators who make them money! )
Lol. Wow Lindsay. You should so read the comment I posted above. The genre I write mixes contemporary and historical. 🙂 I love it! The best of both worlds…
Larry, one of the aspects of publishing that causes me to engage in serious eyeball rolling is how publishers engage in self-fulfilling prophecy. Individuals in a publishing house will start to say to each other, “____(Genre)______ doesn’t sell.” That observation is probably based on one book that had disappointing sales. But the statement becomes a truism, and so the publishing house won’t buy a book in that genre for, say, five years. And guess what? That genre doesn’t sell for them. How could it? They aren’t publishing it.
Janet, this is a great post, and I’m sure we’ll have a fascinating discussion.
First I thought through my own writing past. Book 1 was historical. Book 2 was contemporary romance that leaned a tiny bit toward women’s fiction. Book 3, my current WIP, is women’s fiction which is the genre I love. But way back when I started writing and couldn’t stop reading Bodie Thoene, I knew I would end up writing historicals.
We writers do change over time, don’t we? We are people, after all. We’re not static.
So on to your questions.
1. Right now 100%. I’m taking a risk with this manuscript. It’s definitely Christian, but it deals with real life and stupid choices in a big-city setting. No small town, no southern setting. And no perfect Christians. Far, far from it.
But I am in love with this story and my characters, and the more I write, the more the words come. I’m holding onto this feeling because I know, however passionate I am about every book, that this is pretty rare.
2. I think passion is crucial to trying to break in. Don’t write something you’re not wild about just to try to get a sale. Then you risk getting stuck in a genre you don’t really want to write in. And will your work be a true representation of you and your voice/style?
3. Passion v. market–both are significant. In my WIP, I’m writing my passion–that somewhat risky book–but at the same time remembering what the market seems to like. I read a ton of CF, and I believe I do know what’s considered acceptable and what crosses the line. So both are important. Write your passion and perhaps tweak it here and there to fit into the market.
4.I’ve been fortunate to feel the “magic” in each book I write. But I’ve always been super excited about each story before I started writing it. A writer told me years ago to always go with the best story idea I had and not save it for later. Good advice, I think.
5. I’m finding for me the magic is more likely to show up when I have consistent writing time. Then I crave it, my mind is always working ahead, and sitting down to write at my usual times brings everything out in abundance. Habit, for me, is everything.
6.Yes!!! The magic has moved in, unpacked, and hung pictures on the walls!
But between books 2 and 3, I was working on another one that even finaled twice in the Genesis, and it just wouldn’t go anywhere. Grrr. But it was a chaotic period in my life when I was unable to set up those habitual writing times. Finally I set the poor thing aside for this current WIP. I wonder now how that book would turn out if I revisited it. After this WIP, of course!
I think we writers need to write our passion from the get-go. It may mean that we don’t break in until later due to a harder sell, but the delay gives us time to grow and become a better, more salable writer.
I’m grateful for the periods when God said no because I look back now and see that I wasn’t ready. We’ve all read those writers whose first book was less than stellar–we never read book two. I don’t want that. I want to write my passion, and my best bet at doing that is to put out a well-written, well-plotted book that makes readers hunt down when book 2 comes out.
Sally,
Thank you for your excellent points. Number 2 is vital for people to remember. IF you get the first book published, then you will be writing that genre for a long while. That’s something I thought and prayed about. I have two WIP. One is my baby that I have been working on for years. The other is newer, but I have decided to focus on the second one. Why? Because I can envision writing more books in a similar vein and I feel I can write them within a reasonable length of time. I really enjoy the genre (fantasy). The other book is farther along, almost query-ready, but I’m holding off on it. It is a psychological mystery. I love the characters. I have had a professional critique done and been told that the writing, plot, characters are excellent. The critiquer is even willing to recommend me to her agent. But I don’t know that I have another book like it in me. It is a really complex book. Certainly I wouldn’t want to be under a deadline to write another. So that’s why I opted to focus on the genre that I feel I can more readily “produce” in.
Go, Christine! Yep, follow that passion.
I think I compensate for not always being in that magic spot by really
enjoying my character development. You can love any genre you write in,
if you care about your characters. That being said, I’d like to have the guts
to break outside the box. I guess it takes time and a sense of confidence
to get to that point–at least in my case.
Kathleen, I hadn’t thought about enjoying one’s characters as elemental to loving a genre. But I have seen clients so caught up in characters’ lives that the authors end up writing a series that started out as a standalone. So what you say makes sense.
Thanks, Janet.
Janet, thank you for another thought-provoking post.
My passion for writing and storytelling is what motivates me. I would write even if there were no hope of ever getting published. However, I also want to entertain and touch people, so that drives me to want to get the work published. And that means market has to be a consideration. Both of my WIP started from passion, then when it became apparent that they might be candidates for publication, I began to research whether or not they would be marketable. Happily for me, both seem to be. As I said above, I am focusing on the YA fantasy. I didn’t realize that YA fantasy was a hot market until I began to do market research. I was writing something, as Heather said above, that I wanted to read. Sometimes I am afraid that when I say I’m writing YA fantasy, people will think I’m just hoping to ride the wave, but as Sarah said, if you write something JUST for the market, that will be obvious in the writing. I really enjoy working on my YA fantasy and I think that will come through in the writing. Also, hopefully the passion will be apparent in my queries and pitches and will give them the “spark” to catch an agent’s attention. And the joy I’m having writing the book, I think, will transfer to the people who read it. That’s where the magic happens: taking your passion and joy and giving it to the readers.
Christine, it is odd, isn’t it, that when you happen to be passionate about a genre that’s “hot,” others assume you’re chasing the market. But a standout book truly does stand out regardless how many writers are trying to publish in a certain genre.
Thank you, Janet. You just helped me with my other fear: that because YA is so popular right now, the competition is going to be fierce. But I’m trying not to let that worry me. If, with God’s help, I can write this book well, that the story and characters will pop off the page and that those who read it–agent, editor or fantasy lover–will not want to stop.
Blessings!
My stories have to have the magic, or they go nowhere. That said, I am figuring out how to consider the market while I’m crafting historical romances. My preferred setting is the closest thing to an impossible first sell in existence, so I build on the themes I enjoy writing about. That way I can write in whatever setting I want/the market dictates and still be able to find the magic.
But when it comes to my space opera, I sat down and basically told myself “To hell with the market, this one is ALL ABOUT THE MAGIC”. It’s so much fun, and has led me to the belief that every writer needs one thing that’s all about the magic, that you can go to when the market’s getting you down. To rediscover why writing is so much fun in the first place.
Oh, yeah, having fun with writing is so easily lost, isn’t it? Yet it probably was a wild, improbably wonderful idea that got most writers engaged in the creative process to begin with. Up with fun!
My novel is definitely magical to me. When I first started writing this story, I had no intention of finishing a complete book, so I wrote whatever I was passionate about, whatever came to my imagination. It wasn’t until that passion drove me to finish the book that I thought, “This could actually get published some day.” I’m glad I wasn’t worried about what the market wanted when I first started, because I may have never written this book, or any book for that matter.
If you write nonfiction and want to go the traditional publishing route, you have to write for a market. There’s no way around it.
But fiction is all about telling a story, and there is always a market for a story well-told. Genre absolutely doesn’t matter. What matters is writing the story well enough to ignite the readers’ imaginations so they feel the same passion for the story that you feel.
I think most writers will say writing is far too much work to keep doing if you don’t have a passion for it. Passion is the only thing that carries us through the tough times. It’s what makes us get up early or stay up late, squeezing in writing time whenever we can. It’s what makes us return to the keyboard or open the notebook even after dozens (or hundreds) of rejections.
To a storyteller, “market” is meaningless. All that truly matters is the story and the passion that conveys that story to an audience.
Elissa, I’m really into playing devil’s advocate today; so I’m going to challenge your statement that you have to write to a market if you write nonfiction and want a traditional publisher.
While that’s true the vast majority of the time, sometimes a person has a nonfiction idea that is burning a hole in his or her heart; the idea must be written, even if no one else appreciates it.
Heaven Is for Real is such a book. Who could have foreseen that a story about a young boy who almost died and “saw” heaven could touch millions of lives? But Colton Burpo’s dad passionately wanted to tell that story. (By the way, I’m *not* a fan of that book, but it’s the exception to the rule that came to my mind.)
What a great post, Janet. I am so struggling with this issue right now because I am writing more to passion than to the market, and therefore, feel I am reducing my chances of obtaining representation.
The series I am writing is MG Christian fiction. When the opening paragraph was read in front of an agent’s panel last year, the agent representing the children’s market said my 1870s historical couldn’t apply to kids today. Now, I understand it’s hard to judge from only one page, but so much of what I am seeing for this market and slightly older is different than what I’m writing. Am I just kidding myself that the book can sell?
My other MG story is also historical, similar in some ways to Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables series. Would I have any hope of getting that published?
I think it’s important to balance both writing to market and writing what I want, but I don’t think I’ve been very good at finding that balance. 🙁
Cheryl,
Cheryl,
First, my disclaimer: I’m not an agent. I’m not a publisher. I’m not a currently a middle grade reader. So basically, what do I know? But I’m going to give you my gut reaction. While you shouldn’t entirely dismiss what a children’s fiction agent says, one agent is still only one agent. Another might disagree. I think that a blanket statement that MG readers wouldn’t relate to a story set in the 1870s is just that: a blanket statement. Harry Potter was set in “contemporary” England, but the atmosphere at Hogwarts was hardly contemporary. I mean, kids are buying QUILLS to write with–and I’ve seen reviews of the quills written by MG kids who think it’s the coolest thing ever to be able to do calligraphy. I know of middle graders who have read The Lord of the Rings, which is basically Medieval in its feel. As for myself, when I was MG, starting around age 11, I devoured everything written by Dumas, starting with The Three Musketeers. Admittedly, I wasn’t 11 in the 21st Century; it was the 1970s. Even so, I related to and was excited by things that happened in the 17th and 18th centuries. I also read a great number of stories set in Colonial America. Perhaps I’m just aberrant, but based on the Harry Potter phenomenon, I don’t think I am. I think what matters the most is whether or not readers can relate to the characters. This is especially true of younger readers, I believe. Your book may end up being the breakout novel that changes the market trend. I don’t mean to give you false hope, but I do want to encourage you to stay with your passion. That’s where the magic comes from and that’s the ingredient that can make a book irresistible even to those who had had tunnel vision.
Christine, thanks so much for your comments and encouragement. I greatly appreciate it.
You’re most welcome, Cheryl. I believe in you.
Cheryl, you’re asking yourself some very important questions. It’s great to write one’s passion, but sometimes swimming upstream is just plain discouraging. That’s when a writer needs to assess if some adjustments need to be made so a project will receive a friendlier response from publishing’s gatekeepers. Let’s say you decide that writing middle grade historicals is keeping you from being published. What if you gave your story idea a twist–a contemporary girl time-traveled to the period you want to write about? That might open up the market in a way that could be really excited. (I’m not an authority on what middle grade editors are looking for, but I do know that most anything with a “supernatural” twist would appeal to editors for that age group at this point.) It’s just a thought that comes to me as I think about your situation.
But, obviously, you need to consider how to balance your passion for the story with what the market demands.
Janet, I really like the time travel idea. It allows for the blending of contemporary and historical, which could be fun. You’ve got the gears turning now too. One other thing that might work is family secrets. Circle of Secrets by Kimberley Griffiths Little was a contemporary story, but the MC had to unravel secrets from the past to figure out what was going on. My daughter loved it. Definitely things to consider.
Thanks for your help. I appreciate it.
1.What percentage of your writing motivation is based on what you think the market wants and what percentage on what fires your imagination?
This might sound arrogant, but I could care less about the perceived trends of the market. I believe in the strength of my writing, and that readers aren’t complete lemmings and have some variety in what they read. That’s how “trends” start; rare is the book that brings people INTO reading. Mostly it is people who already read, who find a book which due to great story, voice, etc, appeals beyond the confines of genre.
2.What part does passion play in staying the course when publishing progress is slow?
The divide between passion and stubborness is a fine one indeed! 😉
3.Do you think one force–the market or the writer’s sweet spot–is more significant than the other?
I think they can influence each other, and that influence is what is significant simply because of the insane way the industry is set up. You can have someone who writes in the same genre get middling sales for years get a sudden uplift because some first-time novelist starts a trend in that area of writing. Then again, maybe because it is due to the work of those authors who keep interest in those types of stories in the first place that a first-time novelist, with their particular voice / story / etc., is able pitch their book in the first place by pointing to that already existing market!
4.When do you feel the magic?
When I stop speaking through my characters and instead listen to what they have to say.
5.Can you set the stage to make the magic happen (writing in a certain place or under certain conditions), or do you think it happens spontaneously?
Four cups of coffee, lots of chocolate, and suddenly I am A WIZARD because the magic just flows 🙂
6.This question is for you to answer for yourself: Is your WIP magic for you? If not, do you want to change course in search of the magic?
I wonder how people can write stuff they cannot enjoy? The various quirks of writing are such that I don’t see how anyone can put up with the absurdity of it all unless they truly have something to say, or otherwise get joy out of what they do.
“Joy” is such a great word, Larry. I think it expresses what I didn’t hear in my client’s voice when she recounted the “magic” another author was experiencing. The publishing industry can grind the joy right out of a perfectly good author.
My ruminations in the blog post were circling around the question of how writers can keep their joy in the work despite the discouragement that comes from not having professional hopes fulfilled. (And almost every author would say his or her publishing hopes have been deferred.)
I smiled at your line about the division between passion and stubbornness. A good author is a stubborn author.
I love this post, Janet! As in so much in life, the key is balance, isn’t it?
I started writing historicals when chick lit was in and historicals were like so…yesterday. And I was writing WWII when the only historicals selling were prairie. The passion/magic drove me through 5 years of rejection letters.
However, those 5 years were not spent in a market-free vacuum. Even though my genre wasn’t marketable, I worked to develop stories, characters, and writing to meet market standards. And even though WWII was a long-shot in the CBA, I saw WWII ABA novels, movies, documentaries…it’s a time period that has inherent appeal for lots of people.
Over time, the market shifted – and intersected with my passion. And that’s when my novels sold.
Amen, Sarah! 🙂 and hi again! It’s such an encouragement to hear you wrote what you are passionate about though there wasn’t a market for it at the time. My genre is kind of like that–mixing the present day and the past and all. But I know I am writing what I am passionate about and what I believe God has laid on my heart to write. 🙂
Thank you, Sarah, for the reminder that perseverance, as well as passion, is a key trait in a writer.
I regularly remind my clients who are passionate about writing in a so-not-hot genre, that publishing is inherently fickle. What it doesn’t love today, it will be over the moon about tomorrow. Especially in a perennially popular topic like WWII, Sarah’s day in the sun was highly likely to come. Because she persevered, she was ready to step into the sun at the right time, and she had honed her craft in the meantime.
Thank you, Janet 🙂 The fun part for me, looking back, is seeing God’s hand. My human nature wanted to jump ship and try my hand at chick lit (which is NOT me), but God kept telling me to finish my historical trilogy. I kept reminding him (just in case He missed the workshop on marketing) that historicals weren’t selling and chick lit was. He totally ignored me and told me to finish the trilogy. So I obeyed. That in itself is a miracle 🙂 Through the process, I learned SO much about God’s timing vs. my “knowledge,” and about the extreme importance of obedience. The lessons I learned in my rejection-letter years were a gazillion times more valuable than any contract.
Something I enjoy most about writing is that ethereal moment that inspires me to pour my thoughts onto paper (or my computer). There
are many aspects of the writing process I like,
including re-writing, editing, and reading the final draft, when I again experience the joy of those words I wrote during that “magical” time.
Don’t you love it when you go back to read your words and think, “Dang, that’s good!”
I’d written sixteen contemporary novels when I got the idea for a historical novel about a real woman-of-history. I was in her home, in Salzburg Austria, when the tour guide said just the right thing to ignite my passion. I always said I would never write historicals because I hated research. Yet because of that one moment, in that one location, with that one idea, I opened the door to a new world. I proceeded to write four biographical novels, and honestly, I don’t think there is any type of “historical” that demands more research. And shocker, I love it! I’ve now written seven historical novels and a novella with ideas for many more. Sometimes we don’t even know what our passion is! But when we see it… whammo!
Good point, Nancy. We don’t always know what our passions are, but once we’re introduced to them, it’s truly love at first sight.
I think that talking with an agent or publisher about what they think may be received well in the market can be an incentive to start writing something that you already feel passionate about. This is what happened to me at Mount Hermon this year.
I never knew that the historical fiction I read voraciously in my 20’s would ignite a story in me fifteen years later. I really do think there is a niche for the story I’m working on, but for now I put my head down and keep working on this thing I love-writing.
Jenni, that’s a serendipity way for passion and the market to meet, isn’t it?
Yes, Janet very fortuitous if I do say so myself. I hope I get to see you again at Mount Hermon in 2013. Any chance of that happening?
Jenni, I plan on being at Mount Hermon for the 2013 writers conference; so chances are good that we’ll see each other.
Thank you for posting about this topic. It’s one that hits home for me. For the past four years I’ve been writing my passion, supernatural romance. Yes, that genre is where I feel my magic! 😉 I’ve been told that there’s no market for what I write in CBA. Of course, I respectfully disagree. I think if we polled female Christian readers we’d find a good percentage who read supernatural/paranormal romance and would welcome a novel of that genre with faith threads. But while I wait for my chance to reach that market, I’ve been relying on my passion to keep me going. It’s a tough road but the nature of passion is that it doesn’t let you go. Sometimes, I wish I could get passionate about a genre that’s an easier sell, but I have to believe there’s a reason I’m still drawn to supernatural romance.
Evangeline, thanks for your comment about the nature of passion. It really isn’t about reason, is it? It’s about energy and enthusiasm.
Since most general market trends do eventually leak into the Christian market, you have every reason to believe supernatural romance will gain some editors’ attention in CBA. We’ll see…
Hi Janet! I am loving this post and the comments/discussion it has created. Thanks for digging deep, playing your own devil’s advocate and making us think! 🙂
I’m loving this conversation, too, Morgan. Thanks for your contributions to it.
You’re welcome! I so enjoy this Books & Such commenting community! 🙂 lol
For me, magic happens when I’m passionate about my topic; passion guides me to the finish line and pushes me through the rough spots. Without passion, I’d never finish the work, or if I did few would want to read it.
So I need to take all the book ideas I’m passionate about and look at them through the lens of marketability.
I currently have 30 book ideas (seriously, 30). Ten would be personally satisfying, but not marketable. The next ten or so might have a small audience, but would be tough to attract an agent/publisher. The last ten have the potential to be of interest to the market.
At a writers conference, I met with an agent and said. “I’m not ready to pitch anything, but can I run some ideas by you to see which ones excite you.” She agreed. One made her face light up and two others excited her. It took five minutes.
These are what I’m working on now — and how I made magic intersect market.
Peter, thanks for your instructive comments. I appreciate how you took a realistic look at your various ideas–all 30 of them–to decide which ones to concentrate on. And it was a great plan to just toss out some likely projects to an agent to gauge her response. You spent that brief time with her in a wise way. And now, here are, at the intersection of Magic and Market.
This is the greatest conundrum for me. I still struggle with it because so many stories light my passion.
Carrie, I know you’ve talked to several people in the industry to get guidance on the market and to test out your ideas for marketability. It helps to lay down rails for your imagination to run on.