I always keep an eye on what's hot and what's not in paranormal romance. I like to see what readers are eating up and discover something new for myself. It helps with my marketing too.
Vampires and werewolves still dominate the market. You might hear that no one wants to see any more, but that's not true. Readers want their alpha wolves and mysterious tall dark strangers of the night. So if you have a vampire story you really want to get out there, don't worry. The market hasn't cooled. People are wanting to see something new with them, though. A little twist on the legend is all it takes.
I keep waiting to see steampunk take a big leap, but it hasn't gained too much popularity since its original jump a few years ago. It has its niche, but it doesn't seem to be growing.
Dystopians are popular with the YA readers. Adult readers prefer contemporary stories.
Sci-fi romance is inching its way forward. I do believe you'll see more and more of it.
Everything is about series now. If you want to make it with a paranormal romance, it needs to be a series. Many of them are on-going with no end in sight.
Trends come and go and come again. It's difficult to say what's going to be the next big thing. Yet I can guarantee paranormal romance is here to stay, and your book might just start off the next huge trend.
Do you pay attention to what's happening in the market of your genre?
Vampires and werewolves still dominate the market. You might hear that no one wants to see any more, but that's not true. Readers want their alpha wolves and mysterious tall dark strangers of the night. So if you have a vampire story you really want to get out there, don't worry. The market hasn't cooled. People are wanting to see something new with them, though. A little twist on the legend is all it takes.
I keep waiting to see steampunk take a big leap, but it hasn't gained too much popularity since its original jump a few years ago. It has its niche, but it doesn't seem to be growing.
Dystopians are popular with the YA readers. Adult readers prefer contemporary stories.
Sci-fi romance is inching its way forward. I do believe you'll see more and more of it.
Everything is about series now. If you want to make it with a paranormal romance, it needs to be a series. Many of them are on-going with no end in sight.
Trends come and go and come again. It's difficult to say what's going to be the next big thing. Yet I can guarantee paranormal romance is here to stay, and your book might just start off the next huge trend.
Do you pay attention to what's happening in the market of your genre?
I'm not much of a trend follower, in fact,I try to avoid it lol! Unfortunately, my latest WIP is about a rock band and there are a LOT of those stories out there right now.:(
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to hear people still want to read vampires and werewolves, but I agree, a twist is definitely needed to make it work.
I do follow trends but don't work to them. With it taking me 2+ years to get a boom to market, there isn't much value in me following a trend, or run the risk of being late to the party. One of the things I value most about Indie is the ability to buck trends or forge new ones :) Though I do agree that your analysis is accurate as of this moment, but times can change rapidly.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed how dystopians have been becoming popular in YA, too. As much as I love YA, I usually don't gravitate toward those types of stories, so it surprises me to see them as popular as they are right now!
ReplyDeleteYep, I absolutely pay attention to the trends, but I don't write to trends, because so often once a trend is recognised, it's over--or will be by the time a novel is written and then published.
ReplyDeleteAS much as I'd like to pay attention- I don't even know where to start. LOL
ReplyDeleteGreat post.
~Summer
I do pay them some attention, but I learned long ago that in order to be happy with my work, I need to write about the things I want to write about. :)
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely Wednesday.
I don't pay a lot of attention and I'm surprised Steampunk hasn't caught on more. It's so interesting and cool.
ReplyDeleteI write what I like and though I read contemporary, I don't write it.
Series are great but they should all have an end.
ReplyDeleteI may want more when the series is done, but that just means it was done well.
I'm a sucker for anything with good romance.
I now own 1305/1306!
YEAH!
Heather
I do pay attention to the market, but I must admit I don't write toward trends. If I did, then I would be working on my contemporary NA manuscript as opposed to my fantasy ones. LOL!
ReplyDeleteIt's good to know what's working on ones genre, though. :)
I don't follow the trends, but it's nice to know them...thanks! :)
ReplyDeleteI try not to concern myself too much with trends and write what I enjoy. I have noticed that what you say about series is true - even in my genre of children's chapter books.
ReplyDeleteI don't concern myself too much with trends. And just sayin...you are a retweeting queen. HOLY MOLY!
ReplyDeleteI think the young adult fantasy and science fiction is hot. I just visited a blogger buddy's site who writes that and it would frighten you to know how many books she'd sold.
ReplyDeleteRight now I am practicing the craft of FINISHING a novel. Once I have achieved that feat I may start to worry about other things.
ReplyDeleteThank you all for stopping by and commenting. I keep track of trends because I am interested. Yet I write the stories that I want to write.
ReplyDelete