Lately, I’ve been receiving a lot of project proposals from already established romance authors whom I would define as being solidly in the mid-list. They aren’t debut authors but nor are they break-out bestsellers either. They are solid writers with decent track records.
And I’m noticing something about these projects that inspired me to write this blog post. Established mid-list authors might be hampered by the fact that they are already established.
Let me explain because what I’ve just stated is obviously a paradox.
I imagine that writers who are still pursuing that first elusive deal might think that hey, established writers with solid track records have it made. They’ve already fulfilled their publishing dream. What obstacles could they be facing?
Well, I believe they might have one. When writing that first novel (or second or third since it often takes writing 2 or 3 before one sells), an unpublished writer can start fresh—with an original idea. There’s no “this-is-what-worked-before†to inhibit them. There is no sophomore effort to fear. There is no understanding of “this is what my audience expects†that might actually interfere with a mid-list author moving up to the next level.
An unpublished writer has a blank slate. Anything is possible. An unpublished writer is completely inventing him or herself by writing that first book. And in doing so, sometimes magic happens.
Established writers often forget that “anything-is-possible†space that allows them to create something wholly new.
I suggest this because what I’m seeing in these proposal submissions is talent (indisputably), solid writing, and a storyline that just feels too familiar–like this is the author’s comfort zone and he/she can do it fabulously but that’s not what will reignite the career.
Reignite is the key word. You want to reignite a reader or an agent’s excitement and imagination because the story is so different, fresh, and original that it reinvents the genre.
And it’s missing. In this sense, mid-list authors can be hindered by their previous solid (if not stellar) success. And what established authors might need to do is to look at their writing and their career from the perspective of starting completely new as a way of breaking free of the mid-list constraint so as to move to the next level.
And I’d like to propose that this is what the top bestsellers in the romance field do all the time. They throw out all their previous notions of what works. What was their former success and they pretend like it’s brand new and for the very first time. They mimic the world and creative space of an unpublished, debut writer and the results can be stunning.
They reinvent themselves by avoiding the tried and true and taking risks. Time and time again.
No related posts.
At what point does something fresh and original become too much of a risk? Several editors have said about my la Llorona romantic suspense that it has a fantastic plot, great writing, but would “get lost in mainstream paperback” because it is different. I’m taking another chance with a chupacabra-legend-based romantic suspense, but I wonder if there’s a point when an original idea is just too original for mass appeal.
I have to agreee with Misa, writers don’t want to loose their audience. If they take a risk, and it backfires on them will they be able to get that lost audience back. Will they have time to follow up with something that their audience expects and keep going.
At the same time, no body wants to be mid-list forever. It’s such a catch 22, me personally. I just want to get a deal, I’ll deal with all that other stuff later.:wink:
I’d like to propose that this is what the top bestsellers in the romance field do all the time. They throw out all their previous notions of what works. What was their former success and they pretend like it’s brand new and for the very first time.
Maybe I’m just cynical, but while I’d agree that some (and among them some of the best) romance authors do this, I’m fairly sure there are some bestselling romance authors who don’t, but who nonetheless sell because they’re well-known and the readers like what they get, and they get it repeatedly.
>They reinvent themselves by avoiding the tried and true and taking risks.
Well, just make sure to query widely, because this business sure is subjective, especially when it comes to authors taking risks (published or looking-to-be-published).
Also, is it really the fresh stories that are risky, or the perception that trying to sell & publish them is a risk? Or am I just splitting hairs?
Actually I agree with Laura. I don’t read many of the top-selling romance authors because their works are so safe from one to the next. It’s the debut writers that are doing the really interesting stuff.
Aside from the In Death series, who are the successful authors taking big risks? I’d love to read ‘em!
Is this always true? Isn’t there a lot of resistance to a writer trying something new? I’ve seen many cases where the publisher and even the agent wants the author to keep doing what works, even if it means that the writer stagnates as a result. After all, the new track has just as much chance of failure as success, and even if the writer is only midlist, she is still likely earning people some money; the new book might just as well be a money loser.
Anyway, some interesting thoughts. Thanks for the post.
Sorry Kristin – I disagree with this. Most of the BSers in romance are there because they were allowed to build a fan base over a period of time. Something that few publishers allow to happen anymore.
The *new* breakouts are there because a) they’re doing what they’re doing better than the rest in that field b) a good marketing strategy c) they’re riding on a new wave… which in the end might hurt them.
Define *risk* – Writer’s don’t take risks. Editors and Agents take risks on stories that are not “in” but are so good they want them anyway.
Writers just write really good stories.
“Paranormal” isn’t a risk. Jayne Ann Krentz was doing that back in the 80’s – awesomely by the way.
“Hot” isn’t a risk. Linda Howards books have always been smokin’ hot.
To name a few.
It’s how authors use the elements, along with their voice that bring readers in. Not the plot device or “new” concept.
IMO only authors who have *made it* HUGE can take the real risks by breaking out into new genres and hoping fans will follow.
The rest have to do what we do better and hope that fans find us and love us.
Steph
Writers — published and unpublished alike — get soooo many mixed messages today from industry pros. Try to break out of the same-old, same-old, and you’re likely to hear either, “I have no idea how to market this,” “But does this really build on your strengths?” or “Why don’t you try X instead — that’s what editors are buying these days!”
Then again, stick with what works, and has worked, for you, your readers, and often the market in general, and you hear, “But I’ve already seen five proposals like this in the last month!”
And as for those midlisters who have apparently forgotten what it was like when they started out, when their ideas were “fresh”. . .but what if what seems stale now WAS fresh back then, because that’s what those authors write? IOW, hitting the market at the right time with the right idea may have had as much to do with an author’s first sale five or ten or twenty years ago than it did with her ability to think outside the box. Just depends on what the box was at that time!
Say what you will, we can only use what the Muse sends us to work with. If we’re lucky, the world will be on board with those stories, as well, whether we choose to stay in the same sorts of story worlds or go where we’ve never gone before.
But the second-guessing thing is enough to drive anybody nuts. As someone else said, there’s no guarantee that the “fresh” idea (if there really is such a thing) will catch fire, either. And there’s a lot to said for letting writers build on what they do well. After all, not *all* successful authors have branched out significantly from their roots, and not all authors who have branched out have gone on to fame and fortune. The risk is great enough *with* the fire in your belly; feeling forced to write something just to be different, and then to tank on top of it…
Not pretty.
Frankly, I’m convinced the whole publishing shebang is a crap shoot, anyway, so I don’t worry about it anymore. Speaking only for myself, it would be lovely if UPS would deliver a nice, fresh package of breakout ideas from Muse, Unlimited to my doorstep every once in a while, but it’s not something I have any control over…any more now than I did twelve years ago when I started. What WAS fresh about my submission (according to my editor) was my voice and approach to the subject matter. Ten years after my first release, those same elements are still keeping my old readers coming back and attracting new ones. Not in droves, perhaps, but enough.
If that means my readership never reaches NYT proportions, so be it. We can’t all write megabestsellers. Or even bestsellers. Nor are there an infinite number of never-before-seen approaches. True originality is actually quite rare…and not necesssarily always what a reader wants, since — judging from sales figures — an awful lot of them really do enjoy their comfort readers. Within reason, familiarity and predictability do have their place.
The thing is, writers aren’t one-size-fits-all. Some are all over the place creatively (which has its own drawbacks); others are quite happy in their little comfort zones, thank you.
If serendipity strikes, yay. But for some of us, finding our niche, our own readership for the stories we *want* to tell, is enough reward.
[...] February 23, 2007Is the key to mid-list success writing something fresh and different? Agent Kristin Nelson has some interesting thoughts about mid-list authors reinventing themselves on Romancing the Blog [...]