Current Publishing Trends

The publishing world continues to evolve as the times change. From creative book launch ideas due to the pandemic to new trends in published books, there’s a lot of trends to pay attention to right now. If you’ve found it hard to keep up with what’s popular in the world of authorship, this is for you.

Here are 5 publishing trends that aren’t going anywhere yet.

1. Feel-good fiction.

When we first sheltered in place more than a year ago, writers asked these questions: Should I write a novel set during the pandemic? And “How do I write a novel set in 2020 and ignore the pandemic? Some publishers said, “We’ll take your pandemic story.” While others felt like the idea quickly became a cliché. Now that we are all completely worn out by the pandemic, readers are reaching for feel-good fiction. Some call feel-good fiction “escapist reading” because a person is reading a particular book to forget about his or her real-life for a bit. If you’re looking to write a book that gets noticed right now, make sure your story has a happy ending.

2. Virtual book launch parties.

When social distancing came into play, all in-person author signing events went out the window. The author world got creative, however, and the virtual book launch parties were born. You can plan your own virtual book launch party with your family and friends to keep up with this trend. Friends and family, near and far, can spend that special time with you during your virtual launch. They can also purchase books directly from you, and you can sign each copy before you mail them out.

3. Character diversity.

Editors and agents are still on the lookout for character diversity in the writing they help get published. Create a story where your characters are racially diverse, and if you need to find a sensitive reader to make sure your writing comes across genuine and in a good light, then take that step to ensure your book doesn’t read like your forced diversity in there just to hit a trend.

4. Hybrid publishing.

It wasn’t that long ago that self-publishing and traditional publishing were the only options you had to get your book published. Now, some publishers are offering a hybrid model. This means, the front end of the publishing process still runs like self-publishing. You’ll invest a certain amount of money up front to have your book published—this includes editing, design, and printing. The back end of the hybrid model, however, runs more like a traditional publishing project would. That means you are more easily able to set a publishing date and also take preorders because your book will have a print run of a specific quantity and your book will then ship out of a warehouse. Self-publishing, typically uses a print-on-demand approach, which means when an order is placed for your book, the printer is notified and just one copy of your book is printed to fulfill the order.

5. Audiobooks.

There are news stories floating around lately that some authors and publishers may decide to put out an audiobook as the first release of a book in place of a hardcover copy. This is a huge signal that audiobooks have officially made a comeback and aren’t going anywhere. If you’ve experienced the joy that is multi-tasking while reading a book, you know just how useful audiobooks can be. Unloading the dishwasher never has to be boring again, as long as you’re listening to your audiobook.

Looking for more? Read Top 7 Publishing Industry Trends.

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