I’ve been told that it’s easier for a new writer to break in with a category novel than with a mainstream novel. Is that true?
Yes. Publishers see newer writers as risks, and today’s publishing business doesn’t encourage risk-taking. That’s because most large publishers are now owned by even larger conglomerates who are very focused on the bottom line. Senior editors in publishing houses have a good grip on what readers of category novels such as science fiction or romance novels expect. That makes it easier for them to recognize a science fiction or romance novel with potential. If it’s well-written and fits the “formula,” they can feel pretty confident that it’ll do well in bookstores. They feel much less confident about a mainstream novel. The reading audience is not as well defined, and most senior editors, at one time or another in their career, have committed a big blooper with a mainstream novel that looked great in their office but fell flat in the bookstores. For that reason, they’re less likely to take a chance with a mainstream novel from a new, untested author.
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