images-1.jpegThat’s the title of an article in The Vancouver Sun. Serial-type books are what is attracting publishers now, the article says:

With book sales stagnating in recent years, the nascent e-books market has thrown the industry into turmoil. In response, large publishers are taking fewer financial risks and betting more of their dollars on established authors, says Eileen Gittins of the self-publishing company Blurb. com.

“In the face of these economics, publishers just cannot take the risk,” Gittins said. “They need some sure wins.”

Similar to movie studios betting on well-known franchises to bring box-office gold, publishers want to market more blockbuster authors writing serial books featuring a distinctive leading character to lure repeat readers, as has been seen with the success of late Swedish author Stieg Larsson and crime fiction writers such as Michael Connelly

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2 COMMENTS

  1. Great Strategy! Funnel all the new authors for the next five years to your competitors! Watch *them* find the next Rowling and the next Patterson!
    Watch your market share slowly shrivel.

    Gotta love those BPHs…

  2. This has been the same strategy the major publishers have been using since the conglomerates took them over some years back which was considerably before ebooks and the current financial crisis.

    I just adore “experts” who know nothing about the history, recent or otherwise, of publishing.

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