Quote:
Originally Posted by caleb72
Pretty much. The - "let's milk it for all it's worth" idea. It's exactly what I expect from big publishers, but rather stupidly not what I was expecting from the self-publishing revolution.
I'm being a bit unfair. I'm sure there are many trailblazers in the indie world, and I sometimes stumble across stories that seem quite fresh to me. I was just having an attack of the crankies as I was wading through yet another list of zombie apocalypse novels.
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Well, we do write what we know and love. So to some extent we are what the market is because we're going to read popular books too. I think we all try to put a fresh spin on it (we think we are) but if you just happened to read four books about earth witches and then pick up Under Witch Moon, it *might* not seem as fresh as I'd like. Then there's the whole competing with the best in a genre. I once saw someone who had just finished a Patricia Briggs novel say mine was up next (This was on GR. I didn't know the person, nor did I follow them so I have no idea how it turned out.) Yanno, I'd rather that person just go read a bad zombie book first...
I do know authors who follow trends, whether it be "YA is hot" or "vamps are hot." But I think most of us are writing what we love about a particular genre. Voice is so important when it comes to fresh because I can read the "the same old story" but if the character is unique or the voice is funny or unique I don't care. Sometimes I don't care even if I know the ending--it's the ride, if it's done in such a way that captivates me.
That said, there do seem to be a lot of tired-looking zombies around. But hey, if you had to crawl out of a grave, you probably wouldn't be too perky either!