Quote:
Originally Posted by rlauzon
Exactly.
What's good for the publisher is not necessarily good reading.
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A lot of what Oprah recommends, I would not even dare to use to wipe myself with. But because she's recommended it, it sells. Too many zombies out there who follow her every word instead of thinking for themselves. That's why not all the bestsellers are all that good. Just because a lot of sheep err people purchase a book does not make it good. In fact, recently a new trend has arisen. If a star is seen photographed with a book, that book will sell. This has nothing to do with the book being any good or not, it has to do with the sheep factor.
And because we get such triipe being a bestseller, the publisher looks for more siliar type of books to publish and we get even more tripe. It's a viscious cycle. Some of the best books I have read have never made it near a bestseller list. Yet, I would put them up against a lot of bestsellers in terms of quality.
It is a lot harder to write a good science fiction or fantasy novel then it is to write about some trashy love story or about some housewife starting a new life. I would love to see some reviewer say "Yes, Oprah recommended this book, but do yourself a favor an don't waste your time reading it." I think a lot of reviewers are afraid to give a bad review when the book so desperately needs one.