Why do some authors hit it big?

Forbes published the annual top-earning authors list last week, and it got me thinking. (Always a dangerous thing...) But most of the authors on the list write books which I a) cannot stand, b) have no interest in. Oddly, the only people on the list whose works I have read and enjoyed are J.K. Rowling and Suzanne Collins. (Yes, I admit that the only thing I've read by Stephen King has been his book titled On Writing. I've not read George R.R. Martin, and I don't really enjoy James Patterson.)

List from highest earning is: E.L. James, James Patterson, Suzanne Collins, Bill O'Reilly, Danielle Steel, Jeff Kinney, Janet Evanovich, Nora Roberts, Dan Brown, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, John Grisham, David Baldacci, Rick Riordan, J.K. Rowling, and George R.R. Martin.

Regardless of my feelings on these authors, each of them has hit the big league. So what is it that makes their work appeal to the masses? These are the multi-million dollar question every writer (and many a reader) asks. And I don't think there's any real answer. But based on my knowledge of these authors, I've thought of these reasons.

A best-seller must have: 

1. A good story.

Maybe this is obvious, but the most successful books tend to be well-plotted books that are easy to read--not necessarily the most well-written. The average reader doesn't like to work as they read, and they don't care about pretty prose. They read for escape and pleasure, which equals quick reads and easy to follow sentences. Literary fiction (my personal favorite genre), takes a bit more effort from a reader. Their plots tend to be slower and more drawn out, with more personal reflection of the character and reader required. I guess the majority of people don't like that. Instead of being concerned with the quality of writing, readers are only concerned with the plot itself.

Don't get me wrong, a good plot is essential to a good book. I just wish that some authors put more stock in writing well, instead of just churning out poorly written, but well-plotted stories. It would only help sales... of course, I guess the authors on this list don't need extra sales at this point.

2. A familiar plot structure.

It's generally accepted that there is a limited number of plots. Several of the authors on the Forbes list are writers of romance books. The romance genre is the #1 selling genre of books. Personally, it's not a genre I enjoy. However, there are millions upon millions of readers that do enjoy it. Why is this? Well, it tends to be a happily-ever-after ending, its plot revolves around love (which encourages happy feelings in the reader), there's a general familiarity about them (boy meets girl, conflict occurs to keep boy and girl apart, boy and girl end up together). Why does someone essentially reread the same plot over and over again? Because they enjoy that plot structure, its familiarity, its comfort. It's easy to read and understand, and they are usually rewarded with a "happy" ending.

Other genres represented on the list are thrillers (for the sake of argument Stephen King is included in this, along with Koontz, Brown, Patterson, Grisham, Evanovich, and Baldacci), fantasy (Martin, Riordan) and young adult (Collins, Kinney, Riordan, and Rowling). Thrillers, despite their many twists and turns, may be said to follow a general well-known structure, but I think fantasy and young adult have more variety in their plots. The fantasy and young adult genre success stories tend to be unique ideas with everyday characters (think Katniss Everdeen or Harry Potter).  However, the main similarity I see in all these non-romance genres is usually a theme of good triumphing over evil. And who doesn't like to see the underdog (good) triumph?

3. Write genre fiction.

Interestingly, only one non-fiction author is on the list, that being Bill O'Reilly. And having read his Killing Lincoln, I can only say that it was hardly written like non-fiction. It appears clear to me that most people read to escape real life. (But again, non-fiction tends to be written in a more complex manner, thus appealing to fewer readers.)

4. Be prolific.

Most of the authors in this list are prolific writers, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Danielle Steele...some of them publish three or more novels a year! Others, like George R.R. Martin, are known to take a great deal of time on their novels. However, Martin didn't hit the list until recently, when his HBO series, Game of Thrones, took off.

5. Write a successful series.

Who says kids don't read anymore? J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter series), Suzanne Collins (Hunger Games series), Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson series), Jeff Kinney (Diaries of a Wimpy Kid) are all authors of wildly successful children or young adult book series. Several of these are series that not only children or young adults enjoy, but adults.

Not only kids like series though--look at Janet Evanovitch and her successful series. O'Reilly's recent assassination books, Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy, etc., could be considered a series in the similar subjects and styles. Patterson has several successful series going at all times, with several popular characters. Dan Brown has his Robert Langdon series... you get the idea. If you get a good character and don't kill him off in your first book, take him on to a second.

6. Have a lot of luck.

The main thing all these authors have in common is luck. From Rowling to King to James, each author had their share of luck (and perseverance) in getting their work published and noticed.


To be honest, there are a million different reasons that one author hits it big while another flounders on the bottom of the list. I find myself constantly in the minority, steering clear of the best-sellers and striking out off the path to discover those lesser-known books and their authors. I find those to be the most rewarding, the most enriching reads.

7. Get your book made into a movie.

It seems that nearly all the authors on this list have their books or series made into movies. Obviously, although there is money in books, there is more money if you get a movie made out of your book.

What about you? What is your favorite genre? Why? What keeps you reading that genre?

For the article from Forbes, click here.

Writing Quote Friday #9

“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.”

― Toni Morrison

Writing Quote Friday #8

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

― Maya Angelou

Hemingway

H is for Hemingway

"…All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know." -- Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

Ernest Hemingway. Even if you've never read one of his books, you admit that he's written classics. 

As I struggle with week 2 of the A to Z Blogger's Challenge, I feel like I'm hemming and hawing simply to come up with something that starts with the letter "H." (And believe me, "G" was a challenge! Yikes. I waited until the last minute with that one, and wrote a few different posts before I finally settled on writing about Galahad.)

Anyways, back to Hemingway. I've procrastinated enough on writing this post.

I've had the honor of visiting Hemingway's house in Key West, Florida. The thing I most remember about that visit? The cats. I think most visitors remember those the most. Well, I also remember the warmth. It was December, and I was wearing a tank top. For a girl from the Arctic, that's pretty unusual. Usually, I'm bundled up in a down jacket, scarf, hat, boots and mittens. Oh, and it's about 120 degrees colder than Florida in December. 

Right, Hemingway. Hemingway Home. 

This is Hemingway House. It's full of cats. 

If you know nothing else of Hemingway, know that he liked cats. And, he made his home a haven for polydactyl cats—i.e., cats with a sixth digit on their paws (some have six digits on only two paws, others on all four).

But back to writing. Hemingway had a lot to say on writing, on many subjects. Here are some quotes of his speaking to different aspects of writing well.

1. Writer's Block

"I learned never to empty the well of my writing, but always to stop when there was still something there in the deep part of the well, and let it refill at night from the springs that fed it."

Ernest Hemingway 

Hemingway's clear method of avoiding writer's block is to stop writing before it happens. I've tried this technique and found it to be true. Essentially, stop writing for the day when you know what's going to happen next. Then, when you return to your WIP, you can pick up with confidence. Usually writer's block is avoided when you can get started writing. This is a technique that I am especially attempting to use this month as I partake in Camp NaNoWriMo.

2. Knowledge

"If a writer knows enough about what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows. The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one ninth of it being above water."

Ernest Hemingway

I think this is most obvious when a writer tries writing about something that he or she does not know. Often, those are the books so bogged down in unnecessary detail that the reader starts skipping pages. It's important to know where factual information is needed and where it can be skipped. Is that bit of explanation on which paintbrush a character chose and how he mixed the paint really necessary? Or do we just need to know that he chose the red paint?

3. Characters

"When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature."

Ernest Hemingway 

"The hardest thing in the world to do is to write straight honest prose on human beings. First you have to know the subject; then you have to know how to write. Both take a lifetime to learn…" 

-- By-Line: Ernest Hemingway

This must be one of the thing a lot of writers struggle with. How do you create a character that is real, one that has flaws and strengths just like real people? How about one who speaks and thinks realistically? I think it's especially tempting to create "perfect" heroes and heroines in romance novels, but that's not reality.

4. Craft

"We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master."

Ernest Hemingway 

"There is no rule on how to write. Sometimes it comes easily and perfectly; sometimes it's like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges."

Ernest Hemingway 

"For a long time now I have tried simply to write the best I can. Sometimes I have good luck and write better than I can."

Ernest Hemingway 

"When I have an idea, I turn down the flame, as if it were a little alcohol stove, as low as it will go. Then it explodes and that is my idea."

Ernest Hemingway 

Ah, Ernest. Wise words from a master of the craft. Or should I say "apprentice?" 

5. Editing

"…After you learn to write your whole object is to convey everything, every sensation, sight, feeling, place and emotion to the reader. To do this you have to work over what you write." -- By-Line: Ernest Hemingway

Editing has to be the single most important thing to good fiction. Certainly no rough draft ever became a masterpiece.

~I.E.

Biography

B IS FOR "Biography."

Although writing is generally accepted to be a solitary profession, there is a lot to learn from other writers. Particularly ones who made their careers out of writing and were entrepreneurs in the writing industry.

William Blake:

Blake was a poet who was born in London on November 28, 1757. Not only a poet, he was an amazing artist who combined his artistic abilities with his poetry to create beautiful, ethereal images to accompany his poems. In his early years, Blake claimed to experience visions of God and angels. His parents didn't believe him, yet acknowledged that he was different from other children. At age ten, Blake wanted to be an artist and his parents sent him to drawing school. At age twelve, Blake began writing poetry. Due to the cost of art school, a fourteen-year-old Blake began an apprenticeship under James Basire, an engraver to the Society of Antiquaries and the Royal Society. 

Copy engraving was a tedious process involving many time-consuming, labor-intensive steps. Although Blake earned a meager living from his work during his lifetime, the important thing is that he persevered with it. He must have loved both illustrating and writing poetry to make such art for one piece of writing. Each engraving is a masterpiece which endures for both its beauty and its message. 

He experimented with etching to give us "illuminated manuscripts," and used it for most of his well-known works. Instead of applying the usual engraving method he had been trained in, he invented an entirely new manner of etching, called "relief etching." For this, he can be considered an entrepreneur as well as a poet-artist.

The Ancient of Days by William Blake
source

I have long since admired Blake's poetry and his engravings, but the time I spent on this blog has encouraged me to pull out his poems again. But when I do, I will wish I had copies of his illuminated manuscripts—not just the printed poems. 

I think it's important to remember how books are meant to be enjoyed in all possible ways: cuddling, smelling, savoring, losing oneself in. Cuddling with my iPad just doesn't have the same feel to a paperback book. When I drop it on my face while in bed, it hurts. And reading Blake's poetry without the genius of his engravings? Well, it's incomplete.

Sources:

Biography information:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/116

http://www.blakearchive.org/exist/blake/archive/biography.xq?b=biography&targ_div=d1

Etching information:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relief_etching#Relief_etching

For prints of Blake's awesomeness, check out this website: 

http://www.william-blake.org/home-1-96-1-0.html