So there’s this book called TWILIGHT and it’s kind of popular.
Whenever there is a popular book, my inbox explodes with query imitations. There was the epic and ongoing TOTALLY NOT HARRY POTTER deluge, quickly followed by the TOTALLY NOT DA VINCI CODE phase. Often these queries boldly come right out and say they are the “next” [insert book they are imitating].
The current TOTALLY NOT TWILIGHT era we’re in blows all of the other eras out of the water, particularly when you combine it with non-vampire paranormal and/or urban fantasy tropes. Well over half of the queries I am receiving these days involve some combination of vampires, zombies, faeries, pixies, ghosts, and/or Dick Cheney.
Now, don’t get me wrong. This doesn’t mean that you can’t write or query me with urban fantasy/paranormal. The opposite in fact. Just look at the bestseller list.
And before I get angry comments, let me also say that I’m not accusing everyone who writes in these genres of imitating TWILIGHT. I’m not saying that.
But I think it’s important to keep some things in mind if you are querying in these increasingly well-trodden genres:
1. I don’t know if I speak for other agents, but I’m getting some serious vampire/faerie/zombie fatigue. Whether it’s the misfit teenager who is secretly communicating with a ghost or the misfit teenager who is actually a vampire (or, conversely, has a crush on one), I’ve seen it all and I’m seeing it often. Now. That doesn’t mean I don’t want you to query me with urban fantasy or paranormal. But I’m not going to be favorably disposed to something that sounds like the same old paranormal story. It needs to be something different and it needs to feel fresh. I know it’s really difficult to do something different and fresh when everyone and their mom and their grandma and her mom are writing paranormal. But thems are the breaks.
2. Do. Not. Mention. TWILIGHT. Don’t mention TWILIGHT. It never existed. You didn’t read it, it has no bearing on your book, you aren’t comparing yourself to it, you’re not living on the same planar field in which that book was written. Don’t mention it in the query. Agents don’t want the next TWILIGHT. Well. Caveat. We want something that is as popular as TWILIGHT. But we don’t want a straight up imitation. And saying your book is going to be as popular as TWILIGHT just makes you look…. well, like you think faeries are real. (They’re not, are they?)
3. Understand what you’re up against. You might think that because you happen to have a novel in the hot genre du jour that it’s going to grease the publication tracks and you’ll soon be showing off to your friends with a new hardcover of the next TWI… that other vampire book that is kind of popular. Keep in mind that because there are so many people writing these novels now, the stakes are raised. Ground has been trodden. You have to either trod new ground or trod the existing ground with spectacular, mindboggling execution. It’s not, in other words, easier.
Ultimately, the same old advice applies: write what you love, write a really amazing, incredible book, and let the gods of publishing take care of the rest. Or should I say the publishing zombies…
Emily J. Griffin says
@sarita:
Magical Realism does exist! As a Lit major it was always my favorite genre. Just ask Salman Rushdie. Sarah Addison Allen does a great, best-seller version. Less literary than Rushdie, but well executed.
@Thomas
When I was an early teen, I read the Christopher Pike vampire tales. When I was 11, they were great fun.
Rick Daley says
Thomas,
Anne Rice's INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE was published in 1976, but in the 80's and 90's that series (The Vampire Chronicles) was quite popular and included:
* The Vampire Lestat (1985)
* The Queen of the Damned (1988)
* The Tale of the Body Thief (1992)
* Memnoch the Devil (1995)
* The Vampire Armand (1998)
* Vittorio the Vampire (1999)
There is typically more to the mystery than a vampire going after one woman. The Vampire Chronicles deal with history of the vampires, their struggles with immortality and with immorality, and their relationships with others of their kind.
extes says
Anon @ 11:29: The way faeries are being treated right now (humanoid, immortal-ish, powerful) is very similar to the way vampires are being treated right now. Replace "drink your blood" with "suck your life force" or "drag you off to Fae" and they can play each other's roles.
Ink says
Nathan,
Have you got any wild Californian voodoo going for good luck tonight? It looks like it's going to be a hairy D Day. And Shaq to my Cavs… without giving up any regulars or financial flexibility? Interesting…
Nathan Bransford says
bryan-
The Shaq trade was interesting, but 8 months too late.
Can't wait for the draft tonight, it should be a wild one.
Anonymous says
So much doom and gloom!
For all those Vampire/urban fantasy writers out there, know this: there is still hope.
I wrote a novel (query rejected by Nathan most likely because I compared it to Twilight) and I found an agent, within a week he sent out queries, and just days later my manuscript started making the rounds of six major publishing houses and interest is still pouring in. It seems like my pub house list grows by one house every week.
Don't despair. Get creative.
Seriously, though. I love you Nathan. You can reject me all day long and I'll still hang on your blog.
Kristi says
Wow – Carrie Ryan just posted on here…pretty cool!
Brian_Ohio – that was hilarious.
I forgot who wrote about giving Elizabeth Kostova a run for her money, but that was probably my favorite vampire book of all time and I wouldn't dare try (well, that and I don't like writing about vampires).
Thomas – I'm a little over 30 but vampire books have been around since I was itty bitty. My first vampire book was the original Dracula by Bram Stoker. I was in 1st grade and snuck it in w/ the other library books my mom was getting me. I've loved vampires ever since and think those type books will always be popular in some shape/form. 🙂
Holly Bodger says
It may be because I am Canadian (and we apologize to people who hit us with the blunt end of a shovel) but I can't imagine ever claiming to have the next "book-that-shall-not-be-named", even if my name was Stephenie Meyer.
Piglet de' Erin says
ha ha ha SNORT! Any agent who writes "Thems are the breaks" is freakin' funny. I love it. I think I'll have to be sending you a query about my "not so Twi.. " novel pretty soon here.
luv, erin
your blog stalker . . . because you're hysterical.
Liana Brooks says
How would you feel about some fresh military sci-fi instead?
No vampires. No teenagers. Minimal angst. Lots of explosions.
B. Nagel says
Dear Mr. Agent Bransford,
I am in the middle of writing the perfect book and wanted you to get a leg up on it. It's set on the planet of Mercury where it is very hot. Everyone who lives there used to live on Earth, but aliens destroyed it. But here's the story: this girl named Beauty hates Mercury. Then this alien named Ted stops the other aliens from destroying Mercury and saves her life. Then he hides in her attic to protect her. Also, he is glittery.
This is the first in a series of twelve (possibly 13). So, what's the haps? How quickly is my advance coming?
autumn's darkroom says
I would hate to be an editor/publisher for this reason alone.
sex scenes at starbucks says
Anyone else sick of FIRST PERSON urban fantasy?
TS Tate says
That's the thing isn't it? Because of Twilight and books similar the market is flooded and when the market floods, new writers who happen to write in the same genre get kind of lost in the slush, as it were.
Is this correct? I have a novel completed. Vampires yes. Broody, emo teenagers? No. But I'm not going to bother querying if agents/publishers/editors are no longer interested in something slightly Vampy.
abc says
I am amused by all the newer YA covers that are ever so *subtly* like the twilight cover. I feel sorry for the writers of those books.
Ink says
Nathan,
I would have liked having the big guy in that Orlando series… But I'm still intrigued by the fact that they didn't give up anything for him. And they could still sing, say, Shawn Marion or someone. Marion wouldn't have trouble guarding Lewis or Turkoglu…
I mean, a front line of LeBron, Marion and Shaq… with Varejao and Ilgauskas off the bench? I could live with that. Or they could go after the big shooting guard they need. Hmmmm. Thank you Wally Szczerbiak's expiring contract.
And then you have the Kings, playing eenie meenie minie pointguard…
lotusgirl says
I'm glad vampires aren't really my thing. Mine is paranormal but without all the fantasy creatures. Whew!
Kimber An says
This is always such a hugely confusing issue for me.
I read agents and editors telling writers to write what they love and avoid trends and all that.
All. The. Time.
Then, I go to the New and Upcoming Release aisle
and the new publishing deals
and see all the Twilight knock-offs. (or whatever bestseller)
And I think, "Um, huh?"
I'm sure you're sincere, but the evidence doesn't support anything but 'more of the same.'
What gives?
Anonymous says
Great, this post just sent an asteroid through my manuscript. I'll keep writing, though, but maybe on something else now.
ClothDragon says
I love urban fantasy. I'm just having trouble finding more good ones. (I've read LKH and loved the early ones — not so much the later ones, Kim Harrison, Patricia Briggs, Carrie Vaughn, and Keri Arthur. Would love suggestions of others of that caliber.)
Nathan Bransford says
kimber an-
Well, I think the thing to remember is that new releases table is filled with authors who wrote what they love — they just happened to love what is currently popular.
There is some trend chasing going on, and it seems like there's more these days than there has been since the chick lit boom, but a lot of times it's just that writers happen to be writing what the market happens to want at that moment.
Anonymous says
I'm probably in the minority, but why oh why is this Twilight series so popular? It is badly written, I'm sorry but it is. Adverbs, cardboard characters and underlying LDS philosphy, a bad bad message to teens – hell with consequences, you get everything you want and more, even when you die!
I read the series (borrowed not bought) because I was curious as to what this author did to garner such rave reviews and a following.
Oh well, power to her, writing a bad book and snaring some great agent with a great deal.
v--v Tabitha Maine v--v says
I'm so broken hearted over the success of Twi…(that book that must not be named).
Justus M. Bowman says
Darn. Now that you've warned them, they might compete with me.
Go, Twilight! Ha, a ha, ha.
Author Guy says
See? The market's perfect for my Werewolf on the Moon story!
Bill Mabe says
My query letter is written by a vampire, but my novel is firmly grounded in the real world: Arkansas family strikes oil and moves to Beverly Hills and hilarity ensues. Is that okay, or are you also overdosing vampire-written queries?
Anonymous says
Well I LOVED Twilght! Not the writing but the story.
I also love fantasy -all kinds but the overly scientific or the too much world building type.
Give me more fantasy!!!! Especially in this gloom and doom economic depression.
Yes.
Onward Steven Spielberg…
The look-a-likes???? Don't measure up.
But fantasy and heroes and magic and places where AMAZING things happen?
Oh, please writers, continue!
Marilyn Peake says
Ella,
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA had great success with those types of angels. Don't want to say too much, so as not to give away spoilers, but I loved the way in which Gaius Baltar described angels toward the end of the series.
Mira says
Nathan, you're smart. It just needed to be said, and there, I've said it. I really admire your intelligence.
Rick, that was funny. And may I just say that it's good to reach for the impossible dream. Man must always have some vision that is just beyond his grasp. Keep on!
marilyn peake says
Nathan,
Thanks so much for that information. I strive to write stories that are different and original, and my novel isn’t like anything on the market right now. I’m itching to get back to it. Just returned from a week of vacation in sunny Southern California and will be traveling to Alaska soon, working hard to get as refreshed as possible before editing in the fall. 🙂
thoughtful1 says
Love your blog yet again! Although now did I use the word blog correctly? mmmm. Anyway I just assume every genre will require trodding in a new way somehow some way. Love your way of saying it. Thanks for the info-entertainment!
Mira says
Oh, that wasn't kissing up. I guess agents always have to wonder about that.
No, genuinely impressed.
Jil says
The stakes are raised" Nathan says,I should think we need them to fend off all these Vampires hovering about! Now I'll throw in some garlic.
Scott says
Hear hear!
Anonymous says
Somehow, I don't think we're done talking about this.
Nathan, I'd like to ask you something. When you get one of these queries, do you attribute the author's motives to:
a). wanting instant fame and success.
b). writing a story that they want to read. They just happen to want to read the most popular thing in the universe over and over. Somehow, the original just opened this insatiable black hole in their lives.
c). some strange need to fix something they saw as immensely successful, but essentially broken. The Twilight and Harry Potter series as well as The Da Vinci Code had huge followings, but many people saw them as seriously flawed.
Thanks Nathan.
Oh! I'm not the only one who believes in the Gollum-Dick Cheney connection! Good to know.
Nathan Bransford says
anon-
I don't try and divine motives, I just read the queries and see if the stories resonate with me.
Beth says
Twilight Twilight Twilight. Sorry, my inner 8 year old just came out. This is hilarious. Love your blog, Nathan. Thanks for the laugh, and for the info!
Anonymous says
But my book is different! It's about a human boy falling in love with a vampire girl! And she doesn't sparkle, she just changes color when she goes into the sun.
See? So, so different.
Karen Schwabach says
Lol! I think the present tense of "trod" is "tread", though.
Christa says
Well, I'm writing something so totally new and fresh it beats Harry Potter, Da Vinci Code AND Twilight!
See, it's about this boy, Harvey, who goes to vampire school. He's a bit of a braniac and stumbles onto some secret codes concerning a league of vampire slayers rumored to be myth. But when a body turns up with the murderer leaving behind some of these secret codes, the vampire headmaster enlists the help of Harvey and his two best friends, Harriette and Robert, to find the murderer before he strikes again.
Things get complicated when Harvey becomes infatuated with a human girl suspected of being with the vampire slayers. Harriette and Robert try and convince him to leave her alone for the good of all vampires, as no human is supposed to be aware that they exist.
So, what do you think of my plot? Totally original, huh?!
T. Anne says
LOL, sort of a funny post (since I don't write in those genre's I suppose it wouldn't be if otherwise).
I must add I did roll my eyes at the new 'Pride and Prejudice and Zombie's' but then it seems to be selling pretty well…
Laura D says
Since it takes me so long to complete a draft good enough to query, three trends would come and go before I could follow any. I'll just stick to what I like to write with passion.
Anonymous says
Oms to the gods of publishing…
Watery Tart says
I think you give EXCELLENT advice, with the caveat… I don't think TWILIGHT is a Vampire book at all. I can dig a vampire book. TWILIGHT is a starcrossed teen romance that happens to have a vampire instead of a kid from the wrong side of the tracks.
But I get that everyone and her mother is picking up the humanoid monster theme, so critical to be totally fresh and make that clear. Good advice.
Tricia says
How 'bout a troll? Is the world ready for a troll yet? No, silly, not Dick Cheney. A certain South Carolina governor comes to mind though.
Patrick Rodgers says
I am so sick and tired of Twilight that when I see someone sitting in a waiting room reading any of the books I literally have to force myself from beating them with a crowbar.
I have to restrain myself from spitting vile and venom that would make Stephen King proud.
Try having a wife who is obsessed with the books, try having a best friend who is obsessed with the books (she is freaking throwing her ten year old a Twilight based birthday party next week) and then having to deal with all the media on them that is a constant barrage on the senses. The top it off by hating the books and thinking they are some of the most poorly written books ever published. I can't go a day without hearing about these vile and horrendous pieces of literature and it makes me want to scream.
If I end up in prison for beating some random stranger to death with a Twilight book will someone here write my story.
Kristin Laughtin says
I promise that the one vampire-ish book I'll probably end up writing (since the idea won't leave my head, no matter how much I try to beat it back) is nothing like TWILIGHT. They're hardly even vampires, and it would seem incidental if some of the traditional vampire weaknesses weren't necessary for the plot. Hopefully I can confine the story to the recesses of my mind long enough for the Twilight craze to slow down a little…maybe…that'll happen someday, right?
Anonymous says
Okay, I love Patrick Rogers' post, and the funny thing is, I love Twilight too!
I just feel bad for Stephanie. I guess it's like anything else: Success is like suicide.
Whirlochre says
Seems like the solution is to lock yourself away on an island and avoid all stimuli.
Curses.
The lock trope.
Janet says
LOL! Nice to see you back to your old self, even if you're trodding instead of treading.