Finding other books that are similar to yours?

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newgreekwriter

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I don't know if this is in the right section, but...I visited the bookstore today, and I was shocked when I found nearly three books that had aspects similar to my manuscript. Actually, I was actually considering that maybe I should abandon my project altogether. I know I should never stop writing, but it's annoying when there are others out there who have ideas similar to yours, especially when you never seen them until the very moment that you're completely done writing!
 

KCathy

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I agree. If you find a great new angle that makes your book stand out from the pack, you can not only beat out the competition but use those others to show a potential agent or publisher how popular your type of book is AND how especially unique and better it is. Good luck!

Now I'm going to sit here and wonder if it's worthwhile to come back and divide that run-on sentence into two correct sentences...
 

newgreekwriter

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Thank you Matera the Mad and KCathy. :) It's just frustrating, especially when you receive rejections on your queries. Ugg.
 

Mumut

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It's also annoying when you're signing books to have the usual smarta**** tell you of another book that starts with the same idea. But very little under the sun is new! Keep writing and make sure your story is better than theirs.
 

Wayne K

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It's also annoying when you're signing books to have the usual smarta**** tell you of another book that starts with the same idea. But very little under the sun is new! Keep writing and make sure your story is better than theirs.

Can't argue with this.
 

Dirtpoor

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In the past 2 days I have read three pieces of material with aspects like my 'original and interesting' plot ideas; one was a newspaper headline (maybe this means it would be marketable).

Time to hone my writing skills and get it out there.

A cynical friend once told me that there were no new ideas under the sun - perhaps we all need to write at night.
 

dgiharris

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I don't mean to come across as an ass.

One of the newbie (not like i'm an old crusty veteran) assumptions regarding writing is to focus on the idea. Namely, a cool never been done before idea.

Truth be told (as has been mentioned previously ad naseum) ideas are a dime a dozen (I charge more than Matera), it is all about EXECUTION.

It is true, you need a new angle or approach or 'thing' but don't confuse that with needing a whole new idea. Now don't get me wrong, if you do come up with a new idea, all the better, but it doesn't matter how cool or new an idea is, poor execution and bad writing will kill it just the same.

If I had to rank on a scale of 1 - 10.

Writing --- 9
Execution --- 9
New Cool Idea --- 3

Mel...
 

Danthia

It really is all about the execution, but well-written books with an overdone idea get rejected every day. I'm not saying this is bring you down, just stating a sad fact. You might consider reading those three books and seeing how close to yours they really are. If your idea brings a new twist and offers something fresh, then continuing could be worth it. But if it's too similar and doesn't really offer anything new, moving on might be smart.

I speak from experience on this one. My first books were fantasy, prophecy quest ideas (totally overdone in the market). I had what I thought was a fresh twist, but couldn't sell them. I looked through my old ideas and found the most original thing I had and went with that. Bam. Sold the whole trilogy amazingly fast. Granted, every book is different, but why make it harder on yourself if you don't have to.

Don't stop writing, but don't write something that might be problematic just because you feel you should. Nothing wrong with switching projects as long as you feel it's the best thing for you and your book. And there's nothing wrong with taking a chance on this one if you feel strongly about it. Trust your instincts.
 

newgreekwriter

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Thank you Danthia. Your advice was the best. I actually read excerpts from the books...I realized that aside from similar background stories, and well...Similar paranormal species (not vampires :)) my idea is actually different. Overall, I'm going to finish writing, since I have it to be a trilogy, and I'm half-way done with the second sequel. Even if it doesn't sell, as long as it's out of my head and on paper, I'll be satisfied. :D
 

caitysdad

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similiarities will happen. is anything 100% anymore? what i would watch out for is too similiar. does my work scream rip-off?
 

newgreekwriter

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Wow, this is old, but I hate how irony or fate kicked me in the guts over this thread. I found a novel with the same title as the one that I have sent to agents...similar story line and theme.

How wonderful.
 

Libbie

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Titles can always be changed later on. The fact that there's already one out there with the same title as yours won't deter agents or editors from reading it.

Or, titles don't have to be changed. Do you know how many romance novels are called "Seduction," "Wicked," "The Pirate's Lady," etc.? A lot.
 

kaitie

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This happened to me a few times. Once in a news story that became popular after I'd finished. I don't want people to think, "Oh she stole that from (whatever)" when it was actually something clever and original when I thought of it. :tongue

Definitely is frustrating, however. Great advice, peoples.
 

newgreekwriter

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I know about titles being changed but...Should I go into detail? My novel is YA Paranormal (yeah yeah) about angels. A girl falls in love with her guardian angel while her ex-boyfriend is a fallen angel.

This book "Fallen" by Lauren Kate is sort of similar. (With two fallen angels falling for the same girl...at least what I understood from somebody's review of the book) and the girl is a reincarnation (same as mine, yet, I was planning to reveal this later on in a sequel).

See? I am a bit worried. I mean, setting is different and in mine, I have more classifications of angels and a new immortal species, per se...yet...it's eerie how similar my novel is to this one. =/

(I also wrote two sequels following it at the beginning of this year...I never even heard of this novel until last week!)
 
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Kaiser-Kun

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My current WiP features trains, magic vs. technology, giants who wish to absorb the magic from the planet, a long-haired antagonist with a sword, and an incoming meteor. It wasn't until yesterday that I was pointed out the similarities with Final Fantasy VII. (D'oh!)

The plot's different, the characters are different, and the execution is different.

Change aspects of your story when they don't work. If you can make a good story with an already-done idea, go for it by all means.
 
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Libbie

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I know about titles being changed but...Should I go into detail? My novel is YA Paranormal (yeah yeah) about angels. A girl falls in love with her guardian angel while her ex-boyfriend is a fallen angel.

This book "Fallen" by Lauren Kate is sort of similar. (With two fallen angels falling for the same girl...at least what I understood from somebody's review of the book) and the girl is a reincarnation (same as mine, yet, I was planning to reveal this later on in a sequel).

See? I am a bit worried. I mean, setting is different and in mine, I have more classifications of angels and a new immortal species, per se...yet...it's eerie how similar my novel is to this one. =/

(I also wrote two sequels to it at the beginning of this year...I never even heard of this novel until last week!)

You should be psyched, dude! The fact that similar novels have been sold means there is something of a market for the story you want to sell.

My suggestion is to buy Lauren Kate's books, read them, and be sure yours aren't too similar to hers. I'm working on a novel about the life of a certain Egyptian queen, and to be sure I didn't get too close to another novel about her life, I bought it, read it, and took notes so I could avoid undue similarities.

Listen: Paranormal books are huge, huge, huge right now. Huger than you may realize. I didn't even realize just how huge until I took a part-time job at a book store, and oh my god, I stock the paranormal paperbacks twice a day because they fly off the shelves that fast. I'm not kidding. Twice a day.

There are probably other YA paranormal novels about girls and hot angel dudes. You just haven't found them yet. You shouldn't let that discourage you, though. Yours will be different. It has to be, because you're writing it, and you're not Lauren Kate or any of the other authors who are tinkering with this subgenre. Merely having a love triangle between a mortal girl and angel guys isn't enough to make people cry foul on you. Do you know how many teen vampire love stories are out there? Oi!

Write the best book you know how to write. Read as many other similar ones as you can, so you can avoid too-close similarities. But don't sweat it too hard. There will always be another book like yours out there, somewhere. There is nothing new under the sun, etc. Just worry about doing the best job you can do, be grateful there's already an established market for the work you want to do, and write, write, write. 'Cause it'll definitely never make it to a book shelf if you don't finish it.
 
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newgreekwriter

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Hmm. Thanks, Libbie and Kaiser-Kun. My Beta reader said that the similarities (from the excerpt we both read) were not tooo much. You know, like, "Oh...buddy, that's really bad!" and besides..mine is first person, said novel is third. (okay, not a big deal, but eh).

I will do what Libbie said and read the novel...or at least have my BR read it because she is very prone to point out similarities between my work and others! haha!
 

newgreekwriter

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You should be psyched, dude! The fact that similar novels have been sold means there is something of a market for the story you want to sell.

My suggestion is to buy Lauren Kate's books, read them, and be sure yours aren't too similar to hers. I'm working on a novel about the life of a certain Egyptian queen, and to be sure I didn't get too close to another novel about her life, I bought it, read it, and took notes so I could avoid undue similarities.

Listen: Paranormal books are huge, huge, huge right now. Huger than you may realize. I didn't even realize just how huge until I took a part-time job at a book store, and oh my god, I stock the paranormal paperbacks twice a day because they fly off the shelves that fast. I'm not kidding. Twice a day.

There are probably other YA paranormal novels about girls and hot angel dudes. You just haven't found them yet. You shouldn't let that discourage you, though. Yours will be different. It has to be, because you're writing it, and you're not Lauren Kate or any of the other authors who are tinkering with this subgenre. Merely having a love triangle between a mortal girl and angel guys isn't enough to make people cry foul on you. Do you know how many teen vampire love stories are out there? Oi!

Write the best book you know how to write. Read as many other similar ones as you can, so you can avoid too-close similarities. But don't sweat it too hard. There will always be another book like yours out there, somewhere. There is nothing new under the sun, etc. Just worry about doing the best job you can do, be grateful there's already an established market for the work you want to do, and write, write, write. 'Cause it'll definitely never make it to a book shelf if you don't finish it.

Thanks, I am pretty sure many people would disagree with you, (has happened before! just look above) but true. I finished it and I am not stuck to it. I can easily change it around if I find it being too similar to something that's already out there (plot-for-plot or whatever).

But thanks again, Libbie. =)

Good luck with your Egyptian historical. I love Egyptian history (once wanted to be an Egyptologist!). I hope all goes well and it hits those bookshelves!
 
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