Comparing your novel to others

I have never compared my novel to someone else's. However, in a recent review (released on Friday), my book was compared to Hope Mirrlees' Lud-in-the-Mist so I'll tout that all over the place. I never thought Asphodel was like Mirrlees, but now that I think about it I can kind of see it. For more on Mirrlees clink on Neil Gaiman's opinion or this article on Infinity Plus and for a young fantasy writer I'd recommend this as a must read book, almost more so than Tolkien who followed in her path by a little over a decade.

So, yeah, I'll use that from now on. To be compared to one of your favorite book written by one of your idols is too awesome to even be considered.

I don't know how to answer the question, but I did come across a submission instruction recently that asked those submitting to suggest what other titles on the publisher's list their novel would best fit in with. I found it awfully odd. I can't remember the wording or the publisher, but it was along the lines of; readers of such and such (other titles by this publisher) would like this novel.

You might be able to get some tips from agent Nathan Bransford's thoughts on the subject.

(just scroll down for the posts--he analyzes query letters and then there's a bolded question similar to yours that he answers.)

"I believe readers of Jim Butcher's urban fantasy series The Dresden Files would enjoy my novel.

Just that simple.

From what I've read, the cons of comparing your book are that the reader may not know the comparison, may hate the book/show you're comparing to, may not get the way that "A meets B," or just generally may not like comparisons. Also, some get itchy with comparisons to authors that aren't theirs and at the same time some don't want stuff like what one of their authors has already written.

On the other hand, it's a quick way of getting a point across and I know tons of authors who do that.

In my query I mentioned that my book would appeal to fans of A, B, and C writers. You could do the same and say your book would appeal to fans of The Dresden Files and Dead Like Me or write it like how Cathy said above.

Some agents who see a lot of queries ask for this; it gives them a quick take on where your novel fits in as far as things like genre, humor (is it just plain dark matter or tongue in cheek? etc.), and various other factors. I described my serial killer crime thriller once as Natural Born Killers meets The Addams Family. Or something like that. Nothing to do with novels on either score, but gives the agent some quick points of reference. It's also often useful for the agent to use in his/her pitch to an editor over a quick after-work drink. The agent may have all of ten minutes to get the point across.

The bad thing about comparing it to a show like "Dead Like Me" (which I did for a previous, still languishing novel) is that if the show doesn't do well because it appeals to a niche audience, then you are severely limiting your market.

Plus, if it's an obscure show (and it could be), then you are hurting yourself even more. I'd stick with a sure-fire item.

The only time I have ever compared my own work to another in a query is when the agent I'm querying is the one who sold the book and then I used wording about like what Cathy C suggested and I did get some responses using that although I ended up selling the novel to a small publishing house myself. That technique worked well enough that I will use it in queries for my new novel that I'm sending out in the next week or two.

I usually include a basic line like:

Because (Name of My Novel) is both contemporary and humorous, I think my 90,000-word novel will appeal to fans of (similar author on agent's client list)and (similar author on agent's client list)

as a quick reference.

That seems like nice wording. I don't like to imply that a novel I'm shopping is a clone of another book, just give an idea that it's the kind of thing that the agent has handled in the past which that does.

How about this format: More ____ than The Dresden Files but more ______ than Dead Like Me, my novel shares the ______ of both books. It's a good idea to compare your novel to others, in fact it's an important tool that agents use in pitching to editors. But you also want to point out how your book is different, and better.

One more suggestion: Don't say "I believe my novel is..." Just skip to "My novel is..." A query letter is not a place to be self-deprecating.

One more suggestion: Don't say "I believe my novel is..." Just skip to "My novel is..." A query letter is not a place to be self-deprecating

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Sorry. I'll have to disagree. The query is ALSO not the place to instruct the reader (agent/editor.) That comes off as arrogant. "I believe" is a personal thing. You can tell someone your opinion and nobody will really mind. But tell someone "this is fact" and I've seen plenty of hackles raise.

Obviously, JMHO.

Oh, and if you read Janet Reid's blog, she mentioned that she does not own a TV, so queries that compare a book to a TV show are lost on her. I thought that was timely insight.

When I query agents or publishers about my husband's novel, I always quote an early review from a major newspaper which said "Spindle by Ian Taylor is a rip-roaring, fast-paced tale in the tradition of Douglas Adams and Red Dwarf." I'm not comparing Spindle to Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, but I'm letting them know that someone else has. Also, Hitchhikers and the Red Dwarf books and TV series are the best-known examples of comedy science fiction, so immediately the agent/publisher, if they're fairly well read, will recognize that Spindle fits into that very popular genre. (Still, we've sometimes gotten stupid responses like, "Is this supposed to be science fiction or is it comedy?" No one who's never heard of Douglas Adams should be allowed to work in publishing, imho.)

So my point is that if you get a review that compares your book to another book or author, you can use the review in your queries without seeming like it's YOU who think they're similar, even if you do.

It also couldn't hurt to write a press release suggesting that your book is in the same genre as another, more widely-known book and include it with review copies. Another strategy: offer to talk to a local newspaper about your book and then mention the genre and better known books in that genre; sometimes reporters appreciate the help, because it means they'll have to do less research. Still, reviewers are going to read your book before writing the review (one hopes), so do not say "It's just like Gone With The Wind!" and expect them to repeat that. They'll more likely say, "Tries to be a modern-day Gone With The Wind, but without the epic story and memorable characters," and then you'll wish you had shut the hell up.

Use good reviews in all your press materials. When Midwest Book Review called Spindle "a wonderfully entertaining Scifi novel that is a genuine pleasure from beginning to end," we put that on every flyer, every business card, every press release we've released since. Here's hoping you enjoy such great notices.

If you don't know much about writing press releases, there are web pages that will teach you. It's an important skill to have, especially since others will charge big bucks to write them for you. Once you've written one, there are distribution sites online that will get your release in front of the right eyes.
Good luck everyone, and check out www.spindlebook.com to read a free excerpt of the funniest book I ever read!

This looks like an advertisement and not help with those querying an unreviewed, unpublished novel.

Shiller, anyone?

Hmmmm A review of an unpublished novel? Interesting concept.

ORION said:

This looks like an advertisement and not help with those querying an unreviewed, unpublished novel.

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Yep.

It's not horrible advice for someone who's self-published and looking to promote their book, but it doesn't belong in this thread or this forum.

Looks like the Taylor family is trying to replicate the Paolini family's success as self-publishers. Good luck to them--they'll need it!


Edited to add: For those who don't want to click through to the link, the "major newspaper" that reviewed Mr. Taylor's book was the Illawarra Mercury. Which I'm sure is a fine paper that does a great job of serving the greater metropolitan Illawarra area and all, but "major"?

Dragon-lady said:

Hmmmm A review of an unpublished novel? Interesting concept.

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Actually, it IS published---through BookSurge. While I suppose it's a method to get the book into the public, reviews of it could actually HURT the manuscript's chances of getting picked up by a mainstream publisher. An editor could rightly theorize that the book has already reached saturation point in sales. Adams transcended markets and the Red Dwarf novels sell in the low midlist range. They're not bestsellers, so comparing the book to them . . . combined with being a debut author, nearly screams loss of revenue on the title.

Sorry, but this isn't a marketing tactic I'd recommend for a hopeful aspiring author.

*sighs* Did I really need to mark that as sarcasm?

Edit: By the way when I compare my work to another it is likely to deliberately not be to a bestseller, but to a novel which the agent sold which is similar in genre and/or other other aspects to my own. I do not think that recommending that authors compare their works to best sellers is necessarily good advise. To me that looks a bit like saying it will be the next big best seller which isn't likely to impress anyone.

There are a several of reasons for comparing a novel to something the agent sold (best seller or no). The agents knows it's not a mass mailing and knows that I know who I'm submitting to and something about them. It starts the letter out on the topic of the agent and a success the agent had rather than the author, always a good idea.

Not at all, Dragon-lady. But I always try to keep in mind that freshfaced newbies could easily look at this thread and think "What a great idea!" Therefore, I try to treat the subject seriously and review the idea critically.