The next big thing

[Sage]

Sounds like a NaNo novel

[triceretops]

Originally Posted by maybegenius

Personally I'm really hoping for an upswing in adventure stories. I looooove adventure stories.

But I'll settle for zombie pirate were-puppies, I guess.

Oh, I'd love to see some real action/adventure stories grab a bite. It's a hard genre to define and do really well. Doesn't Alten and Rollins do this stuff?

tri

[Megx1987]

I'd kind of love to see some more YA novels that feature teens involved in top secret organizations (like the CIA or the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad). Not silly versions of those stories like that one movie Frankie Muniz was in, forever ago, but serious versions like Hanna with Saoirse Ronan.

[warofthesparks]

I don't know what'll be the next big thing, but I know it will be different. Nathan Bransford said back in early 2008 that the next big thing would be nothing like Harry Potter, and then along came Twilight. The Hunger Games is probably the next big thing, and that's nothing like Twilight, so the next big thing will be nothing like The Hunger Games.

[MysteryRiter]

I feel like YA horror is starting to get hot. There are few done well, but many new ones are coming out.

I'm hoping YA thrillers are about to have their breakthrough, as I'm editing mine.

[huu]

I hope a shift away from dystopian into a more broad sci-fi erupts onto the scene.

[shiva777]

It seems like subject like paranormal and sci-fi have a virtually unlimited amount of plots and ideas and so might be around for a while. I'm writing a very original paranormal YA fiction and there's not a werewolf or vampire in sight. :-)

[KalenO]

Well the thing about trends is they rise in the wake of Big Books, as imitators spawn and publishers look for books they can use to grab readers of that Big Book. Paranormal was on the rise and selling well when Twilight hit shelves, but its only in the wake of Twilight's mega success that the huge paranormal trend/glut hit. Ditto with dystopian. Hunger Games wasn't the first, but it was the Big Book that turned it into a trend.

So sci-fi, thrillers and horror may all be on the rise right now, but it'll be when the next Big Book arrives and seizes attention in the way Twilight and Hunger Games did that one of them (or something else) will turn into a trend the way we consider dystopian and paranormal to be trends. Right now those three are trends in the sense that lots of agents and editors are looking for them, thinking/hoping the next Big Book will be one of them, but that's still a very different thing from the dystopian/paranormal trends.

[triceretops]

I have a friend here at AW who just released a ghost story and the damn thing sold like hotcakes, even at the $9.99 e-book price. I was quite shocked, but pleasantly surprised, especially since the publisher is quite new to the field. You never can tell in this industry, what's up and hot. Trends change, albeit often prompted by mega-sellers.

[MysticPunk]

I think Ready Player One is going to usher us into an age of YA Sci Fi.

[Matty C.]

I'm hoping for SF as well!

[triceretops]

Originally Posted by Matty C.

I'm hoping for SF as well!

Yeah, I have my likes and hopes, but I'm totally invested in my latest SF release right now, and it has done surprisingly well for its genre.

Tri

[twright]

Originally Posted by warofthesparks

I don't know what'll be the next big thing, but I know it will be different. Nathan Bransford said back in early 2008 that the next big thing would be nothing like Harry Potter, and then along came Twilight. The Hunger Games is probably the next big thing, and that's nothing like Twilight, so the next big thing will be nothing like The Hunger Games.

But isn't there always going to be a "next big thing" regardless what it is today?

[Missus Akasha]

I've never really been into the whole trend things as a reader. I've always rolled my eyes when I see a massive push of a particular genre until everyone just grows tired of it.

I get it though. Teenagers love book trends. Teenagers create book trends. All it takes is one book to sell like hot cakes and that is about 2-3 years of annoyance on my part as a shopper because all I ever see is replicates of the Big Book. Every once and a while, I'll find a book or two that are actually in the trend, but really stand out and shine to me.

Sadly, most of the books that I actually like that are within a trend aren't very popular. It's rather sad.

But if I had to take a gander, I'd probably say sci-fi, which is my favorite genre of all time. I just hope whatever Big Book comes out next will give YA sci-fi a good name and not turn it into some kind of Gossip Girl storyline set on an ultra vague sci-fi background.

[warofthesparks]

Originally Posted by twright

But isn't there always going to be a "next big thing" regardless what it is today?

I have no idea what you just asked me.

[Chazemataz]

Originally Posted by Missus Akasha

I've never really been into the whole trend things as a reader. I've always rolled my eyes when I see a massive push of a particular genre until everyone just grows tired of it.

I get it though. Teenagers love book trends. Teenagers create book trends. All it takes is one book to sell like hot cakes and that is about 2-3 years of annoyance on my part as a shopper because all I ever see is replicates of the Big Book. Every once and a while, I'll find a book or two that are actually in the trend, but really stand out and shine to me.

Sadly, most of the books that I actually like that are within a trend aren't very popular. It's rather sad.

But if I had to take a gander, I'd probably say sci-fi, which is my favorite genre of all time. I just hope whatever Big Book comes out next will give YA sci-fi a good name and not turn it into some kind of Gossip Girl storyline set on an ultra vague sci-fi background.

*cough*ShatterMeEveDivergentWither*cough, hack*

I HATE it when books do that. If I have to see one more "I'm going to pretend this book is a dystopian/scifi/fantasy novel, but that's only the backdrop for when MYSTERIOUS BOY SHE'S VERY ATTRACTED TO comes into play", I'm going to flip.

The problem with a lot of YA novels is that characterization and worldbuilding takes a backseat to a romance between unremarkable characters.

[twright]

Originally Posted by Chazemataz

*cough*ShatterMe,Eve,Divergent*cough, hack*

I HATE it when books do that. If I have to see one more "I'm going to pretend this book is a dystopian/scifi/fantasy novel, but that's only the backdrop for when MYSTERIOUS BOY SHE'S VERY ATTRACTED TO comes into play", I'm going to flip.

Not that I'm disagreeing with you, but at what point do you draw the distinction between using common human themes (girls are ALWAYS going to be attracted to mysterious boys) versus putting lipstick on a pig and trotting it out on stage as a beauty contestant?

Just asking...

[BlossomQueen]

For the next big thing, we won't know until it becomes the Next Big Thing. I, too, am hoping for science fiction, or to be more specific, my WIP. Heh. But it'll be cool if everyone's reading sci-fi like a lot are reading fantasy.

[wampuscat]

I think that regardless of genre or subgenre, any NEXT BIG THING is going to have to be mainstream enough in some regard in order to garner that large of a following.

[celoise]

Steampunk, anyone?

[Chazemataz]

Originally Posted by twright

Not that I'm disagreeing with you, but at what point do you draw the distinction between using common human themes (girls are ALWAYS going to be attracted to mysterious boys) versus putting lipstick on a pig and trotting it out on stage as a beauty contestant?

Just asking...

Yeah, I see your point and it is sort of a lose-lose situation.

I'm a guy, so maybe I'm different, but I like romantic subplots when they're just that: subplots. Just a personal preference, haha.

Originally Posted by wampuscat

I think that regardless of genre or subgenre, any NEXT BIG THING is going to have to be mainstream enough in some regard in order to garner that large of a following.

The one thing HP, Twilight, and HG have in common is that they aren't "confusing" to casual readers. They are all very straightforward. Boy goes to magic school, girl falls in love with vamp, girl takes part in a dystopian death match. At the same time, though, they have more complicated lore when you dig beneath the surface, so to speak.

Basically, they're simple enough for a child to read and understand, emotional enough for a teen to relate to, and complex enough for anyone older to appreciate.

[Erin Latimer]

Originally Posted by Chazemataz

The one thing HP, Twilight, and HG have in common is that they aren't "confusing" to casual readers. They are all very straightforward. Boy goes to magic school, girl falls in love with vamp, girl takes part in a dystopian death match. At the same time, though, they have more complicated lore when you dig beneath the surface, so to speak.

Basically, they're simple enough for a child to read and understand, emotional enough for a teen to relate to, and complex enough for anyone older to appreciate.

I agree. I was going to make the point that, while science fiction can be enjoyed by intellectually mature readers, young adults mostly seem to enjoy simple (on the surface) reads. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that all young adult readers can't enjoy the genre, but I personally believe that it won't ever be super mainstream.

As for the next "big thing". Nearly impossible to predict until that thing slowly starts becoming popular (then you can count on a wave of similar books). As for the next book genre, that's different. I think it might be steampunk. And I don't think it will necessarily be a fad, since it's been around for a long time, and has a dedicated (and quite large) fan base already.

[maybegenius]

I genuinely think it'll probably be something we can't really predict. Nobody predicted the success of HP, Twilight, or THG. I mean, Harry Potter was a dark horse out of nowhere, with a tiny advance and a small first print run. Twilight and THG certainly had larger marketing pushes and buzz behind them, which gave them a leg up, but marketing and buzz doesn't create the kind of success they've achieved. That happens solely because the purchasing audience says, "Yes, this, this is what I want to read, more of this." To the tune of tens of millions of dollars. The publisher of The Hunger Games said they "knew they had something special," but that's hardly and indicator of THIS much success.

We've watched dozens of book series sell for six-and-seven figure advances. They usually go on to be popular, sure, but they don't achieve this level of runaway worldwide obsessive fandom. I just don't think it's predictable. I mean, if we think about it, the next "big thing" right now is soft BDSM erotica O_o But it's still early for that series yet.

I'll be interested to see if someone actually does crack the code, though! It's still fun to speculate

[Sage]

Obviously, to some extent there always has been this, but I'm wondering if there was the focus on finding the "next big thing" the way we do now, before HP and Twilight. I wasn't writing back then, so I honestly don't know. Since those, there's been a lot of focus on what's trending. Magic school books are hot, but what comes after that? Vamps are hot, so next is werewolves, then angels, then fairies, then zombies, and now what creature? Dystopia is hot, what's next? Before the mega cross-audience hits like HP, Twilight, and HG, was there this focus on assuming we could figure out what the next trend is going to be?

[Cyia]

If there was, it was likely more in the adult-centered market than than children's or YA (think Dan Brown-style mega hits). The whole reason people were reluctant to handle HP at first wasn't just that fantasy was "dead" at the time the book was pitched, but children's books in general "didn't make money."