Tag: publishing

Have you ever wondered what it takes to write a bestselling book? And how do you write a bestselling book?

How To Write A Bestselling Book

What makes a book a best-seller?

The gold star of bestseller lists is The New York Times Best Seller list. But trying to get on the list is tricky. Firstly, there is no one defining list. The New York Times has sixteen different lists and the same 10 – 15 books can appear on all of them at the same time.

To even make the grade, you must have sold between 5 000 and 10 000 traditionally published books in one week – Sunday through Saturday – across America through multiple retailers, mostly bookshops.

Apart from the occasional romance book, self-published books don’t stand a chance.

Is it easier to sell non-fiction books? No. The market is far more competitive, and the minimum number of sales needs to be 7500.

Surely there must be more to it than that?

There is, but what that entails, as far as The New York Times is concerned, is a very closely guarded secret.

So what’s a writer to do?

It depends. Are you wanting to stay true to your own voice and write the books you want to read? Or do you want to chase the market?

If you want to chase the market and only write the types of books that are currently selling, it’s important to remember that you must research what books are selling now, write one, find a publisher and then sell your book. Just finding a publisher could take six-months to a year. Once you’ve signed on with a publisher it could take six months to a year before your book hits the bookshop shelves. By then, the Vampire Nuns genre that was selling off-the-chart numbers when you first researched ‘what books are selling now’, has given way to variations of Scotsmen In Mongolia.

I want to stay true to my own voice

Okay then.

In terms of the writing:

1. Read great books in your genre. Read a lot. Never stop reading.
2. Come up with as original a plot as you can.
3. Learn to write really well…
   • Take great courses from reputable companies.
   • Read great ‘how to write’ books.
   • Join writing groups – not just to chill, but to write… a lot and get feedback as this will help improve your writing.
   • Have book discussions with other authors and readers. This matters because it’s while debating the merits of Darcy of Pemberley vs Geralt of Rivia, that you discover what readers understand, prefer, and want, as well as when one type of hero is needed over another.
   • Join writers’ groups preferably in your genre. These are great not just for the comradeship but can also help if a writers’ block falls out the ceiling and hits you on the head rendering you idealess.
   • Join an author crit circle. One with strict ‘kindness’ rules.
   • Go on writing retreats, alone or with other writers who actually want to write.
   • Write as much as possible.
   • Experiment with your writing. Don’t just stick to one genre as exploring other genres, voices, tenses, and word counts, will strengthen your writing muscles. You’re not required to publish these experiments; they are writing gym. Want to write great tension in romance? Practise writing horror stories with very short word counts.
4. Write a great book.

• • One main plot.
  • Don’t forget sub-plots.
  • Create memorable and relatable characters/scenes/scenarios/locations/choices etc.
  • Write with the audience in mind. If you’re writing romance, you must have an HEA (happy ever after) or a HFN (happy for now) ending, or it won’t qualify as a romance, and readers will be miffed. It’s hard to win back a miffed reader.
  • Avoid cliches.
  • Some advice blogs will tell you to edit for clarity not perfection. I’m not one of them. Edit first for clarity, and then for perfection. In this technologically driven day and age, there is no excuse for typos or incorrect grammar, unless the incorrect grammar is a plot device.

5. Get alpha reader feedback. Grow a thick skin and become humble and open to hearing criticism and learn what do with it.
6. Rewrite or edit some more.
7. Hire an editor for a manuscript appraisal.
8. Rewrite the book.
9. Edit until your fingers bleed.
10. Get beta reader feedback.
11. Edit some more.
12. Hire a proof-reader.
13. If you are self-publishing – Unless you are a trained graphic designer DO NOT design your own cover. Knowing how to use Canva does not make you a designer. The easiest way to tell if a book’s cover was created by a non-designer, is the typography. Hire a designer, preferably one with a portfolio that includes book covers in your genre.
14. (Optional) Find an excellent agent.
15. (Optional) Find a publisher.
16. (Optional) Sign a book contract.

The last three are optional as you may choose to go the self-publishing route.

In terms of ‘bestselling’:

1. Know that the average book sells no more than five hundred copies in the author’s lifetime.
2. Know that if you want your book to sell more than that you’re going to have to put in the work, and often potentially a lot of money, into making that happen.
3. Read as many books as possible on book marketing, Amazon marketing etc., that you can.
4. Learn about the several types of publishing available to indie-authors and how to avoid the charlatans.
5. Learn how to recognise and avoid the book launch scams.
6. Hire a great publicist – get recommendations from other highly successful authors. Look for a publicist that has experience in getting authors and or books known, discussed, and sold through a variety of media.
7. Launch the book more than once. One book launch does not a bestseller make. Research which kinds of launches are the most successful.
8. Do continual book promotion and marketing – but not to your friends and family. Not if you want to still be invited to pizza and Netflix evenings.
9. If you’re going to write a series, write the first three books and launch them all at once. This matters more than you realise.

Keep writing. Even if it’s just one short story a month.

The Last Word

If you’d like to write for children, young adults, or adults, why not sign up for one of the rich and in-depth courses that Writers Write offers to learn how to write the best book you possibly can.

by Elaine Dodge. Author of The Harcourts of Canada series and The Device Hunter, Elaine trained as a graphic designer, then worked in design, advertising, and broadcast television. She now creates content, mostly in written form, including ghost writing business books, for clients across the globe, but would much rather be drafting her books and short stories.