If I was to search out articles about the popularity of books today, I'm certain I'd find lots of rah rahs. "Books are more popular than ever!" they'd proclaim. Are they, though?
I accompany my spouse to Barnes and Noble occasionally; he's fond of rock music magazines; and the store is virtually empty. When we walk in, we're greeted by tables of the latest "hot" books that I've never seen anyone buy, much less peruse. In fact, in the checkout line ("line" being generous) one person may be waiting to pay for a children's toy or a jigsaw puzzle or a greeting card, but rarely a hardcover book.
Maybe readers do all their book buying online. There are always the reading fanatics who love to tout the number of books they've read in a given year; some people even use Goodreads to brag about it. I'm not sure why that's a point of pride. I could say, "I ate twenty Jersey Mike's subs this year!" and it would mean just as much. (I didn't, by the way.)
Today's reality doesn't lend itself to reading. Would I rather sit down with a book or scroll X? While I've never been on TikTok, I've been told that it's addictive. Who has time for books when there's always something more exciting at the swipe of a finger?
I watched a video about the latest trends in trade publishing, the hottest themes publishing houses are grabbing, and it was laughable. Not surprising, though. If you've ever considered querying a literary agent, you'll find that they're all looking for the same stuff ~ LBGTQ+, BIPOC, "own voices", all the buzz words that those of a certain political persuasion love to toss out; but how do those books sell? Well, according to my "lived experience", nobody's buying them.
Quick, what's the hot book right now? Can't think of one? Neither can I. It's not that certain genres don't sell, but that genre is romance; fast food for those who still choose to power up their Kindles. One never sees romance novels splayed across a B&N table at the front of the store. Nor does one find fantasy, the second bestselling category.
No, publishers choose to rack up brownie points by pushing social justice novels nobody wants. That'll never change, even if the market demands it (which it already does). I used to think that corporations valued their bottom line more than silly performative acts, but it's not true. I would read an article about how a certain store put a sign in its window, stating, "So-and-so people are not welcome here", and think, well, that's a bad business strategy; but they really don't care. They'd rather go out of business than not support the cause. That's cool; they deserve to go out of business; I don't care.
Big publishing houses deserve what they get. Self-publishing will fill the niche for those who still crave books. Sadly, that number is dying. Why don't my books sell? Lots of reasons, but one of the reasons is the dwindling pool of readers. The only reason self-publishing is hotter than traditional is that it's propped up by romance. What happens if and when the demand for romance fades? Then you can kiss books goodbye. Maybe Amazon saw it coming a couple decades ago. Amazon was once a book store; all it sold was books. Now it offers everything, and book are a side gig.
We indie writers can kid ourselves; there's nothing more appealing than self-delusion, and while self-publishing is a profitable enterprise, it's really only profitable for businesses that feed off that delusion ~ marketers, formatters, ARC sites, so-called publicists, scammers. Amazon probably makes more off authors purchasing ads than it does from actually moving those books.
There'll always be creators, people who live to let their imaginations soar, but like painters who rent a booth at the local art fair, there may be lots of lookers, but actual buyers are at home, scrolling through TikTok.
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