25 Trends in Publishing: Board Books Vs. Picture
August 15, 2018
Writing is Rewarding (Hope’s Hacks)
August 22, 2018
About the column: A handful of agents and interns who work with Cyle have learned the latest and (sometimes so, sometimes not so) greatest trends in publishing right now. Tune in each week to find out what’s trending, ranging from ABA to CBA, children’s to adult. The authors of these columns have included social media tags at the end to keep up with trends they are finding. They can also be found here.
Trend #2 of 25: Adult Fantasy and Sci-Fi
Contributor: Theresa Hughes
Readers want to know there is hope.
Ever since J.R.R. Tolkin’s Lord of the Rings and H.G. Well’s The Time Machine, adult fantasy and sci-fi has been a continuously growing genre. Today, it is stronger than ever. With shows like Game of Thrones and Stranger Things dominating television, it is clear that people love the escapism offered in these types of stories.
But where is it headed? What are the current trends in the adult sci-fi/fantasy publishing industry?
Noblebright:
Twenty years ago, Game of Thrones popularized the dark and gritty style of fantasy stories (sometimes referred to as grimdark).
As a result, the industry was flooded with countless grimdark books. But as these types of stories are now the norm, many people in the publishing industry are starting to grow tired of this trend. A number of publishers have recently told Cyle and his team that they are now looking to go back to the more uplifting hero’s journey stories of hope.
Noblebright is a term that refers to this style of novel, where the hero really is a hero in every sense of the word. Sure, they have flaws, but they make a change for good in their world. Readers want to know there is hope.
Space Opera:
With the success of both Star Wars and Star Trek, it’s no surprise that the space opera sub-genre of sci-fi (basically a melodrama set in space), has been a major part of the publishing industry. But, similar to how grimdark fiction took over the fantasy genre, space opera has practically monopolized the sci-fi genre, and publishers are looking for something different. Publishers and agents want to see more hard science fiction and more stories with a stronger focus on characters.
Publishers and agents want to see more hard science fiction and more stories with a stronger focus on characters. Click To Tweet
Steampunk:
This subgenre of sci-fi isn’t super well-known. Yet. Steampunk refers to fiction set in a futuristic world that is basically a mix of Victorian era style and futuristic re-imaginings of steam powered machines (i.e. Disney’s Treasure Planet). Publishers are starting to see the appeal and potential in this sub-genre. It is growing, as evidenced by the upcoming steampunk film Mortal Engines, but there is a lot of room for new stories as it becomes more popular.
Theresa Hughes is a Professional Writing student at Taylor University where she is learning to hone her writing craft to produce works of quality that will sell. With a mother who sells children’s books and a thirst for adventure, she began making up stories at a very young age.
Her love of books grew throughout her childhood, prompted by great stories and the scenic beauty of her hometown of West Chester, PA.
Her current projects include writing her debut YA sci-fi novel, posting videos on her YouTube channel wisegirlbooks, and blogging about her love of stories at wisegirlbooks.weebly.com.
