With the success of "50 Shades of Grey," I was thinking about what "50 Shades of Grey" had in common with the "Harry Potter" series. Besides the fact that they are both sensations and sold millions and millions of copies, what else?
Then, miraculously, it hit me.
Let's say you're a book editor and you receive the Harry Potter book. You read it and at first glance you wonder what is the target audience for this book. You think about it, and you believe that the Harry Potter books will appeal to children who are interested in wizardry.
Then on another day, you receive a copy of "50 Shades of Grey," and you then determine that it will appeal to women who are interested in S and M. Of course, this is at first glance, because we all know by now that the "Harry Potter" series and the "50 Shades of Grey" series has a much broader audience, broader than the Universe.
And that is exactly what they have in common. Though initially you might have thought that the target audience for these books would be small, ultimately, they both had the largest target audience EVER!
But how can that be?
Here it is...the fact that they both, at first glance, appeal to a small specific audience, is what sets them apart, making them original. And guess what?
Original sells and it sells BIG!
This theory of mine comes off the heels of reading a fantastic book, "The Purple Cow" by Seth Godin. The author does a great job of explaining that in order to be remarkable, you need to design products, books included, for a particular niche. He said it best when he said: if you design a product for everyone, it will appeal to no one.
So my take away from this is this: if you want to write something original, something that might have a chance of getting the attention of the masses, create stories for a particular niche. At first glance, it may seem like your book will only interest a small group, and that may be true at first, but after the first group has told all of their friends, you very well might be on your way to making a lot of noise with your story.
Parker Paige is the author of "Whitley and Austin."
About the Book:
.jpg)
Whitley & Austin
By Parker Paige
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Publication Date: July 10, 2013 (Pluto Books)
THREE beautiful redheads - THREE Motives - ONE Murder
Tapping into the common wish to be someone else, if only for a short time, this suspense drama explores what happens when a woman, bored with her humdrum existence dyes her hair red and takes on the persona of her late sister.
After the murder of her beloved sister, a quiet and warmhearted legal secretary, Charlie Weiss, who works for the prestigious Whitley & Austin, is in search of an escape. A few sessions with her psychologist propel her to the realization that the excitement that she seeks is in a new life, the life of her late sister.
With a daring wish to continue the wild life of her late sister, she colors her hair red and dares to reinvent herself. And with this new persona comes a different type of experience, including becoming one of three redhead suspects to a murder.
About the Author:
Parker Paige has been writing fiction for several years with a passion for creating eccentric characters. She is fascinated with true stories and for that reason, she is drawn to the network Investigation Discovery like a drug. She is the author of “The Color Pink” and “Whitley and Austin.” She is not completely insane, maybe just a little bit crazy. She lives in Los Angeles.
Get the Book:
No comments:
Post a Comment
I would love to hear from you!