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September 2001 Page One |
From the Booths at LDS Book Sellersby Terry Montagueauthor of Mine Angels Round About and FireweedChris Heimerdinger, author of fourteen books, said, "There's never been a better time in LDS fiction than right now. A surprising contradiction, since the national market for fiction is a tough sell. Kenny Kemp, author of I Hated Heaven, currently in film pre-production, suggested a writer should determine what market she's writing to, and focus on that market. Who buys LDS books? "Mostly women between 30 and 60," Robby Nichols of Covenant says. They seem to prefer "relationship" or "women's" fiction rather than a straight romance. "It can be a romance, don't get me wrong," he said, "but it needs other elements of fiction." Women's fiction is not the only hot seller. The hard-cover, historical serials make the best numbers in sales, but many publishing houses were also talking about fantasy and sci/fi. "There are no specific genre differences, right now, though," Nichols said, "but that could be coming." All the LDS publishing houses at Book Sellers echoed the cry, "We want good, well-written stories that appeal to the LDS reader." Though the houses vary in their submission requirements, everyone used the terms "fresh" and "new" when referring to the stories they were looking for. And what about the non-fiction market? Currently, the name of the game seems to be self-help, and publishing houses are interested in pieces authored by experts. For instance, the "Mormon sex manual," Between Husband and Wife, has sold more than a hundred thousand copies since its release. In self-publishing, Kenny Kemp, whose Dad Was a Carpenter won the Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Award for 1999, garnered an agent, a three-book contract, and a movie deal out of his win. We saw other self-published winners at Book Sellers this year. In particular, Janeal Mecham's non-denominational children's book, If Jesus Came to Our House, sold out its first print run a week after its release. While there does seem to be a niche filled by self-published books, it takes market savvy to sell them. James Asay, of Aspen Books, said the book cover is what puts the book in the reader's hands, and up-front promotion makes the sales. He pointed out that it was no accident that Richard Paul Evans' book, The Christmas Box, sold the way it did. "Not when you consider he was in advertising when he wrote it. He knew what he was doing," Asay said. Films are also another growth market. Bristone has just completed its fourth, and both Zion Films and Excel Entertainment are looking for good LDS scripts. Who are the successful writers in this market? They are those who have an understanding of the market, know they are competing with names like Card, Pratt, and Perry, and are serious about their own work. From all indications, the LDS entertainment market is golden right now, and, truly a seller's market for writers who are committed to their craft. |
