. . .and the debate over female vs. male publishing continues. - CrimeSpace2024-03-28T22:50:41Zhttp://crimespace.ning.com/forum/topics/and-the-debate-over-female?commentId=537324%3AComment%3A234769&feed=yes&xn_auth=noCould be a stigma attached to…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-21:537324:Comment:2354472010-05-21T15:27:35.020ZDonna Starkhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/DonnaStark
Could be a stigma attached to buying a certain sort of book?<br />
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I'm all for equality but what you tend to find is that women are generally accepted doing/reading the same things men do while there is still a stigma attached to a man doing/reading something traditionally feminine. I remember someone coming into the office a few weeks ago to tell me how surprised they were that the local flower shop's new florist is male.<br />
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A man is expected to be masculine at all times while a woman can pick and…
Could be a stigma attached to buying a certain sort of book?<br />
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I'm all for equality but what you tend to find is that women are generally accepted doing/reading the same things men do while there is still a stigma attached to a man doing/reading something traditionally feminine. I remember someone coming into the office a few weeks ago to tell me how surprised they were that the local flower shop's new florist is male.<br />
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A man is expected to be masculine at all times while a woman can pick and choose - if she wants to read a Mills and Boon or a Bourne novel, it doesn't really make a difference. My boyfriend fully admits tha…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-21:537324:Comment:2354462010-05-21T15:13:12.982ZDonna Starkhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/DonnaStark
My boyfriend fully admits that he will read more when he has an e-reader and can download books.<br />
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I think men are more technical, not only in their interests but also in the way they want to access those interests (yes, a sweeping generalisation!) I read a wide range of books while the only books my boyfriend will pick up are non-fiction and it has to be for a reason. He's much happier doing stuff on his computer or fixing things. He also likes the idea that an e-reader can hold more books than…
My boyfriend fully admits that he will read more when he has an e-reader and can download books.<br />
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I think men are more technical, not only in their interests but also in the way they want to access those interests (yes, a sweeping generalisation!) I read a wide range of books while the only books my boyfriend will pick up are non-fiction and it has to be for a reason. He's much happier doing stuff on his computer or fixing things. He also likes the idea that an e-reader can hold more books than a shelf and won't clutter up his pretty minamalist house!<br />
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I, on the other hand, dread the day that I won't have bookshelves crammed full of books....<br />
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My brother, on the other hand, does like to read but tends to read books that have been bought for him. My mother is also an avid reader and shares his taste for Andy McNab and Christopher Brookmyer so he knows that she'll buy them and let him borrow them.<br />
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I don't think shopping has anything to do with it. I hate shopping (unless it's for food) and as much as I love books, I'd rather buy online and have them delivered. Plus, I spend much less money that way.... Ah, yes. I suspect that the m…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-16:537324:Comment:2350702010-05-16T13:40:07.250ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
Ah, yes. I suspect that the midlist is heavily supported by women. I also suspect that the titles women buy are of the type that are turned out quickly and by a very large number of authors so that they compete with each other and none reaches top sales points. Romance comes to mind, though genre in general exists mostly in the midlist.
Ah, yes. I suspect that the midlist is heavily supported by women. I also suspect that the titles women buy are of the type that are turned out quickly and by a very large number of authors so that they compete with each other and none reaches top sales points. Romance comes to mind, though genre in general exists mostly in the midlist. I have a problem with the 80%…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-16:537324:Comment:2350622010-05-16T05:21:19.864ZTimothy Hallinanhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/munyink
I have a problem with the 80% figure that's being thrown around. Either it's wrong, which I think it is, or more women read more male writers than they do female.<br />
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Top 10 fiction titles of 2009, according to AC Nielsen -- 5 male and 5 female writers<br />
Top 10 fiction titles of 2009, according to Barnes & Noble -- 6 male, 4 female<br />
Top 10 fiction titles this week, according to USA Today -- 5 male, 5 female<br />
Top 10 titles for 2009, according to Amazon.com -- 7 men, 2 women, 1 by "authors from…
I have a problem with the 80% figure that's being thrown around. Either it's wrong, which I think it is, or more women read more male writers than they do female.<br />
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Top 10 fiction titles of 2009, according to AC Nielsen -- 5 male and 5 female writers<br />
Top 10 fiction titles of 2009, according to Barnes & Noble -- 6 male, 4 female<br />
Top 10 fiction titles this week, according to USA Today -- 5 male, 5 female<br />
Top 10 titles for 2009, according to Amazon.com -- 7 men, 2 women, 1 by "authors from Lifetime Television"<br />
Top 10 best-selling authors of the decade, Amazon.com -- 7 men, 3 women<br />
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This is misleading because, for example, if I'd done the NY Times list for this week, there would be three titles by James Patterson (!) -- but the drift is that more of the books that sell the most are written by men, even if it's marginal at times. It may very well be, though, that of the enormous number of non-best-sellers -- solid-selling books that do well without cracking the top ten lists, many more may be written by women than by men.<br />
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I agree that the publishing industry is biased toward women, but not that the sales are as skewed as people seem to think. The entire ratings system on television was geared for 25 years toward the 18-49 demographic because it was "the group most likely to change brand names." Honest. And that turns out to be hogwash. I liked all their books very…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-14:537324:Comment:2349682010-05-14T12:58:31.034ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
I liked all their books very much, but THE INDIAN BRIDE is also my favorite. :)
I liked all their books very much, but THE INDIAN BRIDE is also my favorite. :) We do not all write formula,…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-13:537324:Comment:2349352010-05-13T21:18:28.831ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
We do not all write formula, and Haiku isn't formula just because the form is fixed. It's what you do within that form that is original. The problems arise when authors are told that romance novels, for example, must have certain characters and events and a certain number of love scenes in rigidly prescribed places.<br />
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And superheroes are boring to me. Give me an ordinary guy trying to cope with realistic odds. Similarly, a clean little murder in a group of quilters or among cake decorators, cat…
We do not all write formula, and Haiku isn't formula just because the form is fixed. It's what you do within that form that is original. The problems arise when authors are told that romance novels, for example, must have certain characters and events and a certain number of love scenes in rigidly prescribed places.<br />
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And superheroes are boring to me. Give me an ordinary guy trying to cope with realistic odds. Similarly, a clean little murder in a group of quilters or among cake decorators, cat fanciers, female preachers and choir members also does nothing for me. Murder is a violent business, especially for the victim. Unfortunately, many cozy readers look at it as no more serious than a nasty little piece of gossip to entertain them. As a rule, the victim in cozies is unpleasant and thus expendable. That is formula.<br />
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I read more male authors, but make exceptions for some of the women, notably for such fine writers as Karin Fossum or Ruth Rendell. Nope, I'm not an exception. S…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-13:537324:Comment:2349322010-05-13T19:43:30.043ZNeil Nyrenhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/NeilNyren
Nope, I'm not an exception. Some publishers go more one way than the other, of course, depending on what they're good at, but most try to cover the waterfront.
Nope, I'm not an exception. Some publishers go more one way than the other, of course, depending on what they're good at, but most try to cover the waterfront. Ah, Neil. I was wondering whe…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-13:537324:Comment:2349282010-05-13T18:14:39.154ZB.R.Statehamhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/BRStateham
Ah, Neil. I was wondering when you were going to jump into this fracas.<br />
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I'm not saying publishers should give up selling books to women. Far from it. I agree--why give up a good thing? On the other hand, your success in breaking your selection of books down to a kind of parity between the sexes (and I applaud you for this) . . . I wonder. Is this true across the publishing market? Or are you an exception to the rule?
Ah, Neil. I was wondering when you were going to jump into this fracas.<br />
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I'm not saying publishers should give up selling books to women. Far from it. I agree--why give up a good thing? On the other hand, your success in breaking your selection of books down to a kind of parity between the sexes (and I applaud you for this) . . . I wonder. Is this true across the publishing market? Or are you an exception to the rule? I'm left to wonder a bit abou…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-13:537324:Comment:2349272010-05-13T18:14:34.068ZJon Loomishttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonLoomis
I'm left to wonder a bit about what might have happened if my/John's publisher had actually tried to follow-up on all the free national publicity my two books with them have gotten via print and radio--I really don't know the answer to that. There's no question that prominent reviews and national media exposure have a profound effect on sales--but in my case not enough to crack the best-seller lists without help from my publisher. Once they decide that your series is small, then by God it's…
I'm left to wonder a bit about what might have happened if my/John's publisher had actually tried to follow-up on all the free national publicity my two books with them have gotten via print and radio--I really don't know the answer to that. There's no question that prominent reviews and national media exposure have a profound effect on sales--but in my case not enough to crack the best-seller lists without help from my publisher. Once they decide that your series is small, then by God it's small, even if it sort of isn't.<br />
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I actually think of my novels as hard-boiled comedies with cozy elements--if your idea of "cozy" includes police officers having torrid affairs with six-foot African American transsexuals, and the finding of human heads in tanks full of lobsters. I think there's a lot of hype…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-05-13:537324:Comment:2349262010-05-13T18:05:36.267ZNeil Nyrenhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/NeilNyren
I think there's a lot of hyperventilating going on here about nothing. More women than men buy books, absolutely true, so it'd be pretty darn silly for publishers not to publish books that they'd hope would tap into that market. But there are also tons of male-oriented writers, and tons of buyers for them. The bulk of my own personal list, both fiction and nonfiction, veers more to men than women -- though we try to bring in women readers for them, too, of course, because we're not stupid --…
I think there's a lot of hyperventilating going on here about nothing. More women than men buy books, absolutely true, so it'd be pretty darn silly for publishers not to publish books that they'd hope would tap into that market. But there are also tons of male-oriented writers, and tons of buyers for them. The bulk of my own personal list, both fiction and nonfiction, veers more to men than women -- though we try to bring in women readers for them, too, of course, because we're not stupid -- and I can tell you, those books are doing just fine.<br />
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So, John -- you are absolutely right.