| Re: Introductions
If a new SF writer asks me which recent novelists they should read to get a snapshot of the commercial field in 2007, I'd include Alastair Reynolds, Richard Morgan, Neal Asher, Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Charles Stross and John Scalzi. Not everyone is going to like all of these writers - but if you are submitting an SF novel to publishers in 2007 it's pointless saying 'I want to write like...' naming an author who is no longer published, out of favour or in an area of the genre that is no longer considered commerical - or one of your favourites from the 50s or 60s. There will also sometimes be comparisons with Banks and Hamilton, of course, but any author needs to do market research, and be aware of the present situation in the market. 'Commercial' is the most important word, if publication is what you are looking for. The head buyers at book-selling chains want comparisons with two or three recently-successful writers when a publishers' sales director comes to them with a debut novel. So if an editor can't see these comparisons when you submit, your novel is likely to be rejected.
NOTE - This doesn't mean you have to write 'exactly like' those authors - just be aware of the areas of the genre in which they write. |