The State of the Mystery Genre

Last month  Sisters in Crime (not to be confused with the Crime Sistahs) sent a publishing summit team to New York to speak to publishing professionals about the state of the mystery genre. You can click here to read the entire four part report. Here's a brief overview of what I thought were the most interesting things that publishers had to say:

1.  Thrillers are super hot right now as are cross genre books such as historical suspense.

2. Thrillers and suspense books get bigger print runs than straight mysteries.

3. Cozy mysteries are becoming a harder sell though crafting mysteries are still big.

4. In bookstores, mysteries are selling better in the fiction section than the mystery section.

5. Though thrillers are hot, mystery readers tend to be more loyal than thriller readers.

6. The most successful authors, and the ones getting the most publisher support, are the ones writing more than one book a year.

7. In order to broaden a mystery's audience, many publishers are avoiding the "mystery" label.

8. Hardcover book sales are down. Trade Paperbacks are doing well.

9. There is a demand for mysteries for younger readers.

10. Publishers like for authors to be active in book promotion.

Enjoy!

Angela