Why do all the hottest novels right now have the same annoying theme?

For example...'Gone Girl', 'Girl on the Train' and lets not forget..'The Good Girl'. I love juicy crime thrillers -- who doesnt? But what really irks me is that the past year or so I've noticed a reoccuring theme & obsession with mentally deranged females. They make make the top 10. Yet other novelists' work miss out on getting the recognition they truly deserve as their books don't fit the 'mold of what the public want' Now we have greatly 'acclaimed' fiction reading like a low budget crime soap!...Seriously?? :/ These so-called 'authors' (usually always ex-journalists living in London might I add!) Know next to nothing about the true craft of spending years meticulously writing a novel (Donna Tartt) Who deserved to be number 1 with The Goldfinch!! These authors display a shocking attempt at what Literature really is! Rant over...Anyone else feel the same here?

Reply 1

the bear

well you know what to do.... write your own best seller with a completely different theme.

Reply 2

PinkMobilePhone

Volunteer Team

I don't write crime thrillers, if that helps :wink:

Have a gander at my website if you like :

THESE BOOKS ARE NOT CRIME THRILLERS WITH MENTALLY DERANGED FEMALES

Not that I'm a bestseller...yet :wink:

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 3

the bear

Original post by PinkMobilePhone

I don't write crime thrillers, if that helps :wink:

Have a gander at my website if you like :

THESE BOOKS ARE NOT CRIME THRILLERS WITH MENTALLY DERANGED FEMALES

Not that I'm a bestseller...yet :wink:

hehehe well done ! i write crime novels under the name Randy K Hollowbone.

Reply 4

PinkMobilePhone

Volunteer Team

Original post by the bear

hehehe well done ! i write crime novels under the name Randy K Hollowbone.

Crime novels with mentally deranged females? :wink:

Reply 5

username1221160

It makes a change from the bitter, middle-aged, alcoholic male detective, right?

Best seller lists are always dominated by the pulp of the moment, be it crime novels, the latest young adult fiction or how to lose 50 lbs by only eating fetid mushrooms. It is a reflection of the UK's literary tastes. Unfortunately more high brow novels do not sell very well. Yes, there are some exceptions (Wolf Hall), but is it not uncommon for Booker nominees to only shift a few hundred copies.

Reply 6

NeverTooLatte

"true craft of spending years meticulously writing a novel" - tell this to Stephen King, who wrote some of his work in a year!!!

If you don't read that genre, like I often don't, I wouldn't have noticed this "theme" going on. "Hottest" theme is something almost everyone notices, despite preferred genre, such as the Twilight craze and the surge of hottest themes until that died down. Think about how much money those after books made, along with dystopian fiction which blasted onto our screens. And let's not forget what you describe as a number 1 could easily be someone's worst book ever.

I'm not sure what occupation has to do with it either. Unless famous, authors don't make a lot of money. A large portion goes to the publisher and their agent (if they have one) leaving them with about 10%. It's a business, and what sells will be published. Bandwagon or no.