Bestseller

Writer F. Scott Fitzgerald's career itself is a metaphor for the vagaries of book publishing. If Fitzgerald would have had his way, we would today refer to The Great Gatsby as either Gold-Hatted Gatsby, Trimalchio in West Egg, or The High-Bouncing Lover. A few years before Gatsby, Fitzgerald had become a literary sensation at the age of 23; Helen Hooven Santmyer, a contemporary of Fitzgerald's, would not have a successful novel published until she was 88 and living in a nursing home. In this book, the author explores that mysterious place in publishing where art and commerce can either clash, mesh, or both. Along the way, a wide range of authors--from the literary greats to today's commercial superstars--editors, agents and publishers share their thoughts, insights and experiences: What inspires writers? (John Steinbeck, for example, wrote every novel as if it were his last, as if death were imminent.) Why are some books successful and appreciated, while others fall into oblivion? The answers are often elusive, never absolute, but the stories and anecdotes are always fascinating.

"When a story captures the imagination of millions, that's magic. Can you qualify magic? Archer and Jockers just may have done so."—Sylvia Day, New York Times bestselling author Ask most people about massive success in the world of fiction, and you’ll typically hear that it’s a game of hazy crystal balls. The sales figures of E. L. James or Dan Brown seem to be freakish—random occurrences in an unknowable market. But what if there were an algorithm that could reveal a secret DNA of bestsellers, regardless of their genre? What if it knew, just from analyzing the words alone, not just why genre writers like John Grisham and Danielle Steel belong on the lists, but also that authors such as Junot Diaz, Jodi Picoult, and Donna Tartt had telltale signs of success all over their pages? Thanks to Jodie Archer and Matthew Jockers, the algorithm exists, the code has been cracked, and the results bring fresh new insights into how fiction works and why we read. The Bestseller Code offers a new theory for why Fifty Shades of Grey sold so well. It sheds light on the current craze for dark heroines. It reveals which themes tend to sell best. And all with fascinating supporting data taken from a five-year study of twenty thousand novels. Then there is the hunt for "the one"—the paradigmatic example of bestselling writing according to a computer's analysis of thousands of points of data. The result is surprising, a bit ironic, and delightfully unorthodox. This book explains groundbreaking text-mining research in accessible terms and offers a new perspective on the New York Times bestseller list. It's a big-idea book about the relationship between creativity and technology that will be provocative to anyone interested in how analytics have already transformed the worlds of finance, medicine, and sports. But at heart it is a celebration of books for readers and writers—a compelling investigation into how successful writing works, and a fresh take on our intellectual and emotional response to stories.

eBooks are the digital equivalent of hardback or paperback books. Suitable for every genre and every person, this revolutionary way of reading has taken the world by storm. eBook readers can be standalone devices with that display digital books only, or they can be incorporated into an app that can be downloaded onto a computer, tablet or even a phone. Versatile and marketable, eBooks are the wave of the future and with an open platform for self-publishing, they can be your way to financial success. Any kernel of an idea can be transformed into an eBook, and with the right tools and the right knowledge, that eBook can become a bestseller. Yet how do you do it? How can you go from idea to publication? The process may seem complicated or even daunting, but this guide will help you get there. Easy to read and detailed, these pages lay out the truth behind the eBook; what it takes to write a successful eBook, how to market it, where to publish it, and how to get readers coming back for more. There is a writer inside of you, waiting to be heard, and with the world of eBook publication wide open, there is no time like the present to realize your dreams. This guide will help you craft your inspiration into an eBook that sells.

Writing romance and commercial fiction means knowing the rules, and this book will help you learn them and get there. If you're wondering where to start, what to do, what not to do, how to find your author brand... this book has it all and more. Just take it from the 12 bestselling authors who wrote it! Experiencing all the ups and downs of the publishing industry isn't easy, so Writing the Bestseller II will help you not only handle the work involved, but handle it well. Learning from authors who have been in your shoes, who understand the market and genre, willingly share their tips, wisdom, and encouragement so you can also succeed. What are you waiting for? Get started on your writing career today!

This book contains success stories and inspired interviews from the work of Christian publishing.

The heros, clean cut and upper-class, the heroines melting and for the most part pure.

You know those television stories about the woman who goes to the emergency room thinking she has a bad case of indigestion or kidney stones or a burst appendix and she comes home with a bouncing baby boy? Stupid woman, right? Who the heck doesn’t know she’s pregnant for nine and a half months? I used to think those mamas were one block short of a level trailer. Used to. Random Acts of Baby is the 11th book in Julia Kent's New York Times bestselling series as Darla, Trevor, and Joe go on a long, crazy journey involving a baby, living two lives, and learning who you can count on most when you need a helping hand.

This essential guide and reference work provides a unique insight into over 100 years of publishing and reading as well as taking us on a journey into the heart of the British imagination.

Richard Joseph interviews 23 of the world's most famous authors to find out just what made their books bestsellers. Readers can learn where Barbara Cartland gets her inspiration, discover what gave former jockey Dick Francis the confidence to write about horses instead of just training them and why Tom Clancy set alarm bells ringing in the Pentagon.

Read this if you want to sell more books, make more money as an author, or rank higher in your category. My name is Nick Vulich. The first thing you should know about me is I'm not a writer, and I'm not an expert on self-publishing either. I never worked in the industry, and I don't have any experience working for the big publishers. In fact, the only thing I consider myself an expert in is how to sell on eBay, Amazon, and Fiverr... So why should you listen to me? Like most indie authors, I came into publishing through the back door. I had a story to tell, and one day I just sat down and let it all come out. What I wrote wasn't pretty, or polished...but, it helped a lot of people sell more stuff on eBay. What I couldn't say with fancy prose, I made up for with enthusiasm. Because of that, my books sold. I'm not going to lie to you. It wasn't easy. I read just about every book available on self-publishing. I studied up on KDP Free days, Countdown Deals, price pulsing...

A state-of-the-art guide on how to build intelligent Web-based applications using Java Joseph and Jennifer Bigus update and significantly expand their book on building intelligent Web-based applications using Java. Geared to network programmers or Web developers who have previously programmed agents in Smalltalk or C++, this practical book explains in detail how to construct agents capable of learning and competing, including both design principles and actual code for personal agents, network or Web agents, multi-agent systems and commercial agents. New and revised coverage includes agent tools, agent uses for Web applications (including personalization, cross-selling, and e-commerce), and additional AI technologies such as fuzzy logic and genetic algorithms.