The secret DNA behind bestsellers

Is it possible to predict whether a book will sell well? Former publisher Jodie Archer and Matthew L Jockers, of Stanford University’s Literary Lab, built an algorithm to find outYour program can identify, from scanning 20,000 books, ones which made the New York Times bestseller lists with 80% accuracy, and one of your key discoveries was that the topics covered in a novel – marriage, work, technology – are more important than its genre in terms of predicting its success. Why?JA: If you look at a bestseller list, you might think it was very diverse in genre – a Stephen King alongside a Jojo Moyes. But certain topics were strong indicators of a bestseller, regardless of genre. “Human closeness” came out on top. This doesn’t mean romance – it could be talking with someone you are intimate with or shopping with a parent. It may be to do with pacing – when Dan Brown knows he has to slow his pace down a little bit and let the characters reflect before a big chase scene in the Vatican, his characters talk it out. John Grisham does it perfectly because in all the legal machinations and suspense and back stabbing, there are always scenes where a lawyer gets a bottle of red wine and a Chinese takeaway and sits on the couch with his female counterpart and they chew the cud for a bit. It is almost the opposite of a formulaic how-to; make a boy meet a girl, make them fall out. Related: Bestselling books 2015: Fifty Shades still on top Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-09-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oliver Sacks, neurologist and bestselling author, dies at 82

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[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-08-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This Week's Bestsellers: August 31, 2015

It’s homecoming week for fans of Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers, with the sequel to their picture-book hit ‘The Day the Crayons Quit.’ Plus big new books from nationally syndicated broadcaster Glenn Beck and popular Christian blogger Jen Hatmaker, and other notable debuts. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple iBooks Category Bestsellers, August 23, 2015

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Secret Garden colouring book sells 3m copies in China

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Secret Garden colouring-in book sells 3m copies in China

Bestseller in global craze for adult versions of children’s favourites scores dazzling success in the People’s RepublicThree million copies of Johanna Basford’s adult colouring book Secret Garden have been sold in China in less than three months, its publisher has announced, dubbing Beijing the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-08-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How to Survive the Cruel Times: Life Lessons from Bestselling Rabbi Harold Kushner

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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iBooks Bestsellers: Brown Takes #2

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple iBooks Category Bestsellers, August 16, 2015

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This Week's Bestsellers: August 24, 2015

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Guardian | 2015-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Guardian | 2015-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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