My problem with "writing to market"

One of the most common pieces of advice I hear for indie publishing is “write to market.” This means writing your book with an intended audience in mind so you can sell to them. This is sound business advice. Companies that fulfill a market demand tend to make a lot of money. However, there is a fundamental flaw: you’re not writing the book you want to write.

If you want to write a book with a unique angle (for example, a zombie apocalypse book set during an alien invasion in 14th century Peru), you will likely find it difficult to get sales. One reason why there are so many sequels and reboots in video games and movies is that a pre-established brand already has a set audience. Call of Duty has a large fanbase, which is why those games sell well every year.

I’ve seen many booktubers complain that modern books are filled with tropes and that publishers keep marketing books around tropes. Unfortunately, tropes are what make the most money. Publishers have the data on what sells and what doesn’t. If a trope-filled book outsells a unique book, the trope-filled book will be prioritized. The romance genre is very popular and it’s not known for its innovative storytelling. So, the same type of book will be made over and over again.

Writing to market is bad for the author because they can’t write what they want to write, but what the market wants. If what you want to write matches market desires, then good, but how likely is this to happen? Also, this style of writing leads to stagnation. If every author is focused on catering to the market, then many books will end up being the same, thus the domination of trope-filled books. If the market rejects authors who write outside the box, fewer unique books will be made.

I believe authors should write what they want. If we aren’t allowed to use our creativity, then what’s the point of writing? Writing appeals to me so much because I’m in control of the storytelling. If I restrict my writing style in service of market appeal, I couldn’t write anything. I keep considering writing a romance novel, but I can’t bring myself to do it because I can’t connect with that genre. I don’t even want to follow the tropes in military fiction. If people truly want less tropey books, then they have to give other books a chance. I made a point before in a previous blog post that people will be stingy on the price of an indie book in comparison to a book from a celebrity or popular author; that plays into this as well. Authors who sell successful books will have others modelling themselves after them. Authors who imitate Stephen King will likely see more success than those who do their own thing. Unfortunately, people value status over writing potential. Some people won’t buy an indie/self-pub book unless an influencer or popular reviewer recommends it. Because of this, non-tropey books aren’t given a fair chance to succeed.

At the end of the day, readers are in control of the industry. If all they want are tropes, then most of the books made will be trope-filled. If authors want to make a living, they have to write what the readers want. If you refuse to write to market, then either get used to low royalties or never publish your works.