2020 changed the landscape of everything and the book publishing industry was no exception. Book publishing trends in 2021 show just how much this landscape has changed. Writers found ways to adapt to a rapidly changing market. However, writers have been dealing with an ever-changing landscape for years but even that experience wasn’t enough to prepare us for the reality of a pandemic.
The digital landscape took a huge unprecedented leap forward as people sought things to keep themselves occupied. We experience a higher demand than ever, which really drove up expectations going into 2021.
With that said, here are the book publishing trends in 2021 that we should stay on the lookout for as we move into the New Year.
Trend #1: Audiobooks Will Continue to Grow in Demand
Audiobooks continue to trend upward year-after-year with companies like Amazon making it easy for authors to publish. However, audiobook submissions are far stricter so the quality of this selection is generally higher than eBooks and paperbacks.
Trend #2: Authors Themselves Become the Message
One of the most common misconceptions with publishing is that beginners believe if they are signed by a traditional publisher, then the majority of messaging is done for them. But it’s surprising to discover that both traditional and self-publishing require the same amount of marketing from the author. As the market becomes more saturated with new self-published books, readers will pay more attention to the author’s message when deciding to buy a book.
Trend #3: Plagiarism is Growing Rampant
Plagiarism is a horrible trend that continues to grow rampant. One of the downsides to publishing being so easy today is that it baits a lot of content stealers. These people will copy books, change just enough to make it hard to detect, and then republish the book under a different title. Register a copyright with every book you publish. You can also use tools like Google Alert to receive a warning whenever specific text appears online.
Trend #4: Google Play Will Become More Popular
Sign up and get a publishing account on Google Play. This platform continues to grow in popularity and I fully expect it to fully compete with Amazon by the end of the 2020s. So you’re encouraged to sign up today and get your foot in the door.
Trend #5: Self-Publishing Focuses on User-Experience
One of the biggest issues with self-publishing is how many bad books are allowed on the market. We’re starting to see quality control measures being put in place to improve the user experience. As artificial technology becomes more advanced, we’ll see more improvements in these measures. As authors, we must focus on quality over quantity. Furthermore, we have to adapt to a user-first market and enhance the accessibility of our books.
Final Thoughts on Book Publishing Trends in 2021
As you move forward, make sure you’re learning everything you can to improve. Collaborate with other authors, join conversations, and stay on top of new trends. Being successful in the book publishing industry requires continued growth. The landscape changes so frequently that you’ll miss out on huge opportunities if you’re not paying attention to these book publishing trends in 2021.