They Can’t All Be Hunger Games

JK Rowling made headlines all week with the stunning leak that she published another book last April, this time a detective novel that she penned under the pseudonym Robert Gilbraith. From having to immediately answer questions about why she chose to launch it quietly, and then quickly having to field the accusations that the pen name and the so-called leak of the news were just publicity stunts, the industry overlooked the real underlying issue: she got burned when she tried to write anything other than Harry Potter books, as the backlash over A Casual Vacancy demonstrated. Instead of looking for another instant hit generated by months of anticipation and buzz, Rowling quietly wrote her book. In what would at first look like unrelated news, Scholastic’s fiscal report for the fourth quarter (ending May 31, 2013) was released, showing a severe drop in sales compared to the same quarter from the year before. Severe in this case means very close to $200 million. The report also outlined the steps the largest children’s publisher in the world is trying to take in order to make 2014 a little brighter, something that its board and its investors are probably clamoring for and industry analysts may be ringing a death knell over. Here’s where the two very different stories are related. Scholastic’s heart-stopping loss isn’t because the company isn’t putting out great content; it’s because last year saw the release of the megahit The Hunger Games, a series that at one point had all three books in the trilogy in the top ten of the USA Today bestseller list. And while the fiscal loss isn’t something to be dismissed, it does speak volumes about the content that Scholastic invests in. Instead of throwing darts at the “next big thing” and trying to force Hunger Games-style successes every year, it outlines a plan to find the next great series in order to bring it to readers. Back to Gilbraith/Rowling. After the absolute hype over a book that audiences ended up only feeling lukewarm about, Rowling saw an opportunity to simply do her job while still forgoing the sensationalism of the industry. Face it, readers would line up to buy autographed copies of her grocery list, and she knows it. But instead of also throwing darts and trying to churn out another crowd-pleaser, she wrote the book she wanted to write, only this time, she didn’t bother to tell us because she didn’t want to hear about it for months. The reading community has every right to believe that both Scholastic and Ms. Rowling will produce something amazing again in the near future. For now, both are playing it safe and taking their time in creating content that will ultimately speak to their fans. The rest of the publishing industry would be wise to follow their example. They Can’t All Be Hunger Games is a post from: E-Reader News

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