David Caruba gave a summary of his State of Children’s Book Publishing talk, over on Kathleen Temean’s Writing and Illustrating blog.

YA remains hot! Yes!
Fantasy remains hot! Yee haw!
Dystopian and adult cross-over is sizzling! Yahoo!

I’m all over this action.

Vampires keep selling. Oh well, can’t win them all.

I want to comment on one point that David makes:

Market trend bad: publishers looking for “blockbuster books” (more pressure on authors to sell thousands of copies), publishers insisting on writers revising without contract, and publishers acquiring based on rumors of what Stephanie Myers’ next book will be about.

I’m not sure why publishers looking for blockbuster books is bad. I say this as an author who has yet to sell a book. For me, I see this desire for blockbusters as a good thing. It means that if a publisher finally picks me up, he is doing it because he thinks my debut might have blockbuster potential, and it means that he is willing to put some marketing money and elbow grease behind my book. Now after I sell a book…if my debut doesn’t meet expectations, I know I’ll be singing a different tune. But right now, I have the same desire as the publisher. I want to craft a book that is so compelling that each reader tells ten friends they have got to read this new book.

I do hope publishers will give books time to build, but I don’t want them to quit searching for and contracting books that are good enough to be blockbusters. What’s the alternative? Contracting books that aren’t very good and that won’t appeal to very many people? Why would anyone want to do that? Yes, we want thoughtful books, written with beauty and grace, but there is nothing to say we can’t put thought and beauty into interesting books with great and exciting premises.

Believing that, I also think it’s fine for publishers to insist on revisions prior to contracting books. I want to be pushed to write the best book I have in me. I want an editor who can grasp what I’m trying to do and who can help me accomplish that. I think an editor willing to take the time to work with untried authors and to share her expertise to bring authors along is a God-send.

The editor has to take the book to committee and has to be able to say, “This is a great book. It’s ready to go. It’s going to sell. I know the author is easy to work with and is willing to market and is able to take direction and will work her butt off to sell this book.” I figure if I’ve worked with editor prior to her taking the book to committee she is going to be better able to whip up excitement for me in-house, and that’s where the excitement has to start.

Now to the last point that David makes—that publishers are acquiring based on rumors about the topic of Myers’ next book….

Please, Lord, move Myers to write a fairytale/romance that contrasts lust and love and contentment and complacency and that has a slave girl saving the world as she struggles to grow up and learn that joy and reward come from self-sacrifice. Amen.