Is the "Dystopian" genre for YA dead?

Robert E. Parkin

Robert E. Parkin

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Basically, are publishers no longer looking or even considering titles of this nature anymore? (rather discouraging as I'm writing a Dystopian story basically).

Any thoughts on the matter? Regardless, I'm still going to write my series anyway. I just heard a rumor and wanted to get some feedback.

Anybody?
 
Although there are trends in publishing for sure, and fitting with those trends is a major bonus, I think it would be a little over the top to categorically say no publisher whatsoever will consider a book in any particular genre. If it's good enough to sell, someone out there would publish it, because at the end of the day the adherance to trends is only there to boost the money made. If your story is exactly what they weren't after, but they think it can turn a profit anyway, they'll want it.
 
Having had my non-dystopian book rejected by a few agents for feeling too dystopian I can confirm it's a hard sell at the moment to agents and that's because publishers have a glut waiting to be published. In fact all YA sf is a hard sell at the moment as dystopian has eaten into the prospective market of sf.

However, if the book is good you'll still get interest. It's just a harder sell than normal. But, if this is the book you've already self-published, I think it will be a difficult one unless the sp sales are good, as there are two big hurdles in place.

On the plus side, this has nothing to do with readers - it's a popular genre with readers - but publishing commitments and scheldules, so there's no reason it should impact on your self-published sales but, I'm afraid, it does make getting an agent harder.
 
It's simply hard to get published?

Write whatever you enjoy and can write well, then at least if no-one publishes there is some value to the effort.
 
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