I know when I began writing I believed my work to be wholly and completely unique and my own. Why would I want to find other authors to whom I am similar? Why would I want my book to be like someone else's story?
As I learn about publishing and what it will take to get my baby out into the world I discovered that it is actually important to know which authors and which books are similar to you and your story. It is also very important to know how your story is different from these comparison authors and books.
When you are pitching your story to an agent, a publisher or a potential buyer you have to be able to tell them your story is like an author or book that they already know and love and then how your book is different so they know they have not already read your story and now they know why they want to read your book.
Take a moment to read the reviews of books, the book synopsis, the blurbs, and you will see many of them contain comparisons to other popular books or authors.
If you are an unknown author knowing your comparison author or story are very important to selling your book to the right audience and helping your audience find you.
Go to your local bookstore and ask the staff what books they have that are similar to yours. Purchase them and start reading. When you find the one that you think is the best comparison you can go back to the bookstore or go to Amazon and see the recommendations that pop up for people who bought that story. Then read those books. Now you have your arsenal full and can talk with agents and publishers intelligently about how your book compares and is different to these other wonderful published books.
Happy reading.
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