Zeitgeist Report

Zeitgeist Report

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Zeitgeist Report episodes

  • The Future of Sci-Fi: What Authors Need to Know
    Science fiction is changing, and so are its readers. The cultural landscape that shaped the last 40 years of sci-fi is shifting, including thoughts about wokeness, AI, WWIII, population, and more. If you're still writing about overused and cliched sci-fi themes, you're missing the mark.
    In this week's episode of Novel Marketing, we explore:
    Why climate-change narratives are losing their grip on sci-fi readers
    How population change can impact the next big sci-fi stories
    The new role of AI in the sci-fi genre
    How today's global conflicts hint at the future of war in sci-fi
    Understanding these shifts will help you write more compelling stories that stand out in a genre desperate for fresh perspectives. Listen in or read the blog version to dive into the essentials of writing a sci-fi novel amidst evolving themes like population collapse and AI advancements.
    Blog Version: https://www.authormedia.com/the-sci-fi-zeitgeist-has-shifted-what-authors-need-to-know/
    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/novelmarketing
    00:00 Introduction
    01:01 Declining Interest in Climate Change
    07:18 The Myth of Overpopulation
    10:30 Trust The Experts?
    14:08 What to Write About
    15:33 Population Collapse
    17:24 Totalitarian Control
    19:45 AI
    21:59 Woke Mind Virus
    24:55 Fiscal Collapse
    29:12 World War III
    35:28 A Great Time to be a Sci-Fi Author
    38 min
  • Is Traditional Publishing Dying? Surprising Trends in 2025
    Blog Version: https://www.authormedia.com/is-traditional-publishing-dying-surprising-trends-authors-cant-ignore-in-2025/
    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/novelmarketing
    PRH Trial: https://www.authormedia.com/publishing-industry-secrets-revealed-at-the-penguin-random-house-trial/
    Hybrid Publishing: https://youtu.be/ut8pEWuid18
    Zeitgeist Episode: https://youtu.be/kV-2Uckv184
    How to Write Novels Men Want to Read: https://youtu.be/da3NiVM3IcQ
    00:00 Introduction
    00:26 Traditional Publishing Secrets
    02:46 New Publishing Model
    06:00 Rise in Romantasy
    06:51 Rise in Premium Books
    08:37 Readers Step Right
    12:14 Rise in Religious Book Sales
    15:26 Shifting Zeitgeist
    18:24 AI Infiltration
    22:00 GPT Predictions
    33 min
  • How to Write Stories Readers Will Love by Knowing the Zeitgeist
    Blog version: https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-write-stories-readers-will-love-by-knowing-the-zeitgeist/
    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/novelmarketing
    As Yoda says, “Difficult to see the future is.” But difficult is not impossible. Causes have effects, and the more you have a sense of the rhythms of the past, the better you can sense the future. 
    If it takes you two years to write a book, you owe it to yourself to ask, “What kinds of books will be popular in two years?” Reader preferences change over time, but sometimes they change rapidly. If you don’t keep up, you may get stuck writing a book people no longer want to read. 
    So, how can you determine what will be popular in a few years?
    In this week’s episode, I speak with Alexander Macris about how history’s cyclical patterns can give us clues about what types of literature will resonate in the future. You’ll learn
    * Why certain themes and plots are failing miserably in our current moment
    * Where to find past ideas that are likely to resonate in the future
    * Why certain themes resonate at different times in history
    Listen in or read the blog version of this episode to get a head start on writing a book with themes that will resonate with readers in the future.
    1 hr 9 min
  • How to Write Stories Readers Will Love by Knowing the Zeitgeist
    Blog version: https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-write-stories-readers-will-love-by-knowing-the-zeitgeist/
    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/novelmarketing
    As Yoda says, “Difficult to see the future is.” But difficult is not impossible. Causes have effects, and the more you have a sense of the rhythms of the past, the better you can sense the future. 
    If it takes you two years to write a book, you owe it to yourself to ask, “What kinds of books will be popular in two years?” Reader preferences change over time, but sometimes they change rapidly. If you don’t keep up, you may get stuck writing a book people no longer want to read. 
    So, how can you determine what will be popular in a few years?
    In this week’s episode, I speak with Alexander Macris about how history’s cyclical patterns can give us clues about what types of literature will resonate in the future. You’ll learn
    * Why certain themes and plots are failing miserably in our current moment
    * Where to find past ideas that are likely to resonate in the future
    * Why certain themes resonate at different times in history
    Listen in or read the blog version of this episode to get a head start on writing a book with themes that will resonate with readers in the future.
    1 hr 9 min
  • How to Write Novels Men Want to Read
    Explore the reasons men may not be reading novels published by big publishers. Find out how this product-market mismatch affects male readers.
    Blog Version: https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-write-novels-men-want-to-read/
    Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/novelmarketing
    57 min

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Zeitgeist Report