A conversation with life-writer, podcaster and academic, Elaine Gregersen about the promise and pitfalls of life writing, and its parallels with social media
urgh I can imagine. Imagining the proof is in the pudding of the sales figures of memoir, I'd be wanting to get curious about WHY memoir doesn't sell. I mean, assuming Jen Louden is right, and publishers themselves don't really know how to sell books, then maybe the problem isn't in the memoir but in how they're packaged and promoted? It seems so reductive to just accept the received wisdom and shrug your shoulders... but then this is perhaps another example of how conservative an industry publishing is.
It is a really confusing one. Having worked in a different area of publishing for many years - higher education - predicting sales based on courses available and numbers of students was more straightforward because essentially we were publishing for a captive market. But the success of the book still relied on great writing, accessibility etc, as there were many options available for each course leader to choose which book/online materials they wanted to recommend. I think one of the issues with memoir is that publishers aren't clear on where it sits in the market. Many memoirs read like fiction - the fact that they are based on lived experience (isn't most art?!) makes little difference to the reading experience imo. And some are considered self-help, some literary, some a cross between the two. I'm just not sure we know exactly who buys them - apart from me and Elaine whose shelves very much resemble mine!! But so many do so well and have such longevity. It is a deeply frustrating trend and I agree so much with Elaine's comment that important stories need to be out there and find a well-received home.
Brilliant conversation thank you so much. ‘Memoir doesn’t sell’ is my least favourite saying of 2024 🙄
urgh I can imagine. Imagining the proof is in the pudding of the sales figures of memoir, I'd be wanting to get curious about WHY memoir doesn't sell. I mean, assuming Jen Louden is right, and publishers themselves don't really know how to sell books, then maybe the problem isn't in the memoir but in how they're packaged and promoted? It seems so reductive to just accept the received wisdom and shrug your shoulders... but then this is perhaps another example of how conservative an industry publishing is.
It is a really confusing one. Having worked in a different area of publishing for many years - higher education - predicting sales based on courses available and numbers of students was more straightforward because essentially we were publishing for a captive market. But the success of the book still relied on great writing, accessibility etc, as there were many options available for each course leader to choose which book/online materials they wanted to recommend. I think one of the issues with memoir is that publishers aren't clear on where it sits in the market. Many memoirs read like fiction - the fact that they are based on lived experience (isn't most art?!) makes little difference to the reading experience imo. And some are considered self-help, some literary, some a cross between the two. I'm just not sure we know exactly who buys them - apart from me and Elaine whose shelves very much resemble mine!! But so many do so well and have such longevity. It is a deeply frustrating trend and I agree so much with Elaine's comment that important stories need to be out there and find a well-received home.