I attended a Zoom meeting the other day, where the facilitators were leading a discussion about how the COVID-19 crisis has impacted book sales. One of them mentioned the angle Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella, is putting on the whole thing. He sees the world moving through three phases:
Responding to the immediate impact through office closures, cost cuts and the like
Recovery, which will be more like a “dial” than a “switch,” as adjustments are made to help us fit the new normal
Reimagining, the phase where innovations born of necessity during the previous two phases will emerge
Phase three is the birthplace for the new millionaires, business owners, and thought leaders—the best-selling books and sold-out conferences and speaking engagements. Can’t you imagine how? You have a new idea or way of thinking that helps people recover and thrive during and after this time, you and your ideas—as you execute them—will be in demand yielding book deals, speaking engagements, consulting work, or new production demands on your company or small business, patents, innovations, and more. This will happen for many of you.
Then, sitting as a prime example of these phases in perpetual motion, Nadella shares his perspective with interviewers as Microsoft’s stock is “up 14 percent this year; it is sitting on nearly $140 billion in cash; and it looks likely to emerge from the pandemic stronger than ever.” (“What Satya Nadella Thinks,” The New York Times, May 14, 2020).
In response to Nadella’s statements, one of the facilitators in our meeting noted that phases 2 and 3 need to be happening simultaneously to see things really turn around for individuals, businesses, and the book industry, specifically. I also believe this is true.
Take a Step Back
While reports from Publisher's Weekly and others are saying that book sales are up, which is so good for the industry as a whole, it's important for the savvy author or publisher to ask follow-up questions: "Book sales are up where? In what categories."
There are things we need to be sensitive to as people who create things for the benefit of others. Listening to them, sensing their needs, and meeting them is part of the driving force for what we do. Their buying decisions drive the reports that lead us into the phases listed above, and they buy based on how they feel about themselves and the world around them. Do you get what I am saying? Being keen on understanding the needs, desires, and motivations of your audience is key to our successfully fulfilling our roles as content providers. Being numb or ignorant to them, as I've mentioned before, leaves no reason to be writing and publishing.
This is why much of the advice to aspiring and new authors is geared toward the importance of watching trends and paying attention to the market. New editors and those entering the industry in various capacities are given the same advice. Our effectiveness depends on our awareness.
What was interesting for me after coming from the meeting is that what trends were up just before the crisis—leadership, women’s topics, and other topics in general adult nonfiction—are down during and coming out of the crisis? What categories were low or average before the crisis—devotionals, personal finance, outdoor skills, games and activities, and fiction, especially for kids—are soaring during the crisis? Coming out of this, topics on recovering mentally, spiritually, and financially will be in demand, and Publisher’s Weekly gave some examples of what kinds of faith-based books are selling well during the COVID-19 crisis.
So the big questions for you, writer, is how do you pivot?
If you had been writing toward one thing before the crisis that is in a category people are not gravitating to right now, how do you shift? Do you just keep working on what you have now, not knowing if it will still be in demand later? Or, do you begin to reimagine what message you have that will fill a current need?
The answer is yes. All of the above. And you do it quickly as the Spirit is leading—on your blog or podcast, in an ebook or quick print book through print-on-demand with companies like IngramSpark. And technology is rising up to support your nimble virtual creativity.
Be Flexible
The nature of our position as writers of faith is to always be ready to move with the Spirit of God. On Day 13 of my book Pray Hear Write, I write about the necessity of being flexible. The leading Scripture verse for that day is from Jude 1:3, where the apostle had planned to write to a group of believers about one thing but instead felt a need to pivot and write to them about something else. I chose the Contemporary English Version to show how he expressed the shift:
My dear friends, I really wanted to write you about God's saving power at work in our lives. But instead, I must write and ask you to defend the faith that God has once for all given to his people.
He really thought he was about to write some fire! But no, it wasn’t what was needed at the time. So for you, I pray, as I prayed in my book, “that you will be ready when the Lord wants to flip the script on you so that you can stay right in line with His right-now (rhema) word for His people. I pray that by the power of God’s Spirit you will remain tuned in to the subtle changes in the wind of the Spirit. When it blows left, you go left. When it blows right, you go right. I pray also that the Lord will download to you the strategy on how to shift the message or words. Does He want you to repurpose what you began? Or do you put it aside for now and start fresh?”
Pray this for yourself too. God will answer and help you.
Make Purposeful Pivots
Near the beginning of the stay-at-home orders and social distancing guidelines, my friend and founder of Entrusted Women, Kia Stephens, had the foresight to provide the women in the group with encouragement and resources to effectively navigate what have been some of the most unstable times in our recent history. She called the conversation series Purposeful Pivots. Then she invited me to join this conversation to talk about “How to Make a Professional Move That Could Change Your Life.”
Much of what we discussed shines a bright light on what it looks like to respond to crises and challenges of various kinds, how to recover, and sometimes simultaneously reimagine. You can watch our live talk here. I pray it encourages and emboldens you to make the necessary pivots, to recover and reimagine your new norm, and to be ready always to move with God.
If this encouraged you or challenged you in a good way, check out my other two articles on the COVID-19 crisis and writing:
“How Authors Can Respond to Industry Changes in the Age of COVID-19”
“In the Midst of It All, Your Writing Still Matters”
God bless you, and keep praying, hearing, and writing!