How to Find Compelling Comps for Your Book

“paper snowflakes” by miheco is licensed nether CC BY-SA 2.0

Today’s station is by writer Star Wuerdemann (@starwuerdemann).

When you commencement querying agents astir your book, very quickly you’ll observe their guidelines inquire for “comps.” Comps stands for “comparable titles”: books that mightiness beryllium considered comparable to your own.

For galore writers, coming up pinch comps is simply a daunting enterprise, but nan important point to retrieve is their cardinal purpose: to show wherever your book would beryllium shelved successful a shop aliases who your astir apt readers are. Everyone from agents to publishing income group to booksellers will person an easier clip knowing what your book is for illustration aliases who it’s for if a comparison tin beryllium made. “If you liked X, past you’ll for illustration Y.” It besides shows that you cognize thing astir nan existent marketplace and really your book fits successful it.

On my quest to constitute nan cleanable query letter, I sewage stuck connected what comps to use. I channeled my vexation into research. Here is what I learned from nan experts.

Per Jane Friedman

• If you can’t find any, you are astir apt looking for excessively akin of a comp. Look astatine aspects of a activity that subordinate to yours: style/voice, themes, plot, aliases characteristic quality/journey.
• Focus your hunt connected nan past fewer years. You tin spell backmost up to 10 years if perfectly basal but if you do, brace nan older comp pinch thing much contemporary.
• Try to find a comp that will show wherever you’re positioned successful today’s literate landscape. If you were connected a sheet pinch different authors astatine a book festival, who would beryllium seated adjacent to you?

Per Carly Watters, literate supplier astatine P.S. Literary

• The comp must beryllium perfect: nary comp is amended than a mediocre comp.
• It’s OK to usage film/TV arsenic comps, arsenic good arsenic authors and podcasts alternatively of books.
• Do your champion to find astatine slightest 1 comp.
• The comp tin beryllium a bestseller, but if a book has go ubiquitous, it is excessively celebrated to beryllium a comp. 
• You tin usage nan pursuing formulations to talk astir your comps: “This (x) meets that (y)” aliases “in nan contented of” aliases “Like Y, my novel.”
• Consider your category/genre and wherever your book fits successful nan publishing world. How would your book beryllium pitched?

Per nan precocious Janet Reid (aka Query Shark)

• Comps are a shorthand for wherever nan book belongs connected nan support and/or what benignant of scholar will for illustration nan book.
• What books, published successful nan past 2 years, appealed to readers who will for illustration your book? “[TITLE] will entreaty to readers of _______”
• What books, published successful nan past 2 years, are akin successful crippled aliases reside to yours? “[TITLE] evokes nan communicative of ______”
• Describe what facet of nan book is comparable to yours: nan tone, nan aggregate points of view, nan style, et cetera.
• Once there’s a movie, presume nan book is not a bully comp. Also presume this if nan writer has 20+ bestsellers. Ask: Is it a occurrence aliases a phenomenon? If it’s a success, comp it!

What I did to find my comps

• I looked astatine my ain bookshelves. Maggie Cooper, a literate supplier pinch Aevitas, emphasizes that we often publication books that are successful nan aforesaid genre and power our ain writing.
• I asked librarians. I told them nan “dust jacket” type of my book, on pinch themes and writers I deliberation I’m akin to.
• I asked different writers, particularly those successful my penning group and beta readers who cognize my book.
• I went to section independent bookstores, asked nan booksellers, and browsed nan shelves. At each store, I bought a mates of books to read—I considered it costs for nan booksellers’ clip and input.
• I utilized EBSCO NoveList (accessed done my section library). This is particularly adjuvant for akin themes, styles, and characters. It’s a awesome spot to put successful older titles and find much caller ones.
• Goodreads and Amazon; I recovered these adjuvant for akin readers and akin genre books. I could besides spot really celebrated a title was based connected nan number of reviews. I recovered respective books that would beryllium fantabulous comps but nan book wasn’t well-known capable truthful I couldn’t usage it (but I did adhd immoderate awesome books to my TBR pile).
• I researched nan past 3 years of “best of” lists. My book is literate fiction, truthful I looked for articles astir “best literate fiction” successful 2018, 2019, 2020.
• I researched debut books of nan past 3 years successful my genre.
• I checked retired a ton of books done nan room to perceive to and read. This was nan slightest achy part—getting to publication different books! (Please don’t comp a book you haven’t read. It’s bad form, and it whitethorn very good not extremity up being an due comp.)
• I considered what books I would expect my readers to beryllium reaching for and thought astir why—then applied this to my search.
• I discovered these websites aft my search, but would wholly cheque them retired adjacent time: BookBrowse and Literature-Map.

In nan end, I utilized a caller debut caller pinch akin themes (family secrets) and storytelling methods (multiple POV told successful alternating timelines that converge successful coming day) and paired it pinch a mystery/thriller that has nuances akin to a sub-plot successful my book. As in: “debut X meets enigma Y.” One was ace celebrated (but not ubiquitous) and 1 performed solidly pinch laudable reviews.

It took maine 2 months of diligent activity to travel up pinch my comps. A batch of it felt for illustration “wasted” time—going down net rabbit holes only to travel up empty. But nary of it was really wasted arsenic I came retired acold amended knowledgeable astir nan marketplace I’m preparing to break into. Engaging successful nan literate world and discovering what books are retired location is ever beneficial. Consider nan comp hunt some a rite of transition and a learning opportunity—and whitethorn nan likelihood beryllium ever successful your favor.*

* Don’t comp The Hunger Games. It’s ubiquitous. And excessively aged anyway.