We were discussing "High Concept" or "Commercial Appeal" at the office yesterday and realized this is something that trips up many authors and agents. So here are my very random thoughts on the subject.

What is High Concept?
First, let me say what it's not:

• It's not your whole book.
• Not inherently lowest common denominator plot (like a literary or think piece plot).
• Not just a movie pitch (Stranger Things: ET meets Aliens and every other 80s movie).
• Not another term for gimmicky.

High Concept has five elements:

1. broad appeal, 
2. ooh factor, 
3. originality, 
4. standout setting, and 
5. illuminates a universal human truth.

                      

1. The premise has broad appeal which I know is kind of vague since appeal is really subjective but the concept should be distinct, easily parsed with a clear premise that is immediately intriguing and taps into a wide range of readers' interest. A great example today was  Kami Garcia's upcoming YA pitched as Fast and the Furious meets Romeo and Juliet. You know from that high concept pitch to expect a high octane adventure with suped-up cars and star-crossed lovers in rival gangs/groups.
2. It has an "Ooh Factor" built in. Or as Corvisiero Literary Agency, Jr. Literary Agent Cate Hart put it, "where originality meets familiarity." For example:  Truthwitch by Susan Dennard – what’s original – a world of magic; what's familiar is the twisting of the Tristan and Isolde tale and the Arthurian Legend. This IT factor can be delivered in the execution or the premise – a story we know retold with a unique structure, a twist on a trope, mash-up of two genres. Think about what catches your eye in a flap copy or new TV show (again Stranger Things – the familiar of Spielberg and King, yet a new take on the classic "pre-teen friendship plus horror sci-fi" trope.) But the mash-up or trope needs to be one with wide appeal. If your mash-up is too unique or your trope is too niched, it loses its commercial appeal because not many readers may know the trope or pieces you're mashing up to go, "oooh, I can't wait to read that!"
3. Originality and Familiarity - What are the stakes? Why should we care about the protagonist's plight? The reader should engage with the main character immediately and feel like the stakes are as high for them as it is for the main character. In The Never-ending Story, Bastian is immediately immersed in this world where Atreyu's plight is tied to his own.
   Look at your stories, what are the stakes for your main character? Are they high enough to make you breathless with anticipating their next move? Will readers feel like they want to stick with your character all the way through to the end of the story and come out of it feeling like Bilbo returning from his great adventure? A little crispy, a little heartbroken and still exhilarated by the experience.
4. ​A standout setting that's still familiar enough for the reader to connect and engage (there's that word again) in. Think the Red Queen where it’s set in this distant future, but still a familiar world, or kind of like the Shannara Chronicles – 4000 years in the future and man has evolved into elves and ogres, trolls, etc. Harry Potter where the muggle world is just one part of this greater wizarding world we get to explore.
5. A Story That Illuminates Universal Human Truth. Your concept needs to be more than the book. It should challenge expectations, provide insight by illuminating a universal truth. It has to be about something that's bigger than the book (Hunger Games, a book about children killing children.)

​I hope this post is helpful when you're working on your next projects or polishing up your current WIPs for mass market appeal. The examples listed are primarily for YA and MG but they really apply to all fiction genres and age-groups.

YA / LGBT / CONTEMPORARY
j. leigh bailey
Harmony Ink Press
September 15, 2016

​No good deed goes unpunished, and for seventeen-year-old Isaiah Martin, that’s certainly the case. The gun he was caught with wasn’t even his, for God’s sake. He only had it to keep a friend from doing something stupid. No one wants to hear it though, and Isaiah is banished—or so it seems to him—to live with his missionary father in politically conflicted Cameroon, Africa.
However, when he arrives, his father is so busy doing his good deeds that he sends Henry, the young, surprisingly hot do-gooder with a mysterious past, to pick up Isaiah and keep him out of trouble. Even while Isaiah is counting down the days until he can go home, he and Henry get caught in the political unrest of the region. Kidnapped by militant forces, the two have to work together to survive until they are rescued—unless they manage to find a way to save each other first.

j. leigh bailey is an office drone by day and the author of Young Adult LGBT Romance by night. She can usually be found with her nose in a book or pressed up against her computer monitor. A book-a-day reading habit sometimes gets in the way of... well, everything...but some habits aren't worth breaking. She's been reading romance novels since she was ten years old. The last twenty years or so have not changed her voracious appetite for stories of romance, relationships and achieving that vitally important Happy Ever After. She's a firm believer that everyone, no matter their gender, age, sexual orientation or paranormal affiliation deserves a happy ending. 

She wrote her first story at seven, which was, unbeknownst to her at the time, a charming piece of fan-fiction in which Superman battled (and defeated, of course) the nefarious X Luther. She was quite put out to be told, years later, that the character's name was actually Lex. Her second masterpiece should have been a best-seller, but the action-packed tale of rescuing her little brother from an alligator attack in the marshes of Florida collected dust for years under the bed instead of gaining critical acclaim.

Now she writes Young Adult LGBT Romance novels about boys traversing the crazy world of love, relationships and acceptance.

​

Barbara Golder was a late literary bloomer. Although she’s always loved books (and
rivals Jane in the 3-deep- on-the- shelf sweepstakes), her paying career gravitated to
medicine and law. She has served as a hospital pathologist, forensic pathologist, and
laboratory director. Her work in forensic pathology prompted her to get a law
degree, which she put to good use as a malpractice attorney and in a boutique
practice of medical law, which allowed her to be a stay-at- home mom when her
children were young. She has also tried her hand at medical politics, serving as an
officer in her state medical association; lobbying at a state and national level on
medical issues, writing and lecturing for hire, including a memorable gig teaching
nutritionists about the joys of chocolate for 8 straight hours, teaching middle and
high school science, and, most recently, working for a large disability insurance
company from which she is now retired.
Her writing career began when she authored a handbook of forensic medicine for
the local medical examiner office in 1984. Over the years she wrote extensively on
law and medicine and lectured on medicolegal topics. On a lark, she entered a
contest sponsored by the Telluride Times Journal and ended up with a regular
humor column that memorialized the vagaries of second-home living on the
Western Slope.
She currently lives on Lookout Mountain, Tennessee with two dogs, two cats and
her husband of 41 years.

DYING FOR REVENGE
MEDICAL THRILLER
DR. BARBARA GOLDER
FULL QUIVER PUBLISHING
Represented by: DOREEN THISTLE
Someone is killing the rich and famous residents of Telluride,
Colorado, and the medical investigator, Dr. Jane Wallace, is on a
collision course with the murderer. Compelled by profound loss
and injustice, Jane will risk her own life to protect others
from vengeful death, even as she exacts a high price from those
who have destroyed her world.  DYING FOR REVENGE is
a story of love, obsession and forgiveness, seen through the eyes
of a passionate, beautiful woman trying to live her life --
imperfectly but vibrantly -- even if she won't survive.

Q: Tell us about your early youth in Cleveland, Ohio.
Ken: How early are we talkin’? I remember a lot of snow and singing for a few rock bands. We came up with bitchin’ names for the groups like SAVAGE FEW, DECEIVER and THE BLACK PANTHERS. My mother suggested we might want 
to change that last one. I wasn’t a very politically aware twelve year old. I was a huge fan of my brother’s black light panther poster. We had jackets made. 

Q: You are a practicing psychotherapist, what does that entail?
Ken: Now I’ll get all serious…I am the director of a private psychiatric facility in Los Angeles. We treat adults with psychotic disorders. Our continuum of care supports each client throughout his or her journey from mental illness to 
wellness. Our guiding principle is that with proper support, each individual has the potential for recovery and improved quality of life. I love my work. I recycle the same creative energy I used as a musician and everyday is a new 
adventure. I have a guitar in my office and I’m not afraid to use it. 

Q: What can you tell us about your upcoming Young Adult novel, Sidewalk Rockets?
Ken: Sidewalk Rockets is such a fun adventure. It’s my first novel and I’m deeply in love with it. My favorite description is The Goonies meets The Hardy Boys, if the Hardy Boys were a rock band. I was listening to a ton of 70’s rock when I wrote it, so you can feel its groovy influence. At its heart, it a coming of age tale that explores deeper themes of courage, friendship, and mending a broken family (I totally borrowed that from my synopsis). If you’re an editor, buy it immediately. 

Q: You have two kids and two cats. Which pair is more mischievous and why?
Ken: Just this morning my kids got into my wife’s makeup case. Their faces were COVERED in black mascara. Ears included. “Look how pretty, Daddy.” Very glam, just like their daddy in the 80’s. I laughed until I tried to wipe it off. Who 
knew makeup was so greasy? After an unscheduled shower, they were late for pre-school. I have pictures. BTW, the cats slept through the whole ordeal. 

Q: What's your favorite type of foreign food and why?
Ken: I can eat obscene amounts of sushi. It’s consistently delicious, healthy and light. Even if I get it at a grocery store, it’s still pretty damn good. 

Q: Aside from necessities, what one thing could you not go a day without?
Ken: The correct authorial answer would be coffee. I hate to be a conformist but… I kicked the habit for several months. I was a tea guy. I was content and insisted it was all I needed. “It does the job without making me crazy.” I must be a fan of 
crazy because coffee is, once again, central to my existence (Takes a sip). I could have worse addictions.  

Q: If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to and why?
Ken: June of 1987. The Front Row Theater. My high school graduation. After shocking my younger self with my salon quality hair and how well I have aged, I would insist that I dump all of my tens of dollars into Apple stock. $1.25/share. Buy the ’78  Grand Prix in twenty years when you’re a kazillionaire. Oh! Before I disappear in my time machine…skip the “root perm” young Kenny. BAD idea.

Q: You are the #1 bestselling author of "Date Like A Dude". What kind of research went into figuring out whether he's a sleeper, a creeper or a keeper?

Sam: I’ve been anecdotally “researching” all my life so I’ve had years of [clears throat] hands-on experience… I’ve made all the mistakes so readers don’t have to…I love talking about dating, whether it’s counselling and encouraging friends, 
advising strangers, gossiping with colleagues or obsessing over dating shows on television.

Q: In your first book, Eat Less Crap, Lose That Fat, you inspire readers to get slim without the gym. What’s one tip you can give us about healthy eating?

Sam: I love eating and hate working out so I invented a diet that shows people how to get slim without the gym. One of my favourite discoveries was that if you leave two mouthfuls from every meal and snack you can lose 1-3 pounds a week. It worked for me; I lost 62 pounds in 5 months without setting foot in a gym and I still ate carbs, cheese and 
chips most days. My book is filled with lazy girl diet tips like this.

Q: You call yourself an ethnic stir-fry. What went into the making of Sam Pease?

Sam: I was born in England and raised in New Zealand, but I’m a composite of 9 Eurasian African ethnicities - English, Xhosa, French, Indonesian, Irish, German, Cantonese, South African and Javanese. I also call myself a fruit salad. I look forward to the day there’s a supercombo box to tick on Census forms…

Q: What cultural value do you see in writing/reading/storytelling/etc.?

Sam: Books. Are. Everything. Amazing books help you understand the world and make sense of the exquisite mess in one’s own head. I once complained to my mother that I’d read everything in the local library. She suggested reading them all again. Clearly I’m from a bookish family…  I’m delighted that my son reads like wildfire, but I guess if I taught basketball for a living he’d probably be a baller…

Q: What do you think most characterizes your writing?

Sam: My innate disregard for rules. So, I’m cheeky. And naughty. And sassy. The publishers of Date Like A Dude told me not to censor my writing but when they read the final draft, they blushed. And I’d held back…

Q: What are some day jobs that you have held?  If any of them impacted your writing we'd love to hear an example.

Sam: I’ve had a hundred jobs so I became an author through a process of elimination… It was the only job in writing left… 
I was a speechwriter for the Prime Minister of NZ (our President), a television journalist, a TV presenter/host, a radio newsreader, a producer, an internal communications consultant, an event manager, a director, a publicist, a 
production manager, an editor’s assistant, a sponsorship manager… the list goes on…

Q: How did you get to be where you are in your life today?

Sam: Through perseverance. Being stubborn is not always a bad thing… I’ve been through more life shocks and hard times than one could imagine so to still be driven and ambitious genuinely amazes me. Success isn’t about talent; it’s about not giving up. Whenever I doubt my writing ability, I Google Madonna lyrics. And then I think I’m a genius. Ha.

Amy Fish is a Canadian who writes about complaining. She is the author of the Non Fiction book “The Art of Complaining Effectively.”
Her work has been published in  Reader’s Digest and the Globe and Mail (Canada’s national newspaper) and she has won writing prizes from both Writer’s Digest and the Quebec Writer’s Federation.
Amy is Represented by: Veronica Park

              The Interview
Q: Your book, The Art of Complaining Effectively, is about how to stand up for yourself. What do you feel is the hardest part about sticking up for yourself? 

Amy: For most people, the hardest thing about standing up for yourself is knowing how to do it. Once you have the tools at your fingertips, the complaining is easy.

Q: What led you to write about complaining?

Amy:  For years, I had a full time job listening to (and resolving!) complaints for a University affiliated health care network. I started to realize that there are a few easy ways to make your complaints more effective, and I wanted to share those tips with more than just my cat. (I'm kidding. I don't really have a cat. But if I did, boy would she ever be a master complainer.)

Q. You write a column called Complaint Kitchen for Her Magazine filled with yummy recipes. What's your favorite dish to prepare and why?

Amy: Lately I've been into sausage pasta (click here for the recipe). It's easy, and no one complains about it. 

Q. Tell us a little about your plans for the future. Where do you see yourself as a writer in five years?

Amy: I see myself in front of a Scottish castle, ripping my wine velvet bodice while a long haired.. oh sorry, what were you saying?

Q: Do you have any hidden or uncommon talents?

Amy:  I speak French and Hebrew fluently and enough Italian to buy a dress in the market.

Q: What is something memorable you have heard from your readers/fans?

Amy: That they can't read my work on the subway because they laugh too loud and people start to stare.

Q: Pen or type writer or computer?

Amy: Yes.