Congreve's view: chances for the unknown writer

If you're an unknown author, Bill Congreve sees your chances as pretty grim....

In this ABC Australia article, Mr. Congreve dooms most writing except for that of the name author. He sees the series novels by them as the most successful -- not a big surprise to most I'm sure.

It's good to read that he says "Not quite as dead" for literary first novels by unknowns. Perhaps the open space of on demand publishing is broadening interest in fresh material. I can only hope...my novel, Darwin's Orphans, is not being pushed by a huge publishing machine but it is literary. So, there's hope I guess.

If you're a writer, check out his assessment of your chances. If you're not, check out the article anyway...it'll tell you if you're on the trendy side of things. At least from Mr. Congreve's perspective.