Obama’s Win Leaves Authors Ready To Pounce

Now that the long election has concluded and the American people confirmed they want their government unchanged in Congress and the White House, authors and publishers can go full force in launching books that will reflect upcoming government policies and legislation.  Take a look at the scorecard of which books will be in demand:

·         Economy  - it still needs to grow

·         Green energy – still need to get off oil

·         Healthcare – huge expansion here

·         Housing – it is starting to grow at an accelerating pace

·         Personal Finance – living on a budget and under new tax laws

·         Politics – what will next four years bring and analysis of why Romney lost.

·         Leadership – a two-term president pulled off a big victory.

·         Hispanics – huge factor in the Democrats’ win and fast-growing segment wields power

·         Women – they helped elect Obama

·         Youth – the new generation leans Democrats and all things digital

It is logical that there will be books that cover any hot topic. If Wall Street is hot, you’ll see more books on investing.  If the housing market continues to grow, books on buying, selling, decorating, etc. will flourish.  If healthcare will now expand under Obamacare then books dealing with issues relating to it will flood the market.

What you may see less of is hard core policy books. Those already came out during Obama’s first term, so unless he proposes something new, don’t look for these type of books. But the debates showed Americans, despite non-stop attack ads and the excruciatingly long election cycle leading up to the vote, really were hungry to hear about issues and ideas.  They are looking for leaders in troubled times.  Perhaps books that delve more into fresh ideas to old problems will be of interest.

But as far as Obama’s policy positioning to publishing, his Department of Justice came down on the big publishers in favor of Amazon.  It remains to be seen how it’ll view the Penguin-Random House merger proposal. I wish there was a way the government could do something to help bookstores survive the way he helped bail out the auto industry, though I’m not sure what could or should be done by government in this area.

One thing the election brings is a bit of certainty and stability.  For better or worse, we have chosen to pursue the current course.  Let’s hope it proves prosperous to us – as a nation, as an industry, and as individuals.

Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer, the nation’s largest book promoter. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person.