Book Trends 2024: Top Genres, Trends, and Changes to Watch Out For
The publishing industry is volatile, relying on hits, bestsellers, and trends to thrive. Kindle and ebooks became popular in the 2010s. Then, in 2014, young adult dystopian books were the thing. Audiobooks saw a surge in 2016, which continued through the pandemic and beyond. TikTok revolutionized the industry in 2020, and artificial intelligence became a hot topic before the end of 2022. As we begin a new year, what are likely to be the book trends in 2024?
As evidenced by the examples above, reading trends appear to be largely driven by technology. TikTok has remained a primary driver of book sales, becoming one of the best avenues for book discovery and recommendation. When ChatGPT became publicly available last year, it triggered a domino effect and marked a new epoch in publishing. AI technology seems unstoppable in many aspects of the industry, from marketing and publicity to business development and audiobook production and writing; it’s constantly evolving in a variety of ways. But will it remain one of the most significant book trends in 2024? Or will it simply fade into obscurity, forgotten by many?
What will the publishing trends be in 2024? What genres will be the most popular? What will the changes in the industry be? What other technologies will exist besides AI? What are some predictions that will never come true again?
I asked many professionals in the book industry what they think.
The Rise of Romance Subgenres
In 2024, there will probably be an increase in the popularity of romance subgenres, particularly romantasy, or the fusion of romance and fantasy genres. “The romantasy deluge is coming in a real way next year,” said Book Riot CEO Jeff O’Neal. Romantasy is currently a hot trend on BookTok, with publishers striking while the iron’s hot.
Aside from romantasy, we’re also probably going to see “more specific sub-genre romances,” according to Book Riot contributor Cassie Gutman. Romantic comedy, also known as romcom, and speculative romance are two examples of this. “Romcom is always popular but it’ll have more diversity and cultures…We’re seeing more books with minority groups and embracing the differences,” said author Liv Arnold.
Next year, we expect that more subgenres will emerge, and they will possibly include romance. “Speculative romance/time travelly romance seems to have a moment coming up,” said Susie Dumond, Book Riot senior contributor and the author of Queerly Beloved.
All Things Cozy
After the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a slight uptick in the cozy mystery genre. Books such as Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala and A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales became instant fan favorites in the genre.
This cozy element has now spread to other genres as well. “The post-pandemic interest in cozy things might be finally making it through trad pub! Cozy across genres — mystery, sci-fi, fantasy, even lit fic,” said Dumond. Book Riot editor Danika Ellis also agreed that the “cozy trend is continuing.”
More Escapism
Aside from romance, readers may want more “escapist” books or genre fiction next year. This may include fantasy, science fiction, thriller, mystery, and humor among others. “People are wanting more escapism, out-of-this-world energy in romance,” Book Riot contributor Julia Rittenberg said.
Allison Hartfiel, a book blogger, agreed. “I think we’ll continue to see interest in uplifting, escapist fiction,” she told me. “I see more and more readers who previously only read serious fiction now turning to lighter romcoms and up-lit. I think that’s reflective of this burnout, as well as anxiety about global issues.” Pandemics, wars, and other global issues can certainly take a toll on mental health, and it’s no surprise that many readers want some break from it all. “Many readers are looking for a bit of humor and hope.”
“As we continue to be in crises, our literature leans towards escapist, romanticist topics, while on the other side of the wall, simultaneously clutching onto activism and global issues,” the representative from Bootscrape Entertainment’s Literary Pub Crawl in New York concurred.
AI Trend Continues
Of course, this will be one of the biggest book trends in 2024. With so much to discover and new developments to experiment with, we will most likely see more AI content, such as “fiction co-authored by…a human writer and ChatGPT,” according to publisher Naomi Rosenblatt of Heliotrope Books.
Writer and avid reader Chloe Brittain agreed, predicting that generative AI will become a huge trend in 2024 and beyond. “This is especially true of nonfiction, where we’re already seeing Amazon bestsellers that have been produced using ChatGPT.” She also believes that as AI companies add more features for hyper-personalization, more indie fiction writers will relax their strict anti-AI stance and experiment with generative AI tools. These could be cover art generators or AI writing assistants for generating and editing drafts.
Young Adult Books Not Coming Back
There was a boom in YA in the previous decade and even a few years ago, as evidenced by the film adaptations of many YA books, such as The Hunger Games, Divergent, and The 5th Wave, among others. It appears that that chapter has long since closed, however. “YA will continue to not make a comeback. It’s out of being cool for the moment,” said Book Riot editor Kelly Jensen.
This is apparent in the continuing decline in sales of YA books, which is largely attributed to a lack of shelf space and circulation issues, among other factors.
Reader’s preferences, as we can see, change over time. In the past, there was a surge in YA dystopia, and now there’s an uptick in escapist fiction. Will we finally see respect for genre fiction? Who knows?
To learn more about past reading and industry trends, here are some major book statistics about readers during the pandemic era.
And to stay up to date on bookish news and reading trends, visit Breaking in Books or subscribe to Today in Books newsletter.
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