Timeless Building is the title of a book that you classify as part of the timeless books. Some of the published books are. Many others are contemporary. Contemporary books are further divided into the need-to-know and the good-to-know markets.
Book publishing is a business where potential authors search for a publisher and publishers search for a market. People always keep reading, but book publishing is in line with other intermediary sectors (brokers, transportation) more prone to recessions. We read when we have time and we have time when we feel safe.
In recent years, where we have been experiencing prosperity, the books that ruled were those of the nice-to-know market. “How to Quit Working Before Age 50” is an example of a nice-to-know kind of book that is a product of its time. When the stock market goes up, people feel rich and think that everyone can stop working. Prosperity will inflate people’s desires and increase their desires.
Recessions, on the other hand, calm people’s desires. An automatic reset occurs. Many feel let down by a sudden limitation of possibilities (those who have been laid off, or whose company went bankrupt) and come back with their feet on the ground. The things that are good to know are no longer a priority.
So the impact in a potential downturn is that the need-to-know market will thrive. Titles like “How to get back to work after being laid off”, “How to feel strong in a recession”, etc., are titles that help people in difficult times. This is what you need to know.
Publishers and publishers who have focused on topics like “freedom” and other prosperity-related content will have to think twice if they don’t make a change. And what a writer needs to do.
HJB
