Post History
Stories "ripped from the headlines" are always good sellers -- the interest in their subject matter is being actively aroused by current events. Writing a novel is a long business, so to be able to...
Answer
#4: Attribution notice removed
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/29743 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/29743 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision
Stories "ripped from the headlines" are always good sellers -- the interest in their subject matter is being actively aroused by current events. Writing a novel is a long business, so to be able to bring out a "ripped from the headlines" novel at the opportune moment is often a matter of serendipity -- events playing out in the real world that are similar to the events you have already described in your novel. Far from being a disadvantage, then, having events in the real world parallel events in your novel is a great advantage. You can go to a publisher or an agent and say, how much would you like a _finished_ novel about [some event that just happened]. It they can get it out before the interest in the event fades, they can sell a lot of books -- even for a book that they otherwise might not be interested in.