# 6 Publishing Trends That Are Changing Everything in 2026 ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026.webp]] **Creator:** Alyssa Matesic · **Published:** 2026-07-13 · **Length:** 17:16 · [Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A) > Caption source: YouTube **English captions** (`en-orig`, auto-generated), downloaded with **yt-dlp** (android_vr client). The first request hit **HTTP 429** on the `en` track; a spaced `en-orig`-only retry succeeded and covers the whole video (0:00-17:16). No TubeAlfred or youtube-transcript-api credits were used. Section headings use the **creator's chapter timestamps from the description** (the embedded YouTube chapter markers are offset and disagree with the spoken content). The auto-captions spell the author "Kali Hart"; on-screen articles show **Callie Hart**, which is used here. Screenshots are from the downloaded video stream. The thumbnail ("The New Rules") shows her pointing at six numbered red books. ## Outline ### 0:00 Intro - [0:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=0s) The CEO of one of the world's biggest publishing houses "just admitted something I never expected to hear." She started the channel six years ago after working at the country's biggest publisher and a top literary agency, so aspiring authors could learn how traditional publishing really works. - [0:23](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=23s) Earlier this year she broke down an interview with **Macmillan's CEO**; now writer and podcaster **David Perell** has interviewed **David Shelley**, CEO of **Hachette**, another of the **Big Five** publishers, and what he said changed how she feels about the future of books. - [0:51](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=51s) A "6 Trends Reshaping Publishing in 2026" board tracks the six points through the video. ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0032.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0039.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0063.webp]] ### 1:03 Authors have more options than ever - [1:02](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=62s) For most of publishing's history, you had to convince a publisher your book was worth something. **Digital publishing** has changed that. - [1:18](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=78s) Shelley: publishing used to be very **gate-kept**; if the larger publishers passed, there was no route for writers. Now digital has lowered barriers to entry, so there are more **small publishers and startups** than at any time in his career, plus **digital imprints** such as **Bookouture** (US and UK) that take **direct submissions** and, with a **digital-first model**, can take more risks. - [2:04](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=124s) The classic model (agent, **advance**, hardcover print run) is no longer the only way into readers' hands. She saw the shift at **Penguin Random House**: some of the first books she edited independently were for a digital imprint, then considered experimental and now a core way publishers take chances on new authors. - [2:37](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=157s) Digital-first imprints have much lower production costs and overhead, so they can say yes to books hardcover imprints would deem too risky. Bookouture accepts submissions **directly from authors, no agent required** (its "Submit your manuscript" page is shown), so you can be published by a Big Five house without querying. - [3:10](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=190s) Many smaller **independent publishers** also take unagented manuscripts, but research them first: scammers ask authors to **pay to be published**. ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0182.webp]] ### 3:43 Self-publishing can launch big careers - [3:41](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=221s) For decades **self-publishing** was the shameful last resort after the industry said no; now many authors choose it. - [3:58](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=238s) Shelley: some of Hachette's most successful authors started self-published, such as **Callie Hart**, whose self-published novel ***Quicksilver*** did enormously well before Hachette signed her; she is now one of their biggest authors. His advice: "do not be deterred... publishers don't know everything." Even after rejections from every house, a self-published book can find an enormous audience. - [4:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=285s) Matesic: a Big Five CEO just admitted publishers routinely pass on books that sell exceptionally well. Hart's story is even stronger than he lets on: she self-published *Quicksilver* in **2024** after her agent asked for major revisions she didn't want to make (the on-screen Wikipedia excerpt says the agent wanted about 70,000 words cut and that she uploaded it to **Amazon Kindle** herself on June 4, 2024). Sales were modest until she sent it to **BookTok** influencers and it went viral. - [5:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=315s) Within months **10 publishers** bid in an auction, Hachette won, the traditional edition debuted at **number one on the New York Times bestseller list**, and **Netflix** bought the film rights for **seven figures** (a **Deadline** headline is shown: "Netflix Wins 7-Figure Auction For Callie Hart's BookTok Sensation 'Quicksilver'"). - [5:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=345s) She hoped he'd address ***Shy Girl***, a previously self-published horror novel Hachette acquired and then pulled after allegations it was partly AI-written. She was disappointed Perell never asked about it, or about AI at all, given the criticism of how Hachette handled it. Still, rejection doesn't mean a book won't succeed, and a publisher may pick it up later. - [6:31](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=391s) Plug: for the querying route, her book ***The Modern Guide to Querying Literary Agents*** has insider strategies and statistics from **4 million actual queries**; pre-orders get free **query letter templates** for fiction and nonfiction. ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0303.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0331.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0418.webp]] ### 7:27 Gen Z prefers physical books - [7:17](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=437s) Every week there's a rant that bookstores are dead and Gen Z only doomscrolls TikTok; Shelley says the picture is backwards. - [7:34](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=454s) Shelley: younger people say they like physical books as **beautiful objects** (he mentions **sprayed edges**), not just utility. Perell adds **signaling**: reading a physical book in a coffee shop is "almost a fashion statement," which a phone can't do. Shelley, a non-digital native, thinks **digital natives** (Gen Z, Gen Alpha) deliberately choose analog things. - [8:33](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=513s) Matesic: younger readers prefer **print over e-books** and are driving print sales. **BookTok** is a print phenomenon: influencers show **book hauls** and full shelves, not Kindle screenshots. Physical books are both beautiful and **intellectual signaling**. - [9:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=548s) For authors, your book's **physical presence** matters more than you think. ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0447.webp]] ### 9:26 Your cover is for your reader first - [9:24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=564s) Writers often arrive with a strong cover vision, sometimes a finished design, and some are more attached to the cover than to their characters or plot. - [9:55](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=595s) Shelley: whether we like the cover isn't the point. **James Patterson**, the biggest marketing genius he's worked with, has the phrase "**I see it, I want it**." The cover that works isn't always the most elegant. Research found the average **dwell time** at a table of books is **two to three seconds**, so a cover must pop. - [10:26](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=626s) At Penguin Random House, cover decisions were led not by the author or editor but by **sales and marketing**, whose job is knowing what readers gravitate toward. A cover isn't a perfect manifestation of your protagonist or themes; it's meant to entice. - [11:13](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=673s) With a publisher, give feedback but hear them out. Self-publishing makes you the **art director**: study bestselling covers in your genre and **poll people like your target readers** to find the one that stops them in their tracks. ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0567.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0600.webp]] ### 11:51 Horror is the most exciting genre right now - [11:45](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=705s) **Horror** is rising: it's number five on **QueryTracker's** list of agents' most-requested genres (the list shown runs fantasy, thrillers/suspense, literary fiction, upmarket, horror, romance-fantasy, romance-contemporary, YA fantasy, speculative, romance-comedy). - [12:12](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=732s) Shelley: the latest horror includes **queer horror**, **feminist horror** and subversions. Asked by Perell why subversion and horror overlap, he says horror is itself a **subversive genre** with fewer rules than any other: "anything goes," **good does not need to prevail**, it should shock, so it lends itself to innovation. - [13:05](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=785s) As an editor she finds that freedom thrilling. **Grady Hendrix** (his *Witchcraft for Wayward Girls* is shown winning **Goodreads Choice Awards** Readers' Favorite Horror) and **T. Kingfisher** (her covers shown) write innovative, seductive premises, and **Stephen King** remains a powerhouse. *Shy Girl* was horror too. - [13:20](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=800s) Beyond books: ***Sinners*** and ***Weapons*** dominated the **2025 box office**, the indie horror film ***Obsession*** beat all expectations this year, and **A24's** ***Backrooms*** is "shattering records." - [13:36](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=816s) Don't abandon your **romantasy** trilogy to chase horror; **chasing trends** is a losing game because publishing moves slowly. But if you already write horror or horror elements, lean in: readers want "bold, strange, and subversive." ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0721.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0787.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0789.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0794.webp]] ### 14:17 Any book can become a massive hit - [14:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=848s) The assumption: a big **advance** means the publisher believes in your book, a small one means it doesn't. Not how it works in practice. - [14:23](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=863s) Shelley: the highest-advance books don't always do best. Some of the best moments of his career were small-advance books with a passionate editor, such as ***Where the Crawdads Sing***, which Hachette published in the UK (Penguin Random House in the US): "not a huge deal at all" but one of the best-selling books of the last 20 years. A modest advance doesn't mean a book can't be an enormous bestseller. - [15:20](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=920s) **Delia Owens** was **69** when that debut came out, proof that neither age nor advance size decides success. - [15:35](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=935s) The flip side from her time in the industry: a debut novelist got a **seven-figure advance**, nearly unheard of for debut fiction, yet the book sold only modestly. By contrast *Obsession* had an ultra-low **$750,000** budget and made more than **$400 million**. Her point is that the biggest bets don't reliably produce the biggest wins (the auto-captions read "always correlate," which contradicts the examples, so they likely dropped a "don't"). A disappointing advance isn't a verdict on your book. - [16:29](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=989s) Takeaway: the gatekeepers aren't the point and your job isn't to win their approval; write a book "so freaking good that it flies off the shelves, no matter how it got there." Next, watch her breakdown of the Macmillan CEO interview. "Happy writing." ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0857.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0901.webp]] ![[images/Publishing-Trends-2026-t0939.webp]] ## Key takeaways - Digital-first imprints and small presses mean an agent and a big advance are no longer the only door; some Big Five imprints, like Bookouture, take unagented submissions. Vet small publishers and never pay to be published. - Self-publishing is now a legitimate launchpad; a self-published hit can lead to a traditional deal, as with *Quicksilver*. - Young readers buy print as beautiful, display-worthy objects, so a book's physical design matters. - A cover's job is to make a browser stop in two to three seconds, not to express the author's vision. - Horror is hot because it is subversive and rule-light, but write what you already write instead of chasing trends. - Advance size doesn't predict sales; small-advance books can become megahits and big bets can flop. ## Things mentioned ### Books - ***Quicksilver*** by **Callie Hart** (self-published June 2024, BookTok hit, acquired by Hachette after a 10-publisher auction, number one New York Times debut, Netflix film rights) - ***Shy Girl***: previously self-published horror novel Hachette acquired, then pulled after AI-writing allegations - ***Where the Crawdads Sing*** by **Delia Owens** (small-advance debut; Hachette in the UK, Penguin Random House in the US) - ***Witchcraft for Wayward Girls*** by **Grady Hendrix** (shown as Goodreads Choice Awards Readers' Favorite Horror winner) - **T. Kingfisher** titles shown on screen, including *The Seventh Bride*, *The Hollow Places*, *A Devil of a Crime* and *Clockwork Boys* - **Stephen King**'s books (shown on his author page) - ***The Modern Guide to Querying Literary Agents*** by Alyssa Matesic (her pre-order book) ### Films - ***Sinners*** and ***Weapons*** (2025 box-office horror hits), ***Obsession*** (indie horror film, about $750,000 budget, more than $400 million gross, per her), **A24**'s ***Backrooms*** ### Publishers, imprints and industry sources - **Hachette** (Big Five) and its digital-first imprint **Bookouture** (accepts direct submissions) - **Penguin Random House**, **Macmillan**, the **Big Five** - **QueryTracker** top 10 most-requested fiction genres (horror at number 5) - **Goodreads Choice Awards**; **Deadline** article on Netflix's *Quicksilver* deal; Wikipedia's *Quicksilver* article (shown on screen) - **Netflix**, **Amazon Kindle**, **BookTok** / **TikTok** ### Craft and industry concepts - **Gatekeeping** vs. the opened, digital-first landscape; **direct submissions**; **pay-to-publish scams** - **Self-publishing stigma**; self-published-to-traditional deals; **auctions** - **Print vs. e-book**; books as **beautiful objects** and **signaling**; **sprayed edges**; **book hauls** - Cover design: "**I see it, I want it**," **dwell time**, sales and marketing leading cover decisions, author as **art director** when self-publishing, **polling target readers** - **Horror** as a subversive genre; **queer horror**, **feminist horror**; **chasing trends**; **romantasy** - **Advances** as a weak predictor of sales; **debut authors** at any age ### Links from the description - Pre-order her querying guide: https://www.alyssamatesic.com/querying-guide - Work with her on your story: https://www.alyssamatesic.com/inquire#inquire-2 - Free Story Self-Assessment: https://www.alyssamatesic.com/#freebie-form - Newsletter **Chapter Break**: https://www.chapter-break.com/ - Query letter review: https://www.queryacademy.com - Related videos: [Authors Everywhere Are Getting Scammed — Don't Fall Victim!](https://youtu.be/9PNh7a7i04k) · [This Book Was Cancelled. The Reason Why Should Scare You.](https://youtu.be/Ucw4JF5EIfw) · [The Truth About Publishing a Book in 2026 (From Macmillan's CEO)](https://youtu.be/H7z9nGMplAQ) - Socials: [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/alyssabookeditor/) · [X](https://x.com/alyssamatesic) · [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@alyssamatesic) - Music credit: *Charlie Brown* by Smith The Mister (https://smiththemister.bandcamp.com) ## Biographies ### Alyssa Matesic Professional book editor with more than a decade in publishing, on both sides of the industry: a Big Five house (an imprint of Penguin Random House, where some of her first independently edited books were for a digital imprint) and a top literary agency. She started her YouTube channel about six years ago to explain traditional publishing to aspiring authors, offers manuscript editing, a free story self-assessment and query letter reviews (Query Academy), writes the newsletter **Chapter Break**, and has a forthcoming book, *The Modern Guide to Querying Literary Agents*. (Sources: this video and its description.) ### David Shelley CEO of **Hachette**, one of the Big Five publishers, interviewed by David Perell. In the clips he describes himself as a non-digital native who grew up in an analog world, and says Hachette published *Where the Crawdads Sing* in the UK. (Sources: this video. General knowledge: he is a longtime Hachette UK publishing executive who also leads Hachette Book Group in the US.) ### David Perell Writer and podcaster who conducted the interview, and earlier interviewed Macmillan's CEO (that clip carried a "How I Write" logo in a previous video). (Sources: this video and her earlier Macmillan breakdown.) ### Callie Hart Author of more than 40 dark romance novels (per the on-screen Wikipedia excerpt) who self-published her first fantasy, *Quicksilver*, in 2024 after declining her agent's requested revisions. BookTok made it viral, Hachette won the auction for it, it debuted at number one on the New York Times list, and Netflix optioned it in a seven-figure deal. Shelley calls her one of Hachette's biggest authors. (Sources: this video and the articles shown in it.) ### James Patterson American author of bestselling thrillers, published by Hachette, whom Shelley calls the biggest marketing genius he has worked with; source of the cover maxim "I see it, I want it." (Sources: this video; Patterson's thriller career is general knowledge.) ### Delia Owens American author whose debut novel *Where the Crawdads Sing* came out when she was 69 on a modest advance and became one of the best-selling books of the last 20 years. (Sources: this video.) ### Grady Hendrix American horror novelist cited as a leading innovator in the genre; his *Witchcraft for Wayward Girls* is shown as a Goodreads Choice Awards Readers' Favorite Horror winner. (Sources: this video and the page shown in it.) ### T. Kingfisher Hugo Award-winning author (per the covers shown) of horror and fantasy, cited for innovative, seductive premises. (Sources: this video and the covers shown in it.) ### Stephen King American author long known as the master of horror fiction, described here as "a powerhouse." (Sources: this video; details are general knowledge.)