123: "Ghost Blows Out the Light 1" is published
General Manager Lu opened the document.
The most anticipated work was the first prize winner, "time messenger". The second place was surprisingly not one of the two second prize winners, but the third prize winner, "Virtual Lover".
General Manager Lu, with some experience, said, "'Virtual Lover' surpassed two second-prize works to rank second."
"Yes, this one is slightly lower in literary quality, but its ideological depth is decent. However, its market potential is very high. Readers have a demand before even reading the book. The single-person economy market is huge now, with multiple AI lover software already released to provide emotional value. Of course, everyone anticipates a book like this coming out now."
"Mm." General Manager Lu continued to read.
The third, fourth, and fifth places were "prisoner", "Silent Testimony", and "Against the Light" respectively, while "ghost blows out the light 1: the ancient city of精绝" was only in sixth place, and the number of people who chose it was only half of the fifth-place work.
Further down was the public opinion analysis.
Regarding "ghost blows out the light", most people expressed curiosity about what made the book good. However, a small number of people were sarcastic, feeling that sixth place was undeserved. According to the market research department's analysis, many of them were also participating authors.
This kind of thing happens every year.
As the saying goes, scholars tend to belittle each other. Perhaps out of self-esteem, some people easily believe that others are inferior to them.
Others' books winning awards and taking off are merely coincidences. Their own groundbreaking works go unnoticed; it's truly a case of 'a wild boar can't appreciate fine rice'.
There are quite a few people with this kind of thinking; however, some can overcome their nature and actively reflect, while others, even if they don't reflect, will keep it to themselves. But there are also those with less depth or lower emotional intelligence who just speak nonsense online.
This kind of thing happens every year, but this year's sixth-place subject matter is relatively rare, making it easier for them to find excuses to belittle others and comfort themselves.
The Director leaned his hands on the table and said, "Sigh, I still think using 'The Café' would be much more stable."
General Manager Lu looked up and smiled, "Don't call yourself Qin Jian; you should change your name to 'Stable'."
This Old Qin is just too stable, seeking no merit but no fault. But given the company's current situation, years without merit would be a fault.
General Manager Lu lowered his head and continued to read the survey results, "Don't overthink and create unnecessary problems for yourself. Besides, being temporarily at the bottom doesn't mean it doesn't attract readers. Among the top five, four are works by established authors with accumulated fanbases. Among the old readers who follow the Wenxing Cup and are willing to fill out questionnaires, there are few readers of this genre. This survey cannot represent the entire market situation."
The Marketing Director nodded, "Hmm, it seems you like this one, Old Lu."
"There is a bit of personal preference involved," the Chief Editor smiled, closing the document, "There are too many other genres, and I'm tired of seeing them."
"Alright, I'm leaving now, you stay busy." The Marketing Director walked out the door and glanced out the window.
Personal demand does not represent market demand.
He still felt that the probability of this book becoming a big hit was a bit low.
Anyway, being ranked sixth, even if it flops, the problem isn't too big.
He sighed and turned to walk towards the General Manager's office.
...
Five days later, on July 12th.
Early in the morning, Chen Fang arrived at the film crew to participate in the script read-through.
Meanwhile, various bookstores were busily preparing for the sales launch of the Wenxing Cup award-winning works.
At ten in the morning, the author Xinghai changed clothes and went out, heading to a book café where one could drink coffee. It was the largest bookstore near his home. There was a university nearby, and students were the main customers of this bookstore.
As soon as he reached the entrance, he saw a long line forming.
Xinghai felt a bit stifled inside.
The influence of the Wenxing Cup is still great; these must all be university students from nearby. How happy would he be today if he had also been selected? He would probably become the topic of discussion among local literature lovers soon.
With a bitter feeling in his heart, he joined the back of the line.
As soon as he stood still, the bookstore opened its doors, and everyone entered in an orderly fashion.
Xinghai ordered a coffee, bought two copies of "ghost blows out the light 1: the ancient city of精绝", and sat by the window.
The reason he didn't take them home to read was because he wanted to observe the market situation there and see which books everyone was buying.
He unwrapped the plastic seal while looking at the main hall.
Most people flocked to the works "time messenger" and "Virtual Lover".
Meanwhile, the small pile of books for "ghost blows out the light 1: the ancient city of精绝" received little attention.
A sense of relief surged within Xinghai.
He was right after all! Sure enough, this book has no market!
They should have chosen his "The Café" instead! The judges simply misjudged; why was he always seventh or eighth?
After a brief moment of satisfaction, a feeling of powerlessness returned.
The outcome was decided; what could he do?
Xinghai took a sip of coffee; the cold coffee chilled his stomach and his heart.
But just then, something that surprised him happened.
Generally speaking, in offline bookstores, many people browse but don't buy. Some are simply browsing the bookstore, and others glance at a book, find it not to their taste, and don't spend money. The common browse-to-purchase conversion rate for a single novel is 5% to 10%. That is to say, for every 100 people who browse a book, five to ten people buy it.
However, Wenyuan Bookstore promoted and published synopses beforehand to filter readers, so readers came with a purpose, and this ratio could be much higher.
For "time messenger", roughly one-third of the people who flipped through the novel took a copy with them.
This was still normal, but for "ghost blows out the light", out of 10 people who came and flipped through it, five or six chose to buy a copy.
Xinghai's hand, holding the coffee cup, remained suspended in the air.
Hmm? Is it written that well? Or does it have so many readers?
He took a sip of coffee, withdrew his gaze, and opened the novel with a puzzled expression.
Sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating the book and the coffee.
The shadow of the coffee cup gradually shortened, then lengthened again.
Grrrrumble~
After an unknown amount of time, the protest of his stomach pulled him back to reality from the Taklamakan Desert within the book.
Xinghai came back to his senses, looking at the clock on the wall.
He then realized that he had been reading for three hours.
He drank the last sip of coffee, appeasing his protesting stomach.
He reluctantly inserted the bookmark and closed the book.
Home, he had to finish it today!
Xinghai stood up, his eyes momentarily dazzled by the reflection from a piece of glass.
He suddenly realized that he was looking at the book that was ranked ahead of his.
Xinghai slowly picked up the book in his hand.
Is this the sixth-place book?
The geographical folklore and tomb-raiding knowledge are quite professional, the historical background feels authentic, the character designs are distinct and real, and the sense of immersion is strong. Moreover, it is very novel for the current market.
It doesn't heal, nor does it vent emotions; it simply transports people into another novel adventure. It feels very different.
If this is in sixth place, what kind of quality are the ones ahead?
Xinghai sighed deeply, his heart growing heavier.
Perhaps... he really isn't suited to writing books.
After standing for a while and comforting himself for a long time, he finally calmed his emotions. Perhaps he wasn't unsuited to writing books, but rather too much of a conformist.
Xinghai put the book into his backpack, walked to the bookshelf, took one copy each of the other five award-winning works, paid, and left the café.