An irresistible premise, a theme that meets the moment, a reputation built over years, lucky timing-any of them can land a book on the bestseller list, and all of them are hard to come by. But craft is another crucial component of bestselling fiction, and craft is something you can study and learn. Bestsellers: Excavating the Tools and Techniques of Successful Novels takes you inside eight 2025 bestsellers in a range of genres-by authors including Liz Moore, S.A. Cosby, Emily Henry, and V.E. Schwab-analyzing each book's opening, a representative scene, and its overall structure. Data visualizations and end-of-chapter takeaways turn analysis into craft you can use.

There's no winning formula for a bestselling book. Each story, scene, and sentence presents a new set of choices. This book will help you see more of those choices, experiment with techniques you haven't tried, and trust the decisions you make.