What will be the big book market trends in 2026? Why are somany people gravitating toward horror and cozy fantasy? And what can we do about declining literacy rates? I discuss all these questions and more with author and bibliophile K.C. Norton, who made it her goal to read ONE THOUSAND books this past year.

From reflecting on the fate of literary fiction to predicting ridiculous micro-trends like “dank cottagecore” and virus romances, we discuss all things bookish.

Read the episode transcript here: https://quotidianwriter.medium.com/predicting-2026-book-publishing-trends-quotidian-writer-episode-4-406d50b6b8e1

K.C. Norton’s Books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B09693FVNG?ccs_id=bbe1aa80-598b-42e4-ba99-a03b80e559c5

List of Literary Magazine Rankings by Brecht de Poortere: https://www.brechtdepoortere.com

What’s In, What’s Out (0:00)

Kat’s Favorite Reads This Year (7:48)

Why Are Horror and Cozy Fantasy So Popular? (11:09)

Diane’s Favorite Reads This Year (16:40)

Book Market Trends (18:05)

What’s Happening with Male Readers? (20:38)

The Current Reading Culture (23:01)

Upmarket and Book Club Fiction (27:19)

Are Solarpunk andHopepunk on the Rise? (28:55)

Trend Predictions for 2026 (32:43)

What Will Be the Next Bestsellers? (35:13)

Declining Literacy Rates (39:36)

Are Books Becoming Oversimplified? (45:54)

The Literary Fiction Market (55:08)

AI Writing (57:28)

What’s Happening with Literary Magazines? (1:04:09)

Writing in the Current Political Climate (1:08:51)