What’s a Comp Title?

In publishing, the word “comp” refers to something that’s a bit of an amalgam. Basically a “comp” is a “comparable title.” Sometimes “comp” stands for “competitive title” or “comparison title.” Other times it just means “similar.” Really a comp is a way to let people know who will like your book.

Agents speak in comps. Sometimes it’s in short hand. (Think “Little Witch Hazel meets You Matter.) Other times it’s in the form of a list of 5-10 comps in a proposal submitted to editors for careful consideration. Agents use comps to help people understand what a book is about and who will read it.

In-house editors use comps to help Sales and Marketing sell the book and make projections. They use it to create profit-and-loss statements (P&Ls), by looking at how many copies have sold of similar books. (Friendly reminder: Everyone tries to predict how books will sell, but no one really knows. If they did, they would only publish bestsellers.) Comps also help editors talk about the book, so sales reps know how to explain it to buyers, booksellers know where to shelve it, and customers know what to expect when they find it. Freelance editors often use comps to help writers understand the market and deepen their craft.

Writers think about comps when they’re trying to understand the market, get inspired, study mentor texts, understand what makes their books unique, querying agents, proposing a nonfiction title, and trying to talk about their books with confidence. If you’re a writer, you might want to look at comps at two different phases: first when you’re studying the genre and getting ideas, and then later finally when you are ready to submit to agents. (You might want to avoid reading books that are too similar to yours when you’re actually writing.)

Whether you’re an agent, editor, or writer, you want to show there’s an audience for your book and this is how you know.

Starting Again

Sometimes the comp research shows how a book could get lost or struggle to succeed in the market in its current state, and that is a good time to pause and think about how to make your book special. I know it can be devastating to find a book that’s exactly like yours. Especially if that other book is just about to be published. Ugh. How did you not know? How could you know? Is everything lost?

No.

I promise whatever work you’ve done up to this point is not wasted. It will lead to something new and beautiful. I say this based on way too much firsthand experience. It’s heartbreaking, but you are not alone. Publishing is a creative industry, and it’s common for there to be overlap between ideas. In some ways it’s encouraging. It means you understand the market and have good ideas. Publishing is also a business, and there’s just no way to convince people to publish a book that’s exactly the same as another one.

But don’t despair.

You can start over and work on something else. That’s totally allowed. Or you can find a unique angle for your book. Change the tone. Reinvent the main character. Combine two ideas from your notebook. Write something that has the same themes but present them in a totally different way. It’s still possible to create something amazing.

When you feel ready to submit, it’s time to look for comp titles again.

Finding Comps

So how do you go about finding comps?

• Keep notes as you work on your book

• Wander in the bookstore

• Scan bestseller lists

• Search blogs in your genre

• Talk to librarians, writing friends, and booksellers

• Google book lists on specific topics like adoption or losing a tooth (Those links usually point to book reviews on sites like School Library Journal, Kirkus, or Horn Book Review, or blogs that link to other similar titles.)

• Browse the recommended sections on Amazon and Goodreads

• Reference the occasional movie, TV show, or online project if that feels more evocative

• Look at your own bookshelves

• Read lots of books

You don’t need to find an exact match. In fact, you don’t want to. You want to help other people understand the market for your book and who will enjoy reading it. You can always combine a few different kinds of comps. The classic formulas are:

• It’s X meets Y (Be sure to use books that are distinct in genre, plot, or tone here.)

• It’s X but with Y

• If you like X, you’ll like Y

Understanding How a Book Is Similar

You want to look for titles that are:

• Recent (Try to find titles that are less than 5 years old.)

• Moderately successful (All the titles you mention shouldn’t be wildly popular. That’s not realistic, and if the market is too broad, you won’t help people understand who will be interested in your book. But you also don’t want to put a self-published book that’s only sold 5 copies on the list.)

• Titles you’ve actually read (Be sure you know what the book is about and how it’s written!)

Books can be similar in:

• Content

• Theme

• Voice

• Tone

• Format

• Genre

• Design

• Audience

• Sales numbers

If you’re writing a nonfiction proposal, detail how your book is similar and different from the comp titles on your list. If you’re writing a query letter to an agent, you don’t need to get that specific, but you want to understand and be ready to talk about any title you reference.

Letting Less Be More

If you’re working on a book proposal, you might include 5-10 different titles, and there can be some variety between the titles. But if you’re working on a query letter or an elevator pitch for speaking events and conferences, you want to find the perfect way to capture people’s attention and explain what your book is about. Try out a few different versions on people and see what they’re most interested in and what feels the most like your book. When you say “It’s like X meets Y,” you’re making a promise to the reader, and you want to be able to deliver.

This is a time-consuming process. There’s no way to rush it, but that’s ok. It’s a really valuable part of the process, and it can help you understand what makes your book special. Don’t confuse the issue by throwing in several different titles that all resemble your book in different ways. You want to offer clarity with your comp titles, so take time to really think about these questions.

• Who will like your book?

• What other books do they like?

• How is your book different?

• Why is this book exciting?

Please know even really experienced writers and editors dread comp work sometimes. It can feel like you're supposed to know every book on the market, but that's not true. You're just one (hopefully reasonably well informed) person, and you’re sharing your vision for a book. Once you get the hang of thinking about comps, you’ll find it’s exciting to envision your book sitting on the shelf next to the titles you admire.