This is what I'm working on with this tag line thing -
Once you have the bestseller list for your title you need to
methodically search the list and write down books that are like
your book. These don’t need to be identical to your book, just
similar in some way.
One thing that is important to remember is that you will be using
these books to tap into the schema of the agents and publishers.
This means that the books need to be popular enough for agents or
publishers to have read them, or at least be aware of their basic
premise. For example, there are many people who have never read a
J.K. Rowling novel, but still have a schema for these books.
You may find it useful to also examine your own bookshelves or
list of all-time bestsellers on the internet for your genre. You
are looking for well-known books. The more prevalent the book in
the consciousness of its readers, the more firmly held and
commonly similar the schema will be, and the more powerful your
tag line will be.
For example, if you were to say your book was like, ‘Da Vinci
Code with zombies,’ you will be able to tap into a pretty strong
schema. Most people are aware of the Da Vinci Code and many
people hold a pretty similar set of understandings of the novel’s
content. However, saying ‘The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail with
zombies’ is far less powerful. This is despite the fact the Holy
Blood and the Holy Grail is the non-fiction book on which the Da
Vinci Code is based. The truth of the matter is that the schema
for the Da Vinci Code is stronger than the one for Holy Blood and
the Holy Grail.
