Images from JeepersMedia, FireAtWill and Terry Johnston.
Sure, the Hunger Games books are emotional roller coasters that broach deep moral questions. But a lot of books have those qualifications. Why aren’t they all as wildly popular as The Hunger Games?
Because the story is highly marketable on an organic level.
In English? A bunch of details in the story are easy to put on billboards, t-shirts and fan art. Its easy to show your love for a story (and thus spread the word about it) if you can show it with a simple phrase or image.
Let’s explore those details—and see if we can implement anything similar in our own work.
First: The books are marketable because they are about marketing.
In-world, the Hunger Games are marketed all over Panem: the Capitol’s favorite form of entertainment and propaganda for the districts. Contestants are celebrities, campaigning for support from rich Capitol officials who might send life-saving gifts during the games. They even have stylists, who function like marketing consultants and art directors combined.
Even Peeta’s declaration of love for Katniss before the games was a calculated PR move. Storytelling to win sympathy from the audience is a marketing fundamental.
Even after the story shifts and *SPOILER ALERT* the rebellion starts, Katniss becomes a figurehead for the movement. She even makes TV commercials.
Second: The books are full of iconography
All these details make up a built-in marketing campaign, just like marketing for the fictional venue of Jurassic Park became the marketing for the real-world movie. Covergirl even put out a new product line based on Capitol movie makeup.
Because these marketing elements are easy to use—not just for an ad agency, but for fans—they put the books and movies on the fast track to viral popularity. Let’s take a look at some of the icons.
The three-fingered salute.
A way the districts communicate solidarity. Full of solemn camaraderie, it makes an incredible silent anthem for the rebellion. It’s easy for fans to mimic at events and in photos–and they have.
Other examples:
- Any military salute
- Spock’s Live long and prosper
- In photos, bears a disturbing (though accidental) resemblance to a heil
UPDATE: The salute becomes a real-life symbol of resistance in Thailand.
Rue’s four-note song
A short, memorable tune that works like a commercial jingle. I got chills when I heard it at the end of the first movie trailer.
Other examples:
- The five-note melody in Close Encounters of the Third Kind
- Intel’s four-note ditty (or is it five?)
- Metro PCS’ “Hello, hello, hello”
The districts
Different districts with different strengths and “personalities” allow fans to identify with the one they like best. That means even more t-shirts!
Other examples:
- The Hogwarts Houses
- The Game of Thrones houses
- The Avengers
Fire
Katniss’ stylist chose to use fire to represent her district, rather than dressing her and Peeta in the overused and unimaginative coal miners’ outfits. A brilliant move; fire is elemental, powerful and quick to spread. It’s a foreshadowing of the rebellion.
Other examples:
- Fire in Fahrenheit 451
- Water in Memoirs of a Geisha
- Wind in The Name of the Wind
Archery
Weapons make great symbols for the characters who carry them, and from a look at some of the current popular movies, it seems archery is making a comeback.
Other examples:
- Robin Hood’s bow
- King Arthur’s Excalibur
- Luke’s lightsaber
The slogan: May the odds be ever in your favor
Slogan. Catchphrase. In marketing we call them “taglines”—whatever you want to call it, the slogan for the games doubles as a slogan for the books.
Other examples:
- May the Force be with you
- Live long and prosper
- Winter is coming
- Big Brother is watching you
- Why so serious?
Logo: The Mockingjay
The mockingjay makes various appearances throughout the stories, starting with a pin given to Katniss before the games. The live mockingjay, a botched Capitol science experiment, soon becomes the symbol for the rebellion, and Katniss herself is known as the Mockingjay by book three. But the foundation laid down by the stylized bird on her pin has become the logo for the entire franchise.
Other examples:
- Batman’s bat symbol/signal
- The rose in Beauty and the Beast
- The Scarlet Pimpernel
How can you harness this power in your book?
All these elements in the Hunger Games fit organically into the story—so don’t force any into your own. Scan the list for similarities to your book. Do you have several different people groups? Does your hero have a family crest, or carry a unique weapon? Do your protagonists have a particular motto?
Find one or two logical places to incorporate an icon, or to emphasize an existing one. The more organic and the more unique, the better.
Ultimately, much of your book’s success will be left up to chance, but let’s swing the odds in our favor as much as possible, eh?
—
Hmm… serious food for thought, and not something I had considered before.
Yeah, the wild popularity of the stories got me thinking, especially since I was feeling so down after reading them and I couldn’t forget about it because HG stuff was EVERYWHERE (the first movie had just come out). And I don’t think Collins wrote them to specifically to be commercially successful – I think it was the nature of the story that begged this iconography – but I think a lot of stories have the same elements that just aren’t being emphasized.
It’s very astute, and something your marketing bent probably helped you notice. And now you’ve helped me notice and think about it! It’s definitely not something that can, or should, be forced, but I don’t think it hurts to keep it in mind.
Good point, but I’d rather not create a story just so it could be marketed. I write to tell stories, not to sell makeup or softdrinks.
Oh, very good point, Jen – and I hope this post didn’t sound like I advocated commercialism over good work! That’s why I opened by pointing out the emotional and moral strength of the stories.
Our first mission should always be to tell a story that needs to be told. But if there are ways to help that story stick in people’s minds, we should think about using them (more to be memorable than to sell swag). I do have some issues with some of the marketing around The Hunger Games – too much of it seems to be a celebration of the Capitol, rather than the rebellion – but that is another matter altogether.
I don’t think she’s advocating writing for marketing. I think she’s pointing out that a good story still needs good marketing if it is to be read by more than a handful of people.
I definitely see your point and find this analytic post very interesting! There is more marketing in Hunger Games and other series than I realized. Wow!
The overall message I got from your post is that it’s really about making the novel and parts of it memorable, with easily quotable phrases and recognizable symbols. This is great advice and a useful strategy to use in writing.
Although, there are many classics such as Lord of the Rings, North and South, Anne of Green Gables, Pride and Prejudice, etc. and contemporary novels such as The Time Traveler’s Wife that have also been wildly popular without the aid of explicit marketing tactics in their stories, and still are popular to this day. It makes me wonder how many marketing tactics are really necessary… (Not totally against marketing techniques in series like The Hunger Games; just not overly fond of them) 🙂 My only concern with marketing techniques/tactics in novels is that it may take value away from the story itself and quality.
You’re right: marketing should never take precedence over story itself; if there is any iconography it must be organic to the story!
But some of the classics you mention also make great use of iconography – Lord of the Rings, for instance, covers most of the points mentioned above. J.R.R. Tolkien himself had a logo: that combination of his initials that looks like a rune and appears on most, if not all, of his books. The Ring is iconic; so is the white hand of Sarumon, the eye of Sauron (which I believe was invented in the movies), the white tree of Gondor – all visual icons. And there are plenty of catchphrases: one ring to rule them all, my precious, not all who wander are lost (I see that one on bumper stickers). He has different people groups with which different fans can identify: elves, dwarves, men, hobbits, ents, etc. Or, on a more personal level, the members of the Fellowship themselves. For iconic weapons, the sword Narsil/Andruil was a big player in the stories. Not to mention Sting! Even fire was used, especially in the movies – wreathing the eye of Sauron, and as a visual effect when Frodo put on the Ring.
Are these explicit marketing tactics? No. They are organic. And that’s why they work, just like they work in the Hunger Games.