The sought-after mark of . . . excellence?

Well, yeah, maybe it is. . . .  But not as hard as it used to be.  Why?  Because the bestseller lists—of which there used to be only a handful, a small handful if you count only the ones that counted—are proliferating.  The New York Times Book Review recently announced that their own collection of bestseller lists will be expanding.  They are adding a gaggle of lists, including Travel, Humor, Family, Animals, Politics, Celebrities, Graphic Novels, and more.

Keeping up with the Joneses?  Or maybe the Amazons?  It’s possible; we’re in an age of copycatism . . . Like, for instance, the fact that every humongous website or email host now wants to move their cyber-furniture around when you leave the room. “Facebook did it, it must be good! Quick, let’s reconstruct the menus and tabs while the user goes to the potty!  They won’t even recognize their Facebook Wall—oh wait, we’re going to reconstruct the Wall and call it a Timeline . . .”

Change is good, right?  (I don’t know, sometimes change makes me want to take a nap.)

Perhaps having more bestseller lists will make that prized BESTSELLER honor more accessible . . . and yet, won’t that make it simultaneously less meaningful?  You be the judge . . .

Oh, and you can go to a boot camp, too, to learn how to work the system to get your bestseller badge.  I can’t tell you how many “bestselling” writers I’ve met that I’ve never heard of; nor have you; nor has anyone.  Because they bought or boot-camped their way into bestseller status and were on an Amazon list for a week. Presto!  “Bestselling Author!”

Ah, but I seem to be on a rant.  Too glum for you?  Try this instead, it’ll make you laugh:  18 New Bestseller Lists