The wonderful 3 Quarks Daily pointed me to a Telegraph article by Matthew Sparkes about an algorithm which is said to have better than 80% success predicting which books will be bestsellers. In short: Use conjunctions, avoid cliches and favor nouns and adjectives over verbs. The opening:

“Scientists have developed an algorithm which can analyse a book and predict with 84 per cent accuracy whether or not it will be a commercial success.

A technique called statistical stylometry, which mathematically examines the use of words and grammar, was found to be ‘surprisingly effective’ in determining how popular a book would be.

The group of computer scientists from Stony Brook University in New York said that a range of factors determine whether or not a book will enjoy success, including ‘interestingness,’ novelty, style of writing, and how engaging the storyline is, but admit that external factors such as luck can also play a role.”