If you read her post, you'll find that even though she thought Kat wouldn't have commercial appeal, she still went back to it a year after writing this first draft because it was something she loved and could not give it up. I admire that in anyone and especially in writers since I feel the same way about my own work. I asked Stephanie what she did with her year off and ended up getting some priceless writing advice and encouragement.
Stephanie says:
I kept trying to write more "commercial" (I thought!) novels, dark adult ones that I just couldn't get into, because Kat kept calling to me. It was a great lesson to learn: most authors have NO IDEA which of their ideas really count as commercial or uncommercial, so the best thing to do is always just to focus on the books you really want to write!(Then I told her I get discouraged when people tell me "no one wants to read another vampire novel" even when they know I'm writing one)
And that kind of "advice" ("no one wants to read [X]") is neither helpful NOR sensible. Everyone wants to read another great, fun novel no matter what the genre - give them a fun vampire novel and they'll love it! (And fwiw, all the 12-year-old girls that I know personally eat up vampire novels like candy and are always on the lookout for more.) You just have to focus on writing what YOU want to read, the novel that's the most fun for YOU to write no matter what anyone else thinks.
Writing what you want to read rather than what you think will sell is indispensable when it comes to writing a book. If your heart isn't in it, I don't think readers will feel connected to the story. I know my favorite books are ones where I feel like I could be friends with or could actually be the characters.
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