Apparently, even Jane Austen would have a hard time getting a novel published today:
David Lassman sent off to 18 publishers assorted chapters from Austen novels in which he changed just the titles and the names of the characters.
Seventeen publishers rejected or ignored his bid for literary glory. Only one spotted the ruse and told him not to mimicPride and Prejudice so closely.
— Reuters
However, I do find it disconcerting that seventeen of the eighteen publishers didn’t recognize (or at least acknowledge) Austen’s work.
Now hold on. She published in a much more discreet, time than we live in now. Books published today are so much more obvious and direct. The social mores then were much more hidden and controlled. Nowadays, everyone wants up front, in your face, direct. Anything goes.
I would argue that she would only not be chosen because of her chastity, sexual abstinence, and subtlety.