Loose Change

I was asked to send a guest post in for Loose Change, and not given
any specific topic. So keep that in mind when you read the following:

I am a "talker"--there is no doubt about that. Last week I thought I
might just manage to talk myself out giving the same 90 minute lecture
three times on the same day. But I still was nattering way on every
topic and dominating the conversation as a colleague drove me home.
The same effect is apparent online on my six blogs and three websites.
I like to gather information, I like to look for patterns and new
ways to use and benefit from information, and I try to do this in the
way that is helpful to others. After all, if you talk a lot there is
an obligation to have something worth saying.

One expression of this side of my personality is ERECsite.com where,
with the help of volunteers, I gather sales figures for erotic romance
e-publishers. My motivation was an awareness of how little
information I used in choosing to send my first novella to Loose
Id—and how outright lucky I was to have chosen Loose Id. Since then I
have also worked with other e-publishers, with mixed results. But I
have sent most of my work, twelve stories including several full
length novels, to Loose Id.

I am not the cheerleading sort, in fact I am compulsively interested
in the dark cloud attached to any silver lining. But I have a
tendency to speak positively about Loose Id because they have made me
money, my editor has stuck with me for three years now with never a
bad experience, and overall the press offers me opportunities that are
worthwhile without be arduous or restrictive. And this is where my
confession comes in.

I am an average writer.

My friends would now being rolling their eyes and assuring me that I
am an excellent writer and need to get over the New Zealand culture's
obsession with being modest and humble. But I am speaking
statistically. One side effect of collecting sales data is that I
know the performance of my books at Loose Id hovers slightly but
clearly below the average for Loose Id.

This doesn't surprise me greatly. Loose Id authors are damn good, and
being in the middle of the pack is no bad thing. Also my editor gives
me a reasonable indication of what sells best, and I sometimes write
things that are somewhat less appealing to readers (but more fun for
me). A little give and take in these issues is one of the great
advantages of working with a good small press. And finally, I am not
one of those driven and dedicated writers with a muse burning a hole
in their brain. I like to write and I like to profit from that
effort, and e-publishing is a win/win that allows me to do this
without dedicating a large amount of time to the endeavor because my
main priority is my "day job" career. Finally, being average still
includes have sold over 1000 copies of two of my novellas with others
quickly closing in on that number—and I am more than happy with that.

In my book there is such a thing as praising with faint praise, even
when it comes to myself. I am an average writer. But depending
purely on sales figures rather than my own experiences, Loose Id is an
above average erotic romance e-publisher. In fact they are one of the
best.

Emily Veinglory
veinglory.com
cliterature.today.com
erecsite.com

I’ve been following a thread on the Romance Writers of America loop that’s part of an ongoing discussion regarding the recognition of epublishers and small presses by this organization that represents thousands of romance writers and published authors. They just don’t seem to get it—the fact that the only real differences between the NY publishers and the epublishers have to do with the way they make payment. Where NY gives out a nice advance that the author must then earn back before seeing royalties, the smaller presses instead pay royalties monthly, with those payments often starting within a month of a book’s publication. Other than that, both companies offer stories, written by authors for the enjoyment of readers, no matter what the format. Whether it’s digital, print on demand, a small print run or a first run of a hundred thousand hardcover copies, it’s still a book.

An author of ebooks is an author, just as someone writing for one of the big NY pubs is an author. A publisher of ebooks is a publisher, whether they do POD, ebooks, short print runs or all of the above. The one place where they differ is in payment to their authors. I STILL get a quarterly check from Hard Shell Word Factory for books written prior to 2000, I still get a monthly royalty check from Ellora’s Cave for books written prior to 2002, and I am paid monthly by Changeling Press for novellas written prior to 2006. I did not get an advance from any one of those publishers, yet the royalty checks are a nice part of my income and one I’ve learned to count on. Did the lack of an advance stymie my career? Not one bit—in most cases, the royalty checks from my epubs arrived faster than my advance checks do from my NY pub. Yes, I do make a lot more money from my NY publisher, but I certainly don’t hold any of the smaller presses in less regard because of the format or distribution of their books.

I got my start in this business writing for epubs long before most people even knew what an ebook was, and I’ve turned my writing into an extremely successful career with what I learned from small presses. I would venture to say that the opportunities for publication and for earning a decent living as a writer are better within the community of small publishers than they are with the larger NY companies. The fact that they are treated as somehow less important to writers’ careers is demeaning to both the authors who choose that path and the owners of the companies doing their best to stay afloat in this competitive business.
I hear from writers all the time, asking me for advice in this business, which is a hell of a lot more competitive and cutthroat than I ever imagined. However, I’m reminded that it’s also filled with some of the most generous and sharing professionals around, and since I didn’t get where I am on my own, I intend to do my best to pay it forward whenever I can.

So, if you’re interested, here are a few words of advice from an old broad. First of all, don’t give up. If you’re miserable when you’re not writing, it’s because you ARE a writer. It’s somehow hardwired into your genetic structure and you can’t quit, so don’t fight it. But, keep improving—study the craft of writing. Get honest critiques of your work from other writers and pay attention—learn what your weak points are and strengthen them. Never stop writing, and never stop making it better.
Read. Read in the genre you’d like to write and read everything else as well. You might discover there’s something else that suits your particular style better than what you think you should be writing. I wrote contemporary romances for years that didn’t go anywhere. When I discovered erotic paranormal, I felt like I’d discovered gold and I truly had my Eureka moment. This is what I’m good at. I like writing it, and it shows. My readers can tell I love my work, and I make them love it too. I couldn’t do that if I didn’t honestly enjoy what I write.
Consider writing for an epublisher. What I love about working for a small press is the amazing sense of family most publishers have. You’ll get support from fellow authors, excellent editing and a chance to hone your craft among truly talented writers and support staff—when I finally made the move to my NY publisher, I’d been trained by some of the best editors and publishers around—the work you do with an epub will involve you in the process to the point where you truly own your work. You will know your writing inside and out, something that doesn’t always happen in a larger publishing house.

I’ve told my story a lot of times, how it took me twenty years from my first rejection in NY to the contracts I’m now filling, one book at a time. If I’d listened to my friends (and my mother) I would have quit years ago and saved myself the misery of so many years of rejection. Thank goodness I didn’t, because I would be missing out on an absolutely amazing career and a job that makes me smile every time I sit at my computer to write. Don’t let someone else make up your mind. If you write, you really don’t have a choice, whether you choose to do it for pleasure or for money. Never let go of the process, the pure joy of putting words on paper, and from one who knows first hand, never, ever let go of your dreams.

Kate Douglas
www.katedouglas.com


Kate Douglas (besides being a long-time critique partner for Margaret and I) is the lead author for Kensington's erotic romance line, Aphrodisia. Her WOLF TALES series pushes all the boundaries and her books continue to go into extra print runs as more readers discover that, at least once in awhile, those boundaries need to be pushed. She also has titles with Ellora's Cave, Changeling Press and Hard Shell Word Factory.

Thanks for guest blogging today!

 
I feel stupid writing this but I also have the feeling most authors think there is something mysterious about how and why publishers accept a story.  There isn’t.  But you may be too close to the story to understand the process.
 
I’m sure every publisher has a somewhat different way of getting through the process, but since I’m most familiar with Loose Id’s, I’ll use that.
 
1)     The query and partial and synopsis come in.  A submissions editor checks to see if it fits our guidelines and generally if it’s something Loose Id might want –like,  does it make sense?  Is the author screaming I AM A PROBLEM with just the query letter?

 

comment from M --  READ THE SUBMISSIONS GUIDELINES. MAJOR pet peeve here! 40% of our submissions never get past #1. Why? We ask each other, on a regular basis, WHY an author would submit to a publisher without reading their guidelines. At Changeling we publish short (8 to 28 K the guidelines state) Erotic Sci-Fi/Paranormal. So why do we continue to receive 60K BAD lesbian porn? 35K Contemporary is less offensive to read, but still a waste of our submissions editor's time. E-Pub is a small community. Most of us know one another -- not just Treva and I. So if an author submits inappropriate material to multiple publishers on a regular basis, he or she could end up with a bad reputation before the manuscript ever gets read by anyone anywhere. 
 
2)     It looks like a possibility.  It goes to one of our editors who reads it.  I’m not going to answer for what the editor thinks while he or she reads it, but he or she should be thinking about things like – do I like it?  How hard will this be to edit?  What do I say when I present it to the Editors and Management about why I like or dislike this?  Would it sell for our readers?
 
3)     It’s presented on our editor list with the editor recommendation of yes or no (or sometimes I’m not sure or I don’t like it but I hate this genre, someone else should read it.)  Sometimes other editors chime in with insights they have – sounds just like another story, read that author before, this couldn’t happen and here’s why.  Usually though, it goes on to me or my Assistant Editor in Chief without any other comment.
 
4)      It comes to me.  I read it.  I think about it.  As a reader, I love it or it leaves me cold.  As an editor I can think of ways to improve it or I shudder at the work it would take and wonder if the author has the skill to do what needs doing.  As a publisher I think about whether our readers would want it.
 
But the first way I judge it is as a reader.  The other considerations come later.  Hook me as a reader and you've got 80% of the job done.   I'll most likely say yes and my vote is the one that counts if others aren't sure. 
 
Yes, it’s subjective, but it’s an educated subjective, and we try to get at least two opinions if not more on the story. If I love the story but can't use it, it gets me nuts but I'll try to figure out how to use it or who might want it.  And I'll very sincerely ask for a different story we can use.

 

I don’t keep track of many e-publishers. I tend to think keeping track of my own company is enough work for me. Of course I am aware that recently several e-pubs have declared bankruptcy, others have just disappeared into cyberspace, some have said they will declare bankruptcy and then disappeared without apparently doing so and so on.

 

Before you shop the book that you had contracted elsewhere, be aware Loose Id and any smart e-publisher will look for a  legally binding release from a contract before considering taking the book on, even if it was never released by the publisher or if it was released without a contract. There are a lot of valid reasons for that including … gulp … the return of the departed e-publishers.

 

I’m not here to discuss the merits or likelihood of an e-publisher who has indicated they are out of business then returning under mysterious circumstances. It’s happened more than once this year, just when authors thought the publisher was gone forever. There are other bad scenarios you can play out with this. Years ago my own dear husband, who ventured into the e-publishing world before I did, got caught with a signed contract by a publisher who kept promising to conduct more business on the remaining  e-publishing site but never did. His book was never published. The DH stuck it out for two years and then, under the terms of the contract, the book was no longer bound to that e-publisher. That’s no fun, but he didn’t have any other method of getting a release since the company never officially went out of business.

 

What should you do if the publisher announces the company  is closing? Get that written release if possible. If it’s not, read your contract and abide by the terms. Eventually there is a finish. (If there isn’t, then you didn’t read the contract very well when you signed. Always make sure there is some kind of escape clause.) It sucks when the e-publisher doesn’t seem to be holding up its end, but there isn’t much else you can do.  And yes, you do need to tell the new publisher if it was a re-release.  You don’t need to get two publishers mad over one manuscript.

 

Even after your contract has expired, make sure you keep the original and copies of any emails from your publisher regarding the status of your contract.  If another publisher becomes interested in that manuscript, they’ll want copies of either the release, or, if it’s not available, possibly the contract.  No one wants the legal problems of explaining to a bankruptcy court why the book they have listed as an asset isn’t one – especially if there is no written evidence. If all else fails, sometimes it’s better to just go ahead and devote your energy to writing another book.

I seem to be working a theme here, but after hearing that at least one big e-pub doesn't currently plan to go to the next RWA annual convention and hearing authors gripe about the expense, I'm wondering if readers and authors have any thoughts about why an author or publisher should go to a convention.  If so why?  If not, why not?  What conventions are worth going to -- or not?  Is it better for some authors to go but not others?  Or some publishers?

I have some opinions on the subject but I'm curious to hear other people's.  I promise to speak up eventually.

Treva
www.trevaharte.com
www.loose-id.com

The Loose Id submissions mailbox recently received the following email:

 

 

September 1, 2007

 

To whom this may concern;

 

I am sending this email on behalf of of all authors with MGP.

I have chosen to try and not file Chapter 7 until January 2008 and allow the authors time to find homes for their titles.

This means - none of these contracts will be locked up in court.

I hope you will consider accepting MGP authors.

 

Sincerely,

Teresa Jacobs

Publisher

Mardi Gras Publishing, LLC

 

While I have no way of knowing if this is actually from Ms. Jacobs, I would caution any author or publisher to obtain releases before publishing books originally sold elsewhere and to gain some knowledge of bankruptcy laws.  I am not a bankruptcy attorney and don’t pretend to know much about that area of law, but generally speaking bankruptcy courts look at whether there may be an attempt to defraud creditors rather than whether there was an attempt to help authors and those courts have broad powers should a bankruptcy be filed.

 

The Mardi Gras Publishing Co. appears to no longer have a web site offering books.

 

Treva Harte

(who is speaking on her own behalf, not Loose Id, for this and any other blog item she has here)

My Loose Id partner posted an article, which I'm posting here in part at

http://fogcitydivas.typepad.com/dishing_with_the_divas/2007/04

What are the benefits of writing for a small press like Loose Id?

As a small press, we have the time to give authors individual attention. Our editors work in partnership with their authors, providing guidance on what the author does well, where she could improve, and how she can best develop her writing career. (I'm using a female pronoun here, but Loose Id also has several very talented male authors). We devote time and attention not only to the author's writing, but to assisting the author with marketing and promotion. And unlike other large publishers, the owners of Loose Id are always available to speak with authors. We're also more encouraging when an author wants to spread her wings and try new things. A large house would be reluctant to take a risk on a project that doesn't fit the mold, but at Loose Id we welcome the unusual. We always want fresh, interesting stories that break out of genre conventions. Try to shock us -- we dare you.

 

What was the genesis of Loose Id? What made you and the other co-founders decide to start a small press?

I often wonder if we were crazy at the time. I was already an author -- did I really want to be a publisher as well? Seriously, we each had extensive publishing and business experience. We'd done a good job making other peoples' companies successful. Forming our own publishing company seemed like the logical next step for us professionally. Our vision was to create a company that helped authors take their careers to the highest level possible. We also wanted to create a company with a hip, smart, and fun image -- a company that made erotic romance appealing to hip, smart, and fun readers. But in all honesty, our primary motivation was to give authors and editors the appreciation and support they deserve. It sounds corny, but it's the truth.

 

I feel like there’s a perception that anyone with a computer can start up a small press. Can you share some of the hard truth about what’s really involved

 

I'm chuckling. To do a thing well means putting in a significant investment -- not just of money, but of time. We spent over eight months developing the Loose Id name, our business plan, our reader and author community, our branding, and our Web site before we sold a single book. We invested a lot of time in hiring the best editors, wooing a solid stable of launch authors, soliciting manuscripts, and interviewing cover artists. The Web site went through several design iterations before being thoroughly tested, not just for "bugs" but for ease of use (my specialty). We studied the plethora of electronic formats available and developed processes for generating our books in the formats we judged to be stable and widely used. We began building our reader community six months before we launched, sharing our progress, publishing newsletters to create interest in the brand, and encouraging authors to join the loop to build a relationship with their soon-to-be-readers. On top of all that, we went through lengthy rounds of edits on legal documents such as our contracts and our partnership agreement, and we put bookkeeping and financial processes in place to ensure that we could keep track of royalties, income, and expenses. Sure, we probably could have rushed the process and started with a bare-bones URL, but we're perfectionists. We wanted to make sure we got it right the first time so that our authors and customers would have a smooth, enjoyable experience from day one. I'm happy to say we are growing each and every quarter, and many of our authors have successful careers, both with us and with major New York publishers. I always knew Loose Id would do well, but it's exceeded my wildest dreams.

 ---Doreen DeSalvo, www.doreendesalvo.com