What Made You A Feminist

Feministing has a call for submissions: What Made You a Feminist? Might actually submit something... You?

(Wondering why I don't blog much here? Your tips stopped; so did mine.)

Oysters & Chocolate Literary Anthology

From the editors at Oysters and Chocolate:

Dear Writers,

We have great news at O&C! We have signed with a division of Penguin Publishing, NAL, to publish the first Oysters & Chocolate Literary Anthology!

We are now seeking submissions for our erotic anthology. If you would like to submit, please keep these things in mind:

- Submissions should be between 2,000 and 6,000 words.
- We are looking for stories that are light and sexy, with playful scenarios and situations.
- Accepted submissions will have strong characterization - we want real characters with pasts, presents and futures - they should be more than just bodies for the sex.
- Accepted submissions will have a strong sense of language with good dialogue.
- Accepted submissions will demonstrate the sexual creativity that has come to be a trademark of O&C.

Please label your submissions in the subject line with "Anthology Submission" followed by which of our four categories you are submitting for: Vanilla, Dirty Martini, Licorice Whips or All About the Oysters. For example, if you are submitting a Vanilla story, your submission will read "Anthology Submission: Vanilla." Please both send your story as a word attachment, and copy and paste your story into the body of the email. Include a brief bio as well as any publishing credits you have. Email your submission to anthology_at_oystersandchocolate.com.

You may submit up to four entries for the anthology. Deadline for these submissions is April 20th - however, the sooner we receive your submission the better!

We anticipate buying the rights to your story for $100 and a complimentary copy of the anthology. You will be paid when the manuscript of the anthology is created, which we hope to have done in June of 2008.

Thanks so much, we look forward to hearing from you! And as always, let us know if you have an questions or concerns.

xoxo
Jordan & Samantha

I asked the following three questions:

1) Do you accept previously published works?
2) Simultaneous subs?
3) Are you purchasing rights to this publication only or?

The reply:

1) No, no previously published works
2) Simultaneous submissions are ok
3) We will be purchasing all rights to the story

Publisher, Publisher, On The Wall...

Via Alessia Brio I found two good links:

* The E-volution of Publishing: The Pros, Cons and Misconceptions of Epublishing, by Jacquéline Roth.

* And a Publisher Poll from Alessia (at her LiveJournal).

"You give a group of romance writers a couple of drinks and they'll admit it is pornography"

Roxanne reports that thirty-year romance agent Steven Axelrod said the following in an article, The Popular Fiction Report, by Michael J. Vaughn (April 2008 issue of Writer's Digest Magazine).

"You give a group of romance writers a couple of drinks and they'll admit it is pornography," he says. "It's hard to see it as true romance, and it has a very limited audience- they can't seem to grow it. Very few good storytellers seem to be staking their careers there."

Author Opportunities

The Marketing Whore has started High-Five Fridays, which, I'm finding, is not only an excellent way to clean up those links that you meant to post all week but just didn't get to, but a nice way to meet some new folks. Check out High-Five Fridays here.

In this week's High-Five Friday post, Marketing Whore had these gems which writers are likely to be interested in:

#1 High-Fives for The Sexies for The Sex-Positive Journalism Awards, which recognizes writers "who stick to high journalistic standards in a climate of repression and misinformation around human sexuality." Found via Libido Films' blog (NWS), which is run by one of the judges, and friend, Jack Hafferkamp.

And in an Oh The Irony way, #2 Jezebel nabs "Edgy" New New York Press Sex Columnist Stole Incest Question From Dan Savage. Don't worry, the columnist's resignation was accepted, leaving an opportunity for a sex columnist.

On The Erotica Market

Roxanne Rhoads has written The Growing Genre of Er*otica at Funds For Writers. Here's a snippet:

Women and men are discovering a new breed of 21st century romance novels that are sexier and more erotic. This new genre is erotica. It has evolved from the romance novels your mom read, but these are not mom’s sappy love stories. The sex scenes are hotter and steamier and much more graphic. It’s a whole new genre of writing mainly for the woman who isn’t afraid of her sexuality. In the past several years erotica has found a home with many mainstream book publishers, in anthologies and on many web sites.

Franklin Furnace Announces Open Call for Artists

Franklin Furnace Archive Inc.'s mission is "to present, preserve, interpret, proselytize, and advocate on behalf of avant-garde art, especially forms that may be vulnerable due to institutional neglect, their ephemeral nature, or politically unpopular content."

Visit the Franklin Furnace Web site for complete program information and examples of previously funded projects.

Request For Proposal - Deadline: April 1, 2008

Info via Chloe Jo's newsletter (which you can find more about here).

Female Characters Which Are Too Stupid To Live

Ann Bruce on TSTL Heroines, a.k.a. Darwin Awards’ Newest Category:

Romancelandia is plagued with characters, usually the heroines, who are too stupid to live (or TSTL for short; you know there’s a rampant problem when there’s an acronym involved). These women, usually described as feisty or naive [to the point idiocy], rush headlong into dark alleys after they’re told not to, thereby endangering themselves and the people, usually the heroes, forced to go in to try and save them.

Authors, please stop the madness. If your characters are TSTL, then maybe the villains should push them off a cliff or beat them with the flashlight they forgot to bring for the trek down into the basement where they heard those strange noises. That would be A LOT more satisfying for the readers (i.e. me, myself, and I). Really.

Click the link to read thirteen examples (they'd be even funnier if they weren't actually employed in stories).

Thanks to Gracie for emailing the link.

Marketing Tips For Authors

Via Marketing Whore's Thirteen Tips For Better Marketing:

4 Get & read one non-industry publication per month. (Ditto details of #2.)

Example One: If you're an author or a product manufacturer, consider books on retailing so you can understand their point of view; you can really sell them on carrying your book/product when you know their concerns.