The Erotica Readers & Writers Association Blog

Confessions of a Literary Streetwalker: Risks

zobop@aol.com (M.Christian) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:58:00 +0000

"The shock of September 11 is subsiding. Each day adds distance. Distance diminishes fear. Cautiously our lives are returning to normal. But "normal" will never be the same again. We have seen the enemy and the enemy is among us .... the publishers, producers, peddlers and purveyors of pornography."

It didn't take me long to find that quote, just a few minutes of searching. It came from an LDS Web site, Meridian Magazine, but I could have picked fifty others. Maybe it's because of the election, or because of a few horror stories that have recently come my way, but I think it's time to have a chat about what it can mean to ... well, do what we do.

We write pornography. Say it with me: por-nog-ra-phy. Not 'erotica' -- a word too many writers use to distance themselves, or even elevate themselves, from the down and dirty stuff on most adult bookstore shelves -- but smut, filth ... and so forth.

I've mentioned before how it's dangerous to draw a line in the sand, putting fellow writers on the side of 'smut' and others in 'erotica.' The Supreme Court couldn't decide where to scrawl that mark -- what chance do we have?

What good are our petty semantics when too many people would love to see us out of business, thrown in jail, or much, much worse? They don't see a bit of difference between what I write and what you write. We can sit and argue all we like over who's innocent and who's guilty until our last meals arrive, but we'll still hang together.

I think it's time to face some serious facts about what we do. 'Swinging from a rope' hyperbole aside, we face some serious risks for putting pen to paper or file to disk. I know far too many people who have been fired, stalked, threatened, had their writing used against them in divorces and child custody cases, and much worse.

People hate us. Not everyone, certainly, but even in oases like San Francisco people who write about sex can suffer tremendous difficulties. Even the most -- supposedly -- tolerant companies have a hard time with an employee who writes smut. A liberal court will still look down on a defendant who's published stories in Naughty Nurses. The religious fanatic will most certainly throw the first, second, third stone -- or as many as it takes -- at a filth peddler.

This is what we have to accept. Sure, things are better than they have been before and, if we're lucky, they will slowly progress despite the fundamentalism of the current government, but we all have to open our eyes to the ugly truths that can accompany a decision to write pornography.

What can we do? Well, aside from joining the ACLU (www.aclu.org) there isn't a lot to we can directly do to protect ourselves if the law, or Bible-wielding fanatics, break down our doors, but there are a few relatively simple techniques we can employ to be safe. Take these as you will, and keep in mind that I'm not an expert in the law, but most importantly, try to accept that what you are doing is dangerous.

Assess your risks. If you have kids, if you have a sensitive job, if you own a house, if you have touchy parents, if you live in a conservative city or state, you should be extra careful about your identity and what you are writing. Even if you think you have nothing to lose, you do -- your freedom. Many cities and states have very loose pornography laws, and all it would take is a cop, a sheriff, or a district attorney to decide you needed to be behind bars to put you there.

Hide. Yes, I think we should all be proud of what we do, what we create, but use some common sense about how easily you can be identified or found. If you have anything to lose, use a pseudonym, a post office box, never post your picture, and so forth. Women, especially, should be extra careful. I know far too many female writers who have been stalked or Internet-attacked because of what they do.

Keep your yap shut. Don't tell your bank, your boss, your accountant, your plumber, or anyone at all, what you do -- unless you know them very well. When someone asks, I say I'm a writer. If I know them better, I say I write all kinds of things -- including smut. If I know them very, very, very well then maybe I'll show them my newest book. People, it shouldn't have to be said, are very weird. Just because you like someone doesn't mean you should divulge that you just sold a story to Truckstop Transsexuals.

Remember that line we drew between 'pornography' and 'erotica'? Well, here's another. You might be straight, you might be bi, but in the eyes of those who despise pornography you are just as damned and perverted as a filthy sodomite. It makes me furious to meet a homophobic pornographer. Every strike against gay rights is another blow to your civil liberties and is a step closer to you being censored, out of a job, out of your house, or in jail. You can argue this all you want, but I've yet to see a hysterical homophobe who isn't anti-smut. For you to be anti-gay isn't just an idiotic prejudice, it's giving the forces of puritanical righteousness even more ammunition for their war -- on all of us.

I could go on, but I think I've given you enough to chew on. I believe that writing about sex is something that no one should be ashamed of, but I also think that we all need to recognize and accept that there are many out there who do not share those feelings. Write what you want, say what you believe, but do it with your eyes open. Understand the risks, accept the risks and be smart about what you do -- so you can keep working and growing as a writer for many years to come.

Call for Submissions: Carina Press

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:54:00 +0000

Carina Press is now accepting submissions for our digital publishing line.

Our mission is to connect readers with authors who write the stories they want to read. We will be introducing the bestsellers of tomorrow.

Carina Press will feature books from talented authors in all genres of romance, erotica, science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, women’s fiction, and more. If the book of your heart fits into a niche that has very little shelf space in a traditional bookstore, Carina Press is eager to read and potentially publish your story.

WHAT WE’RE SEEKING…

Carina Press will consider shorter length stories of less than 50,000 words, genre novels between 50,000 to 100,000 words and longer and complex narratives of over 100,000 words. We expect to publish a majority of romance and erotic romance but are also very interested in women’s fiction, science fiction, fantasy, futuristic, mystery, thrillers, horror, and niches. If you have something new and fresh we would be happy to read your story!

Your passion, quality of writing and voice is what will make your manuscript stand out and be considered for publication.

At this time we are not acquiring young adult novels. Additionally, Carina Press is not acquiring non-fiction or poetry of any kind.

Guidelines and submission details at:
carinapress.com/?page_id=2

Adam & Eve gives ERWA customers 20% off

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 23:20:00 +0000

Adam & Eve agreed to give ERWA customers 20% off their entire order.

Just in case you're not familiar with Adam & Eve, they sell sex toys and movies for men, women and couples. They have a huge selection of adult products, prices are reasonable, and their customer service is excellent.

And perhaps most important, Adam & Eve is a community conscious company, heavily committed to public service, with company and employee involvement in local charities, schools, community groups, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Relay for Life and the Special Olympics. Additionally, more than 25% of Adam & Eve profits are donated to charitable organizations including DKT International. Over the past decade, more than 40% of Adam & Eve profits have been donated to charity programs. This is a good company to support.

To receive the ERWA discount follow any Adam & Eve link in ERWA's Sex Toy Scuttlebutt
Or use this Adam & Eve link: www.adameve.com/7637.html

Go anywhere on the Adam & Eve site, make your choices, and at check-out enter Coupon Code 'ERWA10', which entitles ERWA customers 20% off the entire order.

Happy shopping,

Adrienne
Erotica Readers & Writers Association
www.erotica-readers.com
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Erotic Lure Newsletter: November 2009 Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:34:00 +0000

From the Erotica Readers & Writers Association
By Lisabet Sarai
November 2009
_______

Dear Hungry Hedonists,

It's November once again at the Erotica Readers & Writers Association, time for our annual feast of erotic delicacies and my usual jokes about the kinky potential of the early New England colonists' stocks. Perhaps I'll eschew those witticisms this year. For one thing, my Pilgrim costume is not in the best of shape after an eager disciplinarian slit it up the back last November in his quest for improved access...

Anyway, I'm sure that you don't want to hear about my sex life. Let me tell you instead about the bounty that awaits you in this month's edition of ERWA.

In the Story Galleries, we have collected a juicy half dozen tantalizing tales that showcase the incredible versatility of our authors. From dark obsession to sweet voyeurism, kinky power games to alternative futures, you are bound to find something that touches your heart and excites your senses. Slip into the Flashers and Poetry page for more delights, from humor to pathos.

Our authors do it all for you:
erotica-readers.com/GD/S/Erotic_Fiction.htm

As the weather turns crisp, it's time to curl up by a warm fire with a hot book. ERWA has dozens of recommendations. Rachel Kramer Bussel's latest collection, PEEP SHOW, offers sizzling tales of voyeurs and exhibitionists. Black Lace has released two new anthologies of its signature women's erotica, MISBEHAVIOUR and THE AFFAIR. If your thoughts are turning toward the upcoming holidays, pick up a copy of WRAPPED IN SEDUCTION, three naughty novellas on Christmas themes. For the readers on your Christmas list (yes, it's time to be thinking about gifts already!), how about giving a classic? John Cleland's infamous FANNY HILL and Charles Devereaux's 1889 oriental romp VENUS IN INDIA are both now available in new editions. Rob Rosen's DIVAS LAS VEGAS is my pick in the gay fiction category. It's a fun-filled, sin-soaked mystery spoof set on the glittering Strip. WOMAN OF THE BITE, edited by Cecilia Tan, will satisfy your hunger for lesbian vampire erotica. Visual types may enjoy STRANGE DAYS: ALIENS, ADVENTURERS, DEVILS AND DAMES, by Arnie and Cathy Fenner, a superb collection of cover art from the era of pulp magazines. And those of you who think about sex even when you're not aroused will appreciate PR0NNNOVATION? PORNOGRAPHY AND TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION, a collection of talks from the outrageous Arse Elektronica conference.

Our Books for Sensual Readers pages are an overflowing cornucopia of the concupiscent:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/EB/Erotic_Books.htm

Whether you're holiday shopping or just being good to yourself, don't forget to use our affiliate links whenever you can. Every purchase you make (even kitchenware or sweat socks!) from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and our other partners contributes to ERWA's continued existence as the premier site for free erotic content on the World Wide Web.

After racing up and down among our virtual bookshelves, I always enjoy dropping by the Smutters Lounge for some relaxation and edification. This month Ashley Lister interviews Mitzi Szereto, editor of the acclaimed Erotic Travel Tales series, and also reviews her book IN SLEEPING BEAUTY'S BED. Donna George Storey comments on the similarities between writing critiques and sex in "Don't Fondle My Sentences" (but then again, Donna is adept at seeing connections between almost everything and sex...!) J.T. Benjamin is all worked up about the all-too-public indiscretions of so-called celebrities and is considering starting a new gossip magazine called "I Don't Care". Jean Roberta's column, "The Garden of Earthly Delights", riffs on the theme of Thanksgiving bounty to consider the value of sexual fantasy. In book reviews, aside from Ashley's offering, we have Rob Hardy's review of LADY IN RED by Hallie Rubenhold, an enlightening and entertaining account of eighteenth century public indiscretions. I contribute a review of D.M. Atkins' and Chris Taylor's homoerotic paranormal romance, FAEWOLF.

Stimulate yourself in the Smutters Lounge:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/SL/Smutters_Lounge.htm

Speaking of stimulation, the Sex Toy Playground this month offers an authoritative introduction to stimulating the prostate from the folks at Adam and Eve. (Personally, I appreciated their gender-neutral references to exploring with one's "partner".) Mr. and Mrs. Toy are up to their usual tricks, reviewing the Clear Crystal Wand, a multi-function lucite toy for both him and her. The gals from Babeland have assembled a bountiful harvest of erotic instruments in their Sex Toy Scuttlebutt column. Be thankful -- ERWA subscribers get 10% off any toy featured!

Indulge yourself in the Playground:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ST/Sex_Toy_Playground.htm

Shorter days mean longer nights. Take advantage of the dark with some new adult movies. This month seems to be parody month (I wonder if Ashley Lister had anything to do with our selection.) We feature "The Sex Files: A Dark XXX Parody", "30 Rock: An XXX Parody" and the must-have "This Isn't Twilight". Also worthy of note is the hilarious and slippery "Flight Attendants" and Jessica Drake's dark thriller "Lies". On the classic porn page I came across a movie that is completely unfamiliar but that sounds wonderful, the 1977 "Visions of Clair". The film stars Annette Haven as the exsquisitely beautiful occupant of a mysterious mansion who draws both men and women to do her sexual bidding. Sounds like my sort of scenario.

All these titles and scores more can be yours with a simple click on one of our affiliate links. And you can save money, too: Adam and Eve has a buy one DVD, get four offer right now, and Adult DVD Empire is offering a 30% discount on some titles. What are you waiting for? It's practically virtuous!

For those who like to watch:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AM/Adult_Movies.htm

Inside the Erotic Mind, the denizens discuss the sense of smell and the role it plays in arousal. Perfume or pure sweat, which do you prefer? Share your opinions by clicking on the Participate link.

Venture inside the erotic mind:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ITEM/Inside_The_Erotic_Mind.htm

Erotica authors, I have not forgotten you! On the Authors Resources page this month, Louisa Burton gives great advice on pacing and avoiding story bloat. "If it isn't STORY," she reminds us, "leave it out." Donna George Storey's Shameless Self-Promotion column is entitled "Bigger is Better". Hey, she's talking about BOOKSTORES, and the fact that small independents, virtuous as they are, are often not friendly to small authors. Ashley Lister is "Celebrating Poetry" by sharing his own hilarious homage to Edgar Allen Poe and T.S. Elliot. Warning! Do not read this column while you are drinking coffee. Your keyboard may never recover.

As usual the Calls for Submission pages are literally stuffed with great opportunities for the aspiring erotica writer. Maxim Jakubowski has extended the deadline for his Sex in the City series. Adam Nevill has calls out for a raft of new anthologies to be published by Xcite Books in the U.K. Shane Allison has updated the call for his gay antho Big Tools. And don't forget the call for Coming Together: As One, Alessia Brio's latest charity anthology, which is focused on menage stories. There's no pay other than the satisfaction of helping a good cause, but her books get a lot of media attention.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. You'll find dozens more publishers, magazines and websites in the most comprehensive and up-to-date erotica market guide on the web.

Write your opus:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AR/Erotica_Authors_Resources.htm

Then sell it:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Call_For_Submissions.htm

Our current Web Gem is Exotic World Gifts. They offer unique, hand-crafted products that support fair trade and safe, healthy working conditions. Exotic World Gifts' mission is to connect consumers with small scale artisans around the world, providing the artisans with sustainable income. The site is user-friendly, prices and shipping costs are reasonable. It's a great way to knock items off your holiday gift list and feel good doing it.

Before I sign off, I want to thank Ashley Lister for penning last month's Lure, while I was traveling in exotic realms of the senses. (Actually, I was at a conference.) Ashley is always adept at stepping into my shoes--in this case my favorite purple suede thigh-high boots. Now if I could only get him to give them back!

Have a great month, enjoy your Thanksgiving if you happen to be a Yank, and don't do anything I wouldn't do.

That leaves you a lot of leeway...

Gratefully yours,
Lisabet

Visit Lisabet Sarai's Fantasy Factory
Check out Lisabet's Oh Get a Grip blog
Join Lisabet's List

Erotica Writers Contest

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 23:21:00 +0000

Writers of Erotic Stories, Erotic Fiction, Short Fiction Stories and Erotic Literature

Mainstream Erotica is looking for additional excellent erotica writers, and we’re putting on a contest to achieve this objective! Writers will be able to submit their work to us NOW for posting. Starting on November 1st, 2009 M E will post the best ten stories submitted each month and they will remain on the site for one month as our readers rank them. We think this process will help us identify more and better writers of erotic stories but also help us discover more about the type of erotica our readers like, thus a win/win for us all.

Submissions must be a minimum of 1000 words, with no maximum; and the ten best monthly stories posted to our site will be compensated a flat rate of $30. In addition, each monthly winner, of those 10 stories, will be hired by M E as a freelance writer to write erotic stories and/or fiction for our publication.

One writer from each quarter will become a quarter-finalist. This person’s work will be juried by our M E staff and decided upon based upon merit and writing skill. That person becomes a quarter-finalist and at the end of the year each of the four quarter-finalists will go head-to-head and submit new work to be judged for a final first place prize, which will include $1000.00 in cash and prizes, as well as the title of Mainstream Erotica’s Erotic Stories Writer of the Year!

Please post your submissions to erotica@mainstreamerotica.com. Please label all submission with the following “EROTIC FICTION WRITERS CONTEST/ DATE”.

All work must be new and unpublished on any other online or print publication. Each monthly erotic stories winner will be asked to submit a new piece to M E for us to publish (writer will be compensated for these pieces) At which time we will have you sign a contract stating all of our terms and conditions.

Please only send one entry per person, per month. We appreciate all your hard work, and let the games begin!

Erotic Lure Newsletter: October 2009 Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:48:00 +0000

From the Erotica Readers & Writers Association
By Ashley Lister
October 2009
_______

Greetings Erotic Readers & Writers,

This is Ashley Lister, sitting in for the luscious Lisabet Sarai and guiding you through this month's updated pages at the wonderful world of ERWA. Lisabet is jet-setting to far-flung and fascinating corners of the globe but, before she left, she dressed me in the traditional garb of the ERWA tour guide and asked me to take good care of each and everyone of you. So, if you'll fasten your seatbelts and make sure you’re sitting comfortably, allow me to take you on a smooth and pleasurable ride.

Let’s start with Jean Roberta's review of Remittance Girl's A Slip of the Lip. A Slip of the Lip is a free collection of 21 stories with the focus on kissing. Read the review, then download the book. ERWA is the premier resource for top quality erotic fiction and this collection showcases the talents of ERWA’s stable of gifted writers. Download it now. Read and enjoy. I can wait here until you've finished.

Good. Have you got your copy? Then come with me to the story galleries. The theme this month is La Petite Mort. Someone explained to me that this refers to the French euphemism for orgasm. I was relieved. I thought the theme was about dead midgets and that’s never sexy. But there are no dead midgets here: only plenty of delicious ‘La Petite Morts’ brought to you by erotic writers of the highest calibre.

Please, enjoy your stay at the story galleries. There are plenty of tales to titillate, tease and tempt you to linger longer. Like I said before, I can wait here whilst you peruse what’s on offer. I'm in no rush to get out of this uniform. It nicely accentuates my potbelly.

Books? Did someone say books? Haven't you had your fill with A Slip of the Lip and all the fantastic free fiction at the story galleries? Perhaps it’s because you like to hold something hard in your hand? Like a book. Check out the featured books. Aside from Remittance Girl’s A Slip of the Lip, you can also hear all about D L King’s latest erotic anthology: The Sweetest Kiss. Now that autumn is upon us, it’s time to think about snuggling up with something beneath the covers, and what could be better than sexy-spooky vampire stories? Apart from snuggling up with your ERWA tour-guide, I don't think anything else could be more sexy or more satisfying. Books for Sensual Readers Please, check it out. I don't mind waiting. I have all the time in the world.

Do you write? Then you'll love the author resources this month. Louisa Burton in her inimitable FictionCraft column, reminds us how to keep it real. The shameless Donna George Storey (Shameless Self Promotion) advocates the idea of making promo videos to sell our fiction. Seriously: if you’re published and wanting to promote your work, read Donna’s sage advice on how to get your words into moving promotional pictures. Then, whilst we’re still talking writers and writing, you might want to read my column on how I enjoy stealing ideas. Authors’ Resources: it’s the hip place to be.

The next stop on this tour will also appeal to authors as we check out the current Calls For Submissions. To avoid confusion, the new stuff is marked with the word ‘new.’ If you have problems with this labelling system, then you’re an idiot. Seriously, this is editors and publishers looking for well-written material and telling you exactly what they want. If you’re an author and you overlook this part of the tour, then you’re obviously not serious about your writing.

Let’s step Inside The Erotic Mind for a moment. The burning question at the moment is: What Turns You On? Are the fun-loving folks Inside The Erotic Mind discussing YOU and YOUR PERSONAL pleasure buttons? You'll have to visit to find out. Your contributions and comments will always be welcome.

Which brings us to Smutters Lounge. Here you can cast your eye over my probing interview with the enormously talented D L King. Donna George Story asks ‘Are You A Real Writer?' (No, Donna, I'm a tour-guide today) and Robert Buckley takes us on an insider’s tour of Salem. If that’s not enough for your ravenous appetites, then check out why J T Benjamin is getting All Worked Up this month and what Jean Roberta has to say about Innocent Guns (Sex is all Metaphors). Trust me there isn't a word in these columns that will disappoint.

And now, you've had your senses stimulated viscerally and figuratively, let’s get round to stimulating them literally. The Sex Toy Playground has the buzz on all the latest toys, trinkets and tickly-things that can bring a smile to those hard to reach places. If a ride with this trusted tour-guide isn't enough to tickle your fancy, there should be something here from the plug-and-play section that puts the big O in your October.

The Best In Adult Movies features… well, the best in adult movies. If you've read the book and tried the toy: now see the film.

And, finally, there’s the newly updated Portfolio of Links from ERWA. If you haven't found what you’re looking for through our whirlwind tour, then the chances are that there will be a link here that puts the sizzle in your sausage.

The Web Gem this month is Hips and Curves.com, featuring a spectacular assortment of sexy plus size Halloween costumes. Get your treats this Halloween in a frilly French Maid outfit, a Dance Hall Honey, Hole in One Golfer, how about a Rowdy Referee or Wood Nymph. There's dozens of choices at Hips and Curves.com

Which brings us nicely back to where we started. Thank you so much for travelling with me, I hope you've found something of interest on this month’s site and I trust you'll come back and visit repeatedly throughout the month now that you know where everything is.

Enjoy your October with ERWA.

Ashley

Visit Ashley at:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/COF/ALister.htm

Make Your Own Book Trailer!

noreply@blogger.com (Donna) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:31:00 +0000

This month in my Shameless Self-Promotion column I discuss a cutting edge and visually-stimulating way to get your book before new viewers (and potential buyers)--the book trailer. There are plenty of professionals willing to help you make a trailer, but if you're a do-it-yourself type, it can be lots of fun to make your own. So check out then trailer for my novel, Amorous Woman, then read all about how my husband and I did it. I mean made the trailer, of course!

I hope you enjoy your erotic trip to Japan...,

“Shameless” Tips on Book Trailers with Kim McDougall

noreply@blogger.com (Donna) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:09:00 +0000

This month’s Shameless Self-Promotion discusses the cross-media thrill of creating a book trailer. I have the pleasure to interview professional book trailer producer Kim McDougall, who has graciously agreed to share her experiences promoting her work in general and creating book trailers in particular. Kim is a professional photographer, award-winning and prolific author and the founder of the new book trailer promotion site, Blazing Trailers. She writes fiction that “ignores boundaries, mixes genres and confounds classification”—which is definitely my kind of fiction! Her many credits include the fantasy titles The Golden Hour, “Luminari,” and the Twisted Tales series. She writes for children and young adults as Kim Chatel with titles including The Stone Beach, Rainbow Sheep, and A Talent for Quiet.

Shameless Self-Promotion: What have you found to be the most effective ways to promote your books? The most enjoyable?

Kim McDougall: The most enjoyable for me is definitely visiting schools and libraries to read my book to kids. Sometimes we do a craft too. This brings me full circle, back to the beginning of the creative process. It’s a reminder (after all the hard work, waiting and promoting) of why I write for kids in the first place. I have also made decent sales this way. I usually get about a 10% return from these visits. So if I see 300 kids, I might sell 30 books.

SSP: The least effective ways or biggest challenges?

I’m not convinced that chat groups and forums are a great way to promote. I know some authors have been successful with these, but I just feel like I preaching to the choir. And while it’s pleasant to chat with other writers, I haven’t seen any indication that this translates in many sales, especially considering the time involved.

SSP: What has been the most surprising thing about the experience of book promotion?

I was surprised that local chain bookstores were so difficult to deal with. Barnes and Noble won’t have me in to do a book signing because my book is POD. Yet another author in with my publisher is having great success with her POD books at her local B&N in California. The biased against POD is a local thing and I don’t understand it. There is nothing for the bookstore to lose.

SSP: Any tips about designing a website?

I’ve received one comment from a viewer on my site www.kimmcdougall. It was positive. She was impressed with my site because it was clean, simple and easy to navigate. She complained that so many writers try to jam everything and the kitchen sink into their sites. I have to agree. When I go to a site that has so much clutter I can’t find anything, I’m immediately turned off.

SSP: Do you have any thoughts on blogging?
Because I’m such an inconsistent blogger, I’ve found that keeping a blog myself is a waste of time. These things need to build steady steam to be effective. For myself, I have found two effective ways of making blogs work for me.

First, I guest blog at other people’s blogs. This gives me exposure to varying audiences, without having to keep a blog myself.

Second, I use Google alerts to find blogs talking about subjects similar to my book. For instance, I get Google alerts about needle-felting, and when I find someone blogging about it, I go in and invite them to my site to see the movie about me making a felt sheep. This is a soft sell. I may mention my book, Rainbow Sheep, if it’s appropriate, but if I get them to visit my site, they’ll find the book themselves. This is a tricky way of promoting though. You don’t want to spam a blog with a simple ad for your book. Rather, this is a way to strike up a conversation with others who may have the same interests as you and hope that something will come of it.

SSP: Can you share your experiences with book fairs or in-person events?

Because of the craft element in Rainbow Sheep, I have been able to sell my book quite successfully at local craft fairs. In fact, I do better at these than at bookstores. Some craft fairs will allow author signings. It’s a good thing to look into locally. I also make many great contacts in the community this way.

SSP: How about swag--such as postcards, bookmarks, pens, flyers, T-shirts, magnets, etc. Which has been the most useful?

I don’t believe giving away books is a good way to sell books. If you have a series, this might work, by holding a contest to win the first book. However, in general, when I hold contests, I give away other things. For December, I had a giveaway for my short story, “Luminari,” from Eternal Press. I made necklaces of little glass vials filled with gold glitter to represent the “Luminari” in the story. I gave these away free to the first 25 buyers of the story in December. I also used them for contests on chat forums.

The cost of the supplies and the mailing was more than my royalties on the story, but I consider it a loss-leader. It brought people to my site and enabled me to start a mailing list.

SSP: You specialize in creating book trailers for other authors (and yourself), do you have any specific tips for beginning book trailer artists--maximum or minimum length, use of effects, things to avoid, best places to buy images or music?

When all is said and done, a trailer is a commercial and I think many authors making their own forget that. The three things you want your viewer to take away from the trailer are: your book title, your name and a vague memory of your cover. You want to engage the viewer with the imagery and music, but those three factors need to pop, too.

Here’s is a description of many author trailers I view that I feel don’t work as a promo: 4-5 minutes of static photos, with long lines of description, ending with the book cover. If I had already read the book, the passing images might hold relevance to me, but as a possible buyer, they make little impact. And while these slide shows may be beautiful to watch, they aren’t a good selling tool because they don’t leave the viewer thinking, “Wow, I’d like to read that book!”

I try to combine video with photos and bring movement to the still images. Also, I prefer to use fewer images, but choose those with more impact. Music is also really important. Dramatic music can make a huge difference to the feeling of a trailer. Finally, I try to limit my trailers to two minutes. It’s so easy for a viewer to click away from a video that is too long or doesn’t interest them.

SSP: Which trailer(s) would you consider good examples of your work?

Here’s an example of a trailer that uses still imagery but is not static. “River Bones” by Mary Deal. It uses only a few images, but they are all dramatic as is the music. This would be a fairly inexpensive trailer to make.

“The Locket,” by Suzanne Lieurance is another example of static images, coming alive. This one uses sound effects to good measure.

One of my favorite trailers using video clips, is one of my earliest for my YA novel “The Stone Beach.” This would be a more expensive trailer to make, but it is quite dramatic. You’ll notice, there is very little text on this one.

Another alternative is to take one video clip and split it into pieces so to spread it over an entire trailer. This in an inexpensive way to bring movement to a trailer. An example of this is my trailer for “Barbegazi.”

SSP: How do you get book trailers noticed?

The reason I established Blazing Trailers, was because there were few places to showcase trailers properly. It is important to post your trailer all over the net. There are many sites other than YouTube and a simple Google search will call up a dozens of them. Let these sites bring traffic to your site.

But when it comes to inviting people to see your trailer, you’re best to offer a link to your site or a place like Blazing Trailers where the viewer has an immediate opportunity to buy your book. If you’re on a chat and you say “look at my trailer on YouTube.” The viewer may go look at it, but then what? It’s a dead end. But if you post your trailer on your site with a buy link, they have to opportunity to find out more information about the book and possibly buy it.

That’s why at Blazing Trailers, each book page has the trailer and then a blurb, excerpt, review and buying information.

Here are a couple of sites that get good viewer clicks that some authors might not know about.

Gather.com

Break.com

Previewthebook.com (for shorter book trailers)

SSP: Thank you so much, Kim, for sharing your experiences and especially for the insights into making book trailers! For more very helpful information on creating your own book trailer and using it to market your book, check out this interview with Kim at Book Talk Corner.

Find out more about Donna George Storey and her adventures in shameless self-promotion at her blog.

Call for Submisisons: 4 calls

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:13:00 +0000

There's 4 new calls for submissions on ERWA:

Coming Together: As One
Editor: Alessia Brio
Publisher: Phaze
Deadline: December 31, 2009
http://erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Coming_Together.htm

Best Gay Erotica 2011
Series Editor: Richard Labonte; Judge, Kevin Killian
Publisher: Cleis Press, November 2010
Deadline: April 1, 2010
Payment: Payment $50-$75, plus two contributor copies
http://erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Best_Gay_Erotica_2011.htm

Best Gay Romance 2011
Series Editor: Richard Labonte
Publisher: Cleis Press, December 2010
Deadline: May 1, 2010
Payment: Payment $50-$75, plus two contributor copies
http://erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Best_Gay_Romance_2011.htm

Mainstream Erotica
A sharp looking pay-for-subscription online magazine
http://erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Mainstream_Erotica.htm

Confessions of a Literary Streetwalker: The Best of the Best of the Best

zobop@aol.com (M.Christian) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 03:53:00 +0000

(as part of my new gig writing for the ERWA's blog here's one of my classic Confessions columns. Enjoy!)

Here's a quote that's very near and dear to my heart:

From the age of six I had a mania for drawing the shapes of things. When I was fifty I had published a universe of designs, but all I have done before the age of seventy is not worth bothering with. At seventy five I'll have learned something of the pattern of nature, of animals, of plants, of trees, birds, fish and insects. When I am eighty you will see real progress. At ninety I shall have cut my way deeply into the mystery of life itself. At a hundred I shall be a marvelous artist. At a hundred and ten everything I create; a dot, a line, will jump to life as never before. To all of you who are going to live as long as I do, I promise to keep my word. I am writing this in my old age. I used to call myself Hokosai, but today I sign my self 'The Old Man Mad About Drawing.'

That was from Katsushika Hokusai, a Japanese painter of the Ukiyo-e school (1760-1849). Don't worry about not knowing him, because you do. He created the famous Great Wave Off Kanagawa, published in his "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" -- a print of which you've probably
seen a thousand times.

Hokusai says it all: the work is what's really important, that he will always continue to grow and progress as an artist, and that who he is will always remain less than what he creates.

Writing is like art. We struggle to put our thoughts and intimate fantasies down just-so, then we send them out into an often harsh and uncaring world, hoping that someone out there will pat us on the head, give us a few coins, and tell us we did a good job.

What with this emotionally chaotic environment a little success can push just about anyone into feeling overly superior. Being kicked and punched by the trials and tribulations of the writing life making just about anyone desperate to feel good about themselves -- even if it means
losing perspective, looking down on other writers. Arrogance becomes an emotional survival tool, a way of convincing themselves they deserve to be patted on the noggin a few more times than anyone else, paid more coins, and told they are beyond brilliant, extremely special.

It's very easy to spot someone afflicted with this. Since their superiority constantly needs to be buttressed, they measure and wage the accomplishments and merits of other writers putting to decide if they are better (and so should be humbled) or worse (and so should be the source of worship or admiration). In writers, this can come off as someone who thinks they deserve better ... everything than anyone else: pay, attention, consideration, etc. In editors, this appears as rudeness, terseness, or an unwillingness to treat contributors as anything but a resource to be exploited.

Now my house has more than a few windows, and I have more than enough stones, so I say all this with a bowed head: I am not exactly without this sin. But I do think that trying to treat those around you as equals should be the goal of every human on this planet, let alone folks with literary aspirations. Sometimes we might fail, but even trying as best we can -- or at least owning the emotion when it gets to be too much -- is better than embracing an illusion of superiority.

What this has to do with erotica writing has a lot to do with marketing. As in my last column ("Pedaling Your Ass") where I vented a bit on the practice of selling yourself rather than your work, arrogance can be a serious roadblock for a writer. It is an illusion -- and a pervasive
one -- that good work will always win out. This is true to a certain extent, but there are a lot of factors that can step in the way of reading a great story and actually buying it. Part of that is the relationship that exists between writers and publishers or editors. A writer who honestly believes they are God's gift to mankind might be able to convince a few people, but after a point their stories will be more received with a wince than a smile: no matter how good a writer they are their demands are just not worth it.

For editors and publishers, arrogance shows when more and more authors simply don't want to deal with them. After a point they might find themselves with a shallower and shallower pool of talent from which to pick their stories -- and as more authors get burned by their attitude and the word spreads they might also find themselves being spoken ill of to more influential folks, like publishers.

Not to take away from the spiritual goodness of being kind to others, acting superior is also simply a bad career move. This is a very tiny community, with a lot of people moving around. Playing God might be fun for a few years but all it takes is stepping on a few too many toes -- especially toes that belong on the feet of someone who might suddenly be able to help you in a big way some day – making arrogance a foolish role to play.

I am not a Christian (despite my pseudonym) but they have a great way of saying it, one that should be tacked in front of everyone's forehead: "Do onto others as you would have then do unto you." It might not be as elegant and passionate as my Hokusai quote, but it's still a maxim we should all strive to live by -- professionally as well as personally.

A Slip of the Lip: ERWA Collection of Kisses

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 20:24:00 +0000

Kisses are electrifying, passionate, and powerful ... and difficult to express in words. ERWA authors, a group of audacious writers, took on the challenge. The remarkable results are featured in our free ebook, A Slip of the Lip: The Erotica Readers & Writers Association Collection of Kisses, edited by Remittance Girl.

To wet your appetite for A Slip of the Lip, here is the Introduction to our collection of kisses:

Introduction from
Slip of the Lip: The Erotica Readers & Writers Association Collection of Kisses
Edited by Remittance Girl

Kisses have been described in literature throughout history, but rarely have they been given the attention they deserve. A kiss is often the first, truly intimate contact lovers have. In fact, it is often the event that allows the people involved to think of themselves as lovers.

Other animals may meet, mate and bond but only humans kiss. And, although there are many cultures that view other forms of contact as more intimate, western literature, photography and film have spread the romantic and erotic concept of the kiss around the world.

In erotic fiction, the kiss is too often described in passing on the way to more overtly sexual acts. This collection of kisses grew out of a challenge thrown down in the Writers' section of the Erotica Readers & Writers mail list: write the best, most innovative and original description of a kiss.

Each of the pieces is less than 1000 words long. They are not meant to be complete stories, only the capturing of those breathtaking, heart pumping, andrenalin inducing moments when lips meet and - whatever lies you might tell yourself - there’s no going back.

The old theme song from the 1942 movie Casablanca tells us that ‘a kiss is just a kiss,’ but we beg to differ.

—Remittance Girl, editor

Please feel free to download the entire collection in .pdf form at:
Slip of the Lip: The Erotica Readers & Writers Association Collection of Kisses

Call for Submissions: Best Lesbian Romance, 4/1/2010

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:58:00 +0000

Best Lesbian Romance 2011
Editor: Radclyffe
Publisher: Cleis Press
Deadline: April 1, 2010
Payment: $50 and 2 contributor copies

Guidelines for Submissions

• Published or unpublished short stories or novel excerpts

• Previously published material acceptable if published between September 1, 2009 & December 31, 2010

• Word count: 1500 - 5000 words

• Electronic submissions only to: radclyffe.bsb@gmail.com
- e-mail header: BLR 11_Author_Title (BLR 11_Your Name_Title)
-.rtf attachment (story)
- e-mail body: story title, author name, pseudonym, address, phone/fax, e-mail address, word count, if story previously published: anthology title/publisher/Pub date, 50 word bio

• Story Format:
- Arial; 12 pt
- double-spaced; standard paragraphing; no HTML
- file name: Author_Title (Your Name_Story Title)

• General Info:
- The anthology is scheduled for publication from Cleis Press Fall 2010
- Submission decisions will be provided by e-mail summer 2010
- Erotic content is welcome as long as the emotional/romantic elements are focal
- Multiple submissions (no more than 3) accepted
- Payment: $50 and 2 contributor copies
- Please send questions to: radclyffe.bsb@gmail.com

Erotic Lure Newsletter: September 2009 Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:10:00 +0000

From the Erotica Readers & Writers Association
By Lisabet Sarai
September 2009
_______

Dear Students of the Sensual,

Welcome to September's edition of the Erotic Lure, your monthly guide to the Erotica Readers & Writers Association web site. Although I got the last of my many degrees decades ago, September for me still means the excitement of "back to school". Virgin notebooks waiting to be filled with insights. New teachers and new subjects. Sweaty young men in gym clothes showing off their muscles on the athletic field. Young ladies in their deceptively innocent school uniforms, tight white blouses and dimpled knees...

But wait. Despite a long literary tradition, we are now forbidden from considering anyone under eighteen in any kind of sexual light. It's strictly taboo. I'd better switch to some other fantasy!

For a taste of the taboo, check out this month's gallery theme, "Rapturous Blasphemy". You'll find startling and original takes on the endlessly fascinating topic of sex and religion. We also offer a pair of delicious Tantalizing Tales on other themes, and a bumper crop of flashers, both serious and hilarious. Meanwhile, our talented poets have been busy, fashioning elegant free verse that will make you yearn and burn.

For exclusive, evocative erotica you won't find anywhere else, visit:
erotica-readers.com/GD/S/Erotic_Fiction.htm

When you're tired of your assigned reading, visit our Books for Sensual Readers pages for more arousing literary fare. Relax with M.Christian's new short story collection LICKS AND PROMISES, or Nancy Madore's ENCHANTED DREAMS: EROTIC TALES OF THE SUPERNATURAL. Victoria Dahl offers a sassy, sexy tale of a small town girl who runs her own auto body shop in START ME UP. J.L.Langley's gay scifi romance THE ENGLOR AFFAIR provides "hot sweaty manlove of the interplanetary kind". Clara Nipper's FEMME NOIR is a satirical lesbian take on the hard-boiled detective genre, immersing the reader in a world of tough broads and big babes.

In DARK OBSESSION, Frederica Alleyn fashions a pseudo-Victorian tale of perverse sexual activity hidden behind the facade of wealth and social respectability. For genuine Victorian smut, read the massive classic MY SECRET LIFE, now in a new edition from Harper Collins UK. Follow "Walter" in his endless odyssey of lust as he flaunts the supposedly rigid moral code extant during Queen Victoria's reign. Speaking of classics, don't miss graphic novel version of THE STORY OF O, illustrated by the legendary Guido Crepax. (I know what I want for Christmas!)

You're working so hard on your homework -- why deny yourself a bit of entertainment? All these books, and dozens more, can be yours at the click of a mouse through our affiliate links to Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Every time you buy anything from our affiliates, you're helping ERWA to bring you great erotic fiction, non-fiction, opinions, news and product reviews, month after month -- the way we've been doing for the past thirteen years.

Reward yourself with some recreational reading at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/EB/Erotic_Books.htm

In the September Smutters Lounge, we have a full cohort of provocative columnists to stimulate your mind. Donna George Storey discourses on the secrets of seduction; you can be sure that as usual, she includes some of her tempting recipes. Ashley Lister interviews BDSM author Kristina Lloyd in his Between the Lines series. Robert Buckley's wonderful Cracking Foxy column wonders where the cozy, quiet places have gone, commenting that "loud is the antithesis of romantic". (I could not agree more!) J.T. Benjamin is less strident than usual but as sharp as ever as he ponders the future of technology and pornography in the company of his right-wing born-again friend The Missionary. In "The Distracting Smirk", on the other hand, Jean Roberta offers well-expressed outrage at the media focus on celebrities' sexual lives at the expense of more substantive issues.

Our reviewers get A's for effort this month, providing their takes on more than half a dozen recently published books. Ashley Lister is at the top of the class reviewing M. Christian's LICKS AND PROMISES, Rachel Kramer Bussel's THE MILE HIGH CLUB, and Madeline Moore's SARAH'S EDUCATION. Kristina Wright summarizes the savory OYSTERS AND CHOCOLATE collection, edited by Jordan LaRousse and Samantha Sade. Vincent Diamond reviews James Buchanan's collection of gay cop and criminal tales, READY TO SERVE. Our non-fiction reviewer Rob Hardy takes on Richard Bernstein's THE EAST, THE WEST AND SEX: A HISTORY OF EROTIC ENCOUNTERS, while your humble editor does a quick take on the Circlet Press title UP FOR GRABS, edited Lauren P. Burka.

Get the run-down on what's happening in the world of the erotic:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/SL/Smutters_Lounge.htm

As usual, the Sex Toy Playground is jumping (or perhaps I should say vibrating) with two reviews (Teardrop Bullet Vibe, by Kyra Saunders, and iLusting Vibe, by Mr. and Mrs. Toy) and our monthly Sex Toy Scuttlebutt column, prepared by toy doyennes at Babeland. I always appreciate the honesty of these toy reviews. They're not advertising pieces, but serious evaluations of the pros and cons of each item. Speaking of advertising, though, I should mention that ERWA subscribers can get a 10% discount on any toy featured in the Scuttlebutt, simply by clicking the associated link. (Repeat after me: "I will buy all my toys through ERWA.")

Refill your toy chest at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ST/Sex_Toy_Playground.htm

Once you've picked your favorite toys, slide on over to the Best in Adult Film pages to find out what's available for your visual side. From the many new flicks featured this month, I picked "Heaven", the tale of an exotic dancer drawn into the hard-fucking, double-crossing world of the mob. Another intriguing title is Brad Armstrong's "The 8th Day", a dark, futuristic adventure in a post-apocalypse world of half-human sex fiends and bizarre religious cults. "The Babysitter" skirts the edge of taboo with its lust between a mature married man and the barely-legal cutie who cares for his kids. If you like hot sex but don't particularly care about plot, get yourself a copy of "Raylene's Dirty Work", a set of over-the-top vignettes on the general theme of horny housewives which features gorgeous brunette Raylene as the dirtiest girl of them all.

Practice makes perfect, so I'll tell you once again: you can buy any title we list through our convenient affiliate links. Keep an eye on the upper right of our pages, too, where we highlight the month's best deals. In September, for instance, Adam and Eve is offering a five for one deal on adult movies. What are you waiting for?

Get yourself some eye candy at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AM/Adult_Movies.htm

Inside the Erotic Mind this month, our members consider the question of blasphemous fantasies. Why is it so arousing to think about seducing the priest or getting it on in a church? I suspect this thread was triggered by our September story theme (see above). In any case, you'll find some intriguing opinions. You can share your own notions, too. Just click on the Participate link.

Break taboos at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ITEM/Inside_The_Erotic_Mind.htm

Authors, I did not forget you. I just figured that you'd appreciate some recreation before thinking about work. As usual, the Authors Resources pages provide expert guidance on turning inspiration and perspiration into publication. Louisa Burton's "Keeping it Simple" reminds us that "a story is only as good as the words that are used to tell it" and that when it comes to prose, less is sometimes more. The shy, retiring Donna George Storey gives detailed advice on "Promoting in the Flesh", sharing her own experiences with release parties, readings, signings and book fairs. (I particularly liked her idea of adult fortune cookies.) "Ashley Lister is Anal" weaves commentary about particular sexual peccadilloes with some words of wisdom about being organized.

Make the most of your talent at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AR/Erotica_Authors_Resources.htm

The Calls for Submissions pages have many new entries including three new anthologies from Circlet Press, a Yaoi anthology from Phaze, and two upcoming collections being assembled by Rachel Kramer Bussel. I was particularly struck by Dreamspinner Press' call for "Mistletoe Madness", gay holiday stories which will be distributed in an Advent Calendar format. In addition to specific calls, the Submissions page lists ongoing submission guidelines for dozens of print and e-publishers, magazines, and websites. The pages are updated whenever we get new information, not just monthly, so if you're an author, stop by often to see what's new. And don't forget to tell publishers or editors to whom you are submitting that you found their information on ERWA.

Find a home for your darlings at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Call_For_Submissions.htm

Every week or two ERWA updates its Web Gems with new sites that we think our readers will enjoy. In honor of the start of school, we are currently featuring Games for the Brain. This cool little website is packed with games that will challenge and amuse you, from artsy Draggers to TriviaNut. The best part is after you've spent the good part of an hour with these games, you can reassure yourself that it was time well spent, and you're that much smarter for the playing. (If the teacher catches you, you've got a great excuse!)

Speaking of the teacher, I see him coming now, ruler in hand. I've been as good as I know how to be, but somehow he always finds some infraction worthy of punishment... Oh well. I certainly can't claim that school is boring.

I'll be traveling around the turn of next month, so the magnificent Ashley Lister will be bringing you the October Erotic Lure. I'm sure he'll keep you entertained. I'll see you in November.

Be good...

Studiously yours,
Lisabet

Visit Lisabet Sarai's Fantasy Factory
Check out Lisabet's Oh Get a Grip blog
Join Lisabet's List

Avon's new submission policy

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 18:37:00 +0000

To submit your romance, erotica, or women's fiction (only), please query first. You must query by e-mail. When you do so, please put QUERY in the subject line. Due to the overwhelming amount of spam e-mail received, subject lines that have manuscript titles often do not reach the editors. Your query should be brief, no more than a two-page description of your book. Do not send chapters or a full synopsis at this time. Also, please not send attachments—THEY WILL NOT BE OPENED. You will receive a response—either a decline or a request for more material—in approximately one to two weeks.

Complete details at:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Avon_Red.htm

Call for Submissions: Skater Boys, 11/15/09

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:37:00 +0000

Skater Boys
Editor: Neil Plakcy
Publisher: Cleis Press
Deadline: November 15, 2009
Payment: $60.00 per story, plus 1 copy of the book

The editor of HARD HATS (Cleis, 2008) and SURFER BOYS (Cleis, 2009) is in search of gritty, hard-edges erotic stories about the sexual escapades of boys on boards.

Lean, shirtless, tattooed young men flaunting their bodies as they perform impossible physical feats—on the streets and in the bedroom. They’re the stuff of fantasy—but also oh, so temptingly present wherever there’s room for a skateboard.

Riding a board is a way to lift a middle finger at ordinary society, a way to break out and express your own identity. For those guys whose identity includes a love for the taste and touch of another man, there’s an erotic connection between the freedom of the streets and the freedom of the sheets.

Following the success of Surfer Boys, Neil Plakcy and some of today’s best writers of gay erotica will tackle the testosterone-driven archetype of the skater boy, and all his magnificent physical prowess.

Don't let the title mislead you, though; all “boys” must be of legal age.

Story length: 3,000 5,000 words
Deadline: November 15, 2009
Publication Date: 2010
Payment: $60.00 per story, payable on publication, plus 1 copy of the book

You may forward this call to other erotica writers you know. Submit your story to Neil Plakcy at plax@bellsouth.net as a MS word attachment.

"Shameless" Tips on Book Signings with Stella Price

noreply@blogger.com (Donna) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:55:00 +0000

This month’s Shameless Self-Promotion discusses in the flesh book promotion events such as book parties, readings and signings. Stella Price, the promotional genius at Phaze Books, has agreed to talk with us about some of her favorite methods of meeting new readers, with signings at the top of the list. Stella is the author of numerous romance/dark urban fantasy novels, including 2009 Fantasm winners Deep Water and Frost & Flame, along with her sister Audra Price. It’s a real pleasure to welcome Stella and hear her extremely useful tips for dealing with bookstores, arranging signings and enchanting readers.

Shameless Self-Promotion: What have you found to be the most effective ways to promote your novel (or story collection or anthologies)?

Stella Price: Word of mouth helps a lot. Along with special promotional items that are specifically for your books.

SSP: The most enjoyable?

I love signings! I love meeting people.

SSP: The least effective ways or biggest challenges?

Loop chats are the worst in my opinion. Unless your with a certain publisher, or a favorite, you don’t get much out of it.

SSP: What has been the most surprising thing about the experience of book promotion?

The amount of people we have met from giving stuff out, who LOVE the ideas and don’t read romance, but end up buying your work because of the gimmick.

SSP: Did it change your view of your writing and the writing process?

Nope. Everything is still the same, just a lot more promotions to get the work out there.

SSP: What advice would you give to a person just starting out as a published author who would like to promote their novel/stories? Is there anything you would definitely do differently if you had the chance to do it over?

Get out there and make yourself and what you write known. Get to as many conventions and events as possible to get your name out there. Relying on online promo alone is unwise, because so many online readers have already chosen their favorites and don’t want to try anyone new.

SSP: If you've used a publicist or other professional consultant to promote your work what have been the benefits? The downside?

No I haven’t because I don’t believe in paying someone to do something I can do myself with money I don’t have.

SSP: How helpful do you find the following promotional tools:

Setting up a website—did you do it yourself or hire a professional?

Websites are the way to go. a place to have your work for all to find it is paramount.

Blogging:

I like it, And I do it at several places, usually group blogs.

Mailing lists/author newsletters:

Recently these have been doing extremely well for us. The newsletter lists have been beloved because there’s a concentrated set of "fans" in one place. Getting sales for new books is easiest this way instead of dispersing Emails around the net. The mailing lists we have are snail mail lists. Every month we send out goodies, even if it’s just a signed bookflat of a new book to the snail mail list. As of now we have over 300 people on those lists, and it has worked out great. It’s also an awesome way to send out signing information.

Blog tours:

I don’t use them, though I have done guest spots on blogs.

Getting your book reviewed—the challenges and successes:

I love reviews. They help a lot with selling the work to others with quotes, though the sites the reviews don’t really matter. It’s what you take away from them that works best.

Contests:

Something we do all the time, though we rarely get people entering.

Book fairs:

LOVE them. Any kind of event is fantastic to meet new and old readers!

Radio interviews:

They are fun, and amusing, but I haven’t gotten much out of it by way of sales.

Approaching local bookstores directly:

Tricky, but luckily I have perfected this. It’s extremely time consuming, almost a full time job. You need to be diligent, and keep on the stores. I suggest making a PDF of the information they will need. Signing dates you’re looking for, genre, what you will offer, ISBN's, book names, etc. The easiest way to get a signing is to call them and touch base with their Community Relations Manager, (B&N) or the Inventory Manager/Floor manager at Borders. Ask for an email address after you pitch the signing to them, tell them you will send them the PDF so they can check it all out and decide. Then if you don’t hear in a week or so, call back. You have to keep on them. Also, as an author, you need to know your signing rights. Both B&N and Borders have brochures that tell you what they expect and what you can expect from them.

Bookstore readings:

I don’t do readings.

Book parties:

We do a lot of these. We have a group that does then and we tend to sell pretty well.

Book trailers:

Fun and get people interested, but I don’t think they have gotten us sales.

Interviews in local or national media:

Pretty interesting and have helped with local sales.

Promoting at writing workshops or through other businesses:

VERY good

Swag--such as postcards, bookmarks, pens, flyers, T shirts, magnets, etc. Which has been the most useful?

People love promo. Stickers, pins and pens work best for us at the normal every day signing, but for conferences and such I bring out the big guys: soaps, metal bookmarks, bath salts, candles, matches, etc.

Any other strategies you'd like to suggest?

Signing tours! These take place in bookstores. Actually we do them in groups. It helps to have other people there to talk to and to help with the personalization of the event. We do them mainly in chain bookstores, like Borders, BN, Books a Million, Hastings, Etc. Also, at indie book shops, though they are a bit tougher to work around because they have to have a large readership in the genre you write in.

Thank you so much, Stella, for sharing your insights and suggestions!

Find out more about Donna George Storey and her adventures in shameless self-promotion at her blog.

Jekyll and Hyde

noreply@blogger.com (Lisabet Sarai) — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 12:09:00 +0000

By Lisabet Sarai

I live a double life.

I'm not talking about the contrast between my glamorous, risqué life as author Lisabet Sarai and my alternate existence as a mild-mannered, bespectacled software engineer. That duality does occasionally strain my grasp on reality. However, my soul is far more deeply divided. I'm referring to my disparate literary identities: Lisabet Sarai, erotica author, and Lisabet Sarai, author of erotic romance. The conflict between these two aspects of my self sometimes threatens to tear me apart.

You laugh indulgently. Come now, don't exaggerate, you say. How much difference can there possibly be between the two genres? Both of them include lots of sex, right? What's in a name? If you know how to write erotica, it should be easy to morph your work into romance. Just add a happy ending, and voila!

If only it were that simple.

True, both erotica and erotic romance will include sexual scenarios. However, hard core erotic romance readers have expectations and preferences that are dramatically different from those of erotica readers. Consider, for example, the question of multiple partners and sexual groupings. A typical erotica novel will often include not only sex scenes that involve the main character(s), but also sexual activity with or between minor characters. Romance readers, in contrast, want to focus on the primary relationship. Sex scenes between subsidiary characters, or situations where major characters have sex with people who are not their intended mates, tend to be frowned upon. In a romance, they distract from the main point, namely, the love story.

Another dimension of difference relates to variety in sexual orientation. My own erotic writing reflects my pansexual beliefs. I have no compunctions about including M/F, M/M, F/F, M/M/F, M/F/M and any other combination you can think of in the same book. From what I've gathered, romance readers tend to be more selective. If a book is labeled as M/M, readers do not want to stumble upon a F/F scene. Some romance readers want a M/F/M ménage while others are interested in a M/M/F ménage; the two audiences will only partially overlap. Romance readers appear to have very specific notions about what they do and do not want to read.

I do not mean to suggest that romance readers are more inhibited or more prudish than erotica readers, because this is not necessarily true. Explicit sex, including homoeroticism and various kinks, is quite at home in modern romance. However, based on my observations and conversations, I would say that romance readers are looking for a different sort of experience than a reader of “pure” erotica. Arousal is fine, but it's not enough to satisfy a reader of romance. Furthermore, I think it's fair to suggest that romance readers are less interested than erotica readers in the psychological complexities of sexual desire, particularly the darker aspects of sexuality. Romance readers confirm again and again that what they are seeking is an escape from humdrum or even painful reality into a world where perfect love, trust and communication are possible. The sexual excitement is simply an added benefit.

So how does this affect me as an author? I began my career writing erotica, but for the last two years, I have been working in both genres.. When I start working on a story intended for a romance audience, I experience such a lurching re-orientation of focus that it almost makes me nauseous. I curtail my impulses to go off on sexual tangents. I suppress my nastier fantasies. I try to recreate the thrill of falling in love and then let the sexual connections occur as a consequence, rather than the opposite. I strain my imagination seeking a happy ending that will be convincing rather than trite. Sometimes it's quite a struggle.

When I turn my hand back to erotica, the symptoms are nearly as acute. It's difficult for me to write characters who are ugly or selfish, promiscuous or exploitative. My sex scenes veer away from the extremes I might have written before I entered the sunnier world of romance. And despite myself, I end up with happy endings, whereas I used to revel in ambiguous or bittersweet conclusions.

Several months ago I finished my first shape-shifter romance novel (an extremely popular sub-genre), Serpent's Kiss. The book is rated as “burning” - “explicit, highly imaginative and hot, where almost anything goes...very uninhibited in both sexual dialect and descriptiveness”. The fact that romance publishers feel the need to label their offerings based on their sexual content is another indicator of my point about the selective tastes of their readers. In any case, after I submitted the manuscript, I had the weirdest compulsion. I felt that I had to write something completely filthy, with no hint of a love story, as an antidote to producing 50K words of true love and happily ever after. The result was my story “The Antidote”, which you can read on my website.

It made me feel a little better—but that story still has something like a happy ending. Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever reconcile the two sides of Lisabet Sarai—whether I'll ever get sufficient control of my craft to be able to slip effortlessly from my Dr. Jekyll romance persona into the dirty mind of Mr. Hyde.

Erotic Lure Newsletter: August 2009 Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:37:00 +0000

Erotic Lure Newsletter
Erotica Readers & Writers Association
By Lisabet Sarai
August 2009
___________

Dear Voracious Voluptuaries,

Welcome to the August edition of the Erotica Readers & Writers Association. This month we are celebrating the graduation of our preternaturally prolific columnist and reviewer Ashley Lister, who recently received his Bachelor of Arts with Honors in English Language, Literature and Writing. Master Ashley is my dear friend, cherished colleague and occasional pinch-hitter. On those few occasions when my adventures take me outside the reach of the Internet around the turn of the month, he's always ready to step into my shoes (not to mention my garter belt and corset!) and whip this newsletter into shape. Thanks, Ash, and congratulations!

In fact, despite the fact that most commencement ceremonies occur in May or June, I've decided to make "graduation" my theme for August. After all, if you're reading this, you've graduated from the stereotyped, tacky, artificial and downright gross sex stuff you'll find on some other sites. You're ready to move on to higher things: arousing, sexually-explicit stories, poems, columns and reviews that don't insult your intelligence or upset your stomach.

Appropriately, our August theme in the ERWA Story Galleries is "The End of Innocence". Graduation supposedly marks the transition from child to adult. (It's true that in my case I gave away my virginity at a young age, but I've always been precocious.) Our talented authors approach the notion of the first time from a variety of unexpected directions. Also in the Galleries this month we offer several Eastern Bloc interludes (how could a character named Tatiana not turn you on?) and a quartet of Tantalizing Tales that are alternately shocking and hilarious.

Graduate to the best free erotic fiction the web has to offer:
erotica-readers.com/GD/S/Erotic_Fiction.htm

Our Books for Sensual Readers pages are packed with goodies that would make great presents for some eager student. Renowned corporal-punishment connoisseur Rachel Kramer Bussel has assembled an all-new collection of spanking tales in BOTTOMS UP: SPANKING GOOD EROTICA. Editor Susie Bright slips to the dark side with her new anthology BITTEN: DARK EROTIC STORIES. In KISS IT BETTER, by the inimitable Portia da Costa, a man and a woman are both haunted by fantasies from their past. Erotic thriller WHEN ALEX WAS BAD by Jo Davis begins with a provocative attempt to breath life into a marriage that has lost its spark, but before long it's the characters' lives that are at risk. Delilah Marvelle's erotic romance LORD OF PLEASURE retells the timeless story of the ruined lady and the unredeemed rake. On the gay side, Larry Duplechan's GOT 'TIL IT'S GONE is a "queer romantic comedy for the 21st century". And if you have the slightest interest in women loving women, you can't afford to miss LESBIAN COWBOYS: EROTIC ADVENTURES, edited by Sacchi Green and Rakelle Valencia.

All these books and literally dozens more can be yours with a simple click or two through our affiliates at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Don't forget that everything you buy via the ERWA site (including that gardening book you've been craving and that tutorial on Perl scripting) helps to support the crème de la crème of Internet erotica (that would be ERWA, of course).

Bone up for a degree in erotic literature at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/EB/Erotic_Books.htm

In the Smutters Lounge, Ashley shares all the details of his graduation, including what he learned about "feminist criticism". Don't miss the cute photo of our proud graduate reading the closing speech for the ceremony. Meanwhile, our other columnists are celebrating in their own ways. Ashley interviews Shanna Germain, one of my personal favorite authors, in "Between the Lines". (You'd think he'd take a break after all that schoolwork!) Donna George Storey bakes her signature "Fantasy Meets Reality Pecan Bars" and considers how dark and light emotions combine in an erotic alchemy to create arousal. Robert Buckley reminisces about the pulpy, provocative horror flicks made by Hammer Studios in the sixties and seventies (lots and lots of deliciously heaving bosoms). J.T. Benjamin does what he does best, getting worked up about the ridiculous amount of media attention focused on adulterous politicians (as opposed to real crises). And in this season of summer nuptials, Jean Roberta debunks the romantic mythology surrounding marriage—any marriage, including same-sex matrimony.

Our reviewers offer seven thoughtful and informative critiques of the latest erotic publications in wide range of genres: KISS IT BETTER (erotic romance by Portia da Costa), PLAYING WITH FIRE (taboo erotica edited by Alison Tyler), THE MELINOE PROJECT (extreme femdom by D.L. King), WHERE THE GIRLS ARE (urban lesbian erotica edited by D.L. King), NEXUS CONFESSIONS VOLUME 6 (down and dirty fantasies edited by Lance Porter), OBSESSION (celebrity literary erotica, by Gloria Vanderbilt), and LICENTIOUS GOTHAM (historical non-fiction, by Donna Dennis).

If you want an X-rated education, come visit the Lounge:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/SL/Smutters_Lounge.htm

Some of us are spending the summer writing. (I have a novel deadline in just eleven days...) The August Author Resources pages offer expert assistance. Louisa Burton's article "Keep 'Em Guessing" discusses the importance of "story questions" in holding the reader's interest. Donna George Storey's Shameless Self-Promotion column offers pointers on cyber-marketing, as well as encouragement for those of us who feel totally overwhelmed by the constant promotional activity: "It's never easy and you're not alone." Our Literary Streetwalker M. Christian's column "Still More E-Book Fun" surveys the various considerations that should influence your choice of an e-publisher.

Meanwhile, the Calls for Submission section has dozens of opportunities for us to publish our stuff once it's written. Maxim Jakubowski is editing a new series of erotica anthologies set in specific cities. Phaze has a call for erotic stories featuring sexy characters dealing with disability. Shane Allison is editing two gay anthologies, one featuring Afro-American men and the other focusing on gangsters, while Sacchi Green is looking for stories about lesbian lust. This is just the tip of the iceberg, folks. Anyone who says that the market for erotica is shrinking hasn't visited ERWA.

Get advice from the professionals at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AR/Erotica_Authors_Resources.htm

Then join their ranks:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/G/Call_For_Submissions.htm

Of course, no one can study all the time. I'm sure that even the diligent Mr. Lister took a break once in a while. Here at ERWA we give you the information you need in order to make your leisure more productive...or at least more fun. Our Sex Toy Playground, for example, offers candid, explicit reviews of the latest erotic equipment. This month we feature the B-Bomb Vibrating Plug ("buzzing for your bum", according to Mr. Toy) and the Radiance Vibrator, as well as a host of other goodies offered in our monthly Sex Toy Scuttlebutt. You absolutely must read about the Club Vibe—truly a toy for the twenty first century! The generous gals at Babeland give ERWA shoppers a 10% discount on any item highlighted in the Scuttlebutt column. So what are you waiting for?

Play nice at
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ST/Sex_Toy_Playground.htm

Movies are always a good way to unwind after a hard day hitting the books. ERWA will guide you to the very best in adult video entertainment. This month we're offering a lot of comedy. "Operation Tropical Stormy" features Stormy Daniels in a hilarious tale of two bumbling secret agents marooned on a deserted island—well, deserted except for rabid jaguars, sex-starved cannibals and the reclusive North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il (who, I have read, absolutely adores movies...) "Pornstar Workout" doesn't have much plot—what aerobics class does?—but it's guaranteed to make exercise a lot less tedious. "It's a Secretary Thing 2" offers delicious, inventive fantasy role-playing on the timeless theme of the sexy secretary.

We have a half dozen adult movie affiliates. You can buy, rent or stream your X-rated entertainment, dealing with quality companies like Smut Network and Adult DVD Empire. Whichever you choose, you'll be doing a good deed (i.e. providing ERWA with the revenue it needs to thrive).

These aren't your school film clips:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AM/Adult_Movies.htm

Speaking of porn, the topic this month Inside the Erotic Mind is porn pet peeves. Our members offer three pages of commentary on what turns them off in an adult video. What do you think? You can add your own opinion by clicking on the Participate link.

Venture inside the erotic mind:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ITEM/Inside_The_Erotic_Mind.htm

Our Web Gem feature this month is WordWeb. WordWeb is a comprehensive one-click English thesaurus and dictionary for Windows. This user-friendly application can be used to look up words from almost any program (on-line, or off-line), showing definitions, synonyms and related words. It includes pronunciations and usage examples, and has helpful spelling and sounds-like links. There's a free version and a Pro version. Sound like what you need for your continuing studies? Go to http://wordweb.info for more details.

Well, I believe that I've completed all the requirements. Now I just have to take my oral exams—my instructor is tapping his foot impatiently—and I'll be qualified to call myself a CLS (Certified Literary Slut). I'm starting to realize that you can hide a lot under those voluminous black gowns...

Enjoy your August. I'll be back next month—hopefully with honors.

Pedagogically yours,
Lisabet

__
Visit Lisabet Sarai's Fantasy Factory
Check out Lisabet's Oh Get a Grip blog
Join Lisabet's List

“Shameless” Tips on the Examiner Experience with Sue Thurman

noreply@blogger.com (Donna) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 04:51:00 +0000

This month’s Shameless Self-Promotion examines creative uses of the Internet for book promotion. Speaking of examinations, I’m very pleased to welcome Sue Thurman, a writer who promotes her work as a freelance journalist with the Arizona Examiner. Sue has graciously agreed to share her experiences writing for Examiner.com and other suggestions for book promotion. Sue is the author of the children’s book Maybe We Are Flamingos and contributor to Inside Scoop: Articles about Acting and Writing by Hollywood Insiders, winner of the EPPIE award in non-fiction anthologies and an honorable mention in Foreward Magazine’s Book of the Year Awards.

Shameless Self-Promotion: What have you found to be the most effective ways to promote your books?

Sue Thurman: Prior to joining the Examiner family, I don’t think I’d found the most effective way. When an author signs with a small publisher that doesn’t offer any marketing, it’s difficult to find the best avenue. Good reviews are great, however it doesn’t always transfer into sales if you don’t already have an established audience. With my YA novel currently in progress, I’m building my audience first. A good book trailer is a very effective tool and mine was done by Kim Chatel of Blazing Trailers.

SSP: The most enjoyable?

Personal appearances to autograph books, or just meet people.

SSP: The least effective ways or biggest challenges?

Trying to get into the major chains when with a small publisher.

SSP: What has been the most surprising thing about the experience of book promotion?

I’ve learned from other authors that virtual book tours aren’t very effective.

SSP: Tell us more about your experience with the Examiner.com.
The Examiner that I write for is looking for writers all over the country. The requirement is 3-4 articles per week on a dedicated web page in their network. They provide the template, there is no cost and you do make a tiny bit of money based on how many hits you get per month.

They are doing a special referral program and if anyone is interested, send an email to: safari at safarisue dot com, and I will give you the information to sign up.

You can view my page at http://www.examiner.com/x-2174-Arizona-Family-Examiner

If you don't see a category you like, you can suggest one and there are a wide variety of people and interests. It's fun and since I started in January, now people are asking me to cover stories. Some of the writers have gotten national attention and appeared on several network shows. The exposure is incredible and the network is getting millions of hits per month.

SSP: How did you get started writing for the Examiner?

Depending on what I write about and I do a variety of things, the research varies. The articles don't have to be long, so time can be pretty short. However the research takes longer, but again that depends on the subject.

We include links in articles too. I do an editorial calendar for each month so I know what local things are happening. Right now I'm seeing which articles my audience likes. So far, the top ones have been UFOs, ghosts, on the movie sets with local productions, and everything related to Twilight.

SSP: How much time do you spend and how many articles per week?

Sometimes an hour to write and post a story. Other times longer.

SSP: Do you think it's gotten your name out there? Any sense it is leading to sales or other useful benefits?

Yes. Since joining Examiner, now people are contacting me for stories and reviews. Therefore when my next book comes out, I’ll promote it on my Examiner page, which is part of a large network that’s growing everyday.

SSP: You mentioned that you are writing a YA novel--how do you see the Examiner experience helping that?

I'm working on a YA book that will target the same audience as the Twilight series. This time I'm building the audience before the book is even submitted to an agent.

Thank you so much, Sue, for sharing your experiences with us.

Find out more about Donna George Storey and her adventures in shameless self-promotion at her blog.

Confessions of a Literary Streetwalker: Flexing

zobop@aol.com (M.Christian) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 15:56:00 +0000

(as part of my new gig writing for the ERWA's blog here's one of my classic Confessions columns. Enjoy!)

I'm astounded sometimes by writers who will only write one thing and one thing only: straight erotica, mysteries, science fiction, horror - you name it: their flute has only one note. They might play that one note very, very well but often they neglect the rest of the scale. Not to go on about myself, but my own moderate accomplishments as a writer are the direct result of my accepting a challenge or two. I never thought I could write erotica – until I did. I never thought I could write gay erotica, until I did - and so forth. Who knows what you might be great at? You won't know until you try.

A writer is nothing but pure potential, but only if that potential is utilized. If you only like writing straight erotica, try gay or lesbian. The same goes if you're queer – try writing something, anything, that you'd never in a million years think of doing. Maybe the story will suck, and that certainly does happen, but maybe it'll be a wonderful story or teach you something about your craft.

Challenge yourself. If you don't like a certain genre, like Romance, then write what your version of a romance story would be like. You don't like Westerns? Well, write one anyway – the Western you'd like to read. Of course like a lot of these imagination games you don't have to sit down and actually write a Western novel. Instead just take some time to visualize it: the characters, setting, some plot points, a scene or two. How would you open it? Maybe a tumbleweed blowing down a dusty street, perhaps a brass and black iron locomotive plowing through High Sierra snow? Or what about the classic Man With No Name staring down a posse of rabid outlaws? Who knows, you might be the best Western - or mystery, science fiction, gay, lesbian, straight etc. - writer there ever was, or maybe you'll just learn something about people, about writing. Either way, you're flexing, increasing the range of your work.

This flexibility isn't just good in abstract. Cruise around Erotica Reader's and Writer's here and look at the books being published, the calls for submissions, and so forth. If you only like to write stories that one are particular style, flavor, or orientation, you'll notice you have a very, very limited number of places that would look at your work. But if you can write anything, then everywhere is a potential market. Write one thing and that's exactly how many places will want to look at what you do. Write everything and you could sell anywhere.

In other words: try! If you don't try, you won't know if you're any good. Some writers only do what they know and like because they don't want to face rejection, or feel they'd have to restart their 'careers' if they change the one thing they do well. I don't believe any of that. If you can't handle rejection then writing is not the life for you. Getting punched in the genitals by a rejection slip is part of the business, something we all have to deal with. As far as a writer's 'career' goes, no one knows what shape that'll take, what'll happen in the future. Planning a job path in writing is like trying to roll snake eyes twelve times in a row – the intent might be there but the results are completely chaotic. In the same way a simple little story can turn out to be the best thing you're ever written, an unexpected experiment can end up being a total artistic change.

Playing with new themes, genres, and styles is fun. Experiment on the page, in your mind, and who knows what'll pop up? Next time you go to the movies, try and imagine what the trailer to your movie would be like, or write (in your mind or even on the page) a sequel to this summer's blockbuster. Go to the bookstore and pick up something at random, read the back cover, and then spend a fun couple of hours imagining how you'd write it. What style would you use? What kind of characters? What settings? Even sit down and write some of it: a page, or even just a paragraph or two. It might suck, but that's the risk you always take trying something new - but it also could open a door to something wonderful.

Yep, I'm a tad nervous about offering my services as a writer of customized erotica, but I'm also incredibly excited about it. Who knows what'll happen, what kind of story ideas might come my way, and stories I may write? After all, I'll never know unless I try, unless I flex my wings.

"Shameless" Book Promotion Tips from Brenna Lyons

noreply@blogger.com (Donna) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 23:24:00 +0000

Book promotion is a daunting task for a beginner, but fortunately there are generous veterans of the process like Brenna Lyons who are willing to help guide us in the first shaky steps of our journey. Brenna is a prolific, best-selling author of sci-fi and erotic romance including the Renegade series, the Night Warriors series and the Kegin series. She lectures frequently on book promotion at conferences, and her discussions on the topic are without a doubt some of the most useful and well-organized materials I’ve consulted. I’m thrilled that Brenna has agreed to an interview in conjunction with this month’s Shameless Self-Promotion column on creative uses of the Internet for book promotion.

Shameless Self-Promotion: I know you especially enjoy promoting your books as a featured author in chat rooms. What are the benefits of this form of promotion?

Brenna Lyons: All marketing is selling you first and then the books. Readers want a piece of you, personally. Even more than talking to them on mailing lists (and a less stressful environment than talking to them face-to-face), chat rooms allow the readers to get a real-time idea of what it's like to talk to you. No long, thought-out replies as you have in e-mail, for instance. It's more intimate and more real.

SSP: How do you arrange to be featured in a chat room? Any places that are especially friendly to erotica writers?

There are a lot of places that are friendly, but I find it's easier to join promotion groups like IWOFA (Infinite Worlds of Fantasy Authors) or your publisher in group chats to start. Once you've done some "buddy chats," built up a name with the readers there, gotten comfortable with the situation, go back and ask those venues if they ever do single author chats. Another benefit to belonging to promo groups is that they will sometimes post opportunities for single promo.

Now, if you do a single, it's easier to do it with several books under your belt. An hour is a long time to talk about one book. If all you've got is one, it might be better to do a buddy chat with a friend who is of a similar genre and temperament...or one of you is the nurturer in chat and the other needs coaxing. You never want to get into a position where you have one quiet chatter and one overbearing chatter that doesn't coax the former out. It's unsatisfying for the quiet chatter and for the readers in attendance.

SSP: Are there ways a beginner can prepare for a chat?

In addition to doing buddy chats to start? Sure.

Pick venues that are to your comfort level. Some chat rooms are moderated or have a strict stand-in-line-and-wait-your-turn policy about asking the author questions and/or have rules about what questions are too personal to ask. Others are no holds barred and fast-moving. I prefer the latter, but not every author does. Ask around and attend someone else's chat in the prospective room to see how theirs runs.

Go in prepared. If you cannot type quickly, have a DOC or RTF file open with things like your blurbs in it. Most chat sites allow a small amount of copy and paste instead of typing, so break the blurbs down into a sentence or two per "copy line." If you get flustered, have Post-It Notes around your desk with pertinent facts on them. Since so many people ask me for things like my current resume or how many releases I have in the next quarter, I tend to count it before chats and use a Post-It to keep the up-to-date numbers on hand.

Relax. Keep in mind that the readers aren't there to jump on you. They are interested in you and/or your work. They are looking to buy new authors. They WANT to like you. So, try not to get too nervous.

Typos are expected. In fact, we jokingly call them "chatroomese," and that's spoken in all chats. No one expects your typing to be perfect in a chat room.

And don't forget to promote your chat! On your site, Facebook, blog, MySpace, lists that allow a promo post for such things (but remember that it's considered rude to promote a chat at review site A's chat room at review site B's list). You'll find that there is a core readership that routinely makes all a certain chat room's chats, but you may draw in new readers, and they like that.

SSP: Any advice on mistakes to avoid while discussing your work in a chat room?

I already said to familiarize yourself with the chat room etiquette of the room you're in. Keep your responses to the room level. If it's a staid room with taboo topics, don't be too over the top. If it's no-holds barred, you don't have to go full bore, but you don't have to worry about it either.

These people want to know you, but they are not your confidants. Think about a cocktail party with strangers. There are just some things you don't want or need to tell them.

SSP: Can you tell us about one or two other favorite ways to promote your books?

One of the best (and most enjoyable) promos I do would be either free reads or writing stories for the byline (or for charity anthologies). It also tends to give me a good return on investment.

I also enjoy making banner ads (animated GIFs) and book videos. That's my down time...an enjoyable sideline to writing.

SSP: Do you have any general words of advice for a newbie promoter?

Like anything else in book marketing, everything you do will appeal to a certain percentage of the readership. You can't just do one thing. You want a wide variety of them, and then you want to net them together so you (for instance) use good reviews on your blog, in your signature line, your mailing list, etc.

Should chats be all you do? Of course not! That's one facet of marketing. All told, there should be several subdivisions of online marketing...

ONLINE PRESENCE- author web site, MySpace, Facebook, Amazon Author Central, Red Room Authors, Manic Readers page, TRS page, Ning, author newsletter or newsletter list, etc.

BLOGS- Blogger, LiveJournal, Amazon, Ning, MySpace, etc.

MINI-BLOGS- Twitter, Google Wave, Facebook, etc.

GROUPS- Yahoo or Google groups, and don't forget your tag line...not just reader loops but also author loops...don't heavy sell it; talk about whatever they are talking about

FORUMS- depending on your genre

CHATS- I think we've covered that. Grinning...

INTERVIEWS- not just print ones online but also internet radio and so forth...don't forget to use these other places...all promotion should be a web of overlapping and interlocking efforts

REVIEWS- it's not enough to have them...use them with your other efforts

CROSS-LINKING- with other authors, publishers, on sites that keep lists of certain genres and book content

BANNER ADS- not just pay ones on review sites but also free ones on all of your online presence (blogs, pages, etc.) and cross-banner with other authors

PROMO/NETWORKING GROUPS- places like IWOFA, BroadUniverse, and Bookwormbags

CONTESTS- not just on your own site but also group contests with places like IWOFA

SPOTLIGHTS- often held for several hours or all day on Yahoo or Google groups...or for a week or month on review sites...which means having representative blurbs and excerpts, which rank high in the online return on investment scale

FREE READS- at least for short periods of time and/or short stories that tie to existing worlds you write in

WRITING SHORT STORIES/ARTICLES for magazines or charity anthologies (for the byline) and anthologies (for small payment and exposure of the byline)...small investment from you and big returns

And so forth. For the best return, authors should choose at least one or two of the possible promo types in as many of these SUBDIVISIONS as he/she is comfortable with and then make them work together in a promo web.

In addition, though online marketing has double the return (in general) that physical promo does, a little physical promo is always a good idea.

ADS- online and in magazines...get into group ads, when possible, but don't overdo it, since research shows you need to repeat ads in the same venue upwards of 6-10 times to get the best return from it, and few people can afford that

PROMO CDS- especially if you can get into group ones with a low overhead

WEARING/CARRYING YOUR OWN PROMO GEAR- bumper stickers, t-shirts, carry the book, keychains...carry extras of small things with you...carry business cards with you

STREET TEAMS- wearing/carrying your promo gear and passing it out, wherever they are

CARD CULT- this is a fun one and very inexpensive

SIGNED BOOKPLATES- enough said...these are very popular with some readers

DODADS- pens, pins, etc. Pens are a good choice, because people are less likely to throw them away. Some people do collect signed paper promos, but they are more likely to be trashed than pens are; if people don't keep them, they pass them along, and that's good. Be sure to have a catchy tag line on them. Use them in group efforts like Bookwormbags. BUT...don't just leave them places or stuff them in bills or whatever, willy nilly. Pens are about the only promo that does well when left in places where people use pens (signing checks, making out bank deposits, etc.) Most left-behind promo gets trashed.

ALL promo is cumulative. What you do, combined with what they do, combined with what other authors with the publisher do that brings people to the publisher site, benefits you...and vice versa. So, don't be shy about passing along recommended reads of other books/authors with your publisher. Don't be shy about passing along special events the publisher is doing, even if they don't directly seem to benefit you. Don't be shy about teaching the other authors how to market, if you know more than they do.

I could go on and on, but the full class I teach on this is 30 pages of notes.

SSP: Thank you so much, Brenna, for this wealth of helpful information! You can read more advice from Brenna at Broadsheet or attend one of her talks at your next writer's conference.

Find out more about Donna George Storey and her adventures in shameless self-promotion at her blog.

In Memoriam

noreply@blogger.com (Lisabet Sarai) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 05:19:00 +0000

By Lisabet Sarai

Approximately two years ago, the mega-publisher Random House acquired Virgin Books, including its celebrated erotica imprints Black Lace and Nexus. Roughly two weeks ago, Random House announced that they planned to shut down both lines. For many of us in the erotica reading and writing community, this is extremely sad though not completely unexpected news.

Speaking from a personal perspective, Black Lace is responsible for my ten year career as an erotica author. It's not only the fact that Black Lace published my first novel, Raw Silk. I would never have written the book in the first place if I hadn't picked up a copy of Portia da Costa's Black Lace title Gemini Heat from the bookshelf of my hotel in Instanbul. Gemini Heat (which I've recently learned was Portia's first novel) overwhelmed me with its sensuality, imagination, diversity and intelligence. To put it more crudely, it was possibly the hottest thing I'd ever read, far surpassing the Pauline Reage and A. N. Roquelaure titles that had been my touchstones up to that point.

My first reaction was “Wow!” My second was, “I'll bet I could write something like that...”

Erotic fiction for women, by women. Back in 1993, when Black Lace launched, this was an original, even radical concept. Before the Best Women's Erotica series, before Susie Bright's Best American Erotica, there was Black Lace: carefully crafted, meticulously edited, classy stories about women and sex with three dimensional characters and non-trivial plots. Rich, delicious, graphic, transgressive—erotic fantasies that you could enjoy at both an intellectual and a physical level.

Some people, including members of the ERWA Writers list, have a long-standing gripe with Black Lace's women-only policy, which they view as discriminatory. I do not plan to reignite that debate here. As a marketing ploy, however, the policy was effective, at least initially. Since 1993, Black Lace has published over 250 titles and sold more than three million books. Paper books, mind you.

Black Lace helped establish the mainstream market for erotica. Black Lace didn't exactly make erotica respectable—that might be a contradiction, even counter-productive—but it provided a steady diet of erotic content that aroused without insulting the reader's intelligence.

Markets evolve, however. It is a truism at this point that the publishing industry has changed dramatically in the last half decade, and is continuing to do so. The rise of e-publishing and Print-On-Demand pose challenges to traditional publishing concerns. Meanwhile, the erotica market has matured and diversified. Black Lace was a pioneer, but in recent years seems to have been involved in a game of me-too, jumping on the popular bandwagons of paranormal romance and softer core erotic chick lit. When I saw that that the 15th Anniversary reissue of Gemini Heat was being pushed as erotic romance, I just sighed. I had this sinking feeling that the end was near.

Still, I am personally saddened by what I see as Random House's short-sighted decision. I realized while working on this post that in addition to bringing out my first novel, Black Lace also printed my first erotic short story, “Glass House”, which I wrote and submitted to the Storytime list a few weeks after joining ERWA in 1999. Actually, Black Lace rejected more of my work than it accepted (including my second and third novels) but I do not hold that against them. In fact, it might be considered as a mark of their discriminating tastes!

When I was waiting for Raw Silk to come out, I fantasized about going to London to participate in a book release party that Virgin Books would throw. I saw myself drinking champagne and hobnobbing with all the other erotica authors, imagining them as a glamorous, sexy lot. I wondered about what costume I should wear to fit in. Leather mini-skirt and high-heeled boots? The red cocktail dress with the plunging neckline? Maybe I'd actually meet Portia da Costa! I pictured her as tall, curvy, and dramatic, rather like one of her heroines.

If Portia's reading this now (we've become good cyber-friends, though so far we haven't met in the flesh), I know she's laughing. How little I knew about the prosaic, penny-pinching world of publishing!

Now, in fact, there will be a party, though it's a bit late. The Black Lace editor, Adam Neville, has announced a wake in early August, to mourn the passing of Black Lace and Nexus. The image at the top of this post was part of his invitation.

Alas, I can't attend this gathering—I'm even further from London now than I was in 1999. I'll raise my glass, though, to toast sixteen years of lust-filled, literate sex, and observe a moment of silence. Requiescat in Pace.

Visit Lisabet's Fantasy Factory: http://www.lisabetsarai.com

Call for Submissions: Men at Noon... 12/15/09

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:18:00 +0000

Men at Noon, Monsters At Midnight: Erotic Stories of Shapeshifters, Demon Lovers and Creatures of the Night

Edited by Christopher Pierce
Published by StarBooks Press
Deadline: December 15, 2009
Payment: $25-$30 per story
Maximum word count: 4000 words (negotiable, write to me with proposed length)

Sex is a beast, and sometimes, monsters are sexy. What gay man hasn’t dreamed of being swept into the arms of a hot vampire, or longed to be hunted by a sexy werewolf? Have you ever laid on your bed jerking off wishing that an incubus would descend on you and finish the job? Horror movies and their creatures are often very homoerotic, but that subtext is usually left very subtextual. I want to bring the homoeroticism to the forefront.

What would it be like to be a spirit’s lover? What if there were “monster bars” where creatures and their human admirers could hook up for some hot, horny monster sex? What if a vampire fell in love with a werewolf? Or a ghost had the hots for his buster? Imagine the sparks that could fly if a demon and a priest got it on…

Monsters can be established (vampire, werewolf, spirit, demon) or new creatures of your own creation. Let your imaginations run wild, but don’t let it get too dark. I want hot, sexy stories, not violent tales of horror. It can be scary, but keep it hot. Stories can be from any character’s point of view, monster or human.

Submission details at Erotica Readers & Writers Association.

Call for Submissions: Sex in the City, 11/01/09

noreply@blogger.com (Adrienne) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 01:41:00 +0000

Sex in the City
Editor: Maxim Jakubowski
Publisher: Accent Press
Deadline: November 1st 2009
Payment: £75 per story (at current exchange rate approx $120 USD)

First 4 volumes:

-LONDON
-NEW YORK
-PARIS
-DUBLIN

This is a new series of anthologies to be published from late Spring 2010, featuring brand new literary erotica stories, set in each of the respective cities.

The books will appear as original paperbacks from Accent Press in the UK, who have established themselves with their Xcite Books list.

Each volume will feature 12 original stories (no reprints) ranging between 5,000 and 6,000 words, ie substantial stories in both length and breadth. I am not looking for vignettes or stream of consciousness sexual encounters but solidly plotted erotic tales, displaying a strong sense of place, characterisation and storytelling. If you don’t already know the city you are writing in, it is unlikely you will pull it off. My preference is for the sex to be of a heterosexual nature, or at any rate principally feature it, although bisexuality is quite acceptable; exclusively gay or lesbian stories would truly have to surprise me by their originality and power to make the grade.

Guideline and submission details at the Erotica Readers & Writers Association

Confessions of a Literary Streetwalker: Staying Fresh

zobop@aol.com (M.Christian) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:27:00 +0000

(as part of my new gig writing for the ERWA's blog here's one of my classic Confessions columns. Enjoy!)

This month’s Streetwalker comes from a suggestion by the wonderful Adrienne here at ERA. When I asked her for some possible topics to cover she gave me: “How about plot ideas, how to keep works fresh and unique and advice on where to look for plot/character inspiration?” If anyone else has any ideas for columns, by the way, please feel free to zap them to me and I’ll consider them.

Now I’ve sort of touched on keeping an eye out for story ideas before, but it bears exploring a bit more. Keeping your work fresh is more than a little important for any writer, especially for smut authors.

For me, stories are everywhere – and to be honest I don’t think I’m special. It’s all a matter of keeping your eyes open, but most importantly PLAYING with the world around you.

It should be obvious that in order to write about the world you need to know something about it, but what a lot of people don’t seem to realize is that sitting in a coffee shop, scribbling away in a notebook while you ponder the imponderables of human nature isn’t likely to yield anything usable. Getting your hands dirty, though, will.

By that I mean really exploring yourself as well as other people. Look at who you are, why you do what you do – both emotionally as well as sexually. The same goes for the people around you. Spend some time really thinking about them, their motivations, their pleasures, or what experiences they may have had.

Dig deep -- ponder their reactions as well as your own. Sharpen your perceptions. Why do they say what they say? What do people admire? Why? What do they despise? Why? That last question should almost always be in your mind – directed outward as well as inward: why? This depth of understanding, or just powerful examination, is a great tool for developing both stories as well as characters.

Along with studying the world, pay attention to good work no matter where you find it. A lot of writing teachers tell students to get intimate with the classics – which I agree with, but also think it’s equally important to recognize great writing even when it’s on the back of a cereal box. Read a lot, see a lot of movies, watch a lot of TV – and pay attention when something good, or great, comes along. Don’t dismiss anything until you’ve tried it, at least for a little while. Examples? Romance novels, comic books, documentaries, sitcoms, cartoon shows, old radio shows, pulps, westerns, and so forth. There’s gold all around you, if you dig around enough

Not for the fun – playing. Look at that guy sitting over there, the one by the window: Heavy, messy hair, chewing with his mouth open – easy to peg him as lonely, creepy, or even seriously perverse. Easy is a shortcut, easy is dull, easy is lazy. Instead try seeing him as something completely different than your initial assessment. Maybe his mind is lovely and musical. Perhaps his touch is gentle and loving. Who knows, maybe he’s a sex magnet – with more boyfriends/girlfriends than he knows what to do with.

Say you’ve stumbled on a particularly good book, show, series, or whatever. Great, bravo, applause – now write something like it. Who cares that the show will never, ever look at your story, or that the medium is long dead (like radio drama). Do it anyway. Have fun – PLAY! Get into the habit of automatically either writing your own version or fixing what you see as a flaw in the original. If you’re reading a book, stop halfway through and finish it in your mind – and then when you do finally turn that last page was your version better? If not then what did the author do that you didn’t?

I love coming attractions, the trailers for movies. Watching them, I always make up my own movie based on what I’ve seen. Sometimes it’s better – at least I think so – sometimes not, then I look at what the director did better than I did when the flick finally comes out.

Playing and watching, studying, that’s the ticket. If you keep your mind sharp, notice details, and examine yourself and the world around you as well as challenging and playing with story ideas, then writing a story for a very specific Call for Submission or for some other strange project will be easy and your story will be original and fresh.