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Monday, June 16, 2008Call for Novel-Length Lesbian Fiction Submissions -- Bella Books, Inc.------- Claiming our Past, Present and Future through Lesbian Literature ------- At Bella Books, we believe stories about lesbians are an essential of life—and so do our readers. If you are an author with a great story about gay women to tell, we want to hear from you. We're looking for imaginative and entertaining stories that illuminate and celebrate possibilities, fantasies and realities in lesbian lives. Novels that celebrate the girl-next-door, the best friend, the love of our life and the superwoman that exists in all of us. Our readers have high standards for exciting, fresh plots, and they relish hours spent with engaging characters. They want books they can't put down, stories they think about for days afterward, and characters so compelling they wish they were real. To provide our readers with the kinds of stories they demand and deserve, we publish general lesbian fiction, romance, mystery, action/thriller, science-fiction, fantasy, and erotica. If you believe your manuscript will meet our needs, we welcome your submission. Learn more about our Guidelines for Submission and answers to Frequently Asked Questions: www.bellabooks.com/submissions.htm.
posted by Tamara - 6:12 AM -- Email this post:
Thursday, May 29, 2008E Book RantYes, Okie and I haven't posted here in a while, but I have something to say. Here we go: I recently started a book (due to my slam I'm choosing not to name the title or author on this one) but couldn't bring myself to finish it. I've waited days hoping my irritation and anger would subside prior to posting. Uh, not much. How can an author, editor or publisher think women need to get over gang rape? Time heals all and one just needs to come to terms with it to find peace...like it was a bad day at the office? You know I'm sure a woman can come to terms with it, since there isn't choice in that reality, but I sure as hell don't believe one would start dating a woman related to one of the rapists after "coming to terms with it". Oh, did I mention you have a child from this rape? Or how the woman you are dating is hoping (in the beginning) just to be close to this child because they look and act so much like the rapist (who happened to commit suicide conveniently)? Ug...what crap. What's happened to lesbian fiction? We have the formula lesbian story that seems to be pumped out like water from the main publishers. And I've now read a couple of crap stories that weren't even good enough to get mainstream publishers interested in...a person thinks they can write and pays to have their words bound. Please help here. Some of the publishers I respected lately have let me down. Is it me? Am I getting pickier? Is wanting well-written, edited and thoughtful stories too much to ask? I like sex, but if you're going to put it in a story please do it well or don't bother. No need to ruin a decent story just because one should have sex in it. Melissa Good taught us fade to black works. How about supporting the lesbian fiction that's not all based around lesbians, but perhaps a well-rounded story that includes lesbians? Try some off the less known publishers, the ones with excellent editors and the ones that care about the content more than the sale. Bedazzled Ink, Bywater, and Alyson all are worthy publishers that have a variety of stories that step outside of the formula of basic lesbian romance. Believe me there are more publishers out there, but these were on the top of my mind. I'm not against the basics, Bella, Regal, Bold Strokes... but sometimes stepping away is nice to get a story outside of the usual. I do own all of Karin Kallmaker's and a large portion of Rad's along with many others of the mainstay authors. So by no means do I want to say they aren't worthy but recently I'm finding the trend of new authors lacking at many of the mainstay publishing houses. So why is that? I certainly don't have the answer, but am frustrated with wasting my money. And I do read the back, but that doesn't seem to help. Worse yet is all the frickin' reviewers seem to just say, "Wow...what a great book". Bah! So...anyone else? Elisa
posted by E - 5:42 PM -- Email this post:
Wednesday, March 26, 2008Announcement from Bedazzled Ink!Rogue Books is slinking out of a musty well-hidden back room of Bedazzled Ink Publishing Company with an exciting new project, The Xenaverse Scrolls. We want to document the Xenaverse phenomenon before memories fade about its origins and history. Call us crazy but we want everyone to know about the wonderful phenomenon of the Xenaverse. So Xenites of the world unite! Be as crazy as we are and help us capture this amazing world created by the fans of Xena: Warrior Princess and preserve it for present and future generations to view with awe and envy, and for scholars to study and analyze and write scroll upon scroll of scholarly prose. This series of scrolls, converted to the convenient book format, will contain personal stories and well-researched, in-depth essays covering all aspects of the Xenaverse. Join us in this celebration of the Xenaverse. Become of a part of the Xenaverse history. We are currently looking for contributions for the following volumes: I Sing a Song of Xena: The Bardic Voice in the Xenaverse A collection of essays that explore Xena fan fiction and the bards who write it. Deadline for proposals: May 1, 2008. The Five Dinars' Tour of the Xenaverse A guidebook to the important destinations, way stations, and landmarks in the cyberworld created by the fans of Xena: Warrior Princess. Deadline for proposals: May 1, 2008. Fifteen Candlemarks of Fame: Celebrities from the Xenaverse A celebration of the special individuals whose unique talents and personalities has captured the highest respect of their fellow Xenites. Deadline for proposals: May 1, 2008. Herding Cats With Melissa Good: A Celebration of a Reluctant Merwolf A collection of essays about Melissa Good's life, work, and influences. Deadline for proposals: June 1, 2008. Beyond the Xenaverse: The Uber Phenomenon A collection of essays that explore Uber-dom and the bards who write Uber fiction. Deadline for proposals: June 1, 2008. If you're interested in participating, read the submission guidelines for each book and put together a brief proposal of the topic you want to write about. Remember, except for broad overviews, the narrower the scope of the topic, the better. We're looking for well-researched, in depth explorations of whatever you choose to write about. Visit www.bedazzledink.com/roguebooks for the complete descriptions and guidelines for each book. Thank you and we look forward to your proposal ideas. The Minions at Bedazzled Ink Publishing
posted by Tamara - 2:54 PM -- Email this post:
Saturday, March 01, 2008Call for Submissions: Desdmona's Sex in the Rain ContestYou know what they say about April Showers?
posted by E - 3:48 PM -- Email this post:
Monday, January 14, 2008LandingOkay, so Okie and I have not blogged here in a bit, hence I am taking a leap and writing something. Read a book I like a lot. Probably wont be everyones cup of tea, but hey worth your time in my opinion. Landing by Emma Donoghue. She writes good thoughtful stories. Characters that are strong and yet not, I like that. Quirky is reality for most and she captures that well. We all seem in life to have oddities and yet they are not odd to us. One can look at these women and they may seem odd, but one can also see how they are not. Living is what they are doing. Trying to make the best of what they can. The book is a reality check on what you have and what you don't. Books that make us see others for how splendid they are. All good. I have read other Donoghue books and always felt she captures the heart of the character but here she captures the whole world. Landing, recommended. Once again may not be for everyone, but perhaps it might be for you. Let me know what you think.
posted by E - 8:32 PM -- Email this post:
Tuesday, November 06, 2007Call for Submissions: Warrior WisewomanWARRIOR WISEWOMAN WRITERS GUIDELINES Warrior Wisewoman is a new annual anthology series of science fiction featuring powerful and remarkable women, edited by Roby James, to be published by Norilana Books starting in 2008. The anthology is intended as a sister volume to the Sword and Sorceress fantasy series, with the main difference being that the story themes will involve science fiction instead of fantasy. They will be intended for a more mature audience, allowing a mixture of serious contemporary issues and reasonable sexual content (but no erotica) in addition to action and adventure. The stories will have a stronger focus on the interface between scientific exploration and our sense of wonder. Editor Roby James says: "I am looking for stories that shed light on the truth of what it means to be female, that illuminate the wisdom and the strength of a woman, but not in cliché 'goddess' stories. I love action and adventure, grand space opera, thrilling discovery, and intelligent protagonists. Make the story thoughtful, wise, and surprising, not merely the same old metal spaceship hull filled with cardboard military uniforms with female names 'barking' orders and firing at aliens. In addition, the stories in the anthology should appeal to genuine emotions, suspense, fear, sorrow, delight, wonder. The science can be part of the background and the characters foremost, or the science can be central to the story, as long as the characters are realistic and appealing. "This is science fiction, but I also welcome stories of spiritual exploration, looking at the bond between the scientific and the divine. I want to see how a woman survives tragedy and disaster, overcomes impossible odds, achieves her true potential, or goes on to thrive in a marvelous universe of so many possibilities, using what is inside her, as well as what she finds in the laboratory, the alien planet, or space itself. "The stories should contain the question of 'what if' on some level. And they should have a woman answer it." RIGHTS PURCHASED: First English Language Rights and non-exclusive electronic rights. The anthology will be published by Norilana Books in a trade paperback edition in June 2008, to be followed by an electronic edition to be produced later. PAYMENT: $0.02 a word on acceptance, and a pro rata share of royalties, plus a contributor copy. WORD LENGTH: Up to 10,000 words, with longer stories having to be exceptional. READING PERIOD begins on October 31, 2007. Please do not submit your stories before then. DEADLINE: January 31, 2008. HOW TO SUBMIT: Submissions are electronic only. Please submit your story as a Word (.doc or .rtf) attachment to your e-mail. The subject line of your e-mail should say "Submission: Story Title, last name of author." Also, include a brief cover letter. It should have your full name, address, e-mail address, title of story, number of words, and brief biographical information in case we don't know you, with most recent publishing credits, if applicable. We are open to new writers and seasoned veterans alike. EDITORIAL ADDRESS: roby.james@comcast.net We look forward to reading your most inspired work.
posted by Tamara - 6:10 PM -- Email this post:
Sunday, October 28, 2007Call for Submissions: Best Lesbian Romance 2009Editor: Radclyffe Publisher: Cleis Press Deadline for Submissions: April 1, 2008 Guidelines for Submissions * Published or unpublished short stories or novel excerpts * Previously published material will be considered, provided it was or will be published between September 1, 2007 & December 31, 2008 * Word count: 5000 words maximum * Electronic submissions only to: radclyffe@radfic.com - e-mail header -- BLR 2009_author name - MS Word doc attachment (story) - e-mail body -- story title, author name, pseudonym, address, phone/fax, e-mail address, word count, where previously published (anthology title/date of release) * Story Format: - Header -- story title/author name/page number (each page) - TNR 12 pt - 1.5 or double-spaced; standard paragraphing; no HTML - file name -- Title_Author (Daydreaming_Jane Doe) * General Info: - The anthology is scheduled for publication from Cleis Press Fall 2008 - Submission decisions will be provided by e-mail in September 2008 - Please send questions to: radclyffe@radfic.com
posted by Tamara - 4:29 PM -- Email this post:
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