Finding Your Book a Happy Home

Hi there. Not sure what happened to my post from yesterday, but here it is again, in a condensed version--believe it or not.

The end to my Week in Writing is Finding Your Book a Happy Home. You've written a manuscript, The Dragons' Demon, for example, (see left) edited it to death, edited it some more, and have put it aside for a while. Upon rereading it, you find it to be the gem you'd hoped it would be. And now you're ready for publication. But where will you send it? Who publishes what you write, and do you need an agent, do you think?


Again, it all depends on what you want out of your writing career. If you've written a romance and don't want to wait a long time to hear a response from an editor, you might want to try an electronic publisher. Several which come to mind who publish both romance and erotic romance are:

Amber Quill (must be invited to publish here or win their annual heatwave contest)

Cerridwen Press

Changeling Press

Cobblestone Press

Elloras Cave (specifically erotic romance)

Liquid Silver Books

Loose Id

New Concepts Publishing

Samhain

Siren Publishing

Silk's Vault Publishing

Whispers

These are several electronic publishing houses I've heard of or published through. I won't recommend one over another because different houses are better for different books, genre and heat level specific. I do, however, thoroughly encourage you to research each publisher before signing a contract. Preditors and Editors is a nice site to find out if a certain publisher has a decent reputation for treating their authors fairly, as is Piers Anthony's website. However, I've found the best method for learning about a publisher is to question its authors. And ask as many of them as you can, not one or two who might have an axe to grind.

As far as the bigger NY print houses, I'll admit I'm not as familiar with them as I am with electronic publishers. But I highly recommend RWA's site as a source. When it comes to the print world, I have to hand it to RWA for being "in the know." Of course, to reap the benefits from this organization and its local chapters, you must be a member, which is a fee of $100 for the first year joined and $75 to renew succeeding each year (fees as of 7/30/07).

If you're trying to get published in the more mainstream romance market, you really do need an agent. Now category romances can be sold without one, but if you want to make a career in writing, I think an agent, a good agent, is a necessity. The agent cuts down on your wait time to hear back from editors. And your agent sells your book for you, with contacts many authors can only hope to have. Finding and getting an agent, is, however, a difficult task, and another topic that could take a week or more to cover. :) So on to print publishers...

Many romance publishers to consider are (in no particular order): Berkley/Jove, Bantam/Dell, Avon, St. Martin's, Pocket Books, Tor/Forge, Dorcester, Kensington, Harlequin, and more. I get confused because some of the larger publishing houses have different lines for their books, like Kensington Brava and Kensington Aphrodisia and Zebra... ack. Different heat levels, storylines and so on. I find it hard to keep track. But as I've said before, the best resource you have at your disposal is your fellow author. I've had great success asking published authors for their input, and a wonderful resource I must mention is Passionate Ink, an online RWA chapter that focuses on more sensual romance.

But when all is said and done, it's YOUR book, and you must find the place that you feel will best showcase your work. Read other books from the publishing house you're interested in to see if your book will fit in. Research the market. Make sure you adhere to the publishing house's submission requirements. And whatever you do, don't sit around on your thumbs waiting for word back from a publisher. Move on to the next project, and keep track on a calendar of time passed, so you know exactly when to post a polite, professional note asking about your manuscript. (Most publishers list typical wait times to hear back on a response.)

I hope this post gave you some insight into places to publish your work. And if you have any questions about anything I've written, or just a plain old writing question, feel free to email me at marie_harte@yahoo.com.

Smiles,

Marie