Carina Press Calls, teen writing contest and more

“Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia.”  ~E.L. Doctorow

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The editors at Carina Press recently shared their preferences, and the types of manuscripts they’d like to see on their desks, through their blog. Some highlights:

Rhonda Helms is really interested in stories with strong multi-cultural elements, really funny romance, steampunk, westerns, historical novels featuring real historical figures, stories with mythological elements and futuristic stories, to name a few of the many subjects she’d like to see.

Melissa Johnson would love to see romances that cross class or cultural lines.

Alissa Davis likes geeky beta heroes, runaway brides, m/m fantasy romance, erotic historical romance and medical romance, to name a few of the subjects that capture her attention.

Mallory Braus would love to see your zombie hunter romance, your 19th or 20th century historical mystery, a story with a psychic FBI agent, and stories with quirky characters.

Alison Dasho would love a funny fantasy adventure, dark  mystery and crime (maybe the aftermath of a kidnapping) and “complicated” contemporary romance.

Denise Nielsen would love a dark, edgy Edwardian or Victorian novel or a jazz age historical. On the contemporary side, she likes unlikely heros and heroines, and modern reinterpretations of myths and legends.

Jeff Seymour likes stories that don’t fit neatly into a genre, as well as short, fast-paced adventures with series potential.

Deborah Nemeth looks for interesting sleuths around which to build a mystery series, m/m romance, epic fantasy, strong contemporary romance, unusual historicals and steampunk.

Angela James is taking on very few new clients, but she would love to find a 70,000 word erotic contemporary, a space opera, sports-themed contemporary romances and contemporary romance trilogies.

For more details, read the complete blog post here.  And you’ll find Carina Press’s writers’ guidelines here.

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Do you know an aspiring young writer (ages 14-19)? One Teen Story is a new digital magazine aimed at this age group. They’re sponsoring a contest for young writers but the deadline is May 31, 2012 — tomorrow. (Sorry, I just found out about this. ) There’s no fee to enter. Stories may be any genre and can be between 1,500 and 4,000 words. Find all the details here.

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Ellora’s Cave is searching for sweet Regency romances, 12,000 to 25,000 words for a Cotillion Christmas Surprise collection. Stories must be set at Christmas and center around a surprise. The deadline for submissions is June 30, 2012. Find more details here.

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Today I’m the guest over at The Readiacs. Stop in and say hello and you could win a copy of Always a Bridesmaid.

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As always, feel free to share the information in this blog with others. All I ask is that you give me credit as the source and include a link to the blog. Thank you.

 

Romance Calls for Submissions, historical novel contest and more…

“What a writer brings to any story is an attitude…” John Gregory Dunne

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The Historical Novel Society is sponsoring its 2012/13 International Award for an unpublished historical novel. First prize is $8,000 and e-publication, with professional copy-editing and cover design). Both previously published and unpublished authors are eligible to enter. Any type of historical fiction is eligible for this contest. The entry fee is $15 for Historical Novel Society members and $25 for non-members. Send your first chapter of up to 5,000 words and a synopsis by September 30, 2012. The judges will announce the 30 semi-finalists by November 30. The semi-finalists will be asked to submit their complete manuscript. Judges will announce the three finalists by January 31, 2012 and the winner will be announced by March 30, 2013. Find more details here.

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Entangled Publishing continues to expand its offerings. In addition to single title romance and their Indulgence line of contemporary category romance, their romantic suspense line, Dead Sexy, debuts next month. And editors are seeking submissions for three new category lines. Bliss, edited by Stacy Abrams, features slightly sweeter (though still sexy) romances set in small towns and featuring family. Covet, edited by Liz Pelletier, features category-length paranormal romance while Brazen, edited by Heather Howland, is Entangled’s hot, sexy line of romance. Get details on all these new lines and what the editors are looking for here.

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Entangled is also looking for themed stories for some upcoming anthologies. For their Rockin’ Round the Christmas Tree collection, they’re seeking 20,000 to 40,000 word novellas with themes related to either “Ring My Bell”  for their Ever After line. The stories should quote from the song and words from the song should be part of the title of the story.

For the Flirts collection, your story should revolve around lyrics to “Santa Baby” and be 10,000 to 15,000 words.

Get all the details on the Rockin’ Round the Christmas Tree collections here.

Entangled editors are also on the lookout for stories for another, Christmas and winter holiday themed collection of Flirts — 10,000 to 15, 000 word stories to Christmas, Hannukah, or Kwanzaa.

If you have a story that centers around New Years, consider submitting it for the Ever After New Years collection. Your story should be 20,000 to 40,000 words and, as with all Entangled stories, contain strong romantic elements.  Find the details for the Flirts Christmas and New Year’s Ever After collections here.

The deadline for all of these holiday themed collections is June 10, 2012.

Entangled editors are also interested in stories about Ancient Greece and Rome (whether historical, mythical or fantasy or some other take on ancient Greek and Roman traditions and legends) for the Ever After Line. Stories should be 20,000 to 40,000 words, contain a strong romance, and contain strong elements of Greek or Roman myth and culture. The deadline for this collection is July 31, 2012 and the books will be published in late 2012. Find all the details here.

Finally, Entangled will be published a collection of Flirts centered around the theme of Guilty Pleasures. Send your 10,000 to 15,000 words that focuses on the hero or heroine’s guilty pleasure or sinful indulgence that plays a key role in their romance. Deadline is June 30, 2012 for books to be released late 2012. Find the details here.

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Inspired Romance, an e-publisher of sweet and inspirational romance fiction,  has added a new acquiring editor. Editor Delia Latham is interested in inspirational romance, both historical (think frontier romance) and contemporary, but also enjoys sweet secular romance, strange tales of the supernatural (Stephenie Meyers’ Twilight series), and epic accounts of good vs. evil (The Stand). She has too many “favorite” authors to mention, ranging from Stephen King and Dean Koontz to Janette Oke, Cathy Marie Hake and Frank Peretti. She’s convinced that a healthy hunk of humor makes any book better, but says that’s true of any kind of emotion. “Make me laugh, make me cry—make me feel something—and I’ll read on to the next page.” To submit your manuscript to Delia, email dlatham@inspiredromancenovels.com.

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My blog tour for Always a Bridesmaid continues. Today, I’m the guest at Cocktails and Books and tomorrow I’m featured on the Entangled in Romance blog. Stop by and comment and you could win a free copy of the book. Or grab your copy now at your favorite ebook dealer. You can read a free sample here.

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As always, feel free to share the information from this blog — reprint it, forward it and pass it on. All I aks is that you give me credit as the source and include a link to the blog. Thank you!

 

Mystery novel contest, call for submissions and more.

“Read a lot, finding out what kind of writing turns you on, in order to develop a criterion for your own writing. And then trust it—and yourself.”
Rosemary Daniell

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Santa Fe’s Wordharvest and St. Martin’s Press are co-sponsoring the Tony Hillerman prize for the best first mystery set in the Southwest. The contest is open to both published and unpublished writers who have never had a mystery novel published. First prize is a $10,000 advance and a publishing contract with St. Martin’s Press. Submit your book-length manuscript of at least 60,000 words, set in the Southwest and centered around a murder or other serious crime, by the deadline of June 1, 2012. The winner will be announced by October 1. Find out all the submission details here.

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Editor Jeanne DeVita at Musa Publishing’s Calliope romance line has put out a plea for GLTG (gay, lesbeian, transgender) manuscripts. While she’s interested in any romances with GLTG characters, she’d especially like to see some YA manuscripts. Send your query and/or first three chapters to submissions@musapublishing.com and put GLTG manuscript in the subject line of your email.

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Pocket Books has announced it’s giving the Pocket Star name to its ebook only line of releases. Pocket Star was formally a mass market imprint of Simon and Schuster. The new ebook only line will feature romance, women’s fiction, mystery, thrillers and urban fantasy, with a mix of re-releases and new titles, with the emphasis on new fiction. In an article in Publisher’s Weekly, Pocket’s executive vice president and publisher, Louise Burke, said Pocket sees Pocket Star as a venue for discovering new authors, as well as a way to showcase established names. Authors that launch in Pocket Star could transition to hardcover releases. Pocket Executive Editor Lauren McKenna will oversea Pocket Star. Pocket has long had a policy of reviewing agented submissions only; no word yet if this will change for the Pocket Star line.

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Get a taste of my newest release, Always a Bridesmaid, by reading the first chapter free here. And check my previous post for my blog tour running all this month, where you’ll have several chances to win a free copy of Always a Bridesmaid.  

 

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As always, feel free to share this newsletter with others. Reprint it, repost it and pass it on — as long as you give me

credit for the information and include a link to this blog. Thank you!  Cindi Myers

 

Always a Bridesmaid Blog Tour Schedule

My blog tour for Always a Bridesmaid starts next week. Check the schedule below for stops. Post a comment on one of these blogs while I’m there and you have a good chance of winning a copy of Always a Bridesmaid.

You can read a free excerpt from the book here.   

And check out what one reviewer said about the book: “Always a Bridesmaid is a book with soul and emotion that skirts the edges of women’s fiction by having a guaranteed happily-ever-after of a romance, but the firm setting in reality is there… This could be a book about your neighbors or your best friend or your cousin. The author is a very good writer and the writing in this book ranked up there with the greats of contemporary romance like Nora Roberts or Debbie Macomber.”  Read the whole review here.  

Monday, May 7th Paperback Dolls

Wednesday, May 9th Laura Kaye’s Blog

Thursday, May 10th Cassandra’s Reviews

Tuesday, May 15th Novel Reflections

Wednesday, May 16th A Diary of a Book Addict

Wednesday, May 23rd Cocktails and Books

Wednesday, May 30th The Readiacs

Monday, June 4th Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews

Tuesday, June 5th Passionate Book Divas

Friday, June 8th Stella Ex Libris

 

New release, high-paying mystery market and more

My big news this week is that I have a new book out. Always a Bridesmaid is a sexy, fun romantic comedy from Entangled Indulgence.

Love can be a volcano…

After two failed relationships and six stints as a bridesmaid, Stephanie Ludlow is convinced she’s man-poison. So when her hormones point due south to her sexy new landlord, she throws up every guard in her arsenal to protect herself from heartbreak. Problem is, her cache is sadly lacking.

When Mike Brubaker’s wife left him, he focused all his energy on raising his nine-year-old son and providing a stable home. Relationships are a complication he can’t afford–until Stephanie walks into his life. She’s intelligent, irresistible, and driven, and he can’t take his mind off her, no matter how hard he tries.

Will interfering friends, an over-protective dad, and past mistakes keep them apart, or will they fight for the happiness that each deserves?

Check it out here, read the first chapter for free and grab your copy now.

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If you’re looking for a high-paying market for your crime and mystery short stories, check out Criminal Element. This epublisher accepts all sub-genres of mystery and crime stories, 6,000 to 15,000 words and pays a $1,000 advance against a 25% royalty. Send the complete story and a cover letter that tells about you and your writing credits to criminalelementstories@yahoo.com. See all the guidelines here.

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Puglacious Press is a new small press devoted to young adult and middle grade novels. Puglacious publishes hardcover and paperback editions of books and pays an advance agaisnt royalties. Editors Joyce Shor Johnson and Jennifer Carson are looking for historical fiction, fantasy and high adventure stories. They’re open to dystopian stories if the stories have a fantastical element. Find their submission guidelines here.

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Midlife Collage hosts a weekly writing contest for “short stories about experiences in mid-life.” There’s no fee to enter and weekly winners get $50. You must be at least 40 years old to enter. Stories — which are really vignettes — should be between 250 and 400 words. For all the details go here.

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The Woman Who Loved Jesse James got a terrific review this week from A Girl and Her Kindle. Reviewer Amy Brantley says. ”This is by far one of the best pieces of historical fiction I have ever read.” Wow! Made my week. You can read the entire review here.

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As always, feel free to share information from this blog with others — repost, reprint and pass it on. All I ask is that you give me credit as the source of the information, and include a link to this blog. Thanks!  Cindi

 

New historical romance line, short story contests and more.

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”    ―   Stephen King

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Entangled Publishing will soon add historical romance to its lineup of offerings. The editors are looking for its new Scandalous imprint. These 60,000 to 70,000 word romances may be set any time between 900 and 1950, in almost any setting.  “These stories are bold, sexy, and heartfelt, and can be funny, action-packed, mysterious, or dramatic.” The stories should feature a classic romantic trope and an Alpha male hero. Stories should be historically accurate and may contain light paranormal elements, though paranormal elements are not required. Stories should be sexy and sensual, but they’re not looking for erotica. Find out all the details here.

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Children’s Writer, a monthly email newsletter, is sponsoring a Middle Grade Mystery Contest.  Write a mystery short story that appeals to 9 to 12 year-olds — no longer than 900 words. First prize is $500 and publication in the newsletter, second prize is $250 and third, fourth and fifth graders will each receive $100. Subscribers to Children’s Writer may enter for free: all others pay $15. The deadline to enter is April 30. Get all the details here.

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The Woman Who Loved Jesse James got another really nice review Here.

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The University of New Hampshire Department of Theatre and Dance is looking for new children’s plays and musicals. To find new works, they’re sponsoring the Anna Zornio Children’s Theatre Playwrite Award.  Submit your play or musical of no more than 60 minutes in length, suitable for adults to perform for children. There is no fee to enter. First prize is $500 and production of your play. The deadline for entries is March 4, 2016, and the play will be produced during the 2018-2019 season. Find all the details here.

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The Hysterectomy Association of the UK is sponsoring the Hysteria 2012 Short Story Competition. Submit your short story of up to 2,000 words, on any subject of appeal to women (stories do not have to have anything to do with hysterectomies) by August 31. First prize is 400 pounds. The top 10 stories and poems will be published in an anthology. The contest is open to women of any nationality.  Find out more information here.

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As always, feel free to pass on information from this newsletter, reprint, repost and share with others. All I ask is that you give me credit and include a link back to this blog. Thanks!  Cindi Myers

 

New erotic romance publisher, a travel writing contest, and more…

The only way to learn to write is to write.- Peggy Teeters

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HarperCollins UK is launching a new line of ebook only erotica and erotic romances. Mischief Books editorial director Adam Nevill and is looking for manuscripts, from collections of short stories to novellas to full-length novels. Mischief publishes all sub-genres of erotic and erotic romance — you can find a list of all the different categories on their site. Mischief pays an advance and royalties, though some short stories for special collections pay a flat fee. Check out the writer’s guidelines here. In addition to book-length manuscript, Mischief is open to submissions of short stories for several planned themed collections. Stories should be approximately 4,000 words and fit the theme of the collection. For a list of upcoming themes and guidelines, scroll to the bottom of the writer’s guidelines.

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The 29th Annual Colorado Gold Writing Contest is now open for submissions. I don’t usually publicize writing contests in this space, but Colorado Gold is sponsored by Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, a group of which I’m a member. I’m one of the judges of this contest and I know many people who’ve gone on to sell their work as a result of this contest, so I’m making an exception and letting you know about the contest.  Enter your Romance, Mystery, Mainstream, Action/Thriller, Speculative Fiction, and Young Adult manuscript in the contest. The entry fee is $30 — you can pay an additional $25 for a detailed critique of your work. Find all the entry details here.

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Trendy Traveler is hosting a contest for blog posts on their site about travel. There is no fee to enter and you could win $500 or $250.  Sign up at the Trendy Traveler blog and submit your post in one of the following categories: “Best Travel Blog”, “My Favorite Trip or Vacation” or “My Hometown/Destination Business is a Great Travel Destination Because…” Deadline for submissions is August 31, 2012. Winner of the “Best Travel Blog” category wins $500. Winners in the other two categories get $250. Find all the details here.

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At Harlequin’s Kimani Press, Shannon Criss has been promoted to assistant editor, as has Love Inspired’s Rachel Burkot. And Harlequin’s Elizabeth Mazer is now an Associate Editor. Mazer acquires for a number of Harlequin’s series romance lines.

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The Woman Who Loved Jesse James is getting a lot of nice press lately. The book is in the Spotlight at Fresh Fiction and received a nice write-up over at History and Women.  And I’m interviewed at Fallen Angel Reviews.

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As always, feel free to share this newsletter with others: repost, reprint and republish. All I ask is that you give me credit as the source of the information, and include a link to this blog. Thanks!  Cindi

 

 

 

Short story markets for genre fiction, and more.

“I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.” ~ James Michener

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Mixer is magazine that publishes “literary genre” fiction, both online and in print. The editors are interested in romance, horror, science fiction, noir and realist fiction up to 15,000 words. This isn’t your everyday genre fiction — the editors have some very specific likes and dislikes, so be sure to check out their guidelines here. Submitting to Mixer is free, but if you want to enter their annual contest, you must be a subscriber to the magazine. Subscriptions are $12 a year. This year’s contest is searching for the best story to combine sex, violence and satire. First prize is $1,000. Deadline for entries is April 26 and you may submit up to five stories, up to 17,900. Find out the scoop here.

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Criminal Element welcomes submissions of mystery and crime short stories in all sub-genres. The editors are looking for short stories between 6,000 and 15,000 words. Payment is $1,000. Find out more here.

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Writers of speculative fiction with a literary bent should take a look at In the Snake. The editors are particularly interested in stories that explore magical realism and surrealism, and have an identifiable theme and an existential conflict. They accept stories to 7,500 words and pay $50. Find the fiction guidelines here.

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Black Moon Books is accepting submissions for Mirror Shards Volume 2, an anthology of short stories dealing with augmented reality. Stories should ideally be between 3,000 and 9,000 words. Stories may be any sub-genre, but augmented reality must play a key role in the story. Payment is 2 cents a word, but one story, selected as the best in the book, will earn 5 cents a word. The deadline for submissions is May 5, 2012. Find all the details here. Also, check out D.L. Snell’s interview with Mirror Shards editor Thomas K. Carpenter here.

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As always, feel free to share the information in this blog with others. Please include a link back to the blog, and give me credit as the source. Thank you. Cindi Myers

 

New sweet romance line, horror anthology and more

“However great a man’s natural talent may be, the art of writing cannot be learned all at once.” Jean Jacques Rousseau

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Harlequin Heartwarming is a line that started as a reprint program of older titles. Editors are now accepting original manuscripts for this imprint, which focuses on warm, romantic stories with no sex and no religion. The guidelines characterize these as “Stories readers can feel comfortable sharing with their daughters and granddaughters.” The books are 70,000 to 75,000 words, are contemporary, with emotional conflicts, and focus on home and family. You do not need an agent to submit to Harlequin Heartwarming. Find the guidelines here.

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Until March 10, you can download a FREE copy of the first book in my Titled Texans trilogy, Nobility Ranch, at Smashwords. Go to this link and use the code RE10o  at checkout. And, also until March 10, you can get my other historical titles for 25 % off from Smashwords by using the code RE25 at checkout.

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If you’re a fan of horror and westerns, The Edge of Sundown is a new anthology looking for short stories of 4,000 to 8,000 words that feature horror in an old-west setting. Editors Kevin Ross and Brian M. Sammons  want seriously scarcy stories set west of the Mississippi between the Civil War and the Mexican Revolution. Pay is 3 cents a word and the deadline for submissions is July 1, 2012. Find the guidelines here. And check out D.L. Snell’s interview with the editors here.

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Glimmer Train is currently sponsoring its March Fiction Open. Several times a year Glimmer Train accepts submissions of all fiction on all themes (no children’s stories.) Glimmer Train does charge a reading fee for these contests of $19 per entry. First prize is $2,500 and publication in Glimmer Train Stories. Second place gets $1,000 and third place $600. Word count: 2,000 to 20,000 words. Deadline to enter is March 31. The winner will be announced by May 31. Find all the details here.

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As always, feel free to share the information with this newsletter from others. All I ask is that you give me credit as the source and include a link to this blog. Thank you. Cindi Myers

 

Find a new publisher, win a cruise and more…

This Saturday, March 3, I’ll be signing copies of The Woman  Who Loved Jesse James at Who Else? Books at the Broadway Book Mall, 200 S. Broadway in Denver. The fun starts at 3:30 — author J.A. Kazimer will be signing with me, so please come on down and say hello!

 

 

 

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Netherworld Books is a new publisher of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror and Paranormal books. They publish both print and digital editions of their titles. They’re looking for manuscripts that at 65,000-90,00o words in the following genres: paranormal romance, paranormal erotica, science fiction, fantasy, historical fantasy and horror. Find their submission guidelines here.

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This isn’t a fiction writing competition, but I thought it was too fun not to post. Carnival Cruise Lines is celebrating the launch of its new ship, Carnival Breeze, by giving one person the chance to enjoy a free cruise and write about their experience for Cruise International magazine. If you’ve always wanted to be a travel writer, here’s your chance to enjoy a free 12-day Mediterranean cruise. You’ll need to submit a sample of your writing and some holiday photos by April 2. Get all the details here.

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Want to do a favor for an author with almost no effort on your part? Click the “Like” button on the Amazon listing for their book. Then scroll down to “Tags” and check off a few. This helps raise the book’s rating in search engines. You could start here with The Woman Who Loved Jesse James. And thank you!

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Poisoned Pen Press, an independent publisher of some truly wonderful mysteries, is holding its first ever Discover Mystery Contest. First prize is $1,000 and a publishing contract with Poisoned Pen Press. Submit your mystery manuscript (60,000 to 90,000 words) by April 30, 2012. Winners will be announced by May 31, 2012.  There is a $20 entry fee. Find all the details here.

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Tor.com is the short story arm of Tor Books. The website publishes all kinds of speculative fiction, from hard science fiction to alternative history, steampunk, fantasy and more. The editors are looking for stories under 12,000 words. They pay 25 cents a word for the first 5,000 words, 15 cents a word for the next 5,000, and 10 cents a word after that. Stories are published online, but may also be included in print anthologies (in which case you’ll receive additional compensation.)  Check out all the details here.

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As always, feel free to share any information gleaned from this blog – repost, reprint and pass it on. All I ask is that you give me credit as the source of the information, and include a link back to the blog. Thank you.  Cindi Myers