“Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it’s the only way you can do anything really good.”
– William Faulkner

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This week I continue my look at the publisher spotlights from the RWA National Convention in Atlanta, Georgia, with a look at Grand Central Publishing.

Amy Pierpont,  editor in chief, presented this spotlight, along with editors Michelle Bidelspach, Alex Logan and Loren Plude. Forever and Forever Yours are the two romance specific imprints for Grand Central.2013 is Forever’s Tenth Anniversary, while Forever Yours is Grand Central’s new Digital First imprint.

Though Forever accepts only agented submissions, Forever Yours accepts unagented authors. Forever Yours publishes 10-15 titles a month. The editors who acquire for Forever also acquire for Forever Yours. They’re looking for all kinds of sub-genre stories — they’ve done sci-fi romance, male-male and other niche stories. Forever authors also do e-novellas for Forever Yours. Novel length stories come out as digital editions first, then are available as POD print editions. They accept novellas from 8,000 to 35,000 words, and novels from 35,000 to 100,000 words.

Forever and Forever Yours are looking for the following types of stories:

Historical romance that transports the readers to a different time and place. All levels of sensuality. Open to Regency, Victorian, Georgian and Scottish historicals.

Contemporary romance of all types, from sweet to sexy. Small towns are very popular, but they’re open to other settings. Family stories do well. Cowboys are always popular. Contemporary westerns set on ranches are popular.

Romantic Suspense — action, suspense, fear. Like the author to create a world and a family feeling with a group of firefighters, FBI agents, special forces operatives, etc.

Paranormal Romance — They are not tired of vampires yet, but also like other kinds of creatures and settings, including historical paranormal.

Erotic Romance — Hot, alpha heroes — BDSM, male-male, menage. “break boundaries. Anything goes.”

New Adult — “It’s all about the angst.”

A large portion of the Spotlight was given over to discussing the marketing and publicity efforts Grand Central makes for its authors. They try to target niche audiences that might be interested in the book. They encourage author blogging and participation in social media. They send books to reviewers and use NetGalley. They have done blog tours, giveaways and many other types of marketing and publicity.

Find out more about Forever here. And for more information about the editors and their particular likes and dislikes, check out this link.

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This week, I’m part of a fun online scavenger hunt featuring the July and August authors for Entangled Indulgence. Each day, authors will post questions. Find the answers at the link the author also posts. Every answer enters you in a drawing for an Indulgent Gift Basket of goodies. The more answers, the more chances you have to win. The contest will run through Sunday. Play as often as you like. Check it out here.

TWG-500

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Speaking of Entangled Publishing, the editors at Scandalous, Entangled’s historical romance line, are looking for sexy cowboy stories — particularly those set 1866 – 1890. 50,000 to 60,000 words. The deadline for complete manuscripts is January 31, 2014. Get the details here.

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The First Line challenges writers to create a short story that begins with a first line they supply. This month, the line is “I came of age in a time of no heroes.” Submit your 300 to 3,000 word story. Stories may be any genre. If published, you’ll earn $30. The deadline for submissions is November 1, 2013. Get the scoop here.

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Panverse Publishing is an independent publisher founded in 2009. Panverse publishes both print and digital editions on its titles. The company released six titles in 2013 and plans 8 to 12 titles for 2014. Because it is a small company, Panverse accepts submissions only during limited open reading periods — one of which is going on right now. Panverse is accepting submissions from both agented and unagented authors until August 21. Manuscripts should be between 60,000 and 130,000 words (though they prefer under 115,000 words). The editors are looking for “Non-traditional romance”, historical fiction, mystery, crime, humor, science fiction, fantasy or humor. Panverse focuses on publishing character-driven, genre fiction. Get all the details here.

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As always, feel free to pass along the information in this blog. Reprint it, repost it and share. Please credit me as the source and include a link to the blog. Thanks!  Cindi