APRIL 2010 M/M ROMANCE NEWSLETTER
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Welcome to the April newsletter. We hope the content on this page is both informative and entertaining. We welcome feedback on this newsletter. You can send it to the Newsletter Editor. On another outreach note: The Dreamspinner Press blog is now open for business. Follow the blog to see author posts, book excerpts, contests, and other news from the press about M/M romance. Enjoy!
Lynn West, Editor in Chief, Dreamspinner Press
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AUTHOR INTERVIEW |
Why did you decide to write romance stories?
I love a happy ending (the riding-off-into-the-sunset kind, not the, um, other kind). I can read biographies and watch documentaries where things go horribly wrong, but when it comes to fiction, I want love to conquer all. I know some people find sad novels and tragic movies cathartic, but I just find them... sad and tragic. So for me, romance was the way to go.
Why men in the military?
Two reasons: camaraderie and competence. I find the idea of individuals working together for the greater good incredibly appealing. These are folks who have made a conscious decision to risk their lives to protect others; I get the same little charge from policemen and firemen. I find men who really know what they're doing extremely sexy--whether it's in books or in real life. Navy SEALs hit that competence kink with a sledgehammer! On the shallow end, I've always been drawn to the clean-cut, short-hair look, outdoorsy types with boots and sweat and muscles from hard work. Soldiers exemplify that "look."
What's the plot of the wonderful book you haven't written but have imagined?
As you could probably tell from TLC 101, one of my other passions is sports. I've got an idea for a story about an NBA player who's open about being gay but keeps his functional illiteracy a closely guarded secret, and the semi-closeted literacy council director who falls for him. In my head, it's a story about two people who don't really recognize what they're missing until they meet each other.
What are five of your favorite books/series?
I read two books again and again: One on One by Tabitha King, and Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. Both offer strong, sexy, competent men who willingly put themselves in harm's way to protect someone they love. Sound familiar? Both authors do an exceptional job of creating a sense of time and place; I can immerse myself in the worlds they've drawn. In terms of M/M, I thought two recent releases were particularly memorable and well-written: Can't Hurry Love by M. Jules Aedin, and State of Mind by Libby Drew.
Why did you decide to try to publish your stories?
Perhaps I should say, "It's my ART!", but the truth is that I like the idea of generating income from home on my own timetable. Little did I know that I would be a harsher task master than any of my former bosses!
Janey Chapel found a paperback romance in her grandmother's bookcase at the age of eleven, inhaled it in one sitting, and then proceeded to devour thousands of romance novels in a variety of genres over the course of several decades. Eventually, her husband said, "Stop reading! Start writing!" After a lifetime in the South, Janey now lives in the Northeast with her husband and daughter, where she volunteers with the PTO, struggles to adapt to actual winter, and writes fiction in her spare time. Visit her blog at http://janeychapel.livejournal.com/. See Janey's eBooks at Dreamspinner Press.
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Win a free Nap-size Dream eBook download by identifying this author. Clues are available in author bios on our web site.
This author would love to own a second-hand book shop and sit behind the counter reading her wares and writing her own all day. Her novella published with Dreamspinner Press is set at an Alaskan hideaway where a retreat goes scarily wrong.
E-mail the Newsletter Editor with your answer. A winner will be chosen randomly from the correct answers. Contest ends April 30.
The correct answers to March's question: This author was one of Dreamspinner's first published names and has written both alone and with a co-author. This author's stories range from quiet romances to passionate scenes to paranormal mysteries. Who is the author? Rhianne Aile, Ariel Tachna, or Madeleine Urban.
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The lights were muted in the hotel bar, a stark contrast to the night before when pulsing lights and pounding sound had driven Chris to drink far too much. Again. It seemed to go with the monotony of life on the road. Although he knew there were safe ways to deal with the boredom, Chris had never had a safe outlook on life. He pushed and he took risks. When the club had closed, he'd found himself in the parking lot with a rowdy bunch, and before he knew it, play fighting had turned real.
All day he had tried to explain away the shiner. Each casually delivered one liner sounded weaker than the one before, and he had finally escaped at the end of the day to hide out in the bar. He knew he didn't need any more alcohol, but there was a front he had to keep up.
It was hard sitting there at the bar and ignoring the throbbing pain in his eye. He controlled himself, keeping his hands on the bar, out of his drink and the cooling ice cubes. Chris would never accept defeat and would never let anyone see that he had any weakness. Especially this. If things spiraled out of control, he didn't expect anyone to step in and fix him.
A warm scent tickled at his nose and evoked a memory of strength and security. Chris closed his eyes for the space of a heartbeat, and when he opened them, he found Sean seated beside him. Chris felt light-headed as he took in the sight of his erstwhile lover clad in an immaculate navy blue suit.
"Where did you come from?" Chris murmured as he picked up his empty glass, then set it down again, measuring it up to fit in the ring it had left.
Sean laid a hand on the bar, close to Chris's but not touching. "Jameson 18, neat. And if he wants a refill—"
"Grey Goose, tonic," Chris said, and when the bartender turned away to make their drinks he murmured, "You didn't answer my question."
"It didn't require an answer," Sean said smoothly. "It doesn't really matter where I came from as long as I'm here"—he turned to take in Chris's profile—"when you need me most."
The drinks were set in front of them, and Chris bowed his head.
"Does it hurt?" Sean asked.
Chris tried to muster the cocky attitude he was known for, but he crumbled and simply nodded.
Sean picked up his drink, took a moment to sniff the fragrant liquid, then allowed a small sip. He set the glass back on the bar, reached inside the front pocket of his elegant jacket, and extracted a small square folder that contained a room key. He slid it across the bar, nudged it against Chris's hand.
With an equally smooth motion, Chris palmed the key and then pushed the fresh drink aside.
Modulating his voice so that only Chris could hear him, Sean said, "I left a washcloth in a bucket of ice in the bathroom."
"Thank you," Chris murmured. He pushed back his stool and left the bar.
In the room he found the covers pulled back and a large vase of daisies beside the bed. Chris stripped from his clothes, found the icy wash cloth right where Sean had left it, and settled in the bed. As the soothing cool of the cloth worked its magic, he drifted off into a memory of daisies and Sean.
Their paths had crossed many times in the early days. Neither settled down in one place for too long, and so the meetings had always held a casual air. The night they had finally fallen in bed together had been a heady experience, and after that they had tried to arrange travel plans so that they ran into each other more often.
The first night Sean had brought daisies had been Chris's undoing. Sean was fierce and had a stronger devil-may-care attitude than Chris, and so the sight of him with a big bunch of daisies had been incongruous. But when he'd sat cross-legged on the bed and began the familiar chant he loves me, he loves me not... Chris had been mesmerized. Somehow he knew that the last petal would prophesy that Sean loved him.
By the time Sean joined him, Chris had slipped into a dreamy doze. With a soft smile, Sean took the cloth and set it aside, then stripped down and slid in behind Chris in the bed. Soft lips pressed against the nape of Chris's neck, and Sean snaked a hand in front of him to wrap around Chris's length.
Stirring from the doze, Chris reached down to lay his hand over Sean's and murmured softly, "Good...."
Stroking lazily, Sean whispered, "It is good, Chris, you and me." He pulled back enough to let Chris twist around to face him.
Foreheads pressed together, Chris transferred his hand to Sean's erection. He eased down to tease his lips over Sean's as he began to stroke.
With a moan, Sean eased close enough to wrap his large hand around both of their cocks. His mouth closed over Chris's for a deeper kiss as he worked his hand over both of their erections.
Chris raised his leg and settled it over Sean's back, pulling them closer together. He broke from the kiss and arched his neck. "Make me, Sean...."
Sean pushed closer and nibbled against the throbbing pulse in Chris's neck as he thrust his hips against his stroking hand. "This is just the start, love," he murmured.
A hard shiver chased down Chris's spine as he arched closer and came. Sean's promises were always fulfilled, and this taste just made him eager for more. Even the hard shudder and stifled growl from Sean communicated the promise of what was to come.
With a gentle kiss, Sean released his hold, twined their legs together beneath the covers. The night was far from over.
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Love Means... No Boundaries
By Andrew Grey
"I loved the characters from the beginning. ... The instant attraction between the two is evident from the beginning and the passion between them ranges from sweet and tender to page-burning hot."
Literary Nymphs
Games in the Dark anthology
"If you're a frequent reader of this genre, you'll be pleased with the variety of stories and the very likable, realistic characters. If you're fairly new to male-male BDSM in your reading, you'll find yourself understanding what draws men into this world of pleasure."
Whipped Cream Erotic Romance Reviews
The Guardian
By Mary Calmes
"...an intriguing and unique erotic fantasy story. Mary Calmes has built a captivating world."
Romance Junkies Reviews
Sticks & Stones
By Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux
"Urban and Roux have done an awesome job developing the two main characters, flawed but strong, willing to die for each other but not willing to admit it. They are framed by a cast of secondary characters that are colorful and internally consistent. The story line will keep you up all night long."
Rainbow Reviews
Come Back to Me
By Lisa Marie Davis
"This was a great story and even knowing that it would, as it is a romance, end well, I was still on tenterhooks."
Dark Diva Reviews
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CALLS FOR SUBMISSIONS
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Dreamspinner Press is soliciting submissions for Making Contact.
We want stories of love that is literally out of this world! Give us galaxy soldiers, space pirates, traveling aliens, intrepid explorers, and more. We're looking for romance among the shooting stars, love that matches the glory of the spheres, and passion that burns like the largest of suns, where making first contact takes on a whole new meaning.
Editor in Chief Lynn West will be reviewing manuscripts of 3,500 to 12,000 words in length. Manuscripts shorter or longer will be considered but will have to be extraordinary. The submission deadline is May 14, 2010. You must follow general submission guidelines for short stories for proper consideration. Please list "Making Contact" in the subject line of your submission.
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NEWS |
Windows in Time by M. Jules Aedin, Dash and Dingo by Catt Ford and Sean Kennedy, and Promises by Marie Sexton were all nominated for Book of the Month in March at Dark Diva Reviews. The books that are included in the poll were rated 5 Delightful Divas, a Recommended Read, and/or a Top Pick.
Read the Two Lips Reviews interview of Andrew Grey, author of the Love Means... and Children of Bacchus stories, who was a Featured Author of the Month in March.
To Keep and to Love by Serena Yates was nominated for Book of the Week during March at Whipped Cream Erotic Romance Reviews.
Read the Reviews by Jessewave interview of Janey Chapel, author of Maritime Men and Anchors Away.
Tigers and Devils by Sean Kennedy, Shades of Gray by Brooke McKinley, and Zero at the Bone by Jane Seville were all named contenders in the Smart Bitches, Trashy Books dabwaha (Dear Author Bitchery Writing Award for Hellagood Authors) tournament. As of March 29, Zero at the Bone was winning its matchup in the Elite Eight.
MANtastic Fiction named Simple Men by Eric Arvin a Book of the Week during March.
Read the Michele 'n' Jeff interview of Serena Yates, author of To Find and to Keep and To Keep and to Love.
Several Dreamspinner Press authors attended the second annual Rainbow Book Fair in New York City on March 27. Attendees included Jeff Adams, Andrew Grey, Felicitas Ivey, Marguerite Labbe, Clare London, and Carolyn LeVine Topol. Jeff Adams wrote this wrap-up of the fair.
Jan Irving is hosting a contest for readers on her Yahoo!Group for a chance to win a signed paperback copy of her new release, Mastering Toby.
Read the Michele 'n' Jeff interview of Anne Brooke, author of The Bones of Summer.
Follow us!
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dsp_mm_romance at Twitter.
Dreamspinner Facebook Page
Our new Facebook page contains a variety of exciting ways to keep up with Dreamspinner's news. We post new release bulletins, share reviews, announce contests and interviews with our authors, and offer opportunities for readers to talk about their favorite books in the discussion threads. In addition, we have the occasional contest or discount only available if you follow us on Facebook!
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Will Dreamspinner accept resubmissions if the work has been substantially revised or polished? Will Dreamspinner consider submissions of works previously published with other houses when the rights have reverted to the author?
Yes, we will accept resubmissions that have received considerable revision. Please label the e-mail as a resubmission and include a list of key changes made. Otherwise we may look at the synopsis and say, "We've already reviewed this." We also accept submissions of work previously published with other houses with written documentation of rights reversion. Please include the documentation with the submission along with the publisher, dates, and format information.
How many people should I ask to read my story before I submit it?
As many as possible! The more fresh eyes that look over your story, the better chance you will find dropped words (Ex: articles and prepositions can be missing yet read straight over), wrong verb tense (Ex: past tense instead of past perfect tense), and missing or incorrect puncutation (Ex: ellipses used in place of EM dashes improperly). Multiple readers can also give you an idea of how solid your plot is, if there are dangling threads of the story that need tying up, and if they find internal inconsistencies. Don't just depend on your friends; ask colleagues who may not be familiar with your style to read your work as well.
What kind of stories are most likely to be accepted right now?
At this time, submissions of standard contemporary romance, murder mysteries, and Westerns have the best chance of being accepted. Lowest chance: fantasy/paranormal and BDSM/Kink.
What lengths of stories do you publish, and in what formats?
Dreamspinner Press publishes stories from 3,500 words to about 150,000 in the following descriptions:
Daydreams - 3,500 to 7,500 words - eBook only
Nap-size Dreams - 7,500-15,000 words - eBook only
Short Novella - 15,000-30,000 words - eBook only
Long Novella - 30,000-60,000 words - eBook only
Novel - >60,000 words - eBook and print
We also publish anthologies throughout the year with different story length requirements. Always check the general submission guidelines.
Ask the Editor in an e-mail to the Newsletter Editor.
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DREAMSPINNER PRESS |
Launched in May 2007, Dreamspinner Press offers quiet romance, supernatural passion, out-of-this-world lovers, kinky explorations, and heated dreams--a little taste to whet your appetite for romantic homoerotica. We hope you take a little time to be enchanted, romanced, and loved by enjoying the publications of Dreamspinner Press.
We appreciate your patronage! If you have feedback, please e-mail to contact@dreamspinnerpress.com or mail to Dreamspinner Press, 4760 Preston Road, Suite 244-149, Frisco, TX 75034, USA. Thank you!
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