Desert Breeze Publishing: Showcase

Brigader AR Norris recently interviewed Gail Delaney (also a new member of the SFR Brigade) about Desert  Breeze Publishing.  I think you'll find what Gail has to say as exciting as I did!  

1. Would you like to share a little history about Desert Breeze Publishing?

I suppose in a way, the genesis of DBP came from my own sci fi romance series. Several years ago, I was with another publishing company that no longer exists, and they were publishing my sci fi rom series. While visiting my best friend (and now business partner) in California, I received the cover art for the last book in the series.

I was beyond disappointed. It was horrible. Absolutely horrible. Jenifer begged me to get the publisher to allow HER to make my covers. They refused. During the visit, one of us said "We should open our own publishing company".

Within a year, that publishing company abruptly -- and lacking any ethics -- shut down and filed bankruptcy. In the year plus it took to get my books free from the bankruptcy trial, my family and I moved to California and we began the process of opening Desert Breeze Publishing.

2. Who are your key personnel?

There are two owners of Desert Breeze Publishing -- myself as President and Editor-In-Chief -- and Jenifer Ranieri as Vice President and Marketing Driector. Patrick Delaney acts as Chief Financial Officer. We are currently in the process of bringing on a staff of editors and cover artists.

3. What are the most common reasons a novel (especially a Science Fiction Romance novel) is rejected?

Most commonly of all is a disregard for our guidelines and preferences, which we make clear on our website. We are primarily a publisher of romance, with a variety of sub genres. So, don't send me a hard boiled suspense with no romance. Don't sent me an epic space opera... with no romance. And on the other end of the spectrum, don't send me an erotic novel under the guise of a sci fi rom or rom suspense.

4. How far do you read into a submission before you know if the novel is right for you?

It's more about how far I read before I know it's 'not'. I can determine within a chapter or two whether I want to read more. If I get past the first couple of chapters, you've probably got a 7 in 10 chance of receiving an offer. If I go past those few chapters, I look for some very specific elements. How does the romance develop? How do you handle physical intimacy (or just attraction if you choose not to have any actual physical intimacy in the novel). How does the story develop? Is it a strong ending? If a series, is it set up well to continue?

So, if you can hook me early on you've got a better chance.

5. What can authors do to maximize the chances of their stories being accepted?

One of the biggest things -- beyond having a strong story -- is be a strong writer. I don't exclude a manuscript because it's not formatted to our final guidelines -- but the manuscript should be formatted neatly and consistently. Understand POV -- and the fact that I want third person and I want ONE POV per scene. Write in active voice, not passive. That doesn't mean I'll exclude you for a couple errors, but I will if I read 4 pages and see more errors than not.

6. What do you look for in a Science Fiction Romance submission? What grabs your attention, makes you sit up and want to read more?

When it comes to science fiction romance, I want to see strong world building, a sufficient base in science without requiring a degree in quantum physics to understand it, strong character development and strong character driven storytelling with a beautiful romance. So, I'm likely to reject if it reads like the author just threw his or her characters on a ship or an odd planet and call it science fiction. Or throwing in a bunch of anamorphic creatures and calling them aliens.

I believe true lovers and readers of science fiction want an intelligent, well thought out, intricate and thorough science fiction novel. And that's what I want to deliver.

7. Do you have recommendations or requirements regarding "heat levels" of submissions?

We have 4 heat levels, from the sweet to what we term 'intense'. Our intense level will have scenes of physical intimacy within the book, but while the scenes contain description, those descriptions will not go into a great deal of detail and will not use terms often associated with erotica or erotic romance. A love scene can be intense and physical and sensual -- and moving -- without the reader being told how many times tab a and slot be meet up.

8. What are you looking for right now? What kinds of submissions would you like to see pop up in your e-queries? Anything you’re dying to see more of? Steampunk? Futuristic? Space Opera? Any dream novels?

I would actually love to see some Steampunk. I have one scheduled for next year, but I want to see more. I like sci fi in series, because I like the development and world building that can really happen when you create a series. Futuristic... Space Opera... they're all good when well developed.

Because I have series set in both the near future and the distant future, I'd be interested in seeing a sci-fi series set in the here and now, but with an alternative timeline. What would our world be like today if we made contact? Whether good or bad? More often than not, when 'first contact' stories are told, the aliens are the wolf in sheep's clothing (I'm guilty of that myself -- I just had it take decades for the truth to be found out), but what if our first contact isn't with a potential adversary? What if they're our friends? But, maybe by making contact with us -- we've drawn the attention of an enemy?

Just a thought...

9. For science fiction romance, are you interested in any particular types of heroes and heroines (e.g., cyborgs, space pirates, scientists, airship captains)?

Wow... I don't think anyone has ever asked me that kind of question. I just like strong character development -- whether they be pirates or captains. I do usually make to make a clarification, though. 'Strong' doesn't mean 'jerk'.

A strong hero doesn't have to be an alpha male. I'm sure I can talk sci fi and people will 'get me' around here. Stargate SG-1's Jack O'Neill is a strong male character. And yet... so is Dr. Daniel Jackson. They are strong in different ways. They are different men. John Crichton of Farscape was a very strong hero -- and yet, how many times did we see him weep when he lost someone he cared about? Han Solo was a 'scruffy, stuck up, half-witted nerf herder'... and yet, we love him. Luke Skywalker started out as a whiny kid who wanted to know "Why me?", but by the end... he was a hero.

And just because a woman is strong, doesn't mean she can't be feminine. Just because a woman can fire a blaster and hit her target at 100 paces while riding a runaway power platform, doesn't mean she won't feel a pleasant rush when a man smiles at her or tells her she's beautiful.

I don't like characters who are so extreme in one direction that they can't be anything else. We -- as humans -- don’t work that way.

10. Is there anything else you’d like to share either about your interest in acquiring SF/SFR or forthcoming titles you’ve edited?

If you haven't been able to tell by now, SFR is my favorite genre. I want to expand the genre and improve it. I'd love to have a SFR title every month.

In an effort to do just that, we will be introducing a new anthology series in October of this year, titled Borealis. The anthology series will center around a space station on the edge of explored space in the 27th century. Initially, it was intended to be a single anthology of 5 stories -- but as I often find with sci fi writers -- we can be long winded. So, I brought on a 6th author, and we're releasing a 3-story anthology in October and another 3 story anthology in December. And we'll be releasing another 3-story anthology next year. All around Borealis.

The first anthology will have stories by PI Barrington (Author of the critically acclaimed Future Imperfect futuristic series), J. Morgan (Author of the hilarious paranormal series Love Bites, but his nickname is Bubba Fett, if that tells you anything) and myself. The second anthology has stories by Esther Mitchell (Author of numerous science fiction novels), Stephanie Burkhart (Author of paranormal, fantasy and steampunk), and Shea McMaster (who has joined us specifically to write for this series).

We have a wide variety of science fiction already available at DBP, and coming up soon. Vijaya Schartz has a galactic series titled The Chronicles of Kassouk and my own futuristic series The Phoenix Rebellion. PI Barrington's Future Imperfect series -- set in Las Vegas in the not-too-distant future -- has been compared to the writing of Stephen King. Coming soon is the Future Savior series which is an amalgamation of science fiction, fantasy and Christianity based genres.

I invite lovers of sci fi rom to check us out.

Thanks so much for your time and insights, Gail, and to A.R. for a wonderful and informative publisher's showcase.  I loved hearing about DBP's SFR-friendly attitude.  (And just want to mention author Vijaya Schartz is also a new member of the Brigade.) 

Have questions about submitting to Desert Breeze?  Read their Submission Guidelines or leave your question below.

Be sure to stop by Desert Breeze Publishing's site to check out Cooking by the Book and the Desert Breeze Publishing Book Club, as well as their full catalog of many great fiction titles.

A link to this interview will be added to our Publishers Showcase section on the sidebar.

Shadowfire Press

Rejections are a given. An intense black hole will suck up chunks of time as you query repeatedly. Surviving the sting of, ‘they couldn’t even spare two minutes to say what the problem is?’ takes its toll. But once you hit the right publisher with the right slot to fill, and you’ve received those few lines stating exactly what they’d like to see added or changed, or a simple ‘come in’, then you race through the door to meet the people who make dreams come true.

It takes a certain brand of human to guide and focus the birth of thoughts and dreams, someone talented enough to pin characters, alive and squirming, onto the pages so the world can embrace them. A special link is formed between the author and the publisher, and if you’re lucky enough to have an editor who’s a perfectionist, dedicated, honest, and a compassionate friend, you’ve had an acceptance from Michael Barnette at Shadowfire Press and he’s introduced you to Helen Ravell.

Helen, welcome. Thank you for sharing your time, yourself, with us today. What are the most common reasons a sci-fi romance novel is rejected?
For Shadowfire, the most common reason we reject is if the story is just not engaging enough. Shadowfire has a strong commitment to quality plots first and foremost. Some issues of craft can be worked on, but if the plot is not there, nothing can be done. Another, related problem, especially in sci-fi, is too much world building and back story, especially at the start of the story. World building is great, but not at the expense of the plot or characterization.

What are the biggest mistakes new authors make?
Submitting a story before it has been thoroughly redrafted and polished. This can apply not only to technical aspects of language, but in Science Fiction particularly, it is easy to get into a tangle where aspects of the world are inconsistent. Another problem is making sure that the protagonist and antagonist have roughly equal power. If you want to pit your characters against each other, as you should, you don’t want the power imbalance to be so obviously out that your character wanders into Mary Sueism. The writer’s best friend is a critique reader who is NOT their best friend. You have to find someone who is prepared to say...”No, this doesn’t work, and no, you are not going to get away with it.”

What do you look for in a sci-fi submission?
Apart from that engaging plot, we want characters that we can relate to. I want to be able to feel their triumphs and tragedies, hurt when they hurt, laugh when they laugh. And in Sci-fi I want that to happen in a new world which at the same time makes me reflect on human nature as I know it. What grabs your attention, makes you sit up and want to read more?
I want to read more when the author presents me with a puzzle...why are these people here? What do they want out of life? What personal characteristics do they need to survive in this strange land? And once I have asked all this questions, I want to find out the answers with a fast paced read that grips me with all showing and no telling. Sci-fi is an action format and the text and style have to be active.

How far do you read into a submission before you know if the novel is right for you?
I can usually tell by the first three chapters but unless it is woefully badly written, I do the author the courtesy of a complete read.

Tell me about a few of your favorite SFP science fiction romances. What really stood out in these stories that made them unique?
I love Gwen Campbell’s new series beginning with As My Warrior Commands.

# # #

There is a fiery, independent woman who knows what she wants…and isn’t about to let any strutting male stop her from getting it.

Sibyls are old crones. Everybody knows that. So what's a warrior supposed to think when a beautiful young woman turns up in the middle of a siege, says she's a sibyl, predicts the downfall of a kingdom and tells him he's going there with her to prevent it? He does what any hot-blooded warrior would do. He follows the woman. She's intelligent, brave, can see the future, has an ass he can't stop staring at and she knows how to make him laugh. What he doesn't know is that the sibyls have predicted the downfall of the Kingdom of Jareb-Phar if a young sibyl enters their throne room. What they don't know is if her arrival will be coincidental or cause the kingdom's fall. The only thing the warrior does know for sure is that beneath his beautiful, young sibyl's discipline is a woman as lusty and wanton as he is.

# # #

I also like Nina Croft’s Tiger of Talmare, it’s funny and fast paced and hot.

# # #

Melissa Stark will take on just about any job as long as the price is right. But this particular job she would gladly take on for free because Captain Zachary Knight has been a thorn in her side ever since she stole his starship ten years ago.

Back then he was a genuine hero and poster boy for the army's hybrid breeding program. Now things have changed. Zach has been accused of a massacre on the planet of Talmare and is being shipped home to stand trial. But certain influential people want to make sure Zach never reaches Earth and Mel and her crew on The Revenge have been hired to intercept him and return him to Talmare.
It should have been easy money. The problem is, Zach is impossible to resist and once Mel gets her hands on him she's doesn't want to let him go. Now those same people are also after Mel.

# # #

What is SFP looking for now? What kinds of submissions would you like to see pop up in your e-queries? Anything you’re dying to see more of? Steampunk? Futuristic? Space Opera? Any dream novels?
I think Steam Punk is going to keep growing so of course we’d like to see more of that. Personally, I love the submissions that are a little off centre, where the author presents me with something unexpected but very interesting (I recommend Arlene Webb’s Rebel if you want to see something very different. The entire Shadowfire editing staff sat up and paid attention when it crossed our desk.)

Would you like to share a little history concerning SFP?
Shadowfire Press started over two years ago, when Michael Barnette and Auburnimp, saddened by the closure of another publisher, decided to start up their own publishing company. I was pleased when they asked me to be their editor and I particularly liked their dedication to presenting good stories across a wide range of genres. We have, over the two years developed a strong group of in-house authors who cover romance, fantasy, paranormal, science fiction and horror. We have m/f, f/f, m/m, shapeshifters, faeries and weres.
The company continues to grow with the support of our readers and our wonderful authors and we intend to be around for a very long time.

Wonderful. With the dedication to quality plot, determination to get more and more new voices out there, we’re glad the crew at SFP is committed to the business, the fun of the written word. Thank you, very much, for taking time out of your busy life, Helen.

http://shadowfirepress.com/

Publisher Showcase - Red Rose Publishing

A single Red Rose symbolizes love, respect, honesty and integrity as do the ebooks written by the authors of Red Rose Publishing. Many talented authors from all over the world gather to entice and delight you with their words of prose.

Step into the world of Red Rose Publishing, publishing with a touch of Class!

A little history about Red Rose:

Red Rose Publishing opened its doors in 2007. Founder Wendi Felter envisioned building a company where everyone felt they had a stake in its success, a place that would welcome differences. The name? The day Wendi decided to start her own company, her husband came home with two dozen long-stemmed red roses. What could be more romantic than that?

Three years later, Red Rose has authors from all over the globe – every nook and cranny of the USA, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia – and close to 1300 titles available. In the interim, Red Rose has garnered awards such as All Romance eBooks’ Best Selling New Publisher and Romance Erotica Connection’s Interracial/Multicultural Publisher of the Year.

Key personnel:

Owner/Publisher: Wendi Felter
Head Content Editor: LaTessa Montgomery
Art Director: Shirley Burnett

Two of the biggest mistakes new authors make:

1. Not reading a publisher’s submission guidelines thoroughly – every publisher has different needs and preferred formats. The fastest way to a rejection letter is submitting without following instructions.

2. Assuming “the editor will take care of it.” If you want to present yourself as a professional writer, please be professional. Know how to write a concise, informative query letter. Edit your manuscript to within an inch of its life. Have knowledgeable people proof for you. The second fastest way to a rejection letter is a manuscript full of errors.

Heat Levels and Story Lengths:

Some publisher’s will tell you how to write a romance. (Only one male/one female relationships, no second or third parties, no toys, no whipped cream, only erotic, etc.) Red Rose is not one of those publishers. Gay fiction? Ménage? Alien sex? No sex at all? Go for it. The usual no-list applies, of course (no minors, etc.) Red Rose accepts both Erotic and Mainstream fiction, so from closed-door to blistering hot is welcome.

Stories come in six lengths:
Sepals: 1 – 5K words
Petals: 5,001 – 15K
Shorts: 15,001 – 30K
Novelettes: 30,001 – 45K
Novellas: 45,001 – 60K
Novels: 60,001 and higher

For the full submission policy: Submissions

What’s Red Rose looking for right now?

While closed for most submissions from new authors at the moment, Red Rose is always looking for the following:

Holiday Themed
Gothic/Horror
Interracial/Multicultural – what could be better for SFR?

SFR at RRP:

Red Rose has a delicious variety of Science Fiction, as a sampling of some of our very own SFR Brigade members proves:

Mainstream-

Marya: Anchorage Book 1

Know he will succeed when all others fail you…so reads the fateful letter of introduction which heralds the beginning of Marya's desperate journey.

When the Ktar chooses Marya to watch over the heir on his confirmation journey, she has no illusions about a pleasant trip. A prophecy concerning the heir's death, ominous dreams of a mysterious city, and the certainty one of the heir's companions will betray him all weigh heavily on her.

The discovery of the assassin in their midst is only the beginning. His menace pales in comparison to the ancient evil lurking in the mountain city. When Marya and her party are trapped and the men with her enslaved, she is forced into a battle of wills and hearts with two remaining choices: give in to the alien being who offers her power and prestige, or join forces with the same handsome assassin she sought to thwart.

Time Travel-


Dreams of Chimborazo

What happens when you want to travel but end up in the past? Can you find happy every after or will the Land of Dixie pass you by? Evelyn Randolph lives in present-day Richmond, Virginia and has a pseudo-tumor in her brain. She begins to see Ravenel Morrissette, who is in 1864 Richmond. While Ravenel is busy trying to get the Yankees out of Virginia, Evie, a genealogist, begins to see him. He's always in a Confederate uniform so she reasons he's a Civil War re-enactor. The problem is they live in two worlds - he lives in 1864 and she lives in 2007.




Erotic Romance-


Cybot Awakened


Sabralia lives a lonely but luxurious life in Emperor Sirn's Harem, her only companion is her obedient servant, Qy, a cybot. Her life has largely been controlled by others, but when Sirn demands his Harem pleasure his Commanding Officers at a victory celebration, Sabralia makes a daring plan to hide to avoid rape by Sirn's men. The Palace is ambushed and her cybot gets her off world. The impossible has happened-Qy the gentle cybot becomes the man he once was, the warrior Kaistril. Pursued for valuable information, Sabralia is thrust into dangerous, unfamiliar situations where she must stand up to the challenges, or lose the man she loves.


Forbidden Love

They are Galaxies apart so different yet so much alike…

Dr. Maya Belle knows reptiles. While she is in the desert researching habitats, a sudden burst of sand engulfs her. She can't believe what stumbles out of a massive dune.

While on a survey mission over the planet Terrain, T'Kon crashes his spacecraft near Maya's desert home. He cannot remain on this primitive warring planet for long. He must repair his craft and leave as quickly as he came.

When lust stirs between them a sultry unbidden passion hotter than the desert sands seizes them, and changes everything. Will Maya abandon her world for her alien lover? Or will T'Kon set forth without her forsaking their powerful forbidden love?


The Red Rose website is currently undergoing some construction, so please forgive our dust on some pages - we'll be all shiny and new after Memorial Day! Everything's available for you still during the revamp, though. Stop by and visit us:

Red Rose Publishing


Red Rose books, in e-formats and select titles in print, are also available at Amazon, All Romance, Fictionwise, Mobipocket/Diesel, and Bookstrand.

Publisher Showcase ~ Devine Destinies

Hello, Brigaders.

I have the great pleasure this morning of introducing Tina Haveman from Devine Destinies. Welcome, Tina!

Would you like to share a little history about Devine Destinies?

Devine Destinies is an imprint of eXtasy Books. I opened it about a year and a half ago, aiming for readers who want books without graphic sex. There are a lot of writers out there who would love to write under their real name and not hide behind a pseudonym to mask the sexy books they write. Devine gives them the opportunity to do that as we don’t publish erotica.

Who are your key personnel?

Tina Haveman (owner/founder), her fabulous EIC, Jay Austin, her financial manager, Heather, her PR team, Angie and Dorine. Martine and Angie mainly do the artwork. We also have a great stable of editors.

How would you describe Devine Destinies to potential authors?

DD is a friendly house and wide open as yet.

What genres are your primary focus?

We are open to pretty much anything, although DD was started by me with the aim to focus on New Age material. However, we do publish near every genre.

What are the most common reasons a novel (especially a Science Fiction Romance novel) is rejected?

Bad writing, POV issues (head hopping), too many grammatical errors and spelling mistakes to address, a boring story. Underdeveloped worlds. Unbelievable characters and aliens. A story needs to hook me immediately.

What are the biggest mistakes new authors make?

Oozing with self-confidence and playing diva. Bragging about their schooling and/or journalism activities. Claiming they’ll be the next Rowlings and will be our next best seller and then blaming the publisher/editor if their book tanks. Whining at your publisher/editor about lack of sales, not getting rich overnight. An author needs to write for the love of writing. We all have dreams of making it big, but authors need to be realistic. Another mistake is to write a story or two, have it published, find it doesn’t sell, then to give up. I can testify to a number of writers whose earlier books sold diddly squat. Then suddenly they gain a following and start selling better and better. Authors also shouldn’t stick to one genre, especially if that genre doesn’t sell right now. Dabble, experiment, be daring. If you’re a true, born writer, you’ll never give up. And if accepted, the biggest mistake? Thinking the book will sell itself. With every Tom, Dick and Harry and their dog now writing and publishing or self-publishing, it’s a tough world out there. Lack of promotion or giving up on promotion makes for no sales.

What do you look for in a Science Fiction Romance submission?

A well written story that will grip the reader.

What grabs your attention, makes you sit up and want to read more?

A hook. (The first lines of chapter 1 or the prologue).

How far do you read into a submission before you know if the novel is right for you?

The first pages usually already tell me a lot, although I will read on a bit. We’re kind at eXtasy Books and Devine and we'll tell an author where he or she has gone wrong. Sometimes an author is thankful, other times highly insulted. They'll pull a diva on us, send us a rude response etc.

Do you have recommendations or requirements regarding ”heat levels” of submissions?

It depends if they’re submitting to Devine or eXtasy. eXtasy allows high heat levels. At Devine we aim for the mainstream readers who prefer tamer books. Therefore, sensuality is fine, but without all the graphic words and details. No purple prose however. That really turns us off.

Tell me about a few of your favorite/best-selling Science Fiction Romance novels. What really stood out in these stories that made them unique?

Viola Grace is our main science fiction writer at Devine Destinies for now. She’s a bestselling author no matter what she writes, but her science fiction stories top everything.

What are you looking for right now? What kinds of submissions would you like to see pop up in your e-queries? Anything you’re dying to see more of? Steampunk? Futuristic? Space Opera? Any dream novels?

We’re open to anything except non-fiction and biographies. I do urge authors to study the market to see what readers are buying.

Thank you so much for sharing your time with us!
http://www.devinedestinies.com/shopdevine/

Publishers Showcase Week Starts Today

Please join me in welcoming the publishers who are participating in SFR Brigade's Publishers Showcase Week from May 17 to May 21.  We are expecting nine participants including Devine Destinies, Samhain, Carina Press, Ellora's Cave, Lyrical Press, Red Rose Press, Liquid Silver Books, Shadowfire Press and Mundania.  Special thanks to the publishing house personnel who have taken time out of their busy schedules to answer our hosts' questions and provide information.

We'd like to ask that all other posts be suspended on the main blog during this five day period, however the SFR Brigade web site is available for posts in the Forums and News sections.

SFR Evening Post

Good evening, Brigaders! Welcome to the first of our SFR Evenings Posts!

Like many of you, I work full-time (and then some) so I’m a bit scarce during the day. In order to better communicate what’s going on, going down and coming up with our community, I’m going to start posting updates, discussion topics and activity ideas in the evenings (Mountain time USA) several times a week.

For tonight, let’s talk about Publisher’s Showcase which begins next week, Monday, May 17 and continues to Friday, May 21. I’m really looking forward to this event and doing recon missions on all these great publishers.

In order to let our Publishing Showcase have the spotlight next week, I’m asking that we suspend all posts during the five days of May 17 - 21 in order to focus on the publishers who’ve been kind enough to take time out of their busy schedules to join our showcase and answer our hosts’ questions. Let’s give them all a warm welcome and have questions and comments ready. Meanwhile, you can post away this weekend…and next weekend is fair game, too.

To help promote the event, please think about how you can help get the word out to other interested parties next week. Here are a few ideas:

Deploy the Twitter Brigade
Post links on your blogs and web sites
Mention it on Yahoo loops
Tell your online critique groups or partners
Tell your local writers groups and RWA chapter members
Email your writerly friends

Thanks in advance for your support for this big event, Brigaders.