Who's sold?! :D

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LorelieBrown

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It occurs to me that maybe this thread should be stickied?
 

funidream

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BRAVO! to one and all on your sales! :Sun:

I began my writing career signing a two-book deal with Berkley, debuting in August 2008 with MIDWIFE OF THE BLUE RIDGE, and releasing THE TORY WIDOW in April of 2009. This year I signed a second two-book contract with Berkley for two sequels to TORY, the first of which will be published in the fall of 2010.

My stuff is considered Historical Fiction with a strong romantic thread -
 

Randy

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Congratulations Fallon Blake. I'm green, as in envy, also a scavenger, trolling through success stories like yours, a reason, maybe the main one, for joining. Thought you'd be interested in the query sent to your publisher---one of my older unpublished novels, which I'm pretty sure will be rejected, again.

Dear Loose-ID,
Two adults, a lawyer and a professor of English, fall in love. Adult fiction, this is, driven by desire more than lust. Like most humans, Norm and Harriet are complex characters. What sets them apart is their willingness to fight for connection, love, when the demands of their careers, the needs of her child, pull so strongly in the opposite direction.
Would you be interested in a story like this?
 

Fallon Blake

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Congratulations Fallon Blake. I'm green, as in envy, also a scavenger, trolling through success stories like yours, a reason, maybe the main one, for joining. Thought you'd be interested in the query sent to your publisher---one of my older unpublished novels, which I'm pretty sure will be rejected, again.

Dear Loose-ID,
Two adults, a lawyer and a professor of English, fall in love. Adult fiction, this is, driven by desire more than lust. Like most humans, Norm and Harriet are complex characters. What sets them apart is their willingness to fight for connection, love, when the demands of their careers, the needs of her child, pull so strongly in the opposite direction.
Would you be interested in a story like this?

If you'd like to see my query, I posted it in the Share Your Work forum in the sucessful query thread. Also, there's lots of writers willing to help over there with how to whip your query into shape. Good Luck!
 

Pterofan

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Latecomer

Hi, I'm new here. This is my first post, so be patient. I've sold about a dozen stories in the SF/fantasy genre over the last two decades, but this year I made my first sale in romance, with a paranormal romantic comedy novella to Bookstrand. I have another sub at Bookstrand right now, and yesterday mailed a query to Nocturne. Maybe I'll have some good news before the year is out. Otherwise, at least I'll be able to contribute to the Response Times thread.
 

Randy

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Fallon Blake,
Not sure that would be help, the story is what it is and can't dressed in the clothes of a whore who is "insistently erotic," as your and other publishers of this wildly popular genre demand.
 

Lainey Bancroft

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Fallon Blake,
Not sure that would be help, the story is what it is and can't dressed in the clothes of a whore who is "insistently erotic," as your and other publishers of this wildly popular genre demand.

Tsk-tsk, Randy. I don't think Fallon is suggesting you disguise your lamb as a 'whore' as you not so diplomatically put it. I believe she was merely pointing out that a fresh set of eyes (or several sets) in the SYW forum might assist you in giving your query the 'oomph' it currently lacks.

I am curious as to why you chose to target Loose-Id. From their website:
"A Loose Id romance is deliberately, specifically, and insistently erotic."
They publish erotic romance. That is what succeeds at their site. That is what their customers have come to expect. It isn't a judgment on other genres, it is simply what works for them.

If you wish to find a home for your non-erotic 'adult fiction' there are other publishers who invite submissions of non-erotic work. Cathy C has kindly provided a list of many of them right here in this forum. Good luck!

Oops! Forgot to say Congrats, Fallon!
 
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brainstorm77

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Did I congratulate you on this?
Congrats. Congrats.

Oh. And that is just a lovely cover btw.

Agreed! Congrats and the cover is wonderful.
 

job

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Two adults, a lawyer and a professor of English, fall in love. Adult fiction, this is, driven by desire more than lust. Like most humans, Norm and Harriet are complex characters. What sets them apart is their willingness to fight for connection, love, when the demands of their careers, the needs of her child, pull so strongly in the opposite direction.

Is this query really doing justice to your story?

There are hundreds of threads on queries at AW.

[Go to the blue line at the top. Open 'search'. Go to advanced search. Put 'query' in the section on keywords. Click below to specify that query must appear in the title. ]

I think the Share Your Work section may give an opportunity to collect comment and suggestion on your query.
 
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Randy

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A clue: the quoted words were plucked from Loose ID's submission guidelines.
 

san_remo_ave

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Hi, I'm new here. This is my first post, so be patient. I've sold about a dozen stories in the SF/fantasy genre over the last two decades, but this year I made my first sale in romance, with a paranormal romantic comedy novella to Bookstrand. I have another sub at Bookstrand right now, and yesterday mailed a query to Nocturne. Maybe I'll have some good news before the year is out. Otherwise, at least I'll be able to contribute to the Response Times thread.

Congratulations & welcome to AW!
 

Randy

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Lainey Bancroft has joined the fray, defending her friend, if not Loose ID, the publisher of "insistently erotic" works. If there is a romance of the sort published by William Trevor, of whom no one seems to be acquainted, even though he's been called by the New Yorker "The greatest living writer of short stories in the English language," and whose latest novel, "Love and Summer," would be worth reading more than the time spent chatting about a flue shot, boyfriend, or tonight's supper. And no, I have yet to hear from anyone who has written a "romance" that has real people, not the caricatures who screw their brains out, cast spells, or murder, when not screwing, with various weapons.
 

brainstorm77

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Lainey, congrats on joining 'the fray'.
 

Lainey Bancroft

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Lainey Bancroft has joined the fray, defending her friend, if not Loose ID, ... "romance" that has real people, not the caricatures who screw their brains out, cast spells, or murder, when not screwing, with various weapons.

I don't generally take bait but since I've "joined the fray" WTH.

Outside of this forum--this one comment as a matter of fact-- I do not know Fallon. She is a 'friend' only in that we have a common goal to see our words reach publication. I do not write for Loose ID (although, for the record, I would be proud to be on their author list. They have a great reputation and their books SELL.)

I looked up your suggested author. "Novelist and short-story writer William Trevor was born in Mitchelstown, County Cork, in the Republic of Ireland on 24 May 1928. He was educated at St Columba's College, County Dublin, and Trinity College, Dublin. He worked briefly as a teacher, and later as a copywriter in an advertising agency before he began to work full-time as a writer in 1965. He was also a sculptor and exhibited frequently in Dublin and London. His first novel, A Standard of Behaviour, was published in 1958."

I'm sure he wrote exceptional love stories. Sorry I've never read any. BUT, he wrote to 'the time' and his 1st novel was published in 1958. Um, yeah, over 50 years ago. Believe me, Randy, I know what you're saying. You've no idea how it felt to turn over my treasured Anne of Green Gables, Little Women, Nancy Drew and Cherry Aimes books to my daughter and have her curl her lip and declare them, "Wicked old and weird." But she does read--adores Harry Potter, Twilight and the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. She reads to her time.

Yo, Bob Dylan, the times they are a changin' and the publishers are doing what they can to keep up.
 

Deb Kinnard

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I have yet to hear from anyone who has written a "romance" that has real people, not the caricatures who screw their brains out, cast spells, or murder, when not screwing, with various weapons.

I'm not sure who or why you're trying to snark here, but quite a few of us write novels with "real people" as characters. I've read several of the books pictured in the posts. And I aspire to make mine as real as possible, while adhering to the conventions of the marketplace I've chosen.

So if you have a point, may I suggest it's time to make it?
 

Irysangel

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Lainey Bancroft has joined the fray, defending her friend, if not Loose ID, the publisher of "insistently erotic" works. If there is a romance of the sort published by William Trevor, of whom no one seems to be acquainted, even though he's been called by the New Yorker "The greatest living writer of short stories in the English language," and whose latest novel, "Love and Summer," would be worth reading more than the time spent chatting about a flue shot, boyfriend, or tonight's supper. And no, I have yet to hear from anyone who has written a "romance" that has real people, not the caricatures who screw their brains out, cast spells, or murder, when not screwing, with various weapons.

Randy, this forum is for romance writers to discuss writing & publishing romance. Genre romance. Which I'm pretty sure that William Trevor does not write. So perhaps this is not the appropriate place for you to complain about romance. Or romance publishers.

There are other forums for that.
 
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