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HOST WPLC Danie: Hello Kmac, how are you ?

KMacLEOD323: Doing just fine. Working on a final edit due on Saturday. Am lurking for a friend of mine who doesn't have AOL access.

HOST WPLC Danie: well that is good. I started to work on a screen play.

KMacLEOD323: Anything I can help with, Danie?

HOST WPLC Danie: Thanks, but no.

KMacLEOD323: Did you ever check out the course on "The Radio Play" on Simegen.com -- that teaches how to write such things? It's in the Worldcrafters school.

HOST WPLC Danie: yes I started to dabble in screen plays I have this dream of doing it all

KMacLEOD323: I've read some attempt at PLAYS, but had nothing to do with the course the school offered.

HOST WPLC Danie: I've been meaning to take one of your courses. I just forgot about them.

KMacLEOD323: Dreams are good things. I'd like to become a well known editor, and get paid for it. Some of them are set up for self-study. Check them out. Sign up for the school -- no charge.

HOST WPLC Danie: I will, just with college being a little over a month away ---

KMacLEOD323: There are no active courses right now, so you can take the lessons at your own pace. But you'll get critiqued if you want it.

HOST WPLC Danie: Well I have this wonderful crit partner he is amazing

KMacLEOD323: there's the writers list, and the worldcrafters discussion lists you can be a part of, too.

HOST WPLC Danie: I will check it out

KMacLEOD323: http://www.simegen.com/mailman/listinfo/ where you sign on to the lists. There's also lists a couple authors sponsor. One by Susan Krinard, and one by Lillian Caldwell, that have advice for new writers.

HOST WPLC Danie: so what time does everyone have? I'm going to give a couple more minutes

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Okay, sounds fine, though I don't know that I have an hour's worth of stuff, but we'll see.

KMacLEOD323: My computer says 9:05, and if Liz wants to continue on e-publishing, I know my friend would be appreciative when I send her the log.

HOST WPLC Danie: KM, do you like editing ? I guess you would have to.

KMacLEOD323: I always did like reading, and editing evolved from that. Yes, I do like it for the most part. Some of the manuscripts I get aren't too good, but a good editor does what she/he is offered to do.

HOST WPLC Danie: maybe you can help me there is a girl who asked me for help and I am really good at dialogue, and that is her problem, but in editing her dialogue I noticed a lot of passive voice passive verbs. I tell her to edit them out but when she sends it back she hasn't changed so how do you teach someone that wouldn't listen?

KMacLEOD323: Bet she never learned proper sentence construction. Write her up a couple of her own examples, changed as they should be. Send her to the Worldcrafters school....she needs to learn what she wasn't taught in school.

HOST WPLC Danie: oh okay

KMacLEOD323: Smile....I'm lurking unless someone needs me. It's Mme Liz's show.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Okay, tonight I'll be talking about small publishers, part deux! Last week I talked a little about small publishers, what the advantages and disadvantages are, how to determine if you're found a good one, etc. Tonight I'm going to give you names of some publishers that I've heard good things about, their URLs, what they publish, and whether they are open to submissions currently or not. I don't claim this to be an exhaustive list. In fact, it only scratches the surface of those that are out there. So this is just a starting point.

KMacLEOD323: Maybe I'll add a couple, (if you wish) as I do a lot of freelance editing for small publishers.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Sure, Karen, thanks. Virtually all of these publishers do e-books and some of them do paperbacks--either trade paper or mass market--and at least one of them does hardbacks. So there's a wide variety out there. I suggest you do a couple of things: first, visit the websites of the ones you're interested in and check out their sample contracts. Read the contract carefully to see what you'd be getting into. Most of them are pretty straightforward and easy to interpret. Second, buy one or two of their books and read them, both to see if you like the book itself, and to see if it's well edited. That can help you make your decision about who to submit to.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: So okay, here we go with the publisher list! First, my two publishers: NovelBooks, Inc. (http://www.novelbooksinc.com/). They publish Futuristic, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Shape Shifters, Vampires, Paranormal, Historical, Mystery, Suspense and Horror. They are currently open for submissions. [NovelBooks closed in January 2005]

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: DiskUs Publishing http://www.diskuspublishing.com/).They publish Action/Adventure, Children's, Cookbooks, Historical, Inspirational, Mainstream, Mystery, Nonfiction, Paranormal, Poetry, Quick Picks, Romance, Science Fiction, Western, and Young Adult. They are currently open for submissions. (Quick Picks are short stories that sell as downloads only, for $1.) They've both been wonderful to work with and I highly recommend them!

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Now, some of the other publishers I've heard good things about: Amber Quill Press (http://www.amberquill.com/index2.html). They publish Action/Adventure, Spicy Romance, Anthologies, Contemporary Romance, Dark Futuristic/Fantasy, Dark Science Fiction/Fantasy, Fantasy, Historical, Historical Romance, Horror, Mainstream, Mystery, Nonfiction, Paranormal Romance, Regency Romance, Romantic Comedy, Romantic Suspense, Science Fiction, Suspense/Thriller, Young Adult. They are currently closed to submissions. With any publisher who is closed to submissions, it still makes sense to check them out and if you're interested, keep checking back to see when they open again. Awe-Struck E-Books (http://www.awe-struck.net/).They publish Romance, Science Fiction, Sci-Fi Romance, Western Romance, Inspirational, New Age, Teen, Historical and Regency Romance, and they have a special line with heroes with disabilities. They are currently closed to submissions. ebooksonthe.net (http://www.ebooksonthe.net/).They publish Writing books, Horror, Science Fiction, Nonfiction, Medical, Children's, Mystery, Humor, Poetry, Young Adult, Historical, Romance, and Mainstream. They are currently closed to submissions. (Unfortunately, a lot of them are closed right now.)

KMacLEOD323: A friend of mine has had a positive experience with e-books on the net, but didn't sell many copies of the title. I can name a number of paper publishers, some of which may expand into e-books.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Okay, when I'm finished with my list, then you can sure give us your info. Echelon Press (http://www.echelonpress.com/index2.htm). They publish Adventure/Thriller, Romance, Sci Fi/Fantasy, Ultra Sensual, Mystery/Suspense, Nonfiction, General Fiction, Young Adult, Paranormal and Western. They are closed to submissions until September 1. Ellora's Cave Romantica Publishing (http://www.ellorascave.com/).They publish Romantica (romance rated R or X) in the following genres: Anthologies, BFSM/Bondage, Contemporary, Erotic Fairy Tales, Futuristic/Fantasy, Gothic/Vampire,Historical, Paranormal, Quickies, Romantic Suspense, Series, and Time Travel (past).They are currently open for submissions. Hard Shell Word Factory (http://www.hardshell.com/).They publish General Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Action/Adventure, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Western, Historical, New Age, Nonfiction, Children's, and YA. They are currently closed to submissions. ImaJinn Books (http://www.imajinnbooks.com/).They publish Vampire, Shape Shifter, Werewolf, Ghost, Witch, Mythology, Fairy Tale, Reincarnation, Fantasy, Time Travel, Futuristic, Space, Humor, Children's, YA, and Non fiction. They are currently closed to submissions.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Mundania Press (http://www.mundania.com/). They publish Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery,Romance, Paranormal, and Erotica /Romantica genres as well as cross-genre (i.e., Horror-Fantasy, Science Fiction-Mystery). They are currently open for submissions. They do hardbacks of some books, as well as other formats. New Concepts Publishing (http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/).They publish Contemporary Romance; Erotic and Spicy Romance, including Dark Desires and Carnal Pleasures; Fantasy and Fantasy Romance; Historicals: Medieval, Western, Regency; Historicals: Other Time Periods and Unusual Locales; Mystery, Paranormal Romance and Paranormal Thrillers, including horror; Time Travel; Thrillers and Romantic Suspense; Science Fiction; Futuristic Romance; Young Adult and Children's. They are currently open for submissions. They are one of the oldest e-publishers on the net. And Hard Shell is another that has been around a long time.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Treble Heart Books (http://www.trebleheartbooks.com/Index~ns4.html). They publish Contemporary, Mainstream, Romance, Mystery, Suspense, Paranormal, Historical, Historical Westerns, Inspirational and Traditional Romance Fiction, and Inspirational Non- fiction. The are currently open for submissions. Wings ePress (http://www.wings-press.com/4.htm). They publish Contemporary, Encore L'Amour, Fantasy, Futuristic/Sci-Fi, General Fiction, Gothic, Historical, Inspirational, Mystery, Paranormal, Special Releases, Suspense and YA. They are currently open for submissions.Writers Exchange E-Publishing (http://www.writers-exchange.com/epublishing/).They publish Action/War, Christian, Fantasy, General Fiction, Historical, Horror, Humor, Picture Books, YA, Mystery, Parenting, Poetry, Romance,Science Fiction, Self Help, Western, and Writing. They are currently closed to submissions.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Zumaya Publications (http://www.zumayapublications.com/).They publish Science Fiction, Mainstream Fiction, Fantasy, Regency, Thriller, Paranormal, Horror, Futuristic, Mystery, Mainstream Romance, Historical Fiction, Gothic, Non-Fiction, Young Adult, Western ,Romance, Historical Romance, Historical Fantasy, Children/ Juvenile, True Crime, and Christmas/seasonal. They are currently open for submissions. Okay, I'm down to Z, so that's it for my list. As I said, it's not by any means exhaustive, just a good place to start. Karen, do you have other publishers to add?

KMacLEOD323: I have a few, and a couple comments about two of yours....I've heard positive things about most - especially TrebleHeart. I had a negative editing contract experience with Zumaya.... so I did not work with them.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: That's interesting. One of my critique partners is published by them, and she raves about them. All you can do is check them out as thoroughly as possible, and then cross your fingers. :-)

KMacLEOD323: As to the ones I offer, check their websites to see what genres and if they're open for submissions....Shall I add my list here?

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Yes, please.

HOST WPLC Danie: yes please do

KMacLEOD323: Toad Hall/Belfry books ----- www.laceyville.com/Toad-Hall/ -- BenBella Books, www.benbellabooks.com Glenn Yeffeth, Publisher -- Meisha Merlin ---- www.meishamerlin.com They do a lot of reprints of old out of print stuff, in many genres, and Wildside Press ----- http://www.wildsidepress.com That's about it from me. Other than Novel Books that Liz writes for.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Thanks, Karen! Danie, you have a comment and a question?

HOST WPLC Danie: I know this is off topic, yes. My comment was that of Publish America and how they always advise they are looking for writers I always thought that was misleading. And for my question actually it's to Karen, do you know of any current agents accepting submissions?

KMacLEOD323: Sharon Jarvis (former editor for Doubleday -- one of my mentors) owns Toad Hall. She also is an agent. Check the interview I did with her, and contact her.... www.simegen.com/writers/spotlights/nonfiction/1101/sjarvis.html You don't ALWAYS need an agent...sometimes it is helpful.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Okay! Are there any questions about small publishers? Well, then, maybe I was more educational than I thought. Any questions about anything else that I may be able to answer?

KMacLEOD323: Give out any sage advice you missed the last time..... you have author experience, I have editor experience -- different things.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Well, it's been my experience that the advantages and disadvantages of small publishers are the exact opposite of big publishers. Big publishers will sell more books and make you more money. Those are the main advantages. While small publishers will sell fewer books and make you less money. But small publishers are often more author-friendly, and you're likely to be able to keep your title (and not have to use a pseudonym if you don't want to), write your own back cover blurb, have more control over the cover art, etc. And they respond much faster.

HOST WPLC Danie: It sounds like a good way to show bigger publishers that you are worthy.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Question, Brown?

BrownDvs: Why the use of pseudonyms at all?

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Most of the time, authors are asked to use one if (1) they are writing something in a different genre than they usually write-- the publishers don't want readers to pick up the book and expect what the author usually writes, only to be disappointed when they find it's something else; and (2) when an author who has published with one publisher moves to another publisher--often that new publisher wants to build up their own "name," not something that seems to "go with" another publisher. If that makes sense as I explained it. There may be other reasons but I think those are the main two. Does that help?

BrownDvs: In a way it does, thank you very much.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: My pleasure. Any other questions?

BrownDvs: Nay. not right now.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: If there are no other questions, I guess that's about all I have to tell you tonight. So, thanks for having me! Hope it helped.

HOST WPLC Danie: Immensely

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Good luck, all of you!

HOST WPLC Danie: Thanks for coming and sharing

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: You're welcome!

HOST WPLC Danie: Remember Liz's workshop is on Tuesday at 12:00 Noon/pm she has amazing guests

KMacLEOD323: The list you gave is quite extensive. Thanks on behalf of my friends.

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Hope to see some of you at Writing Right, right here in this room!

HOST WPLC Danie: Night all

HOST WPLC MmeLiz: Good night!

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