Publishing and Its Vagaries by Susan Oleksiw

About a year ago those of us who publish with Five Star learned that things were changing. I thought this meant the end of the Anita Ray series, and wasn’t sure if I could continue it with another publisher. To my surprise, I sold the two books in the series to Harlequin, for their worldwide mystery club. The Wrath of Shiva came out in mass market paperback on November 1.

The Anita Ray series is an object lesson in the vagaries and subjectivity of publishing. When I began writing the series, I struggled with defining the lead character, Anita, and her setting, Hotel Delite. I wanted the mix of Indian and non-Indian people because even in villages I encountered variety and extremes in population. Anita emerged in a short story I sold to Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. “A Murder Made in India” appeared in October 2003.

I had trouble selling the first book, wrote another, and after a while sent that to Tekno/Five Star. Then came the fireworks. Marty Greenberg, co-founder with Ed Gorman, had medical problems, and his wife, Roz, took over. She bought the manuscript. Then he died and she fought for control of the company.

Through changes in editors, Five Star took three more Anita Ray mss. Harlequin bought the first, Under the Eye of Kali, for their worldwide mystery line but turned down the second one. I kept writing, and then as editors changed again and again at Harlequin, I decided to try another Anita Ray. I sent in the third book in the series, For the Love of Parvati. The editor inquired politely, “It looks like there’s another one in the series before this. Can we see that one too?” I sent in The Wrath of Shiva. Yes, the one turned down earlier. The editor bought both titles.

I don’t yet have a pub date for the third book, but I look forward to another gorgeous cover. And in a few months, I hope to interest Harlequin in the fourth Anita Ray, When Krishna Calls.

The point of all this is to remind myself and other writers that there is no order or sense or logic to publishing. Editors make subjective decisions every day over every manuscript even when they think they’re being rational and logical and calculating the odds on sales. Whenever I think about this I could feel better or worse, but mostly I feel the door is still open. I don’t know what will happen to the Anita Ray series, but I know there is still opportunity out there.

The fourth Anita Ray story, When Krishna Calls, has drawn a few four and five star reviews and seems to be doing well. It is the only book I've written that has not received a review or mention in the big reviewers: PW, Kirkus, or Library Journal. Despite that, readers and librarians manage to find it.

You can find the Anita Ray books here  and the lovely new paperback of The Wrath of Shiva here.

GREAT FOOD

Great Food
By June Shaw
I live in south Louisiana and am accustomed to Cajun dishes. Some readers of my humorous mysteries ask why I haven’t set my series in our area. Of course we have interesting characters, a unique culture, and fabulous meals. But my protagonist wants to travel—just like me. She and I like to see various places while we still eat great food. That’s why her hunky sometimes-ex lover that she tries to avoid owns a chain of Cajun Delights restaurants. And some of his restaurants happen to be opening in places she travels—and she is horrible at avoiding tempting dishes and men, but—
Here’s the thing. Some people joke and say every Cajun dish begins with a roux. In case you aren’t familiar with the term, a roux is a mixture of almost equal parts oil and flour stirred over a low fire until it turns golden brown. It’s what thickens and darkens our gumbos and stews and many other dishes. And it’s not actually used for everything—not cake anyway.
You might start with a small roux, such as 3 T. flour and 3 T oil, although some people make them much larger, maybe 1/3 C. of each. Roux can be saved in the refrigerator for quite a long time. You’d cook a roux in a heavy pot and after it’s uniformly brown, add onions and other desired seasonings, stirring until transparent, and then add needed liquid.
Here’s one recipe for a Chicken Stew: 1 large hen, 3 onions, 1 bell pepper, 1 large T. cooking oil, ½ cup flour, green onions and parsley, salt and red pepper to taste. Cut up the chicken, chop bell pepper and onions very fine. Brown the chicken in hot oil. Remove the chicken and add flour. Stir until this mixture is light brown. Add onions and pepper and cook about five minutes. Then add the chicken and one quart or more of boiling water. Season with salt and pepper and when almost done, add green onions and parsley. Stir the stew as it thickens to prevent burning. If you like mushrooms, add a can toward the end. Serve this dish over rice. Yummy!
Stuffed Crabs: 1 C. crab meat, 1 large onion, 2 T. flour, 2 T. cooking oil, 1 C. stale bread broken into pieces, ¼ C. chopped bell pepper, ¼ C. chopped celery, 2 T. parsley, ½ C. water, salt and pepper to taste. Make a golden brown roux with oil and flour. Add bell pepper, onion, and celery; cook five minute. Add water and cook till thick. Add crab meat and cook about 15 minutes. Add bread and chopped parsley. This will stuff about four crab shells. Sprinkle them with bread crumbs and brown in the oven. Terrific!
Actually I am not a woman who enjoys staying in the kitchen, although my mother and her mother loved to cook. So does my squeeze Bob.
Bob is a terrific Cajun cook, so when I want some of his great recipes to include in my books, I ask and he writes them. You can find samples in the first two books in my series, RELATIVE DANGER, which is now also available on Kindle and Smashwords for just 2.99, and KILLER COUSINS, available in hardcover and soon an e-book, Be looking for DEADLY REUNION, the third book in my series, in July. In this murder mystery, a class reunion takes place on a cruise ship in Alaska. I loved doing the research.
Have you ever eaten Cajun dishes? If so, what are your favorites? Have you tried cooking any?
I love to eat but keep busy and like faster dishes. That’s why I offer my Oven Dressing, which my family loves, on my Web site, www.juneshaw.com. Lots of people down here spend hours preparing dressing, but my great recipe lets you throw everything raw in a casserole and stick it in the oven. I hope you’ll check it out. Thanks for letting me join you today. June
Here’s a link to my first book in the series, which can be read on an e-reader. Deadly Ink nominated it for their David award for Best Mystery of the Year: http://tinyurl.com/2443cac

Changes Happen

First, a very happy new year to everyone. I hope 2011 brings you everything you wish for.

The publishing industry has seen a lot of changes, and they're happening almost faster than we can keep up with. Aspiring authors would dream of being published, and figured once they crossed that hurdle, they had it made. Not so. In my own case, one of my Five Star Expressions books was remaindered, so it's out of print. Then the publisher canceled the entire imprint. So, Five Star Expressions will cease to exist at the end of 2011. Another, Cerridwen Press, is now branded as "Blush," and is part of the Ellora's Cave line. So, how does an author deal with these setbacks. The world of e-publishing has offered another venue.

What's in a Name? had garnered some recognition. It was a Daphne du Maurier Finalist, A Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence Finalist. 2nd Place, Volusia County Laurel Wreath 3rd Place, Aspen Gold Romantic Suspense. A Top Pick from Night Owl Reviews, Four Stars from RT Magazine. So, it seemed a good choice for re-publishing, and I requested the rights back.

The flip side to owning all rights to the publishing process is that you're responsible for everything. Editing, cover design, marketing…it's all on your shoulders. Thanks to my son, I managed to get a new cover at very little expense. (More about that here). I followed all the formatting guidelines required by the various venues. And I re-read the book, editing and updating it—cell phones instead of pagers, flash drives instead of CD ROMs. And a lot of reworking the names—I couldn't believe I had 3 characters named Henry! (More about that here).

What's in a Name? is now live at Smashwords and the Kindle Store. (The end of this post gives a discount code for Smashwords.) Here's a sample:

New Author Introduction!

Hello Fellow Expression Authors and Reader Friends,

Since I am new to Five Star and Author Expressions, I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to you.

My name is Pamela S Thibodeaux. I am first and foremost a Christian, mother, grandmother and up until August 2009 - wife. As I embark on a new chapter in my life, I am grateful and excited to be a part of the Five Star Expression family of authors.

My debut Women's Fiction novel, The Visionary is scheduled for release through Five Star Expressions in Nov. 2011. If I had to describe The Visionary in twenty-five words or less I would say: This 75,000 word women’s fiction novel is a cross between Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love and Danielle Steele’s Malice.

Like Malice, The Visionary is a contemporary novel which deals with the issues adult survivors of child abuse encounter on their road to recovery. However, like Francine Rivers, The Visionary shows the awesome power of God to heal these most wounded of souls.

Here's the blurb.... A Visionary is someone who sees into the future,Taylor Forrestier (pronounced Foresjay) sees into the past but only as it pertains to her work. Hailed by Architectural Digest and Architectural Review as “a visionary with an instinct for beauty and an eye for the unique” Taylor is undoubtedly a brilliant architect and gifted designer. But she and twin brother Trevor, share more than a successful business. The two share a childhood wrought with lies and deceit and the kind of abuse that’s disgustingly prevalent in today’s society. Can the love of God and the awesome healing power of His grace and mercy free the twins from their past and open their hearts to the good plan and the future He has for their lives?

Although The Visionary is my debut women's fiction novel, it is not my first publication. My 4-part Tempered Series is available in ebook & print from Com Star Media. My single title, The Inheritance as well as 6 short stories are available now through White Rose Publishing. I also write nonfiction articles, essays and devotions. I am the Co-Founder of Bayou Writers' Group in Lake Charles, Louisiana and a former member of ACFW, Golden Triangle Writers Guild, RWA, & Coeur de Louisanne.

That's my life in a nutshell, LOL! I look forward to getting to know you all much better and welcome your input.

Until later, take care, be blessed and remember...when the going gets tough, the tough go to God.

Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!" TM
http://pamelathibodeaux.com/
http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com/

How to cure the rejection blues

Good afternoon! It is my pleasure to blog with such a talented group of authors.
I write historical romances set in fifteenth century England during the so-called “Gypsy honeymoon” period.

My third novel in the Coin Forest series is written, and I’m wading through the third round of full book revisions. Thanks to my beta readers who are looking at the full manuscripts for ways to make it shine even more.

I’m reviving my agency search, referring to my four-inch three-ring binder, bulging with rejections from previous agency searches.

Oh, such bliss.

I tortured myself in 2008 by collecting all the agents to whom I’ve subbed work, and organized them alphabetically. They list agent name, date, which novel, and results. Alas, not one of them says, “offered representation.”

Two pages, single spaced, 12 point Times New Roman. The agent names fill the page, along with the dismal results.

“Great concept, but didn’t like the characters.” “Didn’t connect to voice.” “Didn’t love it.” “Terrific idea, great writing, but I represent someone whose voice is very similar to yours.” “Not right for us.” “Not for me.” “Bursts with creativity and historical detail, but not at this time.”

I will be forever grateful to Five Star Publishing for seeing the spark in my work, for seeing outside the “current hot topics” box and recognizing the worth of my novels.

Still, the general consensus is that to thrive in the current market, an author needs an agent, so I forge ahead, scanning the lines and lines of names.

It's like a badge of sorts, I suppose, to hold up my work over a hundred times, lifting that stone tablet up for consideration -- that takes courage. So why do I feel so tired?

As I studied the page, it occurred to me that I needed an attitude adjustment. These weren’t agents who rejected me. These were agents who, when they read my query or sub, didn’t see enough promise on that day. They exercised their right to be subjective. Maybe their feet hurt, or they were secretly tired of historicals, or didn’t immediately see a best-seller. Whatever the reason, my work didn’t click with them.

The lines of agent names blur on the page, and I see more than just so many lines of Times New Roman. I see steps.

Yes, steps, steps I’m taking toward success. Gotta collect those rejections to take the next step, up, up, climbing until eventually I reach the top.

With thanks to author Carolyn Kaufman, here is a thought-provoking quote:

“To escape criticism, do nothing. Say nothing. Be nothing.”

Take this somewhat dismal quote and flip it, and you will find more courage and determination to realize your dream. The opposite of nothing is something.

"Do something. Say something. Be something.” Is this simple statement the key?

What coping "antibiotic" do you find useful to beat the rejection blues? I welcome your comments!