Guest author Sonni de Soto argues that the key to success is to publishing success is emphasizing what makes you different. Sell based on what makes you special. Your stories are one-of-a-kind, and that’s what readers are looking for. … Read more
I get a visit from the neighborhood’s new Mormon missionaries. We talk about the Book of Mormon and Tibetan Buddhism. … Read more
Christina says “Holy guacamole, Batman! Seriously. Just try it. I tried it before you bought it and I’m telling you it’s awesome.”
Chris Eboch, author of more than 40 books, offers practical advice on improving the pacing of your stories so reader won’t want to put them down. … Read more
NineStar Press has an ongoing call for paranormal lesbian/bi romances or erotic short stories of 5,000–12,000 words. Payment is in royalties. … Read more
Cicada, the literary magazine for readers ages 14 and up, wants flash fiction of 1,000 words or less. They pay up to 10¢/word for new work, and less for previously published stories.
In this weeks Pen to Pen column, author Angel Martinez offers advice on how to move on after a publisher shutters its doors, with tips on getting your rights back and republishing. … Read more
This week in Pen to Pen, I’m happy to have Mary Caelsto, author of Perfect Author Newsletters, coaches other authors in improving their websites and newsletters. Check out her list to make sure you’ve got all five of these must-haves on your website. … Read more
This is the last week I’ll be sharing from “Darling Proktiphallus” for Rainbow Snippets. “Darling Proktiphallus” appears in the new Lethe Press anthology His Seed: An Arboretum of Gay Erotica. It follows JD, a horticulturist who works at a public garden in the Midwest, as he works with a new plant from an unidentified species that was sent to the public garden by a university botanist.
JD and Robert, his co-worker and occasional lover, have been trying to figure out the plant’s ideal growing conditions. They learn that it needs not only sunlight and water to thrive, but also touch. (There are lots of evolutionary explanations for this that I get into in the story, but since we’ve only got six sentences, I’ll have to skip over them here.)
As JD spends time each day nurturing the plant, he begins to develop not-so-professional feelings about it—feelings that interfere with his sleep. … Read more