update from Brenna-Dec07

I got a rejection from the TRAPS anthology with Dark Hart Press (doesn't happen often), but I have another market in mind for the story I wrote and submitted to it, "Welcome to Hell." Actually, I'm sending it to Mundania, for our shorts line. Most of my straight-genre shorts seem to end up there.

On the co-writing front, Greg and I have ONCE UPON A TIME...YESTERDAY in the publisher's hands. At the moment, it's going through first-round edits, and Under The Moon's art department is working on the internal and external designs. It's going to be an 8.5X11", illustrated edition, much as the FORBIDDEN LOVE issues are. Can't wait to see the art.

Speaking of FORBIDDEN LOVE, issue 3, SACRED BANDS, released this month. As you can see, Greg and I are sharing the cover.

In between my jobs as Senior Editor of Mundania Press, President of EPIC and teaching, I've been overseeing two categories in the EPPIE, entering contests and editing up a storm.

I've finaled one book in the EPPIE this year, and the cover for another is an ARIANA winner.

EPPIE 2008 finalist in poetry:
Phaze in Verse, including 3 of my poems



2008 ARIANA winner for Fantasy art:
Niki Browning- Fairy Dreams (written by Brenna Lyons)

NEW OUT THIS WEEK? My story "The Fire God's Woman" released in COMING TOGETHER: UNDER FIRE.

This is a very special endeavor. The Coming Together series started out as an anthology of erotic stories and poetry. Over time, they became charity anthologies. So far, the following ones exist:

Coming Together: Under Fire- Southern California Wildfire Relief Fund and the San Diego Foundation's After-the-Fires 2007 Fund
Coming Together: For The Cure- Susan G. Kohmen Fund/breast cancer
Coming Together: Special Hurricane Edition- Katrina/ Red Cross disaster relief
Coming Together for Gabrielle- premature babies
Coming Together: With Pride- HIV research (coming in 2008)
Coming Together: At Last- Amnesty International (coming in 2009)

The reasons I loathe your average e-book pirate...

It's stupidity. It's idiocy. Most of all, it's the lies that the pirates tell themselves and others to try and justify what they are doing. These are comments taken from a pirate just today and forwarded to me by an author, who is still shaking her head.

Lie 1: Someone is making the big bucks. No one would be in this industry, if they weren't making big bucks.

The truth, though I'm certain I'm preaching to the choir, because anyone actually reading this already knows the truth. This is to make me feel better, I suppose...

Truth 1: e-Publishing is a GROWING concern. The fact is, the growth is what everyone is counting on. Few publishers/authors are making even minimum wage rates on e-books, thus far. Now, there are a few notable exceptions, but those are few and far between.

Writers write, because we LOVE to write. That doesn't mean we don't want to earn money at it. It means that we'd love to earn money doing something we love, but with the liars and thieves of the world out there, in full force, we have little chance of that. That's right. They are stealing from us. They are stealing food out of the mouths of our children, not that we can afford much on what we make in e-books...or most of us, even in print books.

Lie 2: The publishers and authors create our own hell by expecting to make $22 on books that take $4 to print.

Truth 2: These people are deluding themselves and lying to everyone. VERY few e-books sell for as much as $22. A few NY presses do, because they are setting the e-book price at just below hard-bound price. Most have learned to price e-books at or just below mass market prices. All of Mundania's e-books, for instance, even those just released in collector's-edition hard-bound volumes, priced at $50 and $90, sell at between $6 and $7 for the e-book version. The trade paperbacks usually sell for between $11 and $16, actually on the lower end of the spectrum for trade paperback books.

Out of that pittance of a price...and it is, the publisher is recouping costs of registering copyright (Mundania does that for the authors), purchasing ISBN numbers and the money paid to acquisitions readers, paying editors and cover artists, paying authors their little piece of the pie, marketing the books... Few indie/e publishers are walking out with anything, let alone a lot of money from the pie. But, there is hope for future returns. HOPE of more.

Add to that the cost of printing the books, if there are print versions. The average POD (print on demand-produced) trade book, what most indie/es are selling, has a printing cost alone of a little less than half the sell price of the book. Yes, even the collector's editions, since those are hand-packaged, to get the special features onboard.

Now, look at the distributors. No...I'll get back to distributors, since that's covered in lie 3.

Lie 3: It's "morally wrong" for you (the author or publisher) to make the purchasers/readers pay through the nose for the money the distributors are making off of the deal.

Truth 3: That's the reader's fault. Not ours. The authors and publishers in indie/e go out of our WAY to provide a way for readers to purchase books direct from the publisher and/or printer. What do we get for it? Complaints that the readers WANT to purchase the books from Amazon, from B&N, from Borders, from Fictionwise, from ARe... Not that I have anything against these sites. I love working with them, but we use them, because the readers want them.

Clue coming in. Those places take between 40 and 55% of sale price. Clue coming in. Many of their agreements say we cannot offer a lower-priced alternative elsewhere, even at our own site. That means...clue coming in...we have to price our site copies at the same price we sell them for at the resellers, and that price must be high enough to cover the cost of distribution, when we use it. Clue coming in, again. Many of those final-sale points use a middle man between us and them, which also takes a cut. Thank goodness most e-book resellers don't do this, though some do. You want the convenience of one-stop shopping, then you drive the price of everything up. Not our fault. It's the fault of those who demand one-stop shopping.

If these "fine, upstanding citizens" (tongue FIRMLY in cheek there, when talking about the liars and thieves) really want to make it "fair," take the big cut out of the picture. Start buying direct from the publishers and printers and cut out the middle men you rail against. You can't have it both ways.

Lie 4: The people pirating on the street can reproduce them for $2. Obviously, anyone can.

Truth 4: Produce WHAT for $2? A CD/DVD? I'll buy that they can. Want to know why? They have taken a finished product and simply copied it. I could do that for less than a dollar for CD and less than two for DVD, but I'd be doing it illegally to get it done for that price. If I did it legally, it would take me $5-$10 to do it.

That's an idiot's argument, because it completely disregards all of the costs put into the original that are ditched in the pirated copy. Of course, they can steal something for that price. Why? Not just because they cut out the middle man. No. Because, they cut out those who LEGALLY and MORALLY have the right to their cut...the author, the publisher, the cover artist (whose art is also being stolen and illegally reproduced), the editors... All being cheated.

If these people really think you can make a paper book for $2, they are obviously thinking of a VERY short mass market book, printed offset. You cannot print a POD book, for that price. You cannot have trade paper or better for that price. You cannot do it, even if you have your own printer, like The Espresso, because on top of the $3 for a 300-page book, you've got maintenance and recouping the cost of the machine. You cannot produce a paper book of any decent legnth and quality for the price these people say you can.

Lie 5: Since everyone knows it's immoral for people to charge so much for a book, anything I (the pirate) has to do to read the book, including piracy, is fine. It's just leveling the playing field.

Truth 5: Since the established list price for books has been set for decades, it's obviously not been thought to be immoral for all this time. And, NOTHING excuses breaking the law to get something you want but don't want to pay for. (Not need...want. It's not the lesser of two evils, where your child will die, if you don't steal to feed the tot.)

Any other lies these people tell themselves aside, they are breaking the law. Simply because they don't want to follow the law...it's inconvenient for them to...does not excuse them of the law and its consequences, but that's a whole new discussion.

Lie 6: I (the pirate) have a "right" to any books I want because of the freedom of information act.

Truth 6: Bull! The Freedom of Information Act has NOTHING to do with fiction books. If you're going to lie, at least lie with something believable. Read the law instead of pulling something out of your arse.

Oh, yeah... There is no believable excuse for pirating books. Unlike sharing a single copy with one friend, there is no advantage of helping an author build a name, when you mass produce the book illegally and share it or sell it. Simply put, it hurts everyone involved.

And, for the record... Authors and publishers protecting their intellectual property aren't being whiny and saying "poor me." They are pissed off, and with good reason! If I walked into the pirate's home and said, "I have proof that you've stolen $700 of my income. I'm going to take your high def TV in payment.", you'd better believe he'd be screaming his fool head off. Hey, buddy... TIT for TAT.

Incarnations of Immortality live ON!

The Long Wait Is Over: Incarnations of Immortality Series Continues

UNDER A VELVET CLOAK, Piers Anthony's newest Incarnations book, has been released from Mundania Press, LLC. The long-awaited sequel about the enigmatic Nox is here, and delivery on pre-orders is promised in time for Christmas.

It's been more than 17 years since the release of AND ETERNITY. Readers of the wildly-popular Incarnations of Immortality series might have thought Piers Anthony meant for it to end with the first seven books. Yet again, Anthony surprises his readers with new books from beloved worlds.

The master wordsmith Anthony is known for nine series worlds he's written solo and several others in collaboration, as well as a slew of stand-alone titles. Best loved among those series are Xanth and Incarnations.

This eighth book in the Incarnations series follows the woman destined to take the office of Nox, the incarnation of the Night. Kerena is a beautiful young girl, living and learning magic in the shadow of King Arthur's Camelot. In service to Morgan le Fey, Kerena seduces Sir Gawain and conceives his child, a child that is fated to die an early death. Rebuffed by all seven major Incarnations in her bid to remove the taint from her baby, Kerena vows revenge on the Incarnations, but revenge that massive carries a cost equal to the gain.

In a change from earlier Incarnations books, but in keeping with Anthony's love of indie press, UNDER A VELVET CLOAK came not from Del Rey, Morrow or Avon. Nox's book has released from Mundania Press, LLC., the five-year-old indie publisher of choice for bestsellers like Piers Anthony, Gary K. Wolfe, Robert Adams, Don Callander, Anne Logston and Louise Cooper. Mundania is home to eighteen of Piers Anthony's books alone, including his ChroMagic series and his joint work with Robert E. Margroff on the Kelvin of Rud saga.

But, UNDER A VELVET CLOAK holds a special place in publisher Daniel Reitz Sr.'s heart. An avid fan of Incarnations personally, he prides himself on being one of the first to see the completed manuscript. He offers the information that Nox's story ties up a lot of loose ends and fills in much of the background material for the series that readers will surely soak up. At the same time, he refuses to acknowledge UNDER A VELVET CLOAK as "the final chapter in the series," leading readers to wonder what else Anthony might have brewing for their favorite immortal offices.

When asked what working with Anthony is like, Reitz responds: "It's been a dream to be able to get to know and work with Piers Anthony. The man's imagination surely knows no boundaries and as the consummate storyteller, no one weaves a better tale. Piers is also easy to work with as a writer, having so much knowledge of what makes a good story and how best to present it, so editing is a breeze."

Piers Anthony states that he originally planned ON A PALE HORSE, book one of the series, to be a stand-alone novel, touching on the various aspects of death. Once he came up with the concept of "Death" as an office rather than merely a role or fact of life, an office that any person might manage to step into, under the right circumstances, he realized that he could do the same with some of the other key aspects of existence: Time, Fate, War, Nature, Evil and Good.

"Originally, I planned to stop at five novels, because I thought readers would consider it unacceptable to address Satan and God fictively. But as reader responses came in, I found no such concern, so I decided to complete the roster." Further, Anthony reports that he did think the series complete at seven books, but the readers had other ideas.

Though the readers wanted more books, especially Nox's story, Anthony originally declined, believing that anything after tackling God as a subject would be "anticlimactic." He continued to demure for more than a decade and a half.

What changed?

Piers Anthony admits to being daunted by rereading material so old and creating a "series Bible" of the facts, dates and other particulars that would be necessary to start a new book in the series. Then Jean Prior, a reader that runs a fan site with the nickname "Phoenix," created a chronology for the series and posted it at http://www.spundreams.net/~phoenix/IoIChron.html With the facts and dates already amassed for Anthony, the author saw continuing a long-dormant series as feasible.

The second change was a letter from Stephen Smith, who not only suggested Nox as the next core character again but also included the skeleton outline of a story for Nox. His three pages of suggested summary set Anthony on the path to completing this novel. It's the first time Piers Anthony has ever taken direction from a summary idea sent by a reader, and ultimately the story "as written" left the summary suggested far behind, moving in its own direction. While the early chapters were conceived by Smith, the rest of the book is from Piers Anthony's wondrous imagination.

After querying his readers via his bimonthly column at http://www.hipiers.com, Anthony found an overwhelmingly favorable response to the idea of a new Incarnations book, centering around Nox. Coupled with the option of ON A PALE HORSE by Disney, the opportunities for a new Incarnations of Immortality book were prime, so Anthony started writing early in 2004.

Jean Prior and Stephen Smith weren't the only readers Anthony hails as being instrumental in his writing process. Tim Bruening, a reader with a phenomenal memory for detail, asked so many questions about seeming departures, most chalked up to multiple timelines and the human condition, that Anthony engaged him in helping to check UNDER A VELVET CLOAK for continuity.

Based on the reader response to the project, Mundania Press has pulled out all the stops for this release. In addition to the e-book and trade paperback releases all Mundania books enjoy, an expanded edition, containing bonus material not in the trade release, will be available in 250 numbered and signed hard-bound and dust-jacketed copies and 26 similarly-enhanced lettered and signed copies.

Though Anthony describes fantasy as "generally low-research type of writing," he admits he did a lot of research for Nox's book. Borrowing from the fringes of Arthurian legend and researching magic from sources such as Patricia "Trish" Telesco's FOLKWAYS: RECLAIMING THE MAGIC & WISDOM, Anthony shares: "It really pays to have the right reference at the right time."

It might surprise readers to learn that Piers Anthony harbored concerns about his ability to sign this book to a publisher. He commented: "Many readers think that a successful author can sell anything he writes; that's not the case. The market is highly competitive." Thankfully, there was no such difficulty in finding a publisher for UNDER A VELVET CLOAK.

What is Piers Anthony's life like these days? "My wife and I live in a house on our tree farm, celebrating five decades together in reasonable health, considering our retirement age. It's really a pretty dull life, aside from my writing career."

Like Reitz, Anthony teases readers with future possibilities for Incarnations. "I think this novel does conclude the series, though perhaps only Nox knows for sure, and she's not telling."

NEW RELEASES!

Good things come in threes, I suppose. Many of you already know that I had WE SHALL LIVE AGAIN release at the end of October from Phaze.

On the heels of that, and both on the same day, I've had two more releases this week. The first is THE COLOR OF LOVE from Phaze. This is a re-edited reprint of my EPPIE finalist novelette from the anthology ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS, available in e-book.

The second is "The Master's Lover" in FORBIDDEN LOVE: SACRED BANDS from Under The Moon/Final Sword Productions. This one is available in the 8.5X11" illustrated collector's edition, and she's gorgeous, as always. The book will be available on Amazon right around the end of November and before Christmas on Barnes and Noble.

"The Master's Lover" is a novelette from the STAR MAGES universe and is my first M/M sensual romance. Not that I have many M/M stories in mind, but it's a first, and that's always noteworthy.

Isn't erotica porn?

In recent list discussions, it's become apparent again that many people who don't read the many genres of sensual and erotic romance and erotica have no clue what the terms mean. Some still believe that erotica IS porn. Some are screaming for the rating scales that the indie publishers have already been using for the last several years. It's a mess. So, I'm off on explanations again.

To someone who's read erotica and sensual romance, since I was a young woman...half my life, now..."erotica" does not have a negative connotation, as those calling for a new term without the negativity seem to feel it does.

Porn does. I fully see the negative connotations of the word "porn," though I don't deny that there is a use for porn. It fills a want some people have, and having seen some of it, even I admit that some porn is higher end work that appeals to a cross-over audience of erotica lovers.

IMO, the main problem some people face is the fact that there are readers who think porn and erotica are the same thing. They aren't and never have been. There are authors/publishers who mislabel porn as erotica. I can't stop that, but that's been happening since the beginning of time (bait and switch in publishing). The best advice I can give readers new to the genres is to find a company that actually sells erotica or erotic romance and not porn and start there, with books you know are labeled correctly.

At the same time, "erotic" itself means (definitions from the dictionary): relating to expressive love, especially sexual love, and desire; tending to arouse sexual desire. Now, the DEFINITION of erotic contains the word "love" twice. The root of the word "erotic" is eros, an ancient Greek word that specifically means "sexual love." Eros is one of the major types of Greek love, also including storge (familial love, affection as one feels for a brother or child), philia (brotherly love--not for a blood brother but others you deem your close confidants, neighbor to neighbor, loyalty, friendship) and agape (love, the abiding love of marriage, content in a relationship...some people tie this to divine love, as well). It's in good company.

OTOH, the definitions of "pornography" include: sexually explicit pictures, writing, or other material whose primary purpose is to cause sexual arousal; lurid or sensational material; prurient and possessing of no redeeming qualities. Hmmm... No mention of love in there. No mention of anything beyond sexual stimulation, at its basest level, to boot. "Porn/pornography" takes it's roots from LATE Greek (later than eros, by far...after contact with Europeans), meaning "writing about prostitutes." No, I'm not kidding. That was what the word translated as, according to the dictionary I'm using.

Now, this is not me saying the readers new to the genre's ideas are "wrong." Opinions are admittedly of those who hold them and not necessarily going to match anyone else's. This is me saying that someone who reads the genre and knows what the words mean has no reason to see a negative connotation to them.

As I said earlier, the term erotica does not have a negative connotation for me. Even its definition is positive. It's roots are positive. The only negative connotations I see are in the minds of people who HAVE confused the two terms (erotica and porn).

New release...

What's new from me? WE SHALL LIVE AGAIN is out from Phaze!

Amunmaruku visits her in her dreams, a long-dead Egyptian prince, whose tomb Anna is excavating. He haunts her in her waking moments, making her question her sanity. Is it her psychometry or something more sinister? When the past, present and future collide, it's up to Anna to close the door connecting them.

Of censorship and idiots...

You might notice, if you pay attention to such things, and you're on lists with me, that I've changed sig/tag lines. Want to know the story behind this? I'm sure you do, now that I've engaged your interest.

A list owner of a list I will not name, because I generally respect both him and his list, demanded I remove a line from my old sig line. In the interest of fairness, the "offending" line was a snip of a review I got for my work in FORBIDDEN LOVE, BAD BOYS issue. It said that I was "one of the most deviant erotic minds in the publishing world...not for the weak." That quote, BTW, was from Rachelle at Fallen Angels Reviews.

Apparently, SOMEONE found that quote offensive, and the list owner (in a fit of some sort of madness I cannot fathom) decided that I shouldn't be allowed to use it anymore. I'm not list owner there, so I don't really have a choice in the matter, save leaving the list, and since it's one of my best resource lists, I am not willing to leave the list over something so ridiculous, though it goes against my grain to let something like this slide.

This is what I find amusing. Read that quote again. There's not a single swear word in it, not even an erotic term. Not even really a blue word that's not one of the big 7.

What is there to find offensive in the quote? Deviant? Erotic? Not for the weak? They are words, and they are all words I've explained in my blog long ago.

The combination threatens someone? Again, why? I'd love to know. Is someone out there THAT insecure in their world that the comment, about me...not them, is that shattering? Amusing. I'd like to say interesting, but unless there's a really good story behind this, I don't think I'd find it interesting.

I was gracious about it, and I did change the tag line, because I don't want to lose the list, but this is a clear case of censorship, in my opinion. There's no other term that covers it.

BRILLIANT MARKETING MOVE

And what would that be? "Dumbledore is gay." It's brilliant, I say. Some people out there are saying that JKR has hurt her sales. I say they're wrong. Some people out there are saying she's shot herself in the foot with readers. Not a chance.

Why? Because there's guaranteed to be another HP book burning or three. Now, I've written blog posts on this subject. Book burnings really only worked when books weren't as accessible. What will happen now?

1) People who are opposed to the idea of a gay character in a YA book will write blog posts, giving her and the books free promotion. Can't ask for better than word-of-mouth, no matter what they are saying about you. Just spell the name right, please. Even my post is helping her.

2) People who are vehemently opposed will arrange a book banning. Oh, but that HELPS sales. Why? Because people will buy the books just to see if they are as bad as they sound...or just because they are banned, and said individuals are vehemently opposed to banning, because it's censorship. AND, it provides more fodder for the news services, more promotion you can't buy with all JKR's money, but she can buy it with her mouth.

3) People who are RABIDLY opposed will arrange a book burning. Ditto on the promo, as you might have guessed. In addition, what do you have to do to burn books? PURCHASE them, unless you want to go to jail (at least for a night or two...and then pay fines and damages to the store owner) for mobbing a store and stealing them, which adds even MORE promo. So, you purchase them. That puts money in the pockets of the author, publisher, agent... Oh, yeah. That's teaching them a lesson. That's hurting them. Hurt me more, please.

In short, the ONLY down side to this would be the possibility that someone will try to physically harm JKR. Possible? Yes. I'm sure she has mail readers, passing hate mail along to the authorities already. It's just a whole slush more of them.

Why would you read...

Yet again, someone has asked me why anyone would bother to read certain things, complete with many assumptions. So, let's cover it.

First of all...

Why read paranormal? Several reasons.

1) Paranormal is a complete escape from daily life. Paranormal has characters who are both more than and less than human, in their own ways. The problems they face are typically not the same ones you do. If they face the same ones you do, they face ones you cannot imagine on top of it. And, it's not just a rehash of the old movie monsters. These are humanized and have their own unique world rules.
2) Since the characters have abilities humans do not, it allows for story lines and situations that you won't find in a "real world" romance. In a paranormal, the vampire or psychic that can read thoughts can know precisely what his/her partner wants and provide it. No awkward sex there. And, even in loving relationships in the real world, there are awkward moments, in and out of the bedroom. It also allows for a delightful forced seduction scene, since both parties know precisely what the other wants. Takes the guess work out.
3) Paranormal allows a certain whimsy and dark edge (yes, both) that may be achieved without it, but perhaps not as simply.

There's more to it, of course, but those are the baseline reasons.

Why read erotic? Again...several reasons...

1) You already have a healthy sex life, and reading books that stop at the bedroom door is rather annoying and condescending. After all, if you enjoy sex, why not read books that don't beat around the bush about it? Now, that doesn't mean that's all these women read. Many, like myself, will read the full range from sweet through erotic. Many (again, like myself) read straight genre work, as well as romance and erotic.
2) You've HAD a healthy sex life, but you are currently partnerless or unable to have sex for some reason...perhaps health-related. I see a lot of this, as well. I've met grandmothers in wheelchairs, who read erotic books, because they remember what they had but cannot currently engage in said activities. In that way, they are vicariously experiencing what they so fondly remember...

And, YES. Not nearly everyone who reads books are disassociated from the experiences. It is not uncommon for women (and some husbands) to report that they read, get aroused and either climax to the book or (more commonly) go find their spouse or significant other to engage in some hot sex. Some husbands tell me they purchase erotic romance and erotica books for their wives specifically to illicit this response. It's a different sort of foreplay. Since women experience sexual arousal first in the mind and then in the body, this isn't a bad plan overall, and it's helped many marriages, in my experience.

Back to the subject...

3) Experimentation. Perhaps the reader is trying to learn what appeals and wants the safety of testing it in the mind first. Perhaps the person is not experienced, partnerless and not into one-night-stands (sensible)... There are a lot of reasons to read that stem from this same root. Basically, it's a way to gain safe knowledge and a feel for what excites then file it all away to use later.
4) Dual arousals. There are some things in erotic books, even some things I've written, that I wouldn't want to try in real life (probably wouldn't arouse in real life). Still, they are arousing, in some manner. There's nothing wrong with an active fantasy life. It's a departure from real life...things you don't mind contemplating but don't really want to experience. Everyone has a line. Whatever that line is, once you've exceeded it or hit that nit, it's not going to work for you in the written word, any more than it would in real life.

5) And, I hesitate to mention this, but it exists in small numbers, so I'll mention it. Might as well, if I'm going to be fair and honest. This is another form of escape. What someone has in his/her life is so unsatisfactory/dysfunctional, these people are looking for something positive (idealized or not). Yes, it exists. In large numbers? Probably not as many as you might think.

Side note... The primary consumer of erotic romance and erotica for women are women aged 35+. These are mature women who know what they want to read. That doesn't mean that is the only audience for erotic romance and erotica for women. Some of my readers are men. Some of them are much younger.

Another thing... The erotic work of today rarely bears any resemblance to what you read years ago. I was reading erotica in the 80s...Hottest Blood series books. Aside from the dark, edgy, paranormal bent (currently growing in the mainstream romance and erotic romance markets, at the moment), there is little to connect them. Basing what you believe women's fantasies are on any one book, especially an old one, is likely not going to help you much. Even if everything you read was new, you'd want a wide range.

For instance here... Some get off on extreme BDSM, and some run screaming from it. Some like one type of kink, some another. It takes all kinds to make this world spin round.

The bottom line here is, what arouses one woman will repulse another. There's no single thing I can point to and say "THAT will arouse a woman." It's not possible. Some are acceptable in the mainstream. Some aren't. Some acceptable in the mainstream repulse me personally; others the mainstream shies from are more acceptable to many women I know.

A further note...you cannot effectively lump all erotic together. If you've seen my post about the difference between sensual romance, erotic romance and erotica, you'll notice that they are very different in focus and (to a lesser extent) in content.

I would disagree that you don't see bestselling authors having characters eat at McDonald's. In fact, I can name one that did recently. Sherrilyn Kenyon's UNLEASH THE NIGHT shows Wren going to a McDonald's (or some other fast food, though I think it WAS Micky D's) drive through, because he's been in a jail cell all day and is ravenous. Grinning... Whether or not someone is billed as a real person along the way has nothing to do with what else happens in the book. Going to McDonald's does not a boring book make.

Rejection blues and a twist on the old line...

From a list discussion of rejections/submissions: Author Barbara Kingsolver handles rejection by not considering her project rejected. Instead, she visualizes that she's addressed it 'To the editor who can appreciate my work,' and it has simply come back stamped 'Not at this address.' You have to keep looking for the right address.

Actually, she's got a good head on her shoulders, in my opinion. I keep telling people that things aren't actually "rejected." Rejected has several connotations, but one of the more notable ones is "To discard as defective or useless; throw away." Since I know my work is not defective or useless, I choose not to think of it as a rejection.

It can be a refusal. That would mean ONLY either an unwillingness to do something or "To decline to jump (an obstacle)." That is appropriate. They are declining to jump into production of the book, because they are uncertain of the end result or leery of the conditions of said jump. I can take that.

They can decline. That would mean "To refuse politely." They can refuse politely. Read again what refuse means.

They can pass on it. The most common definition of pass, in this context, is: "To allow to go by or elapse." Think about that one. It means that they stand aside and let the story go on to somewhere else. That's a positive note.

NEVER focus on rejection, IMO. Instead, focus on the fact that they declined/refused and have taken a pass to allow someone better suited to take the project on.

Brenna