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--- Writing Porn For Fun and Profit! ---
The Bi-Weekly E-Letter
Volume IV, Issue 7
March 8, 2004

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This issue may be distributed to friends, discussion lists and writing groups as long as the entire issue is included.
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Visit The Writer's Site At
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Check Out The Resources Page At
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In This Issue:
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From the Editor - More New Stuff!
Sex-Writer.com Update
Article: Self-Editing for Sex Writers
            By Sarah White
Market News
Market Listings
Column: What I Didn't Know; Musings by CB Potts
             The Perils of Falling in Love
Reader Response
Goings On
Q & A
Looking for Writers

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From The Editor
Katy Terrega
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Cool stuff, license plate, link directly to store page...

contest

Looking for strippers

Take care and, as usual, please keep in touch! (And let me know what you think of the new site if you get a chance!)

Katy

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Sex-Writer.com Update
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New for March:

Ongoing Updates:
Katy's Blog

2 Updated Listings

2 New Articles:
Get Tashed!
By D. L. Tash

Enjoy the Ride
By Don Vaughan

5 New Listings

And...

For both the Newsletter and Sex-Writer.com:

New Writer's Guidelines!

So, you’ve crafted the perfect story, with a great plot and the most arousing, totally believable sex scenes you’ve ever written. Nothing left to do but spell check and fire it off to potential publishers, right?

Not so fast. Your enthusiasm may be costing you sales. If you don’t take a few minutes to go through a couple of steps to polish your work before you send it out, you may never be able to sell it.

Why? Because a lot of editors are too busy to be editors these days, they don’t have time to fix glaring grammatical mistakes or sloppy syntax. They’ll be a lot more likely to pick your work out of their pile of submissions if it’s well written as well as being a good story. The less work they have to do before presenting your story to readers, the happier they will be. And we all want to make editors happy, right?

The concepts of self-editing are simple to learn, take little time and will get easier with practice. Over time, once you start thinking about these issues while you are writing, your first drafts will be better and require less work, time and effort to make them salable.

Here are four basic tips to get you started.

Step One: Wait it Out
I know it’s hard to resist the temptation to send out a manuscript as soon as you’ve finished writing it. You want to just give it a quick read, run spell check and send it out the door because it’s making you no money just sitting on your hard drive.

Resist the urge. Close the file (or the notebook, if you write longhand) and let the manuscript sit for a while. Work on another project, or a different kind of project (poetry if you’ve just written a novel, for example) and try not to think too much about that story that’s simmering on the back burner.

How long should you wait? At least a day for short stories, I would say, and from a week to a month for a novel-length project. You could probably wait only an hour or two for a poem or flash fiction piece before looking at it again.

What’s the point of all this waiting? While the project is off your mind it’s not really out of your consciousness. It really is on the back burner of your mind, still simmering away and working itself out while you work on other things. When you go back to the manuscript, you will be able to look at it with fresh eyes and new ideas that may have come to you during your break.

Most importantly, though, you need a break from your stories before editing them because there is so much more of the story in your mind than ever gets on paper. You understand things without explaining them in the story. If you take time away from the story and then reread it, you’ll be more likely to see those holes that your brain filled in while you were writing. Your readers won’t have the luxury of seeing into your brain, so you need to explain everything you can. You’ll also find things that just don’t make sense, places where you used the wrong word or left out a word, a lot easier after you’ve taken a break.

Step Two: Print it Out
There’s no denying that there is a big difference between reading on screen and reading on paper. When reading on a computer, you’re more likely to skim or read more quickly than you would if you were reading on paper.

In the same way, there are differences between editing on screen and editing on paper. You see different things reading on paper than you do reading on screen. That’s why newspapers have editors who read on screen as well as on paper proofs. Other writers should take advantage of this knowledge by printing out their work and reading through the story first as a reader would, then as an editor or writer would.

I also encourage writers to read their work out loud from their printouts. This can be a little embarrassing or impractical if you write erotica and have children in the house, but at the very least read over your work slowly so you can hear each word in your head as if you were reading it aloud.

This read from a printout will help you find places that don’t flow quite right, places where the words are awkward, missing or wrong. Don’t get too deep into editing at this stage. Just mark places where you need to change things, scribble notes in the margins and read on. If something doesn’t make sense, put a question mark in the margin. Don’t get bogged down in things you need to change, just mark them and then go back to the computer to figure out how to change them.

Step Three: Work it Out
Writing about sex is hard work. It’s hard to choose the right words to describe what’s going on, to make it erotic, not silly or too graphic (unless graphic is what you’re going for). So it’s especially important for sex writers to read their work with an eye toward description and word choice.

Think about circling all the verbs, adjectives and adverbs in your manuscript (or at least pausing and looking at each one as you read) to make sure that each word portrays exactly what you want to portray. Could you use stronger verbs instead of a string of adjectives and adverbs (yanking instead of quickly pulling, sauntered instead of walked slowly, for instance)? Do your words say what you mean to say in the best way possible?

When writing sex scenes, you should take special care to make sure everything makes sense and that it’s all physically possible. Count the limbs and hands in the scene, making sure no one has three hands (I know I’m guilty of that one) or is contorting in some impossible position and holding it for half your story. These are the things that make your story believable, and therefore even more erotic. It’s a shame that more writers don’t take the time to consider the words they use and how they use them. Words are our stock in trade; we cannot be writers without them. We should take care to choose only the best words to express our ideas and take time to learn how to use them properly. Think about it.

Step Four: Read it Out (Again)
Once you’ve taken a break from your manuscript, printed it out, read it, considered the word choice and made all the changes, take another short break and read your story one more time before sending it out to editors. This last read will allow you to tweak word choice one more time, to cut scenes or descriptions that don’t add anything to the story and find any other problems that might still be lingering in your story. Again, reading out loud is good because when something doesn’t sound right it probably isn’t right. Then, finally, ask yourself the most important question of all: Does it turn you on? If it does, you’ve got yourself a great story as well as a well-polished manuscript.

These steps may sound like a lot work and trouble to go through for every story you write. It does take some time to do this well, but I think you will find it is worth the effort. Self-editing will teach you to be more conscientious when choosing your words, make your writing clearer and more concise and likely will get you more sales. At the very least, it will get you thinking about the way you write, which is something all writers need to do.

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Sarah White is a freelance writer (and aspiring writer of erotica) and editor as well as a newspaper copy editor. She is author of the book Doing the Write Thing: The Easy Way to Self Edit. Contact her at breadbakingwoman@yahoo.com.

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COOL STUFF 4 WRITERS!
Apparel, Mugs, Resources, Tools, Calendars and More!
Cool Stuff 4 Writers is the coolest site around!
Well-Fed Writer (TM) and Renegade Writer shirts, mugs and more!

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--- Market News ---
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One of our readers (thanks!) let me know that Ssspread.com closed in January...

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For those of you who submitted to Sex Toy Tales, you might be interested in the new site - SexToyTales.com. You can also buy a copy of the book here

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--- Market Listings ---
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Diane from CoolStuff4Writers ( http://www.coolstuff4writers.com) is looking for quality general-themed (meaning not porn-related) articles for her newsletter. You can see the guidelines here - http://www.coolstuff4writers.com/SubmissionGuidelines.html

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The Clean Sheet's Every Little Kiss Contest ends on March 15th, so get your entries in now! You can see the guidelines in last week's newsletter - Volume VIV - Issue 6

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Dirt Road: Transient Tales and Logical Lust's Flash Contest are also about to end, you can see their guidelines in last week's newsletter, as well.

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Spring (Flash) Fling Contest from Sex-Writer.com!

Website: http://www.sex-writer.com
Contact: Katy
Co-Sponsors: Cool Stuff For Writers and The Gila Queen's Guide to Markets

Deadline: April 15th, 2004
Spring (Flash) Fling Guidelines

Spring is almost here! To celebrate, we've decided to have a little contest...

We're looking for a hundred erotic words that embody the glorious season of spring and, well, the body. From romance to erotica to porn to everything in between, we want to hear your spring fantasy.

The rules are simple:

• One hundred words or less (not including the title)
• Speaking of which, stories must actually have a title
• Story must include elements of springtime, as well as the erotic
• Paste entries into the body of an email and send to Katy@Sex-Writer.com
• Deadline: April 15, 2004

• First Prize: One year subscription to Sex-Writer.com
  
  
• Second Prize: $25.00 worth of writer-friendly goodies from Cool Stuff For Writers



• Third Prize: A twenty issue subsciption to The Gila Queen Guide to Markets



• Honorable Mentions: Depending on how many entries we get and how many we absolutely love, we might include a couple of honorable mentions, but we're not promising anything...

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If you'd like to make a GOOD name for yourself as a KINKY author then feel free to post your work on www.Good-n-Kinky.com

http://Good-n-Kinky.com is a public contribution kinky/fetish website; submissions of kinky content of all media types are welcome.

An easy-to-learn simplified HTML syntax allow contributors to lay out their own pages. Accounts are free. Only rule is, keep it GOOD and keep it KINKY. :-)

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Amber Quill Press
Attention erotica writers: Here's your chance to impress us! Amber Quill Press is looking for the hottest, steamiest and most sizzling fiction of the summer! Think you have what it takes? Submit your short erotica story (see below for content guidelines and word count) to AQP's Amber Heat imprint for our first Amber Heat Contest! Winning entries will be published in electronic format starting in June, 2004 to coincide with our Amber Heat Wave.

CONTEST DETAILS
To enter this contest, please carefully read and adhere to the following criteria...

Dates Of Entry: March 1st through March 15th, 2004.
Author Eligibility: Both published and non-published authors may submit.
Genre: Erotic Romance—all sub-genres are eligible.
Sexual Content: Any story with at least a "Hard-R" rating (based on the standards of the motion picture industry) are eligible. (Please note: Amber Quill Press publishes stories where strong plotlines are more vital than the overall sexual content. In other words, we are looking for submissions where the stories can actually stand on their own, even without the sexual content. Therefore, a story containing a flimsy plot wrapped around an endless string of sexual encounters will not impress us. Moreover, we are not looking to publish pure erotica, hard-core BDSM, pedophilia, etc. Each story must focus around a M/F romance.)
Word Count: Stories should be between 5,000 and 12,000 words. Authors of winning stories will be offered our standard one-year publishing contract for our popular Amber Kisses imprint (short erotica fiction).
Judging Criteria: Each story entered will be judged on the following...

• Plotline and Overall Story
• Story Pacing
• Characterization
• Genre Appropriateness
• Descriptives
• Dialogue
• Writing Mechanics (Grammar, Punctuation, Sentence Structure, Etc.)
• Originality of Writing Style

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Cold Flesh

Website: Short, Scary Tales Publications
Contact: Paul Fry

COLD FLESH anthology - Submission Guidelines

Publisher: HellBound Books
Release Date: Tentative release date of December 2004 - January 2005
Payment: 50% of the total profits (cost of book less retail) will be equally divided between the participating authors, payable twice annually

Zombies have always been a favourite of mine. I love their relentlessness, the way they will do anything to get want they want . . . your flesh. And the way they won't give up until they get it, or until they are stopped.

COLD FLESH will bring together original zombie fiction from some of the most talented authors around today. I'm looking for strong and violent stories that shock and unnerve. So please think of the situations and locations that really frighten you, and then add the most repulsive zombies you can dream up. Make your story original, gory, violent, and terrifying.

Please follow the submission guidelines exactly so that your submission will be dealt with properly:

UNPUBLISHED STORIES ONLY PLEASE (NO RE-PRINTS)
7000 WORDS MAX.
NO E-MAIL SUBMISSIONS *

Deadline: when filled.

Please print COLD FLESH, your name, address, e-mail address, story title and word count at the top of the first page of your disposable manuscript, and post it to:

Paul Fry, 15 North Roundhay, Stechford, Birmingham, B33 9PE, England

Response time is roughly two months. I can either reply via e-mail or by regular mail (please include your e-mail address, or a SAE / 2 IRCs for a response).

E-mail: paul@sstpublications.co.uk (enquiries only please)
Web site: http://sstpublications.co.uk

* I do not want any e-mail submissions. But if accepted your story file will be requested by e-mail, or through the post on CD.

Lions and Lambs Contest - Torquere Press

Website: http://torquerepress.com/
Guidelines: Guidelines
Contact: ldoone@torquerepress.com

You know the old saying March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb?

Well, here's your chance to show us your take on that old proverb in fiction. We're looking for original, well-written fiction of no more than 1000 words that exemplifies the theme, so bring us your lions and your lambs, your leaders and your led, your strongest and weakest. Just make sure the story is 1000 words or less, and centers around gay, lesbian and or homoerotic content. All entries must be received by March 20, 2004. Submissions must be sent to writingcontest@torquerepress.com or entered below.

Each submission should contain your name, full contact information, a statement of age (must be 18 or over to enter) and your story as an inline email. Entries sent as attachments will not be opened, and any entry sent to another email address will be promptly deleted. Winners will be announced April first and will be showcased on the Torquere Press website during the months of April and May. We ask for first electronic rights for these stories. By sending in your entry you are verifying that you own all rights to your story, and that it is an original work by you, the author.

Prizes will be given for the top three entries, as chosen by the editors at Torquere Press. First prize will be free ebooks from Torquere, each of them the new release for the three months following the contest, second prize is two months of free new releases, and third prize one free ebook.

Have questions? Email us at ldoone@torquerepress.com. Otherwise, get out there and get writing, and help us celebrate the first month of spring.

CONTEST RULES
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.

ELIGIBILITY: This contest is void where prohibited by law. Must be 18 to enter. The following persons and their dependents are not eligible to enter or win: employees of Torquere Press and their affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising and promotion agencies, and the immediate families (spouse, parents, siblings, and children) of each of the above.

HOW TO WIN: One winner will be selected from all entries by the staff of Torquere Press. Entries must be received before 11:59 p.m. ET on March 20, 2004. Winners will be announced by April 1, 2004. Torquere Press is not responsible for entries lost or delayed or not received for any other reason, or for errors in the entry forms or the rules. Torquere Press reserves the right to announce the winner on Torquere Press.

PRIZES: Torquere Press will notify the winners. The first place winner will receive three ebooks from Torquere Press, the second place winner will receive two ebooks, the third place winner will receive one ebook.

HOW TO ENTER: At any time while the contest is posted on Torquere Press, go to the contest page of the website. This page will instruct you to fill in the information on the contest form.

ALTERNATE ENTRY: You may also enter the contest by regular mail. Send your e-mail address, name and mailing address and entry to:

Lions and Lambs Short
Fiction Contest
Torquere Press
PO Box 4351
Grand Junction, CO 81502

ALL ENTRIES MUST BE RECEIVED BY MARCH 20, 2004. Only one entry per email audience.

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