New Author Saying Hello

[TE999]

Hello and welcome to Lit and the AH Scott.

As a born and raised Floridian who lived over 20 yrs in Atlanta, I can say I don't like the humidity (who does), but I enjoy the sunshine and the beach. I like a discernable change of seasons and I miss that, but overall Florida's an excellent place to live.

Gotta run. I need to put some fresh ammo belts in the mosquito repeller.

 

[Boxlicker101]

Hi, Scott, and welcome to Literotica and to the AH. Most of us haven't accomplished as much in writing as you, but we have fun writing.

 

[Elianna]

Welcome to the AH. All the good advice has already been given so I'll refrain. Cloudy wrote something up for a newby a few weeks ago and I think we might have put it in the library somewhere. You could probably ask her again... it was good stuff.

Welcome again. Sorry you live in FLA. I have no sympathy as it is hot and icky in Phoenix, too. No beaches here, either. Cactus and rattlesnake a plenty, on the bright side.

 

[cloudy]

Cloudy wrote something up for a newby a few weeks ago and I think we might have put it in the library somewhere. You could probably ask her again... it was good stuff.

I think this was it:

Hello newbies....

• don't use PINK in Abstrusions
• Don't call Svenskaflicka "sven" unless you desire a most painful death
• Og and Weird Harold know everything
• the answer to the questions Og and Weird Harold don't know is 42
• I'm a bitch, don't push me (and I just noticed that when I'm tired, my spelling goes all to shit)
• we have this thing for sheep and garderobes...don't ask

There was also something about never taking anything amicus says seriously, and ignoring JBJ, the poo-flinging monkey.

 

[Elianna]

I think this was it:

There was also something about never taking anything amicus says seriously, and ignoring JBJ, the poo-flinging monkey.

Good stuff!

 

[keeblercrumb]

Amsterdam Dreams

Sarcasm, keeb. Sarcasm. Learn to recognize it.

Sorry.... it was really late here and the wine..... I slipped on the wet grass, the sun got in my eyes, my canary died last year and I just can't get over it.....
That and I NEVER engage in sarcasm myself.....

I am sooooooo literal...... But I promise to work on it, TK!



-KC

 

[caprine]

Yes...

Welcome to Lit. and the AH.

 

[SweetWitch]

Ooooo... Fresh meat!

Hello and welcome, Scott. I hope you decide to stick around for awhile. Can't wait to hear more from you.

Molly

 

[buxxxom]

Hi and welcome.

 

[Scott_Harper]

Never said I live with them. I just said they're in Florida.

See Guy's and Gal's... that is where we are going wrong. Scott's bunked up with his Ma & Pa writing and getting published and most of us are trying to write in our spare time

I'm going to get a shovel and dig up Ma & Pa

 

[Scott_Harper]

Sorry. Guess I should have said that it's the heat and humidity that I hate. I'm a cold-weather person.

Hello Scott....welcome .....I um grew up in Florida....played in the surf ...learned to surf.....and am slightly hurt that you hate my state...have you given it a chance? Have you sat on the beach and watch the sun rise?...swam in the warm silky waters?.....enjoyed all of the beauty to be found there?.....sigh...I suppose that I will get over this slight...but it hurts...

 

[Scott_Harper]

Thank you for the welcome. I'd actually debated on whether or not to mention here that I'm Wiccan. But, I was introducing myself and that's me, so...

Welcome Scott Harper. I am intriqued that no one said much about your being a solitary vegetarian Wiccan who loves cats. I think that is wonderful. You are a bit too young for me and I am in California, but if I was across the street from you, I would sure offer you a nice cup of Starbuck's coffee before you jetted off to your successful author lifestyle. Yes, we can be a little jealous around here, but I am happy to know that another author has caught some good sized fish in the almighty stream of publishing.

Allard Chardon (A Large Hard-on)

 

[Scott_Harper]

Thank you. I'd written "New Member" just for Literotica. "Change of Faith" was something I'd written some time back and had simply forgotten about. I just found it, an a few others, on my hard drive. I'm glad you liked them.

Scott

I read your two stories. They're clean and well-written, as I expected. I really liked "Change of Faith".



(http://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=1001089&page=submissions)

 

[Scott_Harper]

Yep. 20 published short stories, not counting the ones here on Literotica, three self-published novels and one that was just released as an e-book by Dark Castle Lords. Plus I’ve been hired to write a few screenplays. But, because my first three books are self-published, most book stores don’t want to order them. Plus, they sell for $14 each in an oversized 6x9 format. Most people don’t want to spend $14 for a paperback novel. Even when they do, by the time the publisher and retailer take their cuts, I get a whopping .90 of that $14. And I won’t be paid for the scripts I wrote until they’re actually filmed and sold to film distributors. Last I heard, those were all sitting limbo, waiting for the production companies to get funding together for pre-production and filming. At least my new book, “Predators or Prey?” is selling well, according to my publisher.

You asked where to find my work. If you go to the Lulu link in my signature line, you’ll find my self-published work. That’s the quickest, easiest way to find those. “Predators or Prey?” is available on seven different sites that I know of. Those are listed in blogs on both the Lulu page and my MySpace page.

As for why I’m here on Literotica, it started off as a writing exercise, something to let me write something different, and to help promote my work. But, I’ve found that I like the site and writing more erotic content. So, I’ll likely be here a while.

A published author and an employed screenwriter! Yeah, right and what are you doing on lit? And where can I find some of your work?

 

[Scott_Harper]

Thank you. I plan to be here a while. I don't know how much I'll be on the board. In addtion to writing, I work a part-time job to make ends meet. But, I plan to keep posting work.

Ooooo... Fresh meat!

Hello and welcome, Scott. I hope you decide to stick around for awhile. Can't wait to hear more from you.

Molly

 

[AllardChardon]

I considered self-publishing for my novel until I researched it a bit more. Thanks for the real-life tip on what you get for all your trouble. $.90 sounds about right.

 

[SweetWitch]

Thank you. I plan to be here a while. I don't know how much I'll be on the board. In addtion to writing, I work a part-time job to make ends meet. But, I plan to keep posting work.

Oh, hell, honey, we all work. I work full time, manage a household as mother and wife, write and care for family members and neighbor children. But it's been a slow year.

I'll look forward to reading your work and seeing you from time to time.

But for now, it's time to write -- if I can get all these brats out of my house.

 

[Scott_Harper]

All I’ve ever wanted to do is write. I’ve wanted that since I was barely more than a toddler. I kept submitting “Winter’s Rite” to publishers. All of them rejected it for various reasons. Most seemed to like it, just not enough to devote time and money to an author with only a few short stories to his name. I ended up having a chance meeting with another author at the place I working at the time. She’d self-published a novel, was having some success with it and was nearly ready to self-publish her second book. We exchanged e-mail addresses and she ended up talking me into self-publishing “Winter’s Rite”. I went ahead and self-published “Well Wishes” and “Gauntlet” on my own and was planning to self-publish “Predators or Prey?” until meeting another author who recommended that I submit it to her publisher. “Predators or Prey?” is my fourth novel - released on July 10, 2008 by Dark Castle Lords Publications - and is the first of my books that wasn’t self-published. For me, the self-publishing basically is/was a stepping stone to bigger things. And I know people are reading the self-published books because of e-mail I get. To give you a couple of examples, someone wrote to me once thanking me for self-publishing “Winter’s Rite” and “sharing the book with the world” rather than let the mainstream publishers “squash it”. And just yesterday I had an e-mail from someone who is currently reading “Gauntlet”. She wrote to tell me that she liked it, though she blushed a bit at the “sexiness” of parts she’d read.

If you do give more thought to self-publishing, I’d recommend using Lulu. They don’t charge for the publication, as most self-publishers do. You have to pay for your ISBN if you want one. And, without an ISBN, bookstores can’t order the book. Not that bookstores are apt to order self-published work, anyway, but that’s a whole other rant. You also have to pay for printing and shipping of any copies you buy. But there’s no cost for the actual publication of the book. And if you publish it solely as an e-book, you don’t even have to worry about the printing and shipping costs. The three books I self-published are available as printed editions and e-books. I know for a fact that there’s at least one copy of “Winter’s Rite” somewhere in Canada and another in Lithuania. They can be bought anywhere. It’s just a matter of letting people know about the books and the people wanting them badly enough to convince their local bookstore to order them.

I considered self-publishing for my novel until I researched it a bit more. Thanks for the real-life tip on what you get for all your trouble. $.90 sounds about right.

 

[AllardChardon]

Scott,

Nice to hear from you. Thank you for your post. You are a wealth of experience in an ocean where I have not even dabbled a toe to see if the water is fine. I have found the time and inclination to write later in life than you, but I love it just the same. Sometimes, it bursts out of me with a force that leaves me wondering.

I have finished my first novel, no short stories, just this 33 chapter humorous historical erotica novel. I would love to see it in print and if it never makes it through conventional means, I will take your advice and self-publish it.

In the meantime, I am polishing the first four chapters until they shine to send it off to Kensington, actually their editor in chief, John Scognamiglio. He reads historicals and erotica and my book uses the eyes of an anti-hero to move the story. Male perspective is a no-no usually, but I figure I might as well start at the top and work down, even if I have to wait 4 months or so to be rejected without a single comment as to why.

I must be done with this lovely novel so I can start the sequel. But I do have a short story on the backburner that I might work on and submit here for kicks, like you.

Please keep me informed as to your battles, won and lost, in the publishing conflict. I value your input highly.

Allard

 

[Scott_Harper]

Allard,

Glad I can help. If you hear back from a book publisher within four months, consider yourself lucky. Most take 6-9 months. Some take a year or so. And, yes, unfortunately, a lot will reject things without a word as to why they’re declining it. I have a few hundred rejection letters here. A good number of them are nothing more than a standard form letter.

Best of luck with the book! As far as the story being told from a male POV, that does seem to be unusual for erotica. But, if it works for the story, then it works. My latest novel, “Predators or Prey?” started off like that. It isn’t meant as romance/erotica per se, but there are relationship subplots and adult content/foreplay scenes. It was enough that the novel is listed on All Romance E-books with a two flame rating. Anyway, the main character is a woman named Wendy Markland. When I outlined the book, the story was told from the POV of the male lead, Jacob Iverson. That held through the first couple of drafts of the book. Then I outlined Book 2 and it was from Wendy’s POV. Same with Book 3. When I decided to go ahead and self-publish “Predators or Prey?”, before finding an publisher for the series, I started basically re-writing the book from scratch, writing it from Wendy’s POV. I found out that it worked much better that way. I’d noticed early on that, though the book was written from Jacob’s POV, it was really Wendy’s story. I hadn’t meant for that to be the case, but the story and characters took on lives of their own. Do whatever works best for the story.

Again, best of luck!

Scott

Scott,

Nice to hear from you. Thank you for your post. You are a wealth of experience in an ocean where I have not even dabbled a toe to see if the water is fine. I have found the time and inclination to write later in life than you, but I love it just the same. Sometimes, it bursts out of me with a force that leaves me wondering.

I have finished my first novel, no short stories, just this 33 chapter humorous historical erotica novel. I would love to see it in print and if it never makes it through conventional means, I will take your advice and self-publish it.

In the meantime, I am polishing the first four chapters until they shine to send it off to Kensington, actually their editor in chief, John Scognamiglio. He reads historicals and erotica and my book uses the eyes of an anti-hero to move the story. Male perspective is a no-no usually, but I figure I might as well start at the top and work down, even if I have to wait 4 months or so to be rejected without a single comment as to why.

I must be done with this lovely novel so I can start the sequel. But I do have a short story on the backburner that I might work on and submit here for kicks, like you.

Please keep me informed as to your battles, won and lost, in the publishing conflict. I value your input highly.

Allard

 

[AllardChardon]

Scott,

I chose the male POV because I wrote the story for several lonely men friends of mine that are too far away to play with. It evolved chapter by chapter with a mind of its own. I just sat at the computer and performed the typing tasks. Unfortunately, I also was given the editing tasks, which are much harder to get right. I still stress over a phrase here and there. If it does not flow off the page, I am not satisfied. But at some point in the very near future, it will be a done deal.

I will say, in all sincerity, that the process of writing is one of my greatest joys in life. I am glad I did not wait any longer to discover its gifts.

Thanks for your interest,
Allard

 

[Scott_Harper]

Allard,

Some projects will do that; they just tend to write themselves. And I hear you on the editing. “Winter’s Rite”, “Well Wishes” and “Gauntlet”, being self-published, were all edited by me. It was nice when Dark Castle Lords Publications picked up the Wendy Markland series. “Predators or Prey?” was the first novel I’ve written that was edited by someone other than myself.

Again, best of luck with all your projects!

Scott,

I chose the male POV because I wrote the story for several lonely men friends of mine that are too far away to play with. It evolved chapter by chapter with a mind of its own. I just sat at the computer and performed the typing tasks. Unfortunately, I also was given the editing tasks, which are much harder to get right. I still stress over a phrase here and there. If it does not flow off the page, I am not satisfied. But at some point in the very near future, it will be a done deal.

I will say, in all sincerity, that the process of writing is one of my greatest joys in life. I am glad I did not wait any longer to discover its gifts.

Thanks for your interest,
Allard

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Late to join the welcome wagon, but better late than never, right? Welcome, Scott! You should check out our little sort-of co-op, it's an alternative to self-publishing, at least in the e-market! www.excessica.com

 

[Scott_Harper]

Selena,

Hello and thank you. I'm guessing you're a "Catwoman" fan? I'm a huge "Batman" fan.

I bookmarked both the eXcessia site and your MySpace page. I don't know if I'll submit anything to the publisher, but I'll be sending you a MySpace friends request.

Thanks again!

Late to join the welcome wagon, but better late than never, right? Welcome, Scott! You should check out our little sort-of co-op, it's an alternative to self-publishing, at least in the e-market! www.excessica.com

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Selena,

Hello and thank you. I'm guessing you're a "Catwoman" fan? I'm a huge "Batman" fan.

I bookmarked both the eXcessia site and your MySpace page. I don't know if I'll submit anything to the publisher, but I'll be sending you a MySpace friends request.

Thanks again!

Actually... no. Selena is just sort of the "opposite" of my real name... and Kitt was kitten at one time 'cuz that's what hubby calls me... Not that I have anything against Catwoman. Just not, ya know, a big fan or anything