Editing » Lauren's Tales

A new tale: Up for Grabs 2

Feb 022011

I have a new anthology out from Circlet Press, Up for Grabs 2. All the details, excerpts, and pretty pictures are there.

Editing an anthology is one of those things that takes much more work than you’d think if you haven’t tried it. I’ve done a few anthologies with Circlet. I thought I had the hang of editing such a beast. When I started working on Up for Grabs 2, however, I realized how many places I did a weak job on past anthologies and tried to improve. Of course, I’m pretty sure I did a few things worse, but Circlet has done such a good job putting the book together that you probably won’t notice.

The more submissions you have, the better the book. This doesn’t mean it’s obvious how to get more submissions. To start with, I found a lot more places to post the call for submissions. I put some work into soliciting stories from people who didn’t respond to the call for submissions. At the final count I had thirty-nine submissions. This is not a huge number, but it’s easier to make a good book from thirty-nine submissions than from twelve.

The next round of cool stuff came from my contributors. They gave me some fantastic stories, which I hope you will read. Several contributors allowed me to use my editor super-powers to make their good stories even better. While I can take credit for many of the edits, please don’t overlook my contributors’ willingness to be edited. It’s hard to let someone take a scalpel to a story that you thought was perfect. I’ve had some bad experiences lately with authors who would not accept any editing, so I am grateful to these writers’ willingness to work with me and humbled by the amount of trust they gave me. I hope that I have repaid this trust adequately.

As many writers know, proofreading is an endless task. There are always more typos. However, a few writers too extra time to proofread not only their own stories, but other stories and the introduction. You folks were awesome!

Up for Grabs 2 is a worthy successor to the first Up for Grabs, and a fine anthology in its own right.

New Tale: Lord of Misrule

Editing No Responses »

Oct 012010

New tale!

New book for fans of BDSM, paranormal romance, immersive fantasy worlds and of course two gorgeous men in a torrid relationship.

This book appeals both to kinky readers and romance readers. Kannang Feng’s ability to combine the two genre has created something well-written and steamy. Click the pic for an excerpt and more information.

Reader review!

A long-time Circlet reader has blessed us with an unsolicited review of the book. Read the review here!

The UFG Slush Pile Chronicles: The Reprint

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Jul 062010

When I wrote up the submission guidelines for this anthology, I specifically forbade reprints.

I didn’t want any this time. This was a tough decision to make. If it’s been printed before, it’s frequently a really good story and might add something really nice to my anthology. However, I’ve found it a little uncomfortable to read reviews where the reviewer points out that they’ve read the stories before.

The UFG2 Slush Pile Chronicles: the plot that is not

Editing 1 Response »

Jun 262010

Writers who are new to the craft sometimes don’t understand plot as much as one would like. That is the only way to explain the prevalence of the plot which is not: “they meet, they fuck, the end.”

Real plots have two things that the example doesn’t have: complications and a resolution.

The UFG2 Slush Pile Chronicles, pt 1

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Jun 222010

As many of you know, I’m reading for a new anthology. A few of the manuscripts for the anth were solicited; I talked to a couple of authors I know, and they sent me some manuscripts, and I accepted them. The slush pile used to be where editors stacked all the unsolicited manuscripts. Now the slush pile is notional, even virtual, but it is still a place that combines horror and wonder in equal measures.

Final count for UFG2 Submissions

Editing, Writing No Responses »

Jun 042010

As I said, I can’t read the submissions yet, but I did get them logged.

Slushing

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Apr 122010

Dear Sir,

You appear to have sent me this story by mistake. I am only reading for one anthology right now, and your story does not resemble the call for submissions in any way.

Slushing. You know it.

Editing 5 Responses »

Mar 172010

I have an anthology where the reading period starts April 1. I set it that far out (originally) to maintain some sanity during a busy period in my life.

I don’t actually care much what length people send me, so I put in a standard length range and tell people to query me for longer or shorter. Mostly, I want to avoid reading 10,000 word submissions with not enough sex in them.

New Book Launch & Excerpt: Kneel to Me

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Mar 082010

Kneel to Me
Edited by Lauren P. Burka

ISBN: 978-1-885865-54-0
Word Count: 44,770
List Price: $6.99

[wp_cart:Kneel to Me:price:6.99:end]

Available from:

Circlet.com (PDF)
Amazon Kindle Store
Fictionwise (all formats)
All Romance eBooks (epub, prc, pdf, HTML)
Smashwords (mobi, LRF, epub, pdf, HTML)
Scribd (PDF, epaper, read online)

For the next two weeks the title is on sale at up to 20% off from most partner sites, and right here at Circlet.com, so don’t dawdle, download a copy today.

Circlet Press brings you seven erotic stories of dominance and submission that will return you to the moment when a master, mistress, or slave first stepped out of a story and made you theirs.

The submissives, slaves, and bottoms you will meet here are tough and competent. No passive orifices, they are beautifully-realized individuals with the spark that makes them recognizably human. In “KATT,” the slave is a beautiful android who fights to hold on to the precious scrap of her life after a disaster. The servant in “Lord of Misrule” knows that his relationship with his master requires something other than obedience. The slave in “Raiders from the Stars” learns that much more is at stake than his personal gratification. In “Personal Benefits,” the highly-trained contract slave offers the pleasure of perfect obedience to the powerful woman who owns her.

Nor are their tops the well-endowed ciphers who “train” Cindi. They have needs and aspirations. Pleasure may be an important part of their lives, even the most important part of their lives, but they are also seeking love, acceptance and a future for themselves and their slaves in a hard world. The master in “Raiders from the Stars” knows that the safety that humanity takes for granted is rooted in obedience. In “Romans,” the master forges a new sort of domestic tranquility for his new slaves. The bureaucrat of a repressive government in “Exceptional Acts” discovers that pleasure is the most powerful form of rebellion.

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