What do editors look for? Brenda Knight

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What do editors look for? Sedonia Guillone

 Author and publisher, Sedonia Guillone has more than fifty novels, novellas and short stories published at Ellora's Cave, Red Sage, Loose Id, Torquere Press, and Total-e-Bound Publishing.

1. work as hard as you can on Improving your craft BEFORE you submit anything. The best way I have found to do this is 1. to get with a good critique partner who will be honest with you about your writing and not just tell you your writing is fabulous all the time and 2. to get a copy of Self-Editing For Fiction Writers, study it well and apply the lessons. if an editor has to renovate your work completely then you will find yourself getting rejection letters rather than acceptances.

2. Be a good writer to work with. Don't argue with your editor on his/her suggestions or reject any of them out of hand. Weigh everything thoughtfully. In other words: DON'T be a writing diva. Be polite and timely and respectful and editors will be happy to work with you and even help you along to push up release dates and things like that.

3. When going over your work, out yourself in the reader's place. Is what you're trying to say coming through clearly? In other words approach your writing with objectivity. Many authors know what they mean in their head but the meaning doesn't come through clearly in the words they choose.

4. This tip is for erotica writers: make sure your erotic scenes are sensual. Don't use words for body parts that are gross and crude. Make sure your erotic scenes are part of the natural flow of the story and not artificially stuck into the story. Also make sure you don't have people doing things that in reality are physically impossible or out of character for that person.

5. It's always good to make a print copy of your work and read it on paper when revising. You'd be surprised at how different the pacing is on paper as opposed to the computer screen.


Sedonia Guillone now owns and operates Ai Press, an erotic romance publisher of e-books and trade paperbacks. You can find her work at www.sedoniaguillone.com and www.ai-press.net.

What do editors look for? Saachi Green

 Sacchi Green is an award-winning writer and editor of erotica and other stimulating genres. Her stories have appeared in scores of publications, including Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Women’s Erotica, Best Lesbian Romance, Best Transgender Erotica, Best Fantasy Erotica, and Penthouse. In recent years she’s taken to wielding the editorial whip, editing nine lesbian erotica anthologies, most recently for Cleis Press.

A collection of her own work, A Ride to Remember, is out from Lethe Press. Five of her books were Lambda Literary Award finalists, and Lesbian Cowboys, co-edited with Rakelle Valencia, won the Lambda for lesbian erotica in 2010. Two books, Lesbian Lust and A Ride to Remember, were winners of GCLS awards.

Below are Sacchi Green's tips for writers, and a couple of her pet peeves:

1) Tell a story as only you can tell it. Be familiar with other writing in your genre, but don’t imitate anyone else. As an editor I look for an original approach and a distinctive voice; something to set a story apart from all the thousands I’ve seen before. Surprise me!

2) Make your characters so real that the reader can tell them apart just by the way they act and speak, even when you don’t specify who’s speaking.

3) Pay attention to the rhythm of your prose. Vary the length and structure of your sentences (unless, of course, you use short, choppy sentences or long, rambling ones to make a certain point or define a character.)

4) Don’t assume that grammatical constructions you see over and over must be correct, or should be used over and over. There’s no need for sentence after sentence, or even paragraph after paragraph, to begin with a participial phrase such as “Opening the door, she crossed the room.” Think about that. Is the room so small one could cross it while still in the process of opening the door? Even when there’s no such grammatical problem, overuse of “ing” looks amateurish (and is, obviously, one of my pet peeves.) There are other more varied ways of avoiding too many sentences that start with “she” or the character’s name.

5) And speaking of pet peeves, particularly when dealing with erotica, PLEASE be sure you know whether your character’s movements and actions are physically possible. I’m not talking about superhuman endurance, or strength; I’m just considering logistics. Remember whose various parts are where, and don’t tie the reader’s (and editor’s) mind in knots trying to figure out how what was up is suddenly down, and why what faced one direction (and was, in fact, tied that way) is suddenly available for full frontal play. This sort of thing can apply to any scenes of concentrated action, erotic or otherwise, but interrupting the flow of a sex scene is especially, well, frustrating.

Find Sacchi online at http://sacchi-green.blogsot.com, FaceBook. Live Journal (http://sacchig.livejournal.com/ ), and the Lesbian Fiction Forum (http://www.lesbianfiction.org/viewforum.php?f=53)

What do Editors Want? Pepper Mason

 Pepper Mason is an up-and-coming artist, author, and editor of high quality erotic short stories. She began writing as a hobby in 2003, but began self-publishing as an independent author earlier this year in hopes of one day cultivating the hobby into a full-time career. She has edited several works of friends and colleagues off the books, and all of her personal work, services and contact information can be found at peppermasonbooks.weebly.com.

1) I cannot stress this enough. Independent authors should never publish a book without letting at least one (preferably more than one) other person proof read it. No matter how many times you read your own work, there are bound to be errors that you’ll miss. Even if you can’t afford editing services, have a friend or colleague read over your manuscript for you. (Other independent authors on a budget may be willing to trade proof reads. Just ask!)

2) Microsoft Word's spelling and grammar check will never be able to replace human comprehension. It can’t tell you when something is written awkwardly, and it doesn’t cover the entire gamut of punctuation misuse. It will also oftentimes miss words that are misspelled, when those words end up being spelled correctly but with a different meaning. Never assume you’ve corrected all of your errors with a simple run of this or any spell/grammar checking program.

3) Be careful with continuity. If your character is slowly pushing up the silky green fabric of her lover’s shirt to expose his washboard abs, please make sure he wasn’t shirtless in the prior scene. Things like this are easy to miss when you’re plowing through plot like a person possessed.

4) Repetition. I have found this to be a common plague amongst the writing community, even within the work of professionally edited and published authors. Be careful not to use the same phrases and words over and over again. You have a thesaurus at hand any time you’re connected to the internet; you can find another word for ‘walked’. Try ‘moved’, ‘trudged’, ‘cantered’, ‘stalked’, ‘slouched’, ‘stomped’, or  ‘marched’ instead. It sets the tone for how the character is moving, instead of simply informing the reader that he is, in fact, moving. Also be careful with the infamous “He did this, he did that” repetition. Characters can be addressed in a number of ways, and not always at the beginning of a sentence. You can replace ‘he’ with things such as the character’s name, ‘the blonde boy’, ‘the young man’ etc, etc.

5) Plot. Even if you’re writing a four-thousand word short erotica, plot is important. It holds the entire story together. I always recommend creating a detailed outline of your plot before beginning to write. Even a loose plan can help you organize your plot, and keep your story from dragging on or becoming nonsensical. Make sure your plot makes sense and flows smoothly before you put a single word in that .doc file. It will save you a lot of time and frustration in the long run.

More of Pepper Mason's work can be found at peppermasonbooks.weebly.com.

What do editors look for? Mitzi Szereto

Mitzi Szereto (http://mitziszereto.com) is an author and anthology editor of multi-genre fiction and non-fiction, has her own blog Errant Ramblings: Mitzi Szereto’s Weblog (http://mitziszereto.com/blog), and is creator/presenter of the Web TV channel Mitzi TV (http://mitziszereto.com/tv), which covers “quirky” London. 

Below are the things that Mitzi looks for in short stories that are submitted to her anthologies:

I look for an original voice, freshness in the material, and prose that has style. For me there's nothing worse than stale-sounding material that sounds as if it was churned out to fit some formula or derivative of everything else that's out there. My biggest pet peeves are porn-speak and writers who submit material that bears not the slightest resemblance to what I've asked for.

1) Develop your own voice and style rather than parroting those of others.

2) When it comes to writing sex, avoid the use of trite euphemisms and hackneyed sexual descriptions (especially if you want to get into one of my anthologies!).

3) The sex should not be the story, but be part of the story. Remember that you are writing A STORY, not a script for a porn video. (Do they even have scripts????)

4) Avoid the formulaic. You might sell some work, but it won't necessarily earn you any respect as a writer.

5) Be creative in your writing, not regurgitative. Just because you've seen something written a certain way by other writers doesn't mean you should emulate it. Very often it's just the opposite.


Mitzi Szereto (http://mitziszereto.com) is an author and anthology editor of multi-genre fiction and non-fiction, has her own blog Errant Ramblings: Mitzi Szereto’s Weblog (http://mitziszereto.com/blog), and is creator/presenter of the Web TV channel Mitzi TV (http://mitziszereto.com/tv), which covers “quirky” London. Her books include Thrones of Desire: Erotic Tales of Swords, Mist and Fire; Normal for Norfolk (The Thelonious T. Bear Chronicles); Pride and Prejudice: Hidden Lusts; Red Velvet and Absinthe: Paranormal Erotic Romance; In Sleeping Beauty’s Bed: Erotic Fairy Tales; Getting Even: Revenge Stories; Dying for It: Tales of Sex and Death; and Wicked: Sexy Tales of Legendary Lovers. She has pioneered erotic writing workshops in the UK and mainland Europe, teaching them from the Cheltenham Festival of Literature to the Greek islands. Her anthology Erotic Travel Tales 2 is the first anthology of erotica to feature a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

What do editors look for? D L King

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What do editors look for? Treva Harte

Treva Harte became co-owner and Editor-in -Chief of Loose Id in 2004. She holds a B.A. in English Literature from University of Arizona (high honors), a M.A. in English Literature from University of Virginia and a J.D. from University of Virginia. She is a member of the Virginia and D.C. bars. From 1988 until 2008 she was a Trademark Examining Attorney for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Treva is also multi-published with several e-publishers in print and e-book, is a member of EPIC, RWA, including the Passionate Ink and Rainbow Romance Writers Chapters, has been a member of PAN, and was winner of the CAPA 2003 award in the "Erotic Fantasy Romance" category.

1) Put your email addy on your manuscript.  Things can be separated, even in cyberspace, and definitely on paper.  It’s incredibly frustrating to read a ms. and then try to figure out how to contact someone.

2)      Read the guidelines if you want to up the odds of it being read by the editor.  Read some other books by the company to up the odds of it being accepted by the publisher. 

3)      Like what you write. Like the genre you write in. Those who do tend not to burn out.  Editors can tell you’re unhappy as you slow down and get cranky about edits.  Slow, cranky authors are no fun.

4)      Be proud of what you write.  If you’ve done the best you can do with it, don’t waste your time apologizing or picking apart mistakes that have been made.  Learn and move on by writing the next book.  Editors love to see authors getting better at their craft. 

5)      Don’t demand validation from your editors—or anyone else.  Editors may or may not give it and if they do, it might not be in the way you want.  Readers may or may not respond to your work.  If you do get nice reviews and fan squee, there will be plenty of people waiting to tear apart any praise.  On the other hand, getting feedback from your editor about strengths and weaknesses in your writing and what you should be working on next is useful for you and your writing career with a publisher.

To find out more about Treva Harte, Eic Loose Id, visit www.loose-id.com or 

http://treva2007.livejournal.com/ (Loose Change, a blog Treva sometimes maintains that includes writing and publishing tips).

What do editors look for? Alison Tyler

 Wait. What time is it? Can you believe that I’ve been editing erotic books since the early 90s? Holy fuck, how did that happen? Over the years (and the 50+ anthologies), I’ve become fairly adept at knowing right away whether a story is going to work for me. How? Simple.

1)     Catch me with your opening sentence. I’ve noticed that some writers take a few paragraphs to get started. Check your piece to see whether your true opener is lurking halfway down the page. 

2)     Proof your work. Not only for errors, but also for sloppiness. One of my biggest pet peeves is the use of word repetitions. A well-known writer subbed me a 2,500-word story in which “slip” appeared 14 times (slipped, slipping, slippery).  Nothing is that wet. 

3)     “It” is another of my sticking points. Look for “it.” Replace “it.” Grab a thesaurus if you don’t know another word for “it.” 

4)      Are your characters shouting, giggling, chortling, whispering, moaning, groaning, howling, whispering, or grunting too often? Ask yourself in the rewrite. “Said” can go a long way. 

5)     Kill me with your closure. Your last line is as important as your opener. Make me sit back and sigh with your brilliant culmination.

Now, back to the grind, at http://alisontyler.blogspot.com

What do editors look for? Lucy Felthouse

 Lucy Felthouse is a writer and editor of erotica and erotic romance. She likes variety, so is usually working on several projects at once. Published anthologies include: Uniform Behaviour, Seducing the Myth, Smut by the Sea and Smut in the City. The latter two are co-edited with Victoria Blisse. 

1) Read as many books as you can get your hands on—especially in your chosen genre. 

2) Learn to edit your own work—don’t risk editors being put off by poor spelling and grammar, repetition and so on.

3)  Don’t use crazy fonts. Something plain and easy to read like Times New Roman or Arial is fine. 

4) Research what editors/publishers actually want. If they give instructions for submitting to them, follow them to the letter. 

5) Be professional and polite in your covering letter. You don’t have to write much (unless it’s specified) but let the editor know what you’re sending, what it’s for (bear in mind they’re probably working on several projects at once) and the word count. You can include a bio and story blurb if you wish, but if it’s needed straight away, an editor will usually ask for it.

Find out more about Lucy’s writing and editing projects at http://lucyfelthouse.co.uk

What do editors look for? Sharazade

1) Do your research. Only submit a query or a manuscript to an appropriate publisher. That means you familiarize yourself with their current published works—reading some, if at all possible—and make sure you know what sorts of things they publish. If they only publish ebooks, don’t insist on a paperback. If they publish mainly erotic romance, they’re probably not going to take your edgy tale of non-consent. If you’re not sure, of course you can ask—but your questions will come off a lot better if you clearly know who they are. A publisher can tell when you’ve just gotten a list off the Internet somewhere and cut and pasted the same submission letter to each one. And that’s not really more efficient for you, because it’s going to lead to more confusion and rejections.

2) Submit what they ask you to submit. If they want a query letter first, send a query letter first. If they want two sample chapters, send two sample chapters—not one, not the whole book. You are not a special snowflake. Follow the directions.

3) Submit how they ask you to submit. Some publishers don’t want attachments. Some only want attachments. If they want Times New Roman, 12 point, then use that. If they want it hand-written with pictures of clowns on odd-numbered pages, then do that if you want to be published by them. If you don’t find yourself willing (or able) to comply with their query or submission process, you’re not going to want them to handle your book. (If they don’t say at all, then you can’t go wrong with Times New Roman, 12 point, ragged margins, double-spaced, in a Word .doc or a .pdf. Don’t do the clowns thing unless asked.)

4) Please, oh please, check your cover letter for typos, and also tone. It’s nice to sound human, but not so casual you seem inattentive.  Be positive and confident, but arrogance rarely goes over well. Don’t apologize. If you don’t have a degree in writing or you’ve never published before or you secretly worry that the manuscript everyone in your critique group loves is actually crap, keep all that to yourself. Explain the qualifications and publication history you do have, if any; but don’t point out any lacks if you don’t. Ultimately, it’s your book that’s going to be judged—not what sort of life you led in order to write it. Remember too that publishers are more interested in authors who have more than one book in them. They’re easier to promote, and all their books sell better. If you have more than one finished manuscript, or you have published in other places, or at least have ideas for future books, mention that.

5) Don’t submit a rough draft. Yes, you’ll get edited—although increasingly I see fiction editors giving a manuscript a copy edit, and not a content edit. Even if you’re lucky enough to be assigned the sort of editor who will work intensively with you, you should always submit your best effort. Someone should have read it in addition to you (and not someone romantically involved with you) and provided feedback, which you should have at least considered, if not taken on board. It goes without saying that you used a spellcheck, and also read it carefully for typos and errors with homonyms. This is your tryout. A publisher wants to see your very best writing.

6) (I was going to cheat and add this to one of the other five, but that would only be confusing.) Allow at least two months to hear back. If you don’t hear back after four months, it is perfectly fine to send a polite follow-up query.

*** 

I’ve worked as an editor for about ten years, three years in-house with a New York publisher, and the rest freelance. I’ve worked with three of the “Big Six Five” and numerous smaller presses. I’ve worked as a content editor, development editor, production editor, copy editor, and proofreader. I’m also a published author, with about 40 books (non-fiction) to my passport name, and to my pen name (erotica) one single-author anthology, a few single short stories, and short stories in anthologies with Cleis Press, Sizzler, and the Erotic Literary Salon. In 2010 I launched 1001 Nights Press, a small erotica publisher that I’d describe as “cautiously open” to new writers (cautious because of time commitments, not because you aren’t a fantastic writer). http://1001nightspress.com

What do editors look for? Mitzi Szereto

Mitzi Szereto (http://mitziszereto.com) is an author and anthology editor of multi-genre fiction and non-fiction, has her own blog Errant Ramblings: Mitzi Szereto’s Weblog (http://mitziszereto.com/blog), and is creator/presenter of the Web TV channel Mitzi TV (http://mitziszereto.com/tv), which covers “quirky” London. 

Below are the things that Mitzi looks for in short stories that are submitted to her anthologies:

I look for an original voice, freshness in the material, and prose that has style. For me there's nothing worse than stale-sounding material that sounds as if it was churned out to fit some formula or derivative of everything else that's out there. My biggest pet peeves are porn-speak and writers who submit material that bears not the slightest resemblance to what I've asked for.

1) Develop your own voice and style rather than parroting those of others.

2) When it comes to writing sex, avoid the use of trite euphemisms and hackneyed sexual descriptions (especially if you want to get into one of my anthologies!).

3) The sex should not be the story, but be part of the story. Remember that you are writing A STORY, not a script for a porn video. (Do they even have scripts????)

4) Avoid the formulaic. You might sell some work, but it won't necessarily earn you any respect as a writer.

5) Be creative in your writing, not regurgitative. Just because you've seen something written a certain way by other writers doesn't mean you should emulate it. Very often it's just the opposite.


Mitzi Szereto (http://mitziszereto.com) is an author and anthology editor of multi-genre fiction and non-fiction, has her own blog Errant Ramblings: Mitzi Szereto’s Weblog (http://mitziszereto.com/blog), and is creator/presenter of the Web TV channel Mitzi TV (http://mitziszereto.com/tv), which covers “quirky” London. Her books include Thrones of Desire: Erotic Tales of Swords, Mist and Fire; Normal for Norfolk (The Thelonious T. Bear Chronicles); Pride and Prejudice: Hidden Lusts; Red Velvet and Absinthe: Paranormal Erotic Romance; In Sleeping Beauty’s Bed: Erotic Fairy Tales; Getting Even: Revenge Stories; Dying for It: Tales of Sex and Death; and Wicked: Sexy Tales of Legendary Lovers. She has pioneered erotic writing workshops in the UK and mainland Europe, teaching them from the Cheltenham Festival of Literature to the Greek islands. Her anthology Erotic Travel Tales 2 is the first anthology of erotica to feature a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

What do Editors look for? Sharazade

1) Do your research. Only submit a query or a manuscript to an appropriate publisher. That means you familiarize yourself with their current published works—reading some, if at all possible—and make sure you know what sorts of things they publish. If they only publish ebooks, don’t insist on a paperback. If they publish mainly erotic romance, they’re probably not going to take your edgy tale of non-consent. If you’re not sure, of course you can ask—but your questions will come off a lot better if you clearly know who they are. A publisher can tell when you’ve just gotten a list off the Internet somewhere and cut and pasted the same submission letter to each one. And that’s not really more efficient for you, because it’s going to lead to more confusion and rejections.

2) Submit what they ask you to submit. If they want a query letter first, send a query letter first. If they want two sample chapters, send two sample chapters—not one, not the whole book. You are not a special snowflake. Follow the directions.

3) Submit how they ask you to submit. Some publishers don’t want attachments. Some only want attachments. If they want Times New Roman, 12 point, then use that. If they want it hand-written with pictures of clowns on odd-numbered pages, then do that if you want to be published by them. If you don’t find yourself willing (or able) to comply with their query or submission process, you’re not going to want them to handle your book. (If they don’t say at all, then you can’t go wrong with Times New Roman, 12 point, ragged margins, double-spaced, in a Word .doc or a .pdf. Don’t do the clowns thing unless asked.)

4) Please, oh please, check your cover letter for typos, and also tone. It’s nice to sound human, but not so casual you seem inattentive.  Be positive and confident, but arrogance rarely goes over well. Don’t apologize. If you don’t have a degree in writing or you’ve never published before or you secretly worry that the manuscript everyone in your critique group loves is actually crap, keep all that to yourself. Explain the qualifications and publication history you do have, if any; but don’t point out any lacks if you don’t. Ultimately, it’s your book that’s going to be judged—not what sort of life you led in order to write it. Remember too that publishers are more interested in authors who have more than one book in them. They’re easier to promote, and all their books sell better. If you have more than one finished manuscript, or you have published in other places, or at least have ideas for future books, mention that.

5) Don’t submit a rough draft. Yes, you’ll get edited—although increasingly I see fiction editors giving a manuscript a copy edit, and not a content edit. Even if you’re lucky enough to be assigned the sort of editor who will work intensively with you, you should always submit your best effort. Someone should have read it in addition to you (and not someone romantically involved with you) and provided feedback, which you should have at least considered, if not taken on board. It goes without saying that you used a spellcheck, and also read it carefully for typos and errors with homonyms. This is your tryout. A publisher wants to see your very best writing.

6) (I was going to cheat and add this to one of the other five, but that would only be confusing.) Allow at least two months to hear back. If you don’t hear back after four months, it is perfectly fine to send a polite follow-up query.

*** 

I’ve worked as an editor for about ten years, three years in-house with a New York publisher, and the rest freelance. I’ve worked with three of the “Big Six Five” and numerous smaller presses. I’ve worked as a content editor, development editor, production editor, copy editor, and proofreader. I’m also a published author, with about 40 books (non-fiction) to my passport name, and to my pen name (erotica) one single-author anthology, a few single short stories, and short stories in anthologies with Cleis Press, Sizzler, and the Erotic Literary Salon. In 2010 I launched 1001 Nights Press, a small erotica publisher that I’d describe as “cautiously open” to new writers (cautious because of time commitments, not because you aren’t a fantastic writer). http://1001nightspress.com

What do editors look for? Sedonia Guillone

 Author and publisher, Sedonia Guillone has more than fifty novels, novellas and short stories published at Ellora's Cave, Red Sage, Loose Id, Torquere Press, and Total-e-Bound Publishing.

1. work as hard as you can on Improving your craft BEFORE you submit anything. The best way I have found to do this is 1. to get with a good critique partner who will be honest with you about your writing and not just tell you your writing is fabulous all the time and 2. to get a copy of Self-Editing For Fiction Writers, study it well and apply the lessons. if an editor has to renovate your work completely then you will find yourself getting rejection letters rather than acceptances.

2. Be a good writer to work with. Don't argue with your editor on his/her suggestions or reject any of them out of hand. Weigh everything thoughtfully. In other words: DON'T be a writing diva. Be polite and timely and respectful and editors will be happy to work with you and even help you along to push up release dates and things like that.

3. When going over your work, out yourself in the reader's place. Is what you're trying to say coming through clearly? In other words approach your writing with objectivity. Many authors know what they mean in their head but the meaning doesn't come through clearly in the words they choose.

4. This tip is for erotica writers: make sure your erotic scenes are sensual. Don't use words for body parts that are gross and crude. Make sure your erotic scenes are part of the natural flow of the story and not artificially stuck into the story. Also make sure you don't have people doing things that in reality are physically impossible or out of character for that person.

5. It's always good to make a print copy of your work and read it on paper we revising. You'd be surprised at how different the pacing is on paper as opposed to the computer screen.


Sedonia Guillone now owns and operates Ai Press, an erotic romance publisher of e-books and trade paperbacks. You can find her work at www.sedoniaguillone.com and www.ai-press.net.

What do editors look for? D L King

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

What do editors look for? Pepper Mason

 Pepper Mason is an up-and-coming artist, author, and editor of high quality erotic short stories. She began writing as a hobby in 2003, but began self-publishing as an independent author earlier this year in hopes of one day cultivating the hobby into a full-time career. She has edited several works of friends and colleagues off the books, and all of her personal work, services and contact information can be found at peppermasonbooks.weebly.com.

1) I cannot stress this enough. Independent authors should never publish a book without letting at least one (preferably more than one) other person proof read it. No matter how many times you read your own work, there are bound to be errors that you’ll miss. Even if you can’t afford editing services, have a friend or colleague read over your manuscript for you. (Other independent authors on a budget may be willing to trade proof reads. Just ask!)

2) Microsoft Word's spelling and grammar check will never be able to replace human comprehension. It can’t tell you when something is written awkwardly, and it doesn’t cover the entire gamut of punctuation misuse. It will also oftentimes miss words that are misspelled, when those words end up being spelled correctly but with a different meaning. Never assume you’ve corrected all of your errors with a simple run of this or any spell/grammar checking program.

3) Be careful with continuity. If your character is slowly pushing up the silky green fabric of her lover’s shirt to expose his washboard abs, please make sure he wasn’t shirtless in the prior scene. Things like this are easy to miss when you’re plowing through plot like a person possessed.

4) Repetition. I have found this to be a common plague amongst the writing community, even within the work of professionally edited and published authors. Be careful not to use the same phrases and words over and over again. You have a thesaurus at hand any time you’re connected to the internet; you can find another word for ‘walked’. Try ‘moved’, ‘trudged’, ‘cantered’, ‘stalked’, ‘slouched’, ‘stomped’, or ‘marched’ instead. It sets the tone for how the character is moving, instead of simply informing the reader that he is, in fact, moving. Also be careful with the infamous “He did this, he did that” repetition. Characters can be addressed in a number of ways, and not always at the beginning of a sentence. You can replace ‘he’ with things such as the character’s name, ‘the blonde boy’, ‘the young man’ etc, etc.

5) Plot. Even if you’re writing a four-thousand word short erotica, plot is important. It holds the entire story together. I always recommend creating a detailed outline of your plot before beginning to write. Even a loose plan can help you organize your plot, and keep your story from dragging on or becoming nonsensical. Make sure your plot makes sense and flows smoothly before you put a single word in that .doc file. It will save you a lot of time and frustration in the long run.

More of Pepper Mason's work can be found at peppermasonbooks.weebly.com.

What do editors look for? Treva Harte

Treva Harte became co-owner and Editor-in -Chief of Loose Id in 2004. She holds a B.A..in English Literature from University of Arizona (high honors), a M.A. in English Literature from University of Virginia and a J.D. from University of Virginia. She is a member of the Virginia and D.C. bars. From 1988 until 2008 she was a Trademark Examining Attorney for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Treva is also multi-published with several e-publishers in print and e-book, is a member of EPIC, RWA, including the Passionate Ink and Rainbow Romance Writers Chapters, has been a member of PAN, and was winner of the CAPA 2003 award in the "Erotic Fantasy Romance" category.

1) Put your email addy on your manuscript.  Things can be separated, even in cyberspace, and definitely on paper.  It’s incredibly frustrating to read a ms. and then try to figure out how to contact someone.

2)      Read the guidelines if you want to up the odds of it being read by the editor.  Read some other books by the company to up the odds of it being accepted by the publisher. 

3)      Like what you write. Like the genre you write in. Those who do tend not to burn out.  Editors can tell you’re unhappy as you slow down and get cranky about edits.  Slow, cranky authors are no fun.

4)      Be proud of what you write.  If you’ve done the best you can do with it, don’t waste your time apologizing or picking apart mistakes that have been made.  Learn and move on by writing the next book.  Editors love to see authors getting better at their craft. 

5)      Don’t demand validation from your editors—or anyone else.  Editors may or may not give it and if they do, it might not be in the way you want.  Readers may or may not respond to your work.  If you do get nice reviews and fan squee, there will be plenty of people waiting to tear apart any praise.  On the other hand, getting feedback from your editor about strengths and weaknesses in your writing and what you should be working on next is useful for you and your writing career with a publisher.

To find out more about Treva Harte, Eic Loose Id, visit www.loose-id.com or 

http://treva2007.livejournal.com/ (Loose Change, a blog Treva sometimes maintains that includes writing and publishing tips).

What do editors look for? Brenda Knight

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What do editors look for? Alison Tyler

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What do editors look for? Lucy Felthouse

 Lucy Felthouse is a writer and editor of erotica and erotic romance. She likes variety, so is usually working on several projects at once. Published anthologies include: Uniform Behaviour, Seducing the Myth, Smut by the Sea and Smut in the City. The latter two are co-edited with Victoria Blisse. 

1) Read as many books as you can get your hands on—especially in your chosen genre. 

2) Learn to edit your own work—don’t risk editors being put off by poor spelling and grammar, repetition and so on.

3)  Don’t use crazy fonts. Something plain and easy to read like Times New Roman or Arial is fine. 

4) Research what editors/publishers actually want. If they give instructions for submitting to them, follow them to the letter. 

5) Be professional and polite in your covering letter. You don’t have to write much (unless it’s specified) but let the editor know what you’re sending, what it’s for (bear in mind they’re probably working on several projects at once) and the word count. You can include a bio and story blurb if you wish, but if it’s needed straight away, an editor will usually ask for it.

Find out more about Lucy’s writing and editing projects at http://lucyfelthouse.co.uk

What do editors look for? Sacchi Green

 Sacchi Green is an award-winning writer and editor of erotica and other stimulating genres. Her stories have appeared in scores of publications, including Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Women’s Erotica, Best Lesbian Romance, Best Transgender Erotica, Best Fantasy Erotica, and Penthouse. In recent years she’s taken to wielding the editorial whip, editing nine lesbian erotica anthologies, most recently for Cleis Press.

A collection of her own work, A Ride to Remember, is out from Lethe Press. Five of her books were Lambda Literary Award finalists, and Lesbian Cowboys, co-edited with Rakelle Valencia, won the Lambda for lesbian erotica in 2010. Two books, Lesbian Lust and A Ride to Remember, were winners of GCLS awards.

Below are Sacchi Green's tips for writers, and a couple of her pet peeves:

1) Tell a story as only you can tell it. Be familiar with other writing in your genre, but don’t imitate anyone else. As an editor I look for an original approach and a distinctive voice; something to set a story apart from all the thousands I’ve seen before. Surprise me!

2) Make your characters so real that the reader can tell them apart just by the way they act and speak, even when you don’t specify who’s speaking.

3) Pay attention to the rhythm of your prose. Vary the length and structure of your sentences (unless, of course, you use short, choppy sentences or long, rambling ones to make a certain point or define a character.)

4) Don’t assume that grammatical constructions you see over and over must be correct, or should be used over and over. There’s no need for sentence after sentence, or even paragraph after paragraph, to begin with a participial phrase such as “Opening the door, she crossed the room.” Think about that. Is the room so small one could cross it while still in the process of opening the door? Even when there’s no such grammatical problem, overuse of “ing” looks amateurish (and is, obviously, one of my pet peeves.) There are other more varied ways of avoiding too many sentences that start with “she” or the character’s name.

5) And speaking of pet peeves, particularly when dealing with erotica, PLEASE be sure you know whether your character’s movements and actions are physically possible. I’m not talking about superhuman endurance, or strength; I’m just considering logistics. Remember whose various parts are where, and don’t tie the reader’s (and editor’s) mind in knots trying to figure out how what was up is suddenly down, and why what faced one direction (and was, in fact, tied that way) is suddenly available for full frontal play. This sort of thing can apply to any scenes of concentrated action, erotic or otherwise, but interrupting the flow of a sex scene is especially, well, frustrating.

Find Sacchi online at http://sacchi-green.blogsot.com, FaceBook. Live Journal (http://sacchig.livejournal.com/ ), and the Lesbian Fiction Forum (http://www.lesbianfiction.org/viewforum.php?f=53)