Did I do that?!

Hi! Callie Lynn here. First I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Halloween and a Blessed Samhain!

I'd like to talk about something I've come across quite a lot recently in Black Rose submissions. I believe that for the most part this is done unintentionally and not in anyway meant to copy another author's work, but it may be construed as plagiarism or at the very least a copyright issue. So with that said, let me move on to the point.

I have noticed several story submissions on my own desk recently that have mirrored other works dangerously.

With a lot of emphasis and I might add a good amount of very good books, movies, and shows out there in the last several years on the subject of vamps and shifters, I notice more and more submissions are coming in with all too familiar themes, storylines, and even down to character and setting. While watching everything you, as an author, can in the genre you enjoy writing in the name of research, which by the way I do myself, we must keep in mind that NEVER and I do mean NEVER are we able to adopt any piece of that original work for our own. Nor may we borrow characters from those works. Characters are part of copyrighted creative works and may not be used unless express permission is given by said creator.

For instance, I have recently delved into several older vamp series which many have perhaps forgotten about and noticed similarities on some of the mythology of the creatures who we adore. "Moonlight" depicts Nick St. John as a PI gumshoe-type vamp who sleeps in a freezer and is able to move around in daylight as long as it is overcast much like those in "Twilight." "Blood Ties" goes the opposite direction with the human, Vickie Nelson, a police detective turned PI due a progressive eye disease and who partners with 450 year old vamp, Henry, a descendant of royalty who sniff out nothing but otherworldly evil-doings. These are great stories and unique in their own way. But though some of the finer points may mirror other stories you can not borrow the obvious.

Things such a daywalking, no heartbeat or pulse, changing to counterpart animal on the full moon or whenever the mood urges you is fine. No reflection or having a reflection, all fine. Needing to feed every day or once in awhile due to age, again fine. The thing is to beware of having a group of teens or adults who live in Forks that are vamps. That is Twilight to millions of people and especially Stephanie Myers who owns rights to her story and her characters.

More recently the infamous "True Blood" has give us even more unique twist to vampirism, as well, wolf/shape shifters, demons and so much more. We eat all these shows up as well the many authors such as Laurell K. Hamilton, J. R. Ward, Anne Rice, Christine Feehan, and so many others who have created such lustfully attractive monsters with hearts and hot bods. But as writers, we need to figure out a way to create unique storylines and different themes with a risk that no one has thought up yet. How do we do that while our minds are wrapped around the awesome books, TV series, or movies we have rolling around in our heads? Well, my friends, there in lies the question. Only you can answer through your own means of filtering out what's already been done.

The moral of this post is to be aware of what you write. Be careful not to weave a wonderful tale that comes too close to something that has already been done and by all means, NEVER borrow characters from other's work. You do not want to find somewhere down the line that you have stepped on someone toes or copyright.

Callie Lynn Wolfe

Senior Managing Editor

Black Rose Imprint

The Wild Rose Press
callielynnwrp@aol.com

Holy haunted house!!! I woke this morning and realized we are midway through October! How does that happen? October is my favorite month and, of course, being a Black Rose editor Halloween is, by far, my favorite holiday:)

Note:(The above picture is an actual house which is part of an old insane asylum that we used to haunt when I was a teenager. It has been deserted for many years and holds a gruesome history that has been replayed on Ghost Hunter episodes and historical discussions through time. I remember sitting in the middle of the night staring into the wooded area surrounding this compound shaking with adrenolin coursing through my veins. Ah... the bravery of youth! A Philadelphia radio station has been known to hold a Halloween Haunted house event at this location in the past. I believe more currently that most of these buildings may have been demolished. But I am sure that miserable and mistreated souls still haunt these sad grounds.)

In case you don't know me, I am Callie Lynn Wolfe, Senior Editor of TWRP's Black Rose Line. And, of course, this is our most active time of year, as you can well imagine. We are busy interacting with all our friends from the darker side of the garden.

An oasis of silvery moonlight shining down upon alabaster statuary in an Old
English Rose garden filled with you guessed it--Black Roses. In our midst are the to die for vamps, the hot weres, the fiesty demons and, of course, we are always looking for the elusive gargoyles as well other creatures our authors can scare up from their very vivid imaginations. Our heros and heroines are predators but they do have a soft side. You just have to know to pull it out of them:)

We will be dropping in and out to guide you through ebony paths and silvery forests for the rest of the month. The Black Rose staff is Lill Farrell, Joel Walker, Eilidh Mackenzie, Corinne MacGregor and Amanda Barnett all of which will share their scariest moments with you. I will be stopping in periodically with my special haunted memories as well.




I wish you all a very ghoulish and frightening Halloween and a most Blessed Samhain. Now I must prepare for the annual masquarade and dance of the dead celebrations. Please do join us. We would love to have you--literally!

Dark blessings,

Callie~

FAERY IS MYSTICAL, MAGICAL, OUT OF THIS WORLD & SO MUCH MORE !

Although, a lot of readers and authors think paranormal is filled with Vamps, Weres, and Demons, there are other entities that are served up on the Faery Rose line. Below will give you just a glimpse into what we have for readers and what we want from authors, whether you are pubbed already or looking to break into the literary world of romance.


Fairy Tales are not just for children. Our recently revamped Faery line is a place where you can allow your imagination a free rein to create romance with mystical and mythical characters. Picture if you will, a faery hero who is not the cartoon equivalent but a strong sensual male who knows what he wants and goes after his leading lady. Dragons don't just frolic in the mist but turn into mortal men and women with love and lust on their minds. Elves who are not meek or from Santa Land but have minds and hearts of their own, looking for love with a bit of mischief thrown in. Ghosts who come back to life for the love of their life and wizards, warlocks, and witches who crank up the romance like they spit out a spell. Futuristic worlds, filled with science fiction warriors who can wield a sword as well as a laser and not afraid, be they woman or man, to go after what their heart desires. Time travels moving through centuries with the hero and heroine seeking not the secrets of the ages but love. Sweet, sensual, spicy or hot, authors wishing to query should be acquainted with our guidelines for submissions.


Now, having read the above, the key word is romance. We at Faery want what any other editor out there craves--a tale of romance that will transport us out of our daily grind, make the world's problems go away for a bit, and something that will make us remember the book long after we turn the last page.


My personal favs for Faery subs are time travels that bring the past to the present. I also have a soft spot for Science fiction or futeristics, whichever you prefer. My main goal, however, is to find a manuscript that I would buy myself. That is how I judge a submission and it is what I tell the lovely editors on Faery.


Authors should never be afraid to explore the unusual but make sure you keep on top the main ingredient, romance, in what you submit.


Now, readers, I would love to hear from you!! Tell me what you want!! Tell me what makes you crave in a book, and what you would stand in line
to buy!

Next, and you will be hearing more from Frances Sevilla, a culmination of questions and answers for our writers.

How should you decide which line is right for your manuscript?

Read the line descriptions. Faery Rose for instance... Faeries can be both good and bad. Are we all rainbows, lollipops, and starlight? No. Our time travel can take you to dark places. Some of the witches in our books may practice black magic. Our ghosts can be gruesome. We might be a sweet romance or spicy hot romance, but we are always ROMANCE.

What do we represent?

The promise our line makes to our readers is a HEA [happily ever after] for the hero and heroine. One other thing—perhaps the most important thing—is that this story is about THEIR ROMANCE. They may have to overcome demons, travel to distant planets or through time, but they should do it TOGETHER for most of the story.

So if you think your book fits into the Faery line, read a few of our free reads, and then do your homework. Look at what we don’t want for the line, and then make sure if we request your full manuscript, that you format it to our guidelines. Make the editor’s job as easy as possible to accept your book.

Why did your manuscript get rejected?

First, ask the big question... Is it a rejection letter or a revision letter?

One of the biggest mistakes a new author can make is misunderstanding this concept. Agents and editors may not tell you to change something unless you are contracted with them. Before you’re contracted they may suggest changes they think will move your manuscript closer to a contract.

Let’s say you get a letter you think is a rejection. What should you look for?

Is the letter detailed with a few SPECIFIC suggestions for ways to revise the manuscript? Then do it. You haven’t been rejected. Resubmit it.

Are there pages of suggestions? Someone has taken a great deal of time to review your work. They wouldn’t do that if they weren’t serious about encouraging you. You haven’t been rejected. Do it and resubmit.

Are there major revisions suggested? If so, your decision may be more difficult. Send a letter back advising what you are willing to change and what you are not. The ball is in the agent’s or editor’s court. They may have to reject your manuscript based on your answers.

When is it really a rejection letter?

When the letter states that the manuscript does not comply with our publishing or line guidelines, it probably means you should find a different home for your manuscript.

One of the hardest things for an editor to do is reject an excellent manuscript because it doesn’t meet The Wild Rose Press or Faery Rose guidelines. An excellent story, plot, characterization, and voice won’t work if we don’t publish your specific type of story.


We are looking forward to keeping you entertained, interacting with readers and writers during our part of the paranormal month here at The Wild Rose Press. You will be seeing the editors I am so proud of, Claudia Fallon, Sarah Hansen, Kelly Schaub, and Frances Sevilla, when they post some of the ideas dear to their heart!

Remember if you never open a book either print or ebook, you will never be able to find the treasure inside!

Hugs! Amanda Barnett/Senior Editor/Faery Rose

It's October! With that comes...

Indian Summer, Octoberfest, firey autumn colors but most important Halloween, All Hallow's Eve, Samhain!

WELCOME TO PARANORMAL MONTH AT THE WILD ROSE PRESS:)

I am Callie Lynn Wolfe, Senior Editor of the Black Rose Imprint here at TWRP. I have been with TWRP from almost the beginning. I have been fortunate enough to watch this company grow and thrive under the tender cultivating efforts of RJ and Rhonda. I have also watched the Black Rose line grow and it still is. I absolutely love the darker side of the garden and my mission is to see it thrive.

That said, I wanted to tell you a bit about the line, our new blog and what we've got up our sleeves this year to celebrate Paranormal Month.

As you all know, we ran the Got Wolf? contest last year. This year we are celebrating the winners as well as the release of the two Anthologies. I am excited about both books and the collection of stories they hold. We will start October off at the Black Rose blog with the various authors of Got Wolf, so please don't miss any of that. Then we will slide into discussions about the many different aspects of Halloween/Samhain legend, history, tradition and all the creatures that make up the term Paranormal. The darker side, that is

For the next week or so the Black Rose editors will drop in and talk to you about themselves and the upcoming events.

For more information on submission requirements for Black Rose, please visit our guidelines page.

Below is a brief description of what we look for in our stories:

The Black Rose Line at The Wild Rose Press is actively open for spicy to very hot story submissions.

The darker side of the garden seeks steamy, Alpha male or female weres, to die for vamps, or any other delicious mystical creature you have locked up in your wildest imaginations. These stories should include vampires, werewolves, shape shifters, and mystical creatures of all types. The stories are darker, but must have a strong romance theme as the central story thread. We are open to a wide range of stories, and because these creatures tend to be sensual in nature, Black Rose accepts manuscripts that fit the Sensual, Spicy, and Hot ratings parameters, but sex should not be used as the main story thread.

Black Rose is open for submissions as we speak, so if you have a dark tale to tell we're your line.

I want to mention some other great perks this month for Paranormal month. All paranormal books will be on sale all month! So please do hop over and check them out. We have a wonderful selection to choose from.

One other thing I'd like to say. Keep an eye on the The Black Rose Blog daily because you never know when someone will be offering a prize or giving away free stuff and books. This is our month, and we're up to no good or should I say lot's of ghoulish fun:) Don't miss a trick or treat.

We look forward to haunting you all month long. Welcome to the darker side. Step on in and feel the chill. No worries though. I'm sure one of our HOT heroes or heroines will be along shortly to warm you up.

Callie Lynn
callielynnwrp@aol.com