Carol M
asked
Wendy Sparrow:
Be happy to review your Lip Service in Virtually Yours an Anthology, but am unable to find it as a book in Amazon or Good Reads. I try not to review Anthologies as a single book, but only the books or stories in the anthology. So. How do I do this? Also, how do you decide to participate in an anthology? What are the criterion and how do you choose whose works will appear in the anthology?
Wendy Sparrow
Hey Carol,
The Virtually Yours Anthology was a limited release available from April 1st to October 1st and is no longer being sold in stores as a set. Individual authors might be choosing to release theirs outside of the set in the near future. I will probably be self-publishing Lip Service in the next six months so it'll appear on its own then. Is that what you were asking?
I was not in charge of this anthology. Kait Nolan was the overall editor. She asked each author individually to submit something. I've recently started to be asked to submit things to anthologies...which is just the nicest thing you can imagine. To know I'm gaining a reputation for being a good author to work with is just amazing. I get a little weepy thinking about it. Sometimes, anthologies have open submission. Like, for example, the Covalent Bonds Anthology out next year that I'm in. They had an open submission period of several months and I submitted, along with dozens of others, and was chosen for the final anthology.
The criteria varies. Some of these bundles available are looking for full novels, but most are expecting novellas which are 7K to 40K in words typically...though their expectation is usually tighter than that. The last few novella anthologies I've submitted to during open calls have had a 7K to 15K word limit. I seem to remember that Virtually Yours had an upper limit of 30K and I tend to squeak in right under an upper limit.
Virtually Yours revolved around a central theme of a virtual/imaginary boyfriend/girlfriend phone/web app. Covalent Bonds is a geek romance anthology. So, the theme can be broad or narrow. Sometimes anthologies use a holiday as a central theme or it can be something as general as "heroes." I typically go for more specific themes when submitting though Stealing Time was originally written for a holiday anthology. I like the challenge of specific themes.
Sometimes they're looking for a specific heat as far as romance goes. I write only sweet heat (for me that means no premarital sex or graphic descriptions if any sex--generally no sex or a quick fade-to-black, mild swearing, no alcohol or drug use.) I don't write inspirational though...so it's sometimes difficult to find a niche for adult romances that are sweet--especially in paranormal or suspense lines/anthologies.
Finally, as you've discovered, some anthologies are only available for a limited time while others remain on the market for years. The choice to take Virtually Yours off the market was a complicated one but done by consensus because Kait Nolan is a fabulous person to work with. In the end, many of the authors wanted to be able to release their work individually and that was a factor. Additionally, as I mentioned, it's not unusual for anthologies to be available for a limited time.
Anthologies can definitely be difficult to review as a whole. I, like you, give each story a rating and then typically rate the anthology as a whole, if that's the only way they're available, taking that into account. I've seen some really good stories surrounded by really lousy stories so if the story is listed separately, I'll hunt it down.
Does this answer all your questions? I do have a series of novella paranormal romances coming out in November that start with Stealing Time. If you'd like to get in on reviewing those, I can refer you to someone at my publishing house. I'm not sure if you cross over into contemporary paranormal romance or not. Or, as I said, I'll eventually release Lip Service on its own...when I find time. Thank you for taking the time to ask me a question.
The Virtually Yours Anthology was a limited release available from April 1st to October 1st and is no longer being sold in stores as a set. Individual authors might be choosing to release theirs outside of the set in the near future. I will probably be self-publishing Lip Service in the next six months so it'll appear on its own then. Is that what you were asking?
I was not in charge of this anthology. Kait Nolan was the overall editor. She asked each author individually to submit something. I've recently started to be asked to submit things to anthologies...which is just the nicest thing you can imagine. To know I'm gaining a reputation for being a good author to work with is just amazing. I get a little weepy thinking about it. Sometimes, anthologies have open submission. Like, for example, the Covalent Bonds Anthology out next year that I'm in. They had an open submission period of several months and I submitted, along with dozens of others, and was chosen for the final anthology.
The criteria varies. Some of these bundles available are looking for full novels, but most are expecting novellas which are 7K to 40K in words typically...though their expectation is usually tighter than that. The last few novella anthologies I've submitted to during open calls have had a 7K to 15K word limit. I seem to remember that Virtually Yours had an upper limit of 30K and I tend to squeak in right under an upper limit.
Virtually Yours revolved around a central theme of a virtual/imaginary boyfriend/girlfriend phone/web app. Covalent Bonds is a geek romance anthology. So, the theme can be broad or narrow. Sometimes anthologies use a holiday as a central theme or it can be something as general as "heroes." I typically go for more specific themes when submitting though Stealing Time was originally written for a holiday anthology. I like the challenge of specific themes.
Sometimes they're looking for a specific heat as far as romance goes. I write only sweet heat (for me that means no premarital sex or graphic descriptions if any sex--generally no sex or a quick fade-to-black, mild swearing, no alcohol or drug use.) I don't write inspirational though...so it's sometimes difficult to find a niche for adult romances that are sweet--especially in paranormal or suspense lines/anthologies.
Finally, as you've discovered, some anthologies are only available for a limited time while others remain on the market for years. The choice to take Virtually Yours off the market was a complicated one but done by consensus because Kait Nolan is a fabulous person to work with. In the end, many of the authors wanted to be able to release their work individually and that was a factor. Additionally, as I mentioned, it's not unusual for anthologies to be available for a limited time.
Anthologies can definitely be difficult to review as a whole. I, like you, give each story a rating and then typically rate the anthology as a whole, if that's the only way they're available, taking that into account. I've seen some really good stories surrounded by really lousy stories so if the story is listed separately, I'll hunt it down.
Does this answer all your questions? I do have a series of novella paranormal romances coming out in November that start with Stealing Time. If you'd like to get in on reviewing those, I can refer you to someone at my publishing house. I'm not sure if you cross over into contemporary paranormal romance or not. Or, as I said, I'll eventually release Lip Service on its own...when I find time. Thank you for taking the time to ask me a question.
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