You've heard the rumors...

Me? An editor?

Yep. I took the plunge! Under the leadership of the lovely and talented Nina Bruhn, I've agreed to be an editor for Entangled Publishing's new category romantic suspense line, Dead Sexy.

I'd been a long-time admirer of Liz Pelletier who started Entangled. I'd read a few of their books and enjoyed them...actually, I super loved THE WHAT IF GUY (by Brooke Moss). So when she told me the concept she was considering for a category-length romantic suspense line, I was intrigued.

When Nina Bruhn, a writing friend tapped to be editorial director for the line, asked me if I'd ever considered editing, I realized that if I ever would consider being an editor...this was the line and this was the time.

So now I'm not just your friendly author who loves to teach; I'm an editor for an exciting new line.

Does this mean I'll stop writing? No. I love my Harlequin Romances. And adore my editor, Sally.

Does this mean I'll stop teaching? Nope. I consider it a sacred duty to help as many people as I can achieve their dream of getting published.

Becoming an editor is just an extension of both of those.

This is a really cool time in publishing. The Internet makes it possible to learn the craft of writing virtually at the speed of light. Facebook and Twitter make it possible to know exactly what editors are looking for, cutting submission time and errors down to nothing if you're savvy. And epublishing makes it possible to submit and see your story for sale on Amazon in what feels like the blink of an eye.

I'm thrilled to be part of it!

Scroll down for the guidelines for the new, exciting DEAD SEXY line!

susan

DEAD SEXY: The Nina Bruhns Collection is Entangled Publishing’s dynamic new line of 50-70K word, branded category-style romantic suspense/mystery/thriller novels. Our DEAD SEXY editors are looking for bold voices and compelling stories that will pull our readers into a page-turning world of thrills, sizzles, chills, and intrigue. Whether you write sweet or steamy, cops, para-ops, or special ops, cozy village sleuths, or mile-a-minute adventures, if your mystery, suspense, or thriller includes a romance with a happy, committed ending, we want to see it!
Make us gasp. Make us cry. Make us think. Make our hearts pound. Make us feel the rush of adrenaline and the zing of DEAD SEXY attraction. And do it all in less than 70K words.
As do all our lines, DEAD SEXY offers authors e-royalties of 40% of cover price. These books will be priced competitively, and sold digitally only.
Specifically, our DEAD SEXY editors want to see:
• Category-style novels with category feel and category flair
• Quality storytelling, quality writing, expertly crafted story-structure
• A ratio of suspense/mystery to romance of anywhere from 20/80 to 80/20
• Authors who can seamlessly weave the romance with the suspense, mystery, or thrills
• Authors who know the classic storylines, but aren’t afraid to push creative boundaries
• Proven category plotlines such as woman-in-jeopardy, forced proximity, intimate strangers, snowbound, bodyguards, PIs, military heroes, para-ops, legal thrills, sheriffs, sleeping-with-the-enemy, and reluctant partners in crime or justice, just to name a few
• Plotlines outside the usual realm of category romance, such as amateur sleuth, hard-boiled detective, cozy mystery, medical/science, contemporary gothics, super-sensual thrillers—as long as the story has a strong, committed DEAD SEXY romance
• Stories with one main plot. No complicated multiple subplots. These are short books
• Well-developed characters with emotional depth, even in plot-driven stories
• Pacing appropriate to the story—active storylines and active characters, even if they take their time resolving the story issue (mystery, crime, etc)
• Any level of sensuality from closed door to super steamy, but always DEAD SEXY
• From unpublished authors: stand-alone books only; queried ms must be completed
• From published authors: single or multi-author series or continuities welcome
• Manuscripts between 50-70K words in length
• Authors previously published in category romance are especially welcome; revised backlist titles will be considered on a case by case basis
• DEAD SEXY will accept both agented and unagented submissions
To submit a manuscript for consideration, paste the following into an email:
• A one-page (400 word max) query letter containing your full contact info including phone number, agent’s info with phone, genre, title, word count, any pertinent writing credentials, where we can find you on the web (provide links), and a compelling one-sentence logline for your book (Google “Save The Cat logline” if unfamiliar).
• Up to the first twenty-five (25) pages of your manuscript; end at a natural break
• Published authors are encouraged to query with a proposal consisting of a query letter with all of the above, backlist info, fifty-ish (50) pages of your manuscript (= Act I), and a five (5) page max synopsis. We will sometimes ask for copies of two (2) previous books (print books okay), preferably within the same sub-genre as your submission.
• Please attach the above to your email as a .DOC, .DOCX, or .RTF file
• Send your query or proposal to: deadsexy-submissions@entangledpublishing.com