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In case you didn't receive your Whortleaves this week, here's what it said:
February 4, 2012
Our printer has decided to continue their "Groundhog Day" sale, by giving people 20% off through today and tomorrow! (It was originally supposed to be only Feb. 1-3.) So WhP will do the same and continue our 20% off plan for STRANGE VALENTINES through Sunday. Putting two 20% price cuts makes a pretty good bargain, right? So if you haven't already snagged this fun and unusual 'romance' anthology (20 stories of love involving aliens, ghosts, robots and some other things) for your Valentine(s) there is still time. Just type in the word "MORESHADOW" when our printer, Lulu.com, requests the 'code word.' You can obtain STRANGE VALENTINES either from our website or from http://Lulu.com.
Alas, we can't announce publication of Strange Mysteries 4 today. My proof copy arrived -- with a significant error. So our printer gets another chance to do it right. I'm hoping I'll be able to tell you it's a "go" by next weekend.
But, in the meantime -- let's have some fun.
There are a couple of questions on the Forum at our Whortleberry Press website on which I'd really be interested in your opinions. Please take a look and let me know what you think. To get to the Forum, just click on http://WhortleberryPress.com and, at the top of the opening screen, click on "Forum."
See you there!
-- Jean
January 21, 2012
Here are the book covers for Strange Mysteries 4. Authors, please check the back cover to make sure your name is (1) present and (2) spelled correctly. If not, please let me know.
-- Jean
strangevalentinesfront.jpg" width="282" height="450" border="0">
December 3, 2011
STRANGE SUMMER MYSTERIES
A Day At The Beach
Deadline May 15, 2012
Reading period May 15 - June 15
Format June 15 - June 30
Publication date July 1, 2012
This one is a little different from our other collections in that it will be entirely edited by our Asst. Editor: Arthur Sanchez. (Jean will be taking a well-deserved vacation.) Submissions for Strange Summer Mysteries: A Day At The Beach will not be accepted at our regular email address but instead should be sent to: WHOPSummer@Yahoo.com. Same rules apply as to reading the Stylebook. So, read the Stylebook.
The theme for this collection is: "A Day At The Beach." Does that mean that your story has to be about a "a day at the beach?" No. It can be about how life isn't like a day at the beach. Or, it can involve the events that follow a very important day at the beach. All we ask is that it be Speculative Fiction, involve a mystery, and somehow relate to a day at the beach. So feel free to write about the beach on an alien world that runs along a ammonia sea, or a wizard's duel fought in the surf, or the insatiable hunger of sand fleas gone mad. Have fun with it.
Also, since we will be reading ALL of the stories submitted by the deadline, there will be competition for getting into the collection. Arthur will be happy to offer suggestions that could help get your story into the running. If you would welcome feedback on your story, please say so. Otherwise, Arthur will reject stories with the standard: "not right for our collection" tag line.
Email any questions you have to WHOPSummer@Yahoo.com and keep you eyes on the Forum as Arthur will be posting announcements and opinions designed to give you a better idea of what he's looking to include in the anthology.
December 1, 2011
Writers with stories in Strange Valentines 2012
Alyson B. Cresswell
Barry R Hunter
Carl Palmer
David Perlmutter
Elizabeth Creith
Glen Batchelor
J. J. Steinfeld
James Hartley
Janett L. Grady
Jeffery Scott Sims
Ken Staley
Lyn Mcconchie
Marilyn K. Martin
Mark Mills
Peter Lingard
Rachel Ayers
Sherry Chancellor
T.L. Bodine
Walt Staples
Writers, if there is any error in your name, please let me know now.
--Jean
November 27, 2011
One of our writers, Marilyn Martin, mentioned to me a very interesting site where people can get their YA books promoted -- for free, even! Here is her info, which she graciously allowed me to reprint to inform you:
As a new writer, I was in the same boat of trying to find free and honest reviewers that weren't "sock puppets", or friends and family. I did a Google search of "free reviewers of YA Science Fiction", and sent out a lot of e-mails - most of which went unanswered.
TeensReadToo.com is a review site for teen books, and they responded. One of their reviewers agreed to read and review my books, and I sent the reviewer a copy of my books. Six months later she posted her reviews on Amazon and Barnes and Noble (on-line). It was all free, except for my small expense of mailing the reviewer my books. Months later, I was awarded their Gold Star For Excellence awards. (I'm not sure how that worked, but I guessed maybe another reviewer and/or the lady that runs the site did a confirmation-review, and then awarded the Gold Stars.)
The reviewer - whom I thanked - said she'd passed on my books to her sister who was a teacher, and her students read the books. This is important too, since with school libraries being closed in budget crunches, many teachers are starting their own lending-libraries in their classrooms. I'm not benefiting from all these readers monetarily, but perhaps I'll have a small-and-growing audience ready when I publish the rest of the books in the series.
So Good Luck in dealing with the site. The ladies are very nice, just be prepared to wait up to 6 months (or more) for a reply.
Marilyn K. Martin
Thanks, Marilyn -- this is definitely interesting!
-- Jean
November 13, 2011
Looks like our forthcoming antho is going to be STRANGE VALENTINES -- it polled twice as many votes as the runner-up. Thanks to all who participated.
-- Jean
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