What makes Spice Editor, Susan Swinwood, want to buy a story?
Cathleen Ross, author of Spice Brief, Psychic Sex finds out.
What sorts of stories are you seeing far too many of lately? Is there anything in particular you’re looking for?
Well, it’s the same old answer, I’m afraid – I’m looking for a really well-written story. I like to have a nice variety of books in any given year, but I won’t buy a weak paranormal, for example, just to have one in the schedule. I’d rather have ten or twelve excellent contemporaries than buy a particular sub-genre simply to have something different. One thing I’ve told to various groups over the past year or so is that it’s very easy for me to tell which authors are serious about writing erotic fiction. Unfortunately, there are many writers who are jumping on the erotica bandwagon and cranking out a sexy story because they think it’s easy and they’re more likely to get published. This just isn’t true. Good erotica is as difficult to write as any other kind of fiction, and should be taken just as seriously. By page three I can see which authors have taken the time to study the genre, to understand what makes good erotica good, to read competitive titles, and which are doing it as a lark.In terms of what I’ve seen too much of lately, there always seems to be a disappointingly high amount of clichéd storylines. Characters who have sworn off dating because of one bad breakup…heroines who have sworn off sex or are virgins…heroines who think “I’ll just have sex with him to scratch the itch” and then fall deeply in love… While there’s nothing technically wrong with any of these scenarios when they’re done well, most of the time they just aren’t. Avoid the clichés, ladies! Think about modern women today, what they’re experiencing in careers, in relationships, in families, in friendships. Don’t rely on the standard motivations for your heroines. Think about real people and how they are coping, dealing, living.
What’s the most misguided thing an author has done to try to make their story stand out from the slush?
Two things pop to mind… One, it’s never necessary for an author to send gifts or treats along with their submission. It makes editors feel awkward – we’re not supposed to accept gifts from authors, and we feel doubly bad if we have to reject the project. Seeing great writing will be a gift in itself for us!!! Also, it’s never appropriate to contact an editor directly, either by phone or email, to discuss or enquire about the status of a submission. I know how difficult it is to wait for a reply, but please understand the sheer volume of submissions we receive makes it impossible for us to remember off the top of our head who you are or which was your submission. We do our best to reply to everyone in a reasonable amount of time, and we appreciate everyone’s patience. ·
What types of Erotic Fiction are you looking for? Comedy, Drama, Horror, etc…
From a personal standpoint, I love a good dramatic or quirky historical or contemporary novel. For some reason, I’m drawn to darker, edgier stories – don’t know what that says about me! – but that’s not to say I won’t appreciate other sub-genres. Paranormal is something I’ve been looking for but have not seen anything that works just yet. A while back I hoped to find some great erotic dramatic suspense (like a super-hot episode of Law & Order), but I’m beginning to think that the mix of police procedural and erotica doesn’t work so well. Same goes for comedy – I’ve always maintained that comedy is the most difficult genre to write, and so few do it really well. Add to that the erotic component – also very difficult to write believable sex – and you’ve got the literary equivalent of truffles: very rare and very valuable! It’s more reasonable for an author to write with some humorous elements rather than going for all-out laughs. ·
Do you print out and read your manuscripts or use an e-reading device? If so, which one?
With the exception of Spice Briefs, we only accept hard copies of manuscripts, so that’s what I read. Maybe I’m a bit of a dinosaur, but I prefer to read off of paper – it’s much easier for me to make notes and edits. I tend to print off Spice Brief submissions to read rather than doing it on screen. I’m sure e-reading will be upon us soon enough, so you’ll have to check back in another year or so. · Do you accept submissions from authors overseas? And if so, are there any special arrangements you have to make with them? We do indeed accept manuscripts from overseas, and in fact have authors from all over the world writing for Harlequin. We occasionally make special arrangements with those who are in remote areas, or for whom couriers are prohibitively expensive or difficult to access. ·
What is the best/worst part of being an Buyer?
The best is obviously being able to discover new authors for the Spice program. It’s a bit like finding a pearl after opening hundreds of oysters. And being able to make an offer to a first-time author – essentially making a dream come true — is a delight like none other. The worst part…well, I suppose that’s dealing with the volume of submissions and knowing there are real people waiting anxiously for a reply, but you can only go one manuscript at a time. I hate having to make people wait, knowing that I would be chewing off my fingers if the situation was reversed. · Do you read for pleasure and if so, what do you enjoy reading? Ah, good question. Before I became an editor I read voraciously. But in the last few years I haven’t read much for pleasure. I’m still reading the sixth Harry Potter novel, with number seven gathering dust on my bedside table. I enjoy non-fiction, particularly biographies, travel-adventure and historicals, and am half-way through the Julia Child autobiography that came out last year. I was just in the bookstore yesterday and made a mental shopping list of about a dozen books I want to buy…I know my husband will buy me a couple for Christmas but sadly they too will languish on the bed stand way into the New Year.
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What kind of heroes and heroines suit erotic books?
All kinds! The same kinds of heroes and heroines who we read about in other novels, from average Joe-types to kings of England, from girls-next-door to fairy princesses – whoever your characters are, they can have an experience that entertains and captivates us. · Do the stories that you consider have to have a happy ending? Absolutely not! What I want is a satisfying ending, which essentially means that the story ends in a logical place, with whatever the crisis or challenge has been resolved one way or another. I’ve stated from the very beginning, Spice books are not traditional romances. They can contain romantic elements, but I do not need there to be a happy-ever-after ending between a man and woman. Give me a realistic ending, and I’m happy. ·
How deep should the emotions go in a story?
Regardless of what genre you write, characters’ emotions should run pretty deep, or at least deep enough for readers to like them, to understand their situations, and to ultimately feel sympathetic towards them. You have to engage your readers, and if you give them one-dimensional characters with superficial emotion, readers aren’t going to care to read beyond chapter three.·
What do you see in the future for Spice Briefs? Short-term? Long-term? Well, we’re still in very early days. We’re currently publishing two-to-three stories per month, and that seems to be a successful number at the moment. To be honest, so many of the e-book publishing decisions are made without Editorial, because it has to do with budgets, sales, analysis…areas that I personally don’t have a hand in. I’d love to see sales continue to be strong, and to have more great reviews and feedback from readers. For the future, I wouldn’t be surprised if we eventually grow to four or more Briefs per month. ·
Could you describe the process that you go through to make your decision?
For Spice Briefs, it’s really not that complicated. My team and I read the submissions off of the Spice Briefs in-box, and decide whether they’re good enough for a second read or if they’re not quite right for us. After a second read, if we choose to purchase it, we contact the author or agent and negotiate a deal. It’s much easier a process because we don’t have to have the story reviewed by the acquisition team, who make the final decisions on all our regular paper books. I’m lucky that I’ve been given the authority to accept or reject Spice Briefs…I’m quite drunk with power. ·
How long does the process usually take from submission to publication? We’re aiming for a three-month turn-around, but it can sometimes be longer. When we first announced Spice Briefs, we were flooded with over 200 submissions, and at that time I was the only person reviewing them. We now have two other readers (thank heaven!) and we’ve been playing catch-up ever since. But as we’re still receiving 4-10 new Spice Briefs every day, it’s very challenging to get through the long list of submissions on top of all the other work we have to do in a given week. ·
Who are your favorite authors?
Tough question! Are you asking about my favorite authors outside of Spice? I guess Roald Dahl is my all-time favorite, both for his children’s classics and his suspenseful short stories, but I also adore David Sedaris, Amy Tan and Roddy Doyle. If you’re asking about Spice authors, I’m afraid I can’t give you an answer! It’s like asking a mother to pick her favorite child. I bought each Spice and Spice Brief author because of their superior writing and imaginative stories, there’s no way I could pick a favorite!
