Acquiring Editor Donna O'Brien from Crescent Moon Press

Hey Donna, I am so happy to share my blog space with you today. Can we start off by having you tell the readers a little bit about yourself?

Thanks so much for having me Micole! Let’s see condensed version…I’ve got four kids, and two grandgirls. My husband and I will celebrate our 25^th Anniversary this year and he is my real life hero.

Tell us about the publishing house that you work for, Crescent Moon Press.

Short version: Completely awesome! A little longer version: Crescent Moon Press was formed as an independent boutique publisher and prides itself on writing out of the box story lines as well as its professionalism. We support our authors and provide assistance with marketing, publish simultaneously in print and digital formats and allow considerable input as far as cover design and titles.

Does Crescent Moon Press accept non agented writers?

Yes we do. We believe that diamond in the rough deserves a chance as well as the polished gem. So both agented and non-agented writers are welcome at CMP.

Is there something specific you are looking for in a manuscript?

I am actively seeking urban fantasy, sci-fi, time travel, high fantasy, a great new twist on an old myth, anything dark, dangerous and full of beings with that something extra that bring make believe to life, fast paced YA, and New Adult (17-25 y/o protags) with more on their mind than school and dating. If the premise is powerfully unique, the voice unforgettable, and the writing pristine, then I want to see that story.

What do you not want to see?

I do not want to see the same old, same old or a fabulous plot poorly written. That’s sooo disappointing.

Once you have fallen in love with a manuscript, where does it go from there?

I send a desperate plea to my publisher to let me buy the manuscript with a description of the story and why I think it would be marketable. If I get the approval, then I send an offer to the author.

What does a day in the life of an acquiring editor look like?

BUSY!!! LOL Reading submissions and queries, requesting fulls if I like the query. Editing manuscripts. Responding to authors questions about the progress of their book. Calming their anxieties if they are a new author. Rejecting queries. E-mails galore! Attending a conference here or there to accept pitches. Approving blurbs and bios. Um….I’m sure I left something out. Maybe eating something once and a while and then there’s the mom stuff too. ;)

Thank you Donna, for spending the day with us here at Micole Writes Romance.

Thanks again for having me Micole! I’d also like to invite any of your readers out there who are going to attend the RT Convention in April, to look me up. I’ll be available at the Crescent Moon Press Publisher’s Spotlight as well as taking pitches on Wednesday!

And because I had such a busy week and didn’t get a chance to pick a winner for the contest yet, we are going to extend it until Friday!! So if you haven’t entered yet, get your first and last line entered!! Good luck!

Make sure to get those pitches in readers. I can’t wait to announce the winners!!! Thank you all for spending your precious time with Donna and I today. Take care and I will see you her tomorrow when we announce the winners!

Until then. Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Micole

CONTEST ALERT!!!!

Good morning friends… WOW two blogs in two days!!! Pretty exciting right??? Well I thought you all might be interested to hear about a contest that is going on right here on my blog. My good friend, and acquiring editor, Donna O’brien has agreed to do a contest. The entrances must be ROMANTIC TALES OF FANTASY, SCIENCE FITCION, OR PARANORMAL stories. One lucky entrance will win a read of their full manuscript by Donna. Two lucky writers will get to submit their first three chapters. You will find all of the details below. And if you lose track of this blog post you can always check the side bar of my blog. All of the important stuff will be there! ;-) I am so excited. All of you writers out there get your first and last lines ready! Make sure to share the contest details with all of your writers friends and tell them to stop by the blog and enter. Good luck!!!!

How important is that first sentence? Extremely! But so is your final sentence because it’s the last thing your readers take away from your novel. Your final chance to make a lasting impression, if you will. ;) So enter your First Line AND your Last Line for a chance to submit the full manuscript to Crescent Moon Press!

1. Submit the first and last sentence only of your manuscript to Crescent Moon Press Acquisitions Editor, Donna O’Brien via e-mail: donna@crescentmoonpress.com by midnight on March 22, 2011.
2. Check the Micole Writes Romance blog @ http://www.micolewritesromance.blogspot.com/ on March 24, 2011, to see if you won.
3. There are three chances to win: 2nd and 3rd place will be able to submit their first three chapters and a synopsis and 1st place will be able to submit their full manuscript to Editor Donna O’Brien.
4. Crescent Moon Press publishes high quality fantasy, futuristic, and paranormal romantic fiction. See their website @ http://www.crescentmoonpress.com/ for more details.

If your full has that all important first line that will hook a reader and make them want to continue and a last line that will keep them coming back for more, then what are you waiting for? Submit them to Donna O’Brien, Crescent Moon Press Acquisitions Editor today!

Spotlight with Crescent Moon Press

It's Tuesday, which means it's Spotlight time. Today I have a very special guest, Marlene Castricato with, Crescent Moon Press. For those of you who are Romantic Science Fiction, Fantasy, or Paranormal writers looking to be published, you've come to the right place. Marlene answers all the questions you may have about her and her company.

Tell us about Crescent Moon Press…

MC * Crescent Moon Press is a boutique publisher of Romantic Science Fiction, Fantasy and Paranormal. We have several best selling authors in our line including Judi McCoy, Leanna Renee Hieber and Isabo Kelly. We are confident that several of our lesser known authors, will also become major contenders in the not so distant future.

We are a small press with a reputation for quality over quantity. We have it on good authority that some major publishers look at our line to find new talent.

How long have you been publishing?

MC* Launching a publishing house is not a small undertaking. We officially opened our doors for business in April 2007 at the RT conference in Pittsburgh. We began building our infrastructure about a year prior to that.


Are you currently taking submissions?

MC* We are always looking for a good story. As a boutique publisher, Crescent Moon Press, has the luxury of fast tracking a book. If the book is fairly ‘clean’, almost print ready, we can take it from submission to publication in under four months. That’s unheard of in most of the industry.


What genre of books are you looking for?


MC* Crescent Moon Press publishes Romantic Science Fiction, Fantasy and Paranormal. The themes tend to be out of the box. Often other publishers will say the story is ‘well written’ but they, themselves don’t have a line for. We are willing to take more chances.


We don’t accept erotica. However, providing the story has a well developed plot and the author has taken the time to develop commitment between characters and readers, we are open to all levels of heat. We say bring it on!


How many books a year do you publish?


MC* Crescent Moon Press publishes between 6 and 10 books a year. We are very selective.

We don’t just take a book on, we take an author on. We help them with website development, if that is what they need. Crescent Moon Press helps them secure interviews and blog tours. We have a Public Relations firm which works almost exclusively in helping our authors establish themselves

Several of our authors, who have since established themselves in the mass market, have come back to us with sequels. I think that speaks volumes for Crescent Moon Press. It’s all about building relationships.


I’ve noticed on your site that a lot of your books are receiving awards. Tell us a little bit about what you guys have received…


MC* We have some very talented authors. A number of our writers have both won or finaled for some prestigious awards. Barbara Romo, who came to us through our own writing contest, finaled for an Eppie. She finaled along side Christine Dodd, so she was in good company. Leaana Renee Hieber won the much coveted PRISM for Science Fiction.


I also saw on your site that you will be appearing at the Velocicon 2010. What is that? Can you give us information?

MC* We are all very excited about Velocicon. Velocicon is a full day of Parnormal. We have awards winning authors giving workshops all morning. The afternoon will be followed by lectures from experts in the paranormal field. Our Keynote speaker is Dave Goldberg, an Astrophysicist who will discuss the realities of time travel. We have TV personality Jell Belanger on unraveling the paranormal, NJ Ghost Hunters, from TV, to discuss tools and techniques of the trade. The list of participants is long and impressive. We are very excited about it. This is also an amazing opportunity to promote or market, for authors, vendors and artisans of paranormal. After the CON there will be a marketplace open to the public. Check out www.velocicon.com Discount and group rates may apply.





I love the book covers that a lot of the authors on your site have. Who does the art work?


MC* We have a very talented staff with great vision. Several of our award winning artists are Maythe Carpetino, Ash Roland, and Knanxa. You’ll see more of their work in the near future. We are also open to new talent, if an artist enjoys this genre and has vision we would encourage them to contact us.


What does Crescent Moon Press have coming up in 2010?


MC* We are very excited about Crescent Moon Press. We have a new futuristic series opening up the year. We also have some well established writers who will be joining us for select projects. Please sign up for our newsletter at www.crescentmoonpress.com Its chock full of news, contests and free reads.


Tell us about Marlene? I know you are a writer as well as your busy publishing life. What do you write?


MC* My own writing has taken a back seat to establishing Crescent Moon Press. Hopefully this coming year will be my year to get published as well. Yes, I am a publisher and that should make it easy for me to get my book in print. Not so. My Editor is tougher on me than anyone else submitting manuscripts. LOL!

My stories lean towards time travel. I don’t want to let the dragon out of the bag, so I’ll leave it at that. Though you’ll be amongst the first to know when I have any release dates.


Where do you see yourself as a writer in 5 years? And your publishing company?


MC* I see great success in my future! I also see great success for anyone who wants to align themselves with Crescent Moon Press! We have worked very hard to establish a trust with our authors, reviewers and resources. Our word is our bond and only good things can come of it.

Our press will continue to be a well established and respected cornerstone in our industry, for our market. Velocicon will have grown, and we’ll need the NY Javitz Center to contain it. All good things!



Marlene thank you so much for letting me have this interview with you. Now I have something just for fun… I like to call it my fast five.


Fast Five


White or Wheat Bread?

MC* I’m going to throw you a curve ball….flax seed bread is so healthy and I’ve actually lost weight eating it.

Sappy love story or Horror Film?

MC* OMG! I am so sappy. I cry at Hallmark commercials.

Early riser or Night owl?

MC* Night owl and an early riser only because my kids make me. LOL! Gotta make the lunches.

What is loaded in your i-Pod right now?

MC* Josh Groban & Lady Gaga

Vampire or Wolf?

MC* I find wolves are much more trainable


Thank you Marlene for this wonderful interview. Remember to check out Crescent Moon Press on the web. Hope you enjoyed the latest installment of Micole Writes Romance.

Hugs,

Micole Black