A Word About Submitting Manuscripts

I've been helping with the Amber Heatwave Contest this year and thought I'd share some observations with y'all about what works and doesn't work--in my very own humble opinion, of course--in erotic romance.

1. First and foremost, it's a *romance*. So, for me, that dictates a happy-ever-after ending. Not one where the heroine or hero die at the end. Or where the heroine or hero are already in a relationship and then "cheat" on their partner with the hero or heroine.

2. Misspelled words or misplaced words ("way" instead of "weigh" or "dissect" instead of "bisect") show a sloppiness and lack of self-editing. Not the way to impress a judge.

And let me insert right here--it is *not* your editor's job to fix your grammar, punctuation and spelling errors. You want your editor to be able to concentrate on making your story more vibrant, not waste her time doing line edits. If you don't know basic grammar rules, buy a Strunk and White or take a class at your local community college. The cleaner your manuscript is, the easier job your editor has and, believe me, you want to make your editor's job easy. She'll love you for it!

3. Missing punctuation. Now, I'll admit that I'm a comma whore--I tend to use more commas than necessary, but I do manage to delete most of them in my last read-through before I send my manuscript in to an editor. But when I don't see a period at the end of a sentence...? Not good.

4. Please make sense. If I get to the end of the story scratching my head and going "WTF?!?", it's not a good thing.

5. Use common sense. Don't have a character do something that might be "hot" in a sexual sense of the word but is completely illegal in the, well, legal sense of the word.

6. No head hopping. Nora Roberts is the Queen and she can get away with it, as can other established authors. But jumping from the hero's point of view to the heroine's in succeeding paragraphs, and even having a paragraph in a secondary character's point of view is just distracting. I'm not saying you *can't* use secondary character's point of view, just not in something that's short (less than 50k).

I hope this is helpful.

4 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies: "...Danger is hidden in every page and you find yourself on pins and needles waiting to see what will happen next. Sherrill Quinn is a talented author who has written a captivating story that will leave readers eagerly looking for more of her work."


Demon of Her Dreams - available at Ellora's Cave

Man Meat Monday

I'm finally starting to feel a little better--ready to see some action...

JEWEL OF APTHGAR

Release Date: February 13, 2008
ISBN: 9781419915604
Publisher: Ellora's Cave

Rahziya Sanura, princess of Gar, and Callum Hefeydd, prince of Apth--two people in love but separated by feuding kingdoms. Their one hope for unification--both for themselves and their countries--is the legendary Jewel of Apthgar, a 6-inch long amethyst said to have come from the great god Apthgar's sword. Sent by their respective fathers to retrieve the gem, they locate it but only after they defeat the dragon guarding it. Will the Jewel provide the means for them to be together, or will it drive them apart?


WARNING: The following excerpt is ADULT rated--not child or work safe!


Princess Rahziya Sanura, heir to the Garan throne, stood as witness to the latest marriage ceremony between two noble houses and tightened her lips at the unfairness of it all. Why could a duke of Gar and a countess of Apth get married, yet her father continued to forbid her to have anything to do with Prince Callum?

She smoothed her elegant gown over her hips and glanced over the heads of the bride and groom to the Apthian delegation. Her gaze met Callum Hefeydd's and, as always, her pulse zoomed at the look of banked desire in those gray-green eyes. If it weren't for her father's--and, admittedly, Callum's parents as well--continued resistance to a reunification of the kingdoms, this could be her and Callum declaring their love publicly.

"With the vows spoken and approval given by these witnesses, there is but one more stage to complete." The magi took the hands of the nude bride and groom and joined them, keeping his on top of them. His solemn gaze went first to the couple, then to the assembled guests. "One of the joys of being a magi to the people is the task of conducting unification ceremonies such as these. To be used by the great god Apthgar to bless these young people's union is both a privilege and an honor."

Knowing what was coming, Rahziya swallowed and tried to calm her breathing. She always became so aroused at these ceremonies, and with Callum standing just on the other side of the small circle, this particular union would be unbearable to witness.

The magi unfastened a few of the loops holding his robe together, then shrugged the purple and blue garment off his shoulders. The clothing pooled around his feet, leaving him as naked as the bride and groom. At his nod, the couple knelt at his feet. First the bride kissed the magi's penis, then the groom. Accepting a cup from a nearby neophyte, the magi drank the contents. Immediately his cock began to engorge, becoming erect in a matter of a few seconds.

"I humbly offer myself in the place of our god, sanctifying this union and offering myself in place of the Jewel of Apthgar." The magi took a step back. The bride and groom stretched out on a large pad at his feet.

The dark-haired groom pressed a soft, lingering kiss against his bride's lips then trailed his mouth down her neck to her breasts. He began suckling her, moving from one rigid tip to the other, and stroked one hand between her thighs.

The woman moaned and bent her legs, her knees falling apart to open herself more fully. She brought her hands up to the man's head and clasped him to her breast.

As the groom began thrusting his fingers into the bride's pussy, his thumb rotating against her swollen clit, Rahziya drew in a sharp breath. She clenched her thighs together to try to stem her own rising arousal. She took her gaze off the couple and looked up to find Callum's heated stare on her.

His face was impassive but for the banked fire in his eyes. From her peripheral vision she could see the bride and groom repositioning themselves, the groom going to his back with the bride straddling him, taking his hard length into her sheath.

Rahziya couldn't break her gaze away from Callum. The gasping cries and moans of the wedding couple only heightened her own frustrated desire for the enemy prince. The man she loved.

The man she could never have.

Jewel of Apthgar - available February 13, 2008 at Ellora's Cave

Man Meat Monday

I'm not feeling that great today, so I think I'm gonna grab this guy and just head back to bed...

Deliciously Naughty Release

What’s a witch to do when her coven has been cursed with a celibacy spell?

Break it. By any means necessary.

Aleeza dips into grey magic to scratch the itch that’s been driving her crazy. She never dreams deviating from the ‘white magic only’ policy of her coven will land her in the middle of a serial murder investigation…or in the arms of two magnetic men.

Ferrin and Dorand plan to find their woman’s murderer and make them pay—with their lives. But when a spell to communicate with her spirit awakens a forbidden lust, their quest to catch a killer becomes even deadlier.

A legacy of demonic evil two thousand years in the making is about to rise. One misstep and innocent passion becomes tainted desire, and three true lovers…a demon’s triad.


Read an excerpt or buy.

Computer Woes

Two weeks ago as I was answering emails, my home laptop shut itself off. After I pushed the power button about a dozen times (all with the same result) and tried plugging the power cord into different outlets (and cussing like a drunken sailor), I got on my older computer and looked up the number to Hewlett Packard. I talked to "Kevin" who sounded like Apoo on The Simpsons. Anyway, 45 minutes later he determined that the problem must be with my AC adapter, which when plugged in didn't become warm as it should. So he took my mailing address and transferred me to someone else. Who took my mailing address. But two days later I had a new AC adapter. Yay!

Of course, it was an AC adapter that didn't fix the problem. So I get back on the phone, talk to someone else in India about the problem, and 2 days later receive a package to box up and send my laptop to HP for them to fix whatever internal problem there is.

Yesterday when I got home from work there was a note from the Fedex guy that he tried to deliver a package. I'm hoping it's my laptop (and that it's fixed!). I'm planning on leaving work early today and hopefully will be home in time to accept delivery today. If it goes like it did before, he tries the first day at 1:00 (which happened yesterday), then the next day at 2:30. If I don't make it today, hopefully the third attempt at delivery will happen tomorrow, when I'll be home all day.

Keep your fingers crossed. I miss my laptop.