A Love Letter to Sci-Fi & Paranormal Romance

[Originally posted at redmoonromance.com]

I love speculative romance. Loving something is always personal, so I suspect the reasons you love it may be different than my own. And I want to hear those reasons in the comments! Until then, here's my love letter to the sub-genre:

Speculative fiction, whether sci-fi or fantasy or paranormal, is all about the what if? questions. Those wonder and awe inducing daydreams that have been a part of the stories we've heard and read since we were kids. What if we could fly? What if there are unicorns in another realm? What if there's a big red dog that wants to be my friend? What if there's something hiding in my closet, and does it want to eat me or play with me? What if I could command magic? What if aliens landed on Earth . . . and they looked like smoking hot men?

Read the rest of my love letter to speculative romance at RedMoonRomance.com . . .

Market Monday: Love Free or Die

Yearning for Your Submissions: Love Free or Die anthology

Writers with romantic intentions, come hither. The fourth volume of New Hampshire Pulp Fiction is lounging languidly on a velvet divan, making eyes at you. It’s time to make your move. Submit your stories of love lost, passion fulfilled and unrequited devotion — all deeply embedded in New Hampshire places and culture — to Elaine Isaak at nhpulpromance@gmail.com and perhaps you too can be a part of this local publishing phenomenon.

Story length: 8,000 words or less
Deadline for submissions: July 31, 2013
Planned for release: before Valentine’s Day, 2014

Got a market notice you want listed in future Market Mondays on Speak Coffee to Me? Send along the link with the words "Market Monday Plz" to @EileenWiedbrauk on Twitter.

The truth about romance

Romance as a fiction genre continues to boom, romance as a real life institution is on the decline. Match.com recently funded university researchers to gauge of single Americans' attitude toward romance in general and matrimony specifically. The result? Only 34% of single Americans said they knew they wanted to get married. another third were "uncertain."

But it's not actually the statistics on marriage which I found all that surprising; it was the statistics on those who are looking for a relationship, or more precisely, aren't looking:

80.8% of single Americans aren't actively seeking a relationship right now (this includes those who "don't have time," "want to stay unattached" and who just aren't putting in any effort).  Of that 80.8%, only 48% said that while they weren't actively looking, they'd consider a relationship if the right person should drop into their lap ... metaphorically speaking.

But don't try to tell yourself that the reason you fall into one group or the other has to do with your geography, notably the lack of suitable (wo)men in your region, not until you let the Icelandic people put that one into perspective for you.  In Iceland -- an isolated island country with roughly the population of Pittsburg -- there is an online incest database where you can check out just how related you are before things get too serious. It takes the notion of Googling your date to a whole new level.

Meanwhile, sales of romantic fiction stay steady (even grow) while other genres decline. Romance novels used to be seen as the fantasy which married women or wistful teens engaged in, but give the data it's not surprising that the romance novel remains popular, particularly the paranormal romance: singles don't expect to experience it themselves; they approach it as purely a fantasy whether or not it contains a vampire.

Image by l.giordani on flickr

Market Monday

The following markets are looking for themed speculative material with a romantic twist or romantic elements. The first is looking for novella length stories -- and if that's not to your liking, the second market only takes work 7,500 words and under!

Entangled Publishing, Steampunk Anthology: (royalties only) Entangled Publishing is an internet startup company. They publish both print and ebooks and have a strong leaning toward paranormal romance novels (adult and YA) from what I can tell. Right now they're putting together an anthology of short steampunk fiction with romantic elements, deadline December 1.  They write:

Will Smith, Jude Law, Robert Downey Jr., Hugh Jackman, and Sean Connery have done fabulous things for the sexiness of steampunk. Even when quirky technology is merely hinted at in alternate, historical-feeling world, moviegoers have clamored for more. Whether they’re donning brass goggles, lacing up steel corsets, or hopping onto the nearest airship, the heroes and heroines in steampunk fiction have captured the minds of readers.
Entangled Publishing is seeking submissions for a Summer 2012 Steampunk anthology. Submissions must:

• Be 20,000 to 30,000 words in length
• Contain strong romantic elements
• Heavily feature steampunk technology and the alternate world it exists in
• All heat levels will be accepted, but erotic elements must not be the main focus of the story.

Direct link to steampunk anthology guidelines.

Escape Collective Publishing: Orbital Hearts Anthology (royalties only) is looking for stories that revolve around relationships (romantic and dysfunctional, preferably) and also contain speculative elements (aka "fantastic" elements).  Up to 7,500 words. Deadline December 1.  They're also running a cover art contest if that's up your alley. They write:

We’re looking for tragic romances, hopeless relationships, unrequited love and (of course) broken hearts. Don’t misread this! Although we want stories that revolve around dysfunctional romantic couplings, we are only interested in stories that also contain “elements of the fantastic.” This anthology is open to submissions from just about ANY genre you can imagine that fits the theme – and we hope to get many submissions that cross over genre boundaries. Try to avoid cliches that rely on weird pairings as their primary theme; we want tragedy, drama, and originality. Surprise us, entice us and woo us into a destructive angst-inspired spiral with your words!

Direct link to anthology guidelines.