Writing Resources and Research Links.

We have a large number of authors who subscribe to our newsletter, both published and unpublished. We felt it only fitting that we list some of the writing and research sites we have at our disposal for their benefit. Some of these sites may already be familiar while others may be unknown.

The information listed below was selected at random and by information at hand at the time of publication. This is by no means a definitive list of information, just a suggested working list as gathered by JERR for this issue. We have found that there is a wealth of information and knowledge to be gleaned from the internet and the comfort of your home chair. This global library has made it so much easier for writers wishing to research an item or topic for their work, and it has made is especially easier for those living in remote areas of the globe who wish to reach information at the touch of their fingertips. Going to the library is still a fun journey for many people but we also want to acknowledge the power at our disposal by having access to this electronic medium. In this light the majority of the information below is sited from online sources.

Writing Organizations & General resources:
Romance Writers of America - www.rwanational.org - is the professional association for 9,000 published and aspiring romance writers and the organization where most professional writers join. Members of RWA write novels that make up 48% of all popular paperback fiction which generates more than $1 billion in sales each year. Here you'll find information on publishers, agents, industry stats, contests, writing tools, a monthly listing of romance novels that are coming out and much more.
The Erotica Readers & Writers Association - www.erotica-readers.com - is dedicated to readers and writers of erotica since 1996. This is a popular site for the finest in original erotic fiction and poetry, articles about authorship, author resources and publishing opportunities. Also includes current news about erotic books, adult videos and sex toys.
EPIC - www.epicauthors.org/index.html - The Voice of Electronic Publishing. EPIC was voted the #2 Writers' Resource in the Preditors & Editors Reader's Poll for 2004 and was established to provide a strong voice for electronic publishing. This is a professional organization for published and contracted e-book and print authors. EPIC exists to help professional writers learn more about the best publishing opportunities on the Internet and provide networking opportunities for exchange of information about promotion and market growth. They are also the organisers of the EPPIE Awards that recognizes outstanding achievement in e-publishing.
Preditors and Editors - www.anotherealm.com/prededitors - A guide to publishers and writing services for serious writers. This is a well respected and referenced site for authors of screen, books, journalism, music and much more. P&E also run the annual Readers Poll that is well-respected in the writing industry and a noteworthy award.
Authors Red Room- www.authorsredroom.com - a building web community for readers and authors. This includes services such as promotion, design, advertising, articles that is owned and maintained by Lisa Renee Jones www.lisareneejones.com.
Clean Sheets - www.cleansheets.com - is a weekly magazine devoted to encouraging and publishing quality erotic fiction, poetry, and art, providing honest information and thoughtful commentary on sexuality to the public, and fostering an ongoing discussion of sexuality in the lives of individuals and in a global society.
Charlotte's Web - www.charlottedillon.com - is a great resource for writers and has been selected three years in a row by Writers Digest as One of the 101 Best Websites for Writers. This site has also been chosen as the Best Writers Resource in the Preditors & Editors Reader Poll, and earned the Silver Rose Award for Website Excellence.
Writers Digest Magazine - www.writersdigest.com - an invaluable online resource for all writers.
All About Romance - www.likesbooks.com - a fun site for readers and writers. This site also includes resources such as a historical 'cheat sheets' for those writers wanting historical information at a glance and without much fuss.
Bookbug On The Web - www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/8078/home.html - is a good resources site for readers and writers of romance.
FF&P - www.romance-ffp.com/index.htm - Futuristic, Fantasy, & Paranormal Sub-Genre Chapter of Romance Writers of America.
The Eclectics - www.eclectics.com - though dedicated to more mainstream publishing has some handy advice for writers. Articles are available on topics as varied as writing that query letters, writing a synopsis, character charting, and how to pen a sensual romance.
Romantic Times Bookclub Magazine - www.romantictimes.com - apart from being a magazine dedicated to writers and readers, also has information dedicated to writers including articles on writings, agents, publishers, manuscript evaluation, research topics and research tools.

Publishers

JERR reviews erotic romance e-books in the main, and these were predominantly published in what was considered, and still is by some, the relatively infant e-publishing sphere. However erotic romance books have augmented their popularity amongst readers and are progressively gaining further respect in the literary field both as a source of entertainment and in the quality and professionalism of its community of writers, publishers, editors and associated personnel. Though there has been an upsurge in interest in erotic romance shown by some of the traditional print publishers who have acknowledged there is a market niche for books in this arena and some have responding to the call by setting up their own imprints. With this in mind you'll find the majority of listings below are for e-publishing houses with some listing for print publishers.

Amber Quill Press - www.amberquill.com
Aphrodite Unlaced - www.aphroditeunlaced.com
Brava - www.kensingtonbooks.com
Berkley Sensations - http://www.penguin.com
Cerridwen Press - www.cerridwenpress.com
Changeling Press - www.changelingpress.com
Chippewa Publishing - www.chippewapublishing.com
Ellora's Cave Publishing - www.ellorascave.com
Erotictales Publications - www.justusroux.com
Erotique Press - www.erotiquepress.com
eXtasy Books - www.extasybooks.com
Heatwave Romance - www.heatwaveromance.com
Linden Bay Romance - www.lindenbayromance.com
Liquid Silver Books - lsbooks.com
Loose Id - www.loose-id.com
Midnight Showcase - www.midnightshowcase.com
New Concepts Publishing - www.newconceptspublishing.com
Phaze - www.phaze.com
Red Sage Publishing - www.redsagepub.com
Renaissance eBooks - www.renebooks.com
Simon & Schuster - www.simonsays.com
Torquere Press - www.torquerepress.com
Triskelion Publishing - www.triskelionpublishing.com
Venus Press - www.venuspress.com
Virgin Books - www.virginbooks.com
Whiskey Creek Press - www.whiskeycreekpress.com

Writing Communities & Boards

One of the key resources that writers often use is the exchange of knowledge and experience with their colleagues. Writers are very generous with their time, knowledge and advice, especially to new and aspiring authors. One of the resource rich areas of the net is to either join a Yahoo group run by an author whose work you admire and join in the fun discussions, or what I would strongly recommend is join the Yahoo group of several publishers who are most helpful and generous with their time, knowledge and information. Here you'll find a community rich in information and another source to meet like minded individuals, authors, editors and agents.

Below is a brief list of writing resources as listed through some of the very talented and resourceful authors.

From Julia Templeton's website - www.juliatempleton.com - is a list of mainly historical resource sites. Ms. Templeton writes both historical, paranormals and contemporary books. She also writes under the pen name Anastasia Black with fellow author Tracy Cooper-Posey - www.sashaproductions.com - who also has resources for writers and readers as well as very useful how-to articles for writers.

The Costume Manifesto - www.costumes.org

Deb's Historical Research Page - home.insightbb.com/~d.lawson

Useful Links for Romance Writers - www.jaclynreding.com/links. This is a great resource site with literally hundreds of links for almost anything and everything. Here you'll find links to publishers, authors, research and reference sites, historical sites, conferences, discussion forums, reviewers, tools and services, castle sites, travel related sites, search engines, and much, much more.

Victorian Lace - www.geocities.com/victorianlace10/home.html

Eras of Elegance - www.erasofelegance.com

Jenna Petersen - www.jennapetersen.com, a.k.a. Jess Michaels - www.jessmichaels.com - is a very talented author with a myriad of interests and hidden talents. She runs a website for aspiring authors called The Passionate Pen (below), which has become a popular resource in the romance writing community.

The Passionate Pen - www.passionatepen.com - is an online resource for authors, both published and aspiring, that is brimming with up to the minute information, that is updated each Monday. You'll find links to publishers and agents, other resources and websites for writers of all skill levels, articles Jenna has written on a variety of writing-related topics. You'll also find a link to Karen Fox's website here - www.karenafox.com/agentlist.htm - for a listing on agents beyond those on Jenna's website.

Ann Jacobs - www.annjacobs.us - Ms. Jacobs has some great tips for writers. Her articles include topics on getting started, tying up loose ends, writing sex without writing smut, and the right writing tools with a list of reference books for writers.

Stephanie Bond - www.stephaniebond.com - is well known for her Blaze™ titles and writing women's fiction for the Avon/HarperCollins and Harlequin Books imprints. Ms. Bond offers a treasure trove of writing articles on her website and they are a good source for any writer with a wealth of practical advice. Such good advice is always a handy tool to have at your disposal whether you're writing for the erotic romance lines or the mainstream. The Self-Editing checklist is incredibly helpful, but her Mind Your Business series should be considered required reading for all fiction writers. The delightful and talented Susanna Carr - www.susannacarr.com - was also the inspiration for this treasure trove that I found.

Emma Holly is another source of inspiration with practical advice. You can find interesting articles and resources through Ms. Holly's website - www.mninter.net/~emmah - and discover for yourself her recommended reading material and practical advice.

You'll find both Morgan Hawke - www.darkerotica.net - and Myra Nour - www.myranour.com - offer a wealth of writing resources for your disposal on their sites with invaluable articles and links, especially Morgan's erotic thesaurus.

One of the more exciting and positive aspects to develop from the establishment of e-publishers is the variety, depth and scope that authors are accorded and encouraged. This offers readers a wider variety in entertainment value and some truly amazing and rewarding reading material not normally found through traditional print books. Some of the sexiest and downright exciting books centre around heroes who were formerly considered anything but such as vampires, werewolves and shape-shifters. In my opinion electronically published authors have brought to the mainstream, and to a larger audience, acceptance of and a demand for more of these sexy heroes and heroines. With this in mind below are some sites that may interest the readers.

Midnight Blood - www.midnightblood.com - a site dedicated to vampires & werewolves and vampire fiction maintained by Linda Suzane. Thank you Kate Hill - www.kate-hill.com - for this insightful information. You can find a more extensive listing at her cyber home.

Lizabet's Vault - lizabets-vault.com/inner.html - another interesting source discovered through Ms. Hill's website on things vampiric. This is a wonderful site to gain an overview of vampires and their history.

Jordan Summers - www.jordansummers.com - has an interesting list of resources for writers. She has a listing for werewolves and vampires and associated links on this topic. If you want to write about werewolves visit Werewolves: The Myths and The Truths - members.tripod.com/alam25 for decent information on the subject, or visit Bloodlust-UK - www.bloodlust-uk.com - the ultimate vamp site.

And just for fun and plain old 'inspiration', as well as being informative, you can check out the following sites:

Devilish Dots - www.devilishdots.com for anything that tickles your fancy, whether its advice, reviews or sex toys and accouterments you'd like to purchase.

Mind Caviar - www.mindcaviar.com and online magazine specializing in erotic literature.

Satin Slippers - www.satinslippers.com and erotic magazine that has some interesting and informative articles

Scarleteen - www.scarleteen.com - sex education for the real world

There is a whole gamut of information for writers on the internet in this great age of technology. But there are also a lot of print books to use as a resource writing tool. Always remember to verify any information garnered from the internet if you're unsure of its validity and to always practice your craft. You can often get bogged down with research and this can take over your precious writing time so manage your time wisely. And never forget to ask a friend or even those people in the writing community for advice.

Enjoy your journey along the exciting path of writing, whether it's for fun or publication. And don't forget to keep on putting that pen to paper or those fingers on your keyboard. There are vast opportunities for people who are already published and those aspiring to become published. Only your dream can sustain you with your hope, and perseverance to reach your goals.

Good luck to all the wonderful, captivating, exciting and innovative authors it has been our pleasure to come across and deal with on a day to day basis. We hope that your journey continues in a most positive light and that we're there to see your success.

JERR would like to thank and acknowledge the sites and the authors who have been most helpful in having this information at hand for us to highlight to our subscribers. We wish to thank them most sincerely for having the foundation upon which we could obtain some of these helpful sites and resource tools. I'd also like to thank the following author sites that were very helpful in my compiling this article, not mentioned above. We encourage you visit all these sites for inspiration and practical know-how. And maybe this will lead you on a fascinating tour just as it did for me.

Angela Knight - www.angelasknights.com whose article "Steam 101" is a must read

Joey Hill - www.storywitch.com where you can find some interesting links for writers and readers

Sahara Kelly - www.saharakelly.com who has links to dedicated to other authors and writing resourcesQ11

Samantha Winston - www.samanthawinston.com find fascinating links for writers and readers

© Aggie Tsirikas - May 8, 2005 Issue of the Just Erotic Romance Review Newsletter

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