THE 2008 NEW ENGLAND BOOK FESTIVAL - CALL FOR ENTRIES

THE 2008 NEW ENGLAND BOOK FESTIVAL - CALL FOR ENTRIES
BOSTON (August 11, 2008) _ The 2008 New England Book Festival has issued a call for entries for its annual program celebrating the best books of the holiday season.
The New England Book Festival will consider non-fiction, fiction, biography/autobiography, children's books, teenage, how-to, cookbooks, science fiction, audio/spoken word, photography, art, poetry and spiritual works published on or after Jan. 1, 2000. All entries must be in English.
Our grand prize for the 2008 New England Book Festival winner is $1500 cash and a publicity campaign during the post-holiday season spotlighting your work. The winning author will also have a choice of flights to our various awards ceremonies for our family of festivals and a free vendor table at the day events, including New York, Hollywood and London.
Genre category winners will receive a combination of books, software, cash awards and free vendor tables at our New York or Hollywood Book Festivals.
Submitted works will be judged by a panel of industry experts using the following criteria:
1) General excellence and the author's passion for telling a good story.
2) The potential of the work to reach a wider audience.
ENTRIES: Please classify your book and enter it in the following categories. Multiple entries must be accompanied by a separate fee for each book.
1) General Non-fiction
2) General Fiction
3) Children's books
4) How-to
5) Spiritual
6) Photography/Art
7) Fan Fiction
8) Poetry
9) Art
10) Teenage
11) Biography/Autobiography
12) Audio/spoken word
13) Compilations/Anthologies
14) Best Unpublished Short Story
15) Cookbooks
16) Science Fiction
In addition to honoring the top selections in the above categories, The New England Book Festival will award the following chosen from submissions:
1) Author of the Year- Honors the outstanding book of the competition.
2) Book Design of the Year - Honors outstanding and innovative design.
3) Publisher of the Year- Honors the top publisher based on materials displaying excellence in marketing and promotional materials, as determined by our judges.
FESTIVAL RULES: New England Book Festival submissions cannot be returned. Each entry must contain the official entry form, including your e-mail address and contact telephone number. All shipping and handling costs must be borne by entrants.
NOTIFICATION AND DEADLINES: We will notify each entry of the receipt of their package via e-mail and will announce the winning entries on our web site (www.diyconvention.com). Because of the anticipated high volume of entries, we can only respond to e-mail inquiries.
Deadline submissions in each category must be postmarked by the close of business on November 25, 2008. Winners in each category will be notified by e-mail and on the web site. Please note that judges read and consider submissions on an ongoing basis, comparing early entries with later submissions at our meetings.
TO ENTER: Entry forms are available online at www.diyconvention.com or may be faxed/e-mailed to you. Please contact our office at 323-665-8080 for fax requests. Applications must be accompanied by a non-refundable entry fee of $50 in the form of a check, money order or PayPal online payment in U.S. dollars for each submission. Multiple submissions are permitted but each entry must be accompanied by a separate form and entry fee.
You can also enter the contest by phone by calling 323-665-8080 between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Pacific time.
Entry fee checks should be made payable to JM Northern Media LLC. We're sorry, but entries must be mailed and cannot be delivered in person or by messenger services to the JM Northern Media offices.
Entry packages should include:
1) One copy of the book;
2) A copy of your official entry form or a reasonable facsimile;
3) The entry fee or receipt for online payment;
4) Any marketing materials you wish to send. Marketing is used as a tie-breaking consideration by our judges.
Entries should be mailed to:
JM Northern Media LLC
attn: New England Book Festival
7095 Hollywood Boulevard
Suite 864
Hollywood, CA 90028-0893
Phone: 323-665-8080
AWARDS: The New England Book Festival selection committee reserves the right to determine the eligibility of any project.
The 2008 New England Book Festival is part of the JM Northern Media family of festivals, which include the DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books, New York Book Festival and Hollywood Book Festival. The New England Book Festival is sponsored by The Larimar St. Croix Writers Colony, The Hollywood Creative Directory; eDivvy, Shopanista and Westside Websites.
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CONTACT:
NewEnglandBookFest@sbcglobal.net
323-665-8080

Every Day Heroes

OUR EVERY DAY HEROES

Have you ever wondered what makes some people hang on in the face of great tragedy or adverse circumstances? I sure have. As much as I believe I have inner strength and a tenacity for life, I wonder if I could climb up out of the darkness and carry on in spite of everything the way that some amazing people do.

We see it more and more often now where soldiers, brutally wounded and maimed, bounce back overcoming their physical and emotional setbacks. Homeowners, suddenly finding themselves in foreclosure, who find the inner strength to start all over again. There are many others who rise above the debris of broken dreams to dare to try again.

Whatever it is that makes these people press on, it inspires the rest of us and gives us hope that we, too, like the Phoenix can rise up from the ashes. They challenge us to dream big and take action when what we really want to do is lay down and give up.

To my mind, they are heroes and I salute them. Look around. I believe there are heroes all around us.

Sarah McNeal

http://www.sarahmcneal.com/

New Submission...

Well I realize that most authors would just wait to post on their blogs about a new submission once they got the contract, but my personal feeling is, if you've submitted then you have something to crow about!

I've submitted for the second time a short science fiction GLBT romance that I wrote called Homecoming. I'll admit it got rejected by the first publisher I submitted it to, but I'm not one to let rejection get me down. I went through the story again, added some meat to it and re-submitted it to a new publisher. I'm confident that this time will result in a contract. Of course we can never know these things for sure but I prefer to see the glass as half full rather than half empty.

Here's a little blurb for Homecoming:

When Crew returns to his homeworld of Mara after five years of building up his intergalactic shipping company, will his bond mate Eagle accept him back into his life, or will he seek revenge for the pain Crew caused him in his leaving?

So, wish me luck! :-)

New Contract!

I have just signed with Red Rose Publishing for my short Regency, "Unspeakable," which was previously published by Aphrodite's Apples in their Regency Romp anthology. I'm very excited to see this story back in print.

Deeply Hidden Desires

Tara has a problem – a very big problem. You wouldn’t think so to look at her. She is gorgeous – from her lean, well-formed legs to the bronze shimmer of her complexion. But what made most men stop to stare were those thick, full rose-colored lips. Yet Tara has a problem. She is madly in love with Kendrick – who takes days to return her calls, who pays her less and less attention. Even the sex is becoming routine. She’s just gotten her first job as a registered nurse, but her boss Dr. Conrad is incredibly sexy, and clearly interested in Tara.
And then there’s Makala. Dr. Conrad’s secretary is attractive, aggressive, and in love with Dr. Conrad. And, naturally, she hates Tara. And Makala is in a very good position to sabotage Tara’s work.
Should Tara try to work it out with Kendrick? And surely it’s best not to get on Makala’s bad side. But Dr. Conrad’s skin is as black as a starless night and as smooth as a baby’s behind. And the smoldering glances he sends Tara’s way, well, she just starts to melt. . .
Patricia Richardson – author of “A Place for Ida” and “A Time for Jonathan” – is taking a whole new direction in her first foray into erotic literature. “Deeply Hidden Desires” will hold you spellbound as you travel with Tara through heartbreak, forbidden desires, and the ecstasy of true love. Don’t miss this latest offering from one of our most exciting authors!

Harmonica Joe's Reluctant Bride

HARMONICA JOE (WIP):

Lola tried to squirm away from the brute but her movements only seemed to tantalize him even more. Before she could fully absorb what happened, the burley man was swept off his feet by a booted foot belonging to no other than Harmonica Joe.
A loud “oof” escaped the big man as he hit the dirty floor. He pulled Lola on top of him as he went down.
Joe drew out his gun and, for a moment, Lola thought he was going to shoot the man. Instead, Joe flipped the gun over impressively in his hand with a fancy twirl and slammed the butt of it into the man’s hand holding Lola’s hair forcing him to let her go. With Joe’s free hand, he grabbed hold of Lola’s upper arm, dragged her off the man and pulled her to his side. He slid the gun back into the well-worn leather holster that rode on his slim hip.
“You ever touch my wife again, I’ll make you a cripple in more ways than one, Clarence.” He shoved Lola toward the door and then out onto the wooden sidewalk. He stopped suddenly and let her go. Peering down into her eyes, his own an intense indigo, his expression turned stern. “Well, Lola, are you through playing games? I don’t have time for your shenanigans so make up your mind. Either you can come on home with me where I can protect you or you can go on your way and take your chances.”
What had she gotten into? The choices did not seem that good. “What’s to say you won’t just use and abuse me the way that terrible man in there would have?”
Joe laughed without mirth. “I’d sooner roll down a mountain side in a bale of barbed wire than try to get betwixt your legs, lady.”
Not exactly appreciating his assurance but feeling a bit safer with him than with the fleshy man in the saloon, Lola relented. “Fine, I’ll go with you until I can figure out what to do about my situation.”
He took long strides to the black Morgan horse waiting patiently for him then leaned over the saddle extending an arm to Lola. “Well, come on then.”
She clasped his hand and he pulled her up onto the back of his horse where she was forced to cling to his waist or bounce off the backend of the horse. “Damn you, any way.” It was all she could think to say to maintain her dignity.
“This isn’t exactly how I planned on starting out our married life.” Before she could respond to his sarcastic words, he chuckled. “Ma warned me about hell cat women like you. She was sure that’s the way I was headed though and, sure enough, here I am.” He turned his attention to the sleek, black horse. “C’mon, Black Jack, let’s get on home.”
“What a prophet your mother turned out to be,” Lola responded sardonically.
As Joe guided the horse down the street and out of town, he reached down and took hold of her bare foot. “There’s two things you’re going to need right off, a pair of shoes and your own horse.”
As Lola bumped along on the rear end of Joe’s horse, she wondered who the other Lola was. Nobody seemed to like her much. Was she a tainted woman? A thief? How would she ever prove who she really was? Would anyone believe her? It took sheer will to stop the chaotic thinking in her head. She had to concentrate on what was happening right now and figure out a way to get back home.

I am one of the featured authors at Amira Press next week. Check it out at http://www.amirapresssays.com/ Have a wonder week. All good things to your corner of the universe.
Sarah McNeal
Author of THE VIOLIN, THE DARK ISE and LAKE OF SORROWS
http://www.sarahmcneal.com/
http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/
http://www.amirapress.com/

My latest from Severn House

The Lie/Linda Sole/Severn House, published in October in hardback. This is the first in a new trilogy called The Family Feud series. It is set during the second world war and begins in a small Cambridgeshire village. This time it is a fictious village but set not far from the Cathedral town of Ely. it is a saga series, whereas the last one I did as Linda Sole was crime so I am waiting eagerly to see what happens.

This week I received the audio copy of Love Is Not Enough/Anne Herries/Severn House. I haven't got a picture of that yet, because it isn't on sale until next month and amazon doesn't seem to have it up yet. So I am posting a pic of The Lie