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Can't always follow the money!
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Don
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Jan 06, 2018 08:15AM
Read this with an open Mind! My son produced comic books at a young age and has done well over the years. He stayed with it from a mini-comic endeavor to getting his first real comic book out there, "Rib" through Caliber Comics out of Detroit. He told me honestly that he was not into erotica, even though sex sells and sells well. I have numerous books on Amazon, but none to do with Erotica. One of my first publishers was a fairy Book Publisher that had picked up my "Royal Ferdinand and Other Tales". 4 years later they dumped my book since they were dropping all children's titles and replacing them with new erotica titles. I still will not succumb to erotica titles for my writing! Cheers, Don
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Sounds like your son followed his own muse instead of selling out; good for him! Nothing wrong with romance and "erotica" but unless I am mistaken both are extremely crowded and competitive genres. Lots of people think they can write this stuff. I have never understood why someone wants to buy a book simply because it has a hot male shirtless torso or two gorgeous young lovers in passionate embrace. Did not the Harlequin Romance books do the same thing in the 1950's? Some of it is creative or at least tries to be, but a lot of it seems to be assembly-line fantasy on such a predictable level it is hard to imagine a reader being enthralled. I guess it meets a need. For me personally ( and that's all it is, a personal opinion, so if you write in this genre more power to you; not my cup of tea, but neither are books about wars or juries and trials!) To me as a reader there is no challenge nor surprise to reading such material; there is an art to writing it well, but I find it to offer the same basic formula regardless of what creative twists the writer embellishes it with. I am no more interested in a bi-sexual werewolf and cis-gender vampire falling in love than two stunning young heterosexual singles from upper Manhattan. It's all been, or being, done, and done, and done...
Truth is always right and better. Erotica is just pornography by another—sweeter sounding name. But poison is poison and wheather compensated or gifted, it still kills. Good call, Don.
Steven wrote: "Sounds like your son followed his own muse instead of selling out; good for him! Nothing wrong with romance and "erotica" but unless I am mistaken both are extremely crowded and competitive genres...." Hi Steven, My son always preferred to be his own person. In a "Christian Private School", and in this high school he was approached by several classmates asking him why he didn't swear. They did, but he told them it wasn't in his heart to swear. But then one day he came home from school and said "Dad, there's something wrong with the kids in my school."
"What is it?", I asked.
"They all like you!" I had to smile!
My son once approached Vampirotica and pitched a story. At first they wondered where the EXPECTED sex scene was. But the story was so compelling, they bought it anyway. LOL
Ray wrote: "Truth is always right and better. Erotica is just pornography by another—sweeter sounding name. But poison is poison and whether compensated or gifted, it still kills. Good call, Don."Hi Ray, for me there is no middle ground of compromise, I just follow a different kind of drummer. At 15, my parents separated after 19 years of marriage, and I was on my own for a while. Now I had neither a mother or father! In essence, God showed up, and I was no longer alone. I wrote the story of most of my early years in a book called "Raising Hope". Most of these true stories were stranger than fiction! Cheers, Don
Don wrote: "RMost of these true stories were stranger than fiction!..."Truth usually is! Keep on telling it!
A MATTER OF FAITHby Don G. Ford
“...but the greatest of these is LOVE.” But have we brushed FAITH aside? The entire verse reads: “Now abides Faith, Hope, and Love, but the greatest of these is Love.” Love is like a capstone over all other attributes. But in the mix is Hope and Faith. If we lose faith, and if we also lose Hope, we may never find Love.
Someone, a while ago, left their guard down and allowed these three to be driven out of our schools, only to be put on the street. Our story begins here!
Before Faith and Hope were tossed out, they were stripped and beaten. They didn’t even look the same. No one would recognize these noble fellows from how they were viewed before. Love on the other hand never left the school, but still hides in the closets, and in the hearts of those people who still believe, of the many teachers and other school officials who once had strong Faith and Hope, but were stripped of both.
So in blind alleys and in shadowy corners, Faith and Hope still abide.
A small child happened to spot Faith shivering in one of the alleys he walked past with his parents at his side. His mom pulled him away from whatever it was he was seeing. “Never go near that creature”, she yelled.
“It will cause you nothing but trouble.”
All the child saw was something that was wounded, scared, and obviously cold as it sat there trembling from the icy cold of a winter’s day. He did not believe his mother’s words. Was she somehow under a spell and couldn’t see the truth in this situation? Faith couldn’t hurt anyone, he decided. Faith was the one hurt and broken, not to forget cold, and maybe even a bit hungry.
As Tommy’s bus was passing this same alley, he managed to open his window slightly. He tossed out a few potatoes he had saved from the dinner he had from the night before. Something or someone in that alley quickly grabbed the food and ran back into hiding. Yes, this was what Tommy had hoped would happen. Someone needed to care, to share, and to show some Love.
The next time Tommy went to school he wore two coats, one over the other. When the bus driver was nearing the alley, where the boy first spotted Faith, Tommy began complaining that we was going to throw up. "Stop the bus, I’m sick and need to get off for a minute. I’m gonna upchuck.”
The driver then slowed the bus and pulled over to the curb. Tommy bolted toward the alley and quickly yanked off his extra coat. He then tossed it toward the same dark figure he had seen the day before. Tommy then ran back to the bus. “Do you feel better now, Tommy?”
“Yes, much better, thank you!” He smiled at all the other children. Kids all have a way of knowing each other’s thoughts and intentions. Other students wanted to do the same but were too afraid. When sharing with some of his classmates about Hope and Faith in that alley, they decided to find clever ways of getting food and blankets to their new friends.
Tommy started, “These are not our enemies; they were lied about and driven out of our schools. We need them to come back. This cruelty must stop, and we need to focus on the truth, not these fiction stories.” Love had made its way into many of the students’ hearts. They were changed, and became bold, and clamored for Faith and Hope to be restored in their schools. Out of darkness and hiding, and back out into the full light of day, this is where Faith and Hope were brought to.
Parents saw amazing changes in the lives of their children as each student embraced Faith, Hope, and soon - Love. Even many of the teachers and other faculty members at their schools were warming to the idea of bringing back Faith and Hope. One school even decided to change its name to Faith Restored Academy. Other schools followed suit shortly after. Most realized that with Faith and Hope invited back into their schools, Love could now come out of hiding and join them.
Faith knew that, with Hope and Love at his side, the three of them could accomplish great things in peoples’ lives.
Cheers, Don (Greywolf) Ford
There is certainly demand for clean reading.
Don wrote: "A MATTER OF FAITH..."Do you suppose that there is a synchronicity between the Holy Trinity and the connection among Faith, Hope, and Love? A reason for the existence of three of each?
I'd love this story to be developed more fully, maybe made into a children's video.
What is right can be beaten down and suppressed, but it cannot be destroyed. Eventually, it will push forth and stand in defiance. Let us stand with it, with faith, hope, and love.
You don't need erotica or any sex scenes in a book to be a good author. Sure, sex sells. But it's also overrated.It's actually awesome that you would not give in to changing who you are for the sake of money! All the best for you and your son!
Publishers are allowed to publish what they want. If a particular publisher wants to move into erotica - or out of erotica - then that's their choice.Writers have the same choice.
Will wrote: "Publishers are allowed to publish what they want. If a particular publisher wants to move into erotica - or out of erotica - then that's their choice.Writers have the same choice." Will, SORRY, I failed to mention the part that this was my first book; my first BABY. Parent dote over their children, if they love their kids. This personal and without warning. This was a slap in the face, and whatever their reasoning, why not give advanced warning to a writer they have been carrying for a while.
Maybe they wanted me to scream to the heavens, which at the time would have only gotten them more publicity, and more book clients of erotica. Apt description of erotica - "in and out". It is as you say 'their choice as the publisher', but once I accept a book, I stay with it, because they came to me to handle their work, and a contract was drawn up.
This little move of theirs only drove me to self-publish in an effort of keeping my book on Amazon, and in front of the readers. They never intended to do me any favors, I was just determined not to quit on my own book! :-} Thanks for stopping by with your comment!!! Don (Re-Edited)
Lionelson wrote: "You don't need erotica or any sex scenes in a book to be a good author. Sure, sex sells. But it's also overrated.It's actually awesome that you would not give in to changing who you are for the s..." Thanks for adding your comment. Cheers, Don
Ray wrote: "Amen." A big smile right back at you! Don
Anna Faversham wrote: "And again I say 'Amen!'" No one has to agree with me, but I'm certainly glad you added your approval. :-} Don
Don - I didn't miss the point that this was your first book. You didn't tell us that. I am not sure it makes any difference though.Whether you considered it your baby or not, for the publisher it is a piece of business. They made a commercial decision when they picked your book up. They made another commercial decision when they switched from children's books to erotica.
It happens. We can rage all we want, but we can't force a publisher to do something they don't want to do.
If you have a binding contract that they haven't honoured then maybe you have grounds for legal action. If not, it's one to put down to experience and move on.
Will wrote: "Don - I didn't miss the point that this was your first book. You didn't tell us that. I am not sure it makes any difference though.Whether you considered it your baby or not, for the publisher it..." Sorry if you felt offended that I had an opinion. I thought this was a share and grow together site, My Bad! Life is like a prism, since and we all look at it from different angles and perspectives. Have a great day! Don
