Good news to those who'd wanted to submit a story to my Cleis Press anthology
Best Bondage Erotica of the Year, Volume 1 but didn't have time. I'm extending the deadline again to September 3, 2018 at 11:59 pm EST. So you have over a month to send me your sexiest and most creative bondage story. All the details are below and if you have any questions, email them to bestbondageseries at gmail dot com and I'll get right back to you. My best advice is to send me something totally dazzling that I can't stop reading from first sentence to last, follow the guidelines exactly and thoroughly proofread your story and bio so that they're in perfect and publishable form.
I’m extending the short story call for submissions for
Best Bondage Erotica of the Year, Volume 1, with a few additions. If you’ve already submitted, your story is still being considered and you’ll still hear back from me by August 1, 2019, per your confirmation email.
I’ll consider all original bondage erotica stories meeting the guidelines below, but what I’d especially like to see for this second round of submissions are stories which incorporating one or more of these elements:
Sexy stories with an engaging beginning, middle and end where bondage is a part of the story, but the plot doesn’t revolve around bondage
Stories featuring established or long-term couples or multi-partner relationships
Stories about people who regularly engage in bondage
Stories featuring different types of bondage specific furniture
Stories featuring unusual or unofficial bondage items (items besides bondage rope, bondage tape, handcuffs, etc.)
Stories involving specific bondage types/positions (such as shibari, spreadeagle, rope harness, etc.)
Stories in a wide range of settings, especially ones readers wouldn’t expect bondage to take place in
Stories with playful motivations for bondage
Stories involving both bondage and sex toys
Stories from the point of view of characters of color (ownvoices stories get top priority)
Stories from the point of view of characters ages 50+
Stories set outside the United States, especially that explore a specific culture
Stories that approach the meaning of bondage in new ways
The more unique your story is in all aspects (setting, plot, characters, motivations, language), the more likely it is to be accepted.
Call for Submissions
Best Bondage Erotica of the Year, Volume 1
Edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel
To be published by Cleis Press in late 2019
Deadline: September 3, 2018, 11:59 pm EST
For
Best Bondage Erotica of the Year, Volume 1, Rachel Kramer Bussel is looking for your hottest, most creative unpublished 2,000-4,000 word bondage erotica stories (no poetry). Word count covers the text of the story, excluding title, byline and bio. This anthology will include characters of different races, ages, backgrounds and bondage experience levels, plus a wide range of motivations, techniques, implements, and scenarios engaging in a bondage or restraint scenario at some point in the story. I want characters ranging from newbies to seasoned bondage players and everything in between. I want first person, second person and third person stories. I want bondage in bedrooms, at play parties, at offices, in public, in secret. Bondage should be a central focus of the erotic element of the story but the plot does not have to hinge on bondage. For an idea of the types of stories I prefer, see
Best Bondage Erotica 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and
2015. While reading them is not required for submission to this anthology, I generally will not repeat highly specific bondage implements that appeared in any of those volumes. Stories that do not contain any form of bondage or restraint will not be considered.
The final book will include stories focused on both the physical and mental aspects of bondage. Bondage plus other elements of BDSM or sexual activity is welcome (spanking, tickling, exhibitionism, voyeurism, intercourse, oral sex, teasing, etc.). The more creative the bondage, the better, but any type of bondage will work as long as the story is arousing and draws me in from the first word and keeps me riveted. The main reason I reject stories for a themed anthology is that tales are too similar to each other, so avoid clichéd plotlines and dialogue. Authors I've never published before are especially encouraged to submit to this anthology. Characters of all genders/sexual orientations welcome. No poetry. All characters must be over 18 for the entirety of the story.
No incest or bestiality. Note that I won't be able to give final answers to submissions until August 1, 2019. If you need a response sooner, please do not submit to this anthology.
All stories should have a compelling beginning, middle and end. Make every word count and advance the story you want to tell. Consider each sentence and as: Does it serve a purpose? Is it advancing your story? If not, cut it. Make me care about your characters and get invested in their passions. Please see Best Bondage Erotica 2011-2015 for examples of the types of stories I've published.
Only unpublished stories will be accepted; this means no part of the story can have been published or posted previously anywhere, in print, online, in apps, on blogs, on bulletin boards or private groups, in newsletters, via email or anywhere else and cannot be published or posted in any form prior to the book's publication in late 2019.
Rights (see below): non-exclusive right to publish your story in this anthology in print, ebook, and audiobook form. Authors will retain copyright to their stories. See contract terms below. If you cannot agree to these contract terms, do not submit work to this anthology.
ONLY SUBMIT ONE FINAL, THOROUGHLY PROOFREAD, GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT VERSION OF EACH STORY. Since I will be reading and considering stories as they come in, only the initial story submission will be considered; subsequent versions of the same story will NOT be considered, so please keep this in mind and make sure the submission you send contains exactly the story title, author name and text you would like to see published in the book. If I am interested in a revised version of your story, I will contact you.
How to submit: I will consider a maximum of two stories per author. Submit each story as a separate attachment using an email address that you check regularly. Submit only 2,000-4,000 original, unpublished stories that are not being considered elsewhere. Stories under 2,000 words or over 4,000 words will be automatically rejected. I want only original work that has never been published in whole or in part in any format, including online, apps, blogs, newsletters, social media, print or any other outlet. Must use U.S. spelling and grammar (double curly/smart [NOT straight] quotation marks around dialogue, etc.). Submit to bestbondageseries@gmail.com by attaching a Word .doc or .docx file, double spaced, Times New Roman Black font and titled BBE1 LastName StoryTitle (LastName=last name of your author name/name you want published). At the top of the first page, include legal name, pseudonym (if applicable), mailing address, phone number (only to be used for urgent communication about your story). You must include your 50 word-or-under third person professional biography either on the first page of your story or in the body of your email. This must be the exact bio you'd want published in the book. URLs in bios should be listed in the first sentence in this format only:
Rachel Kramer Bussel (rachelkramerbussel.com) writes fiction and non-fiction.
All stories must have a title and author name included at the top of the first page with the submission (no untitled stories). Indent half an inch at the start of each paragraph. Use only double spacing for the entire file; do not add extra lines between paragraphs or use any other irregular spacing. If you cannot use Word, submit as both an RTF and include the full submission in the body of an email, including title, story text, bio, name and pseudonym (if applicable), mailing address and phone number.
MAKE SURE TO THOROUGHLY PROOFREAD YOUR STORY BEFORE SUBMITTING IT. All stories that are between 2,000-4,000 words and submitted by September 3, 2018 will be considered.
I will confirm that I have received your submission within one week. I will respond to all submissions by August 1, 2019 at the latest. If you have not heard back from me by August 1, 2019 feel free to follow up at that time.
Payment: $75 and 2 copies of the book on publication. Payment will be made only via Paypal (strongly preferred) or U.S check (only for U.S. addresses).
Questions: bestbondageseries@gmail.com (make sure to read the guidelines in full before sending questions)
These will be the non-negotiable contract terms. If you are unwilling to sign this contract, DO NOT submit to this anthology.
The parties agree as follows:
I. GRANT OF RIGHTS
Author hereby grants Editor, during the first term of the United States copyright, and any renewals thereof, in the "Work":
a. The non-exclusive right to "publish" (i.e. print, publish, and sell) the Work as part of the Book in printed and digital form in English in the United States and its territories; and
b. The non-exclusive right to "publish" and license the Work as part of the Book in printed and digital form in English in other countries; and
c. The non-exclusive right to publish and license the Work as part of the Book in printed and digital form in English and the right to license, translate and publish the Work as part of the Book in printed and digital form in languages other than English in all countries; and
d. The following non-exclusive subsidiary rights to license and publish the Work as part of the Book in the United States and all foreign countries, to wit: anthologies, magazines, book club editions and reprints; Braille editions; audio, computer disk, all electronic/cyber rights, CD-ROM and microfiche editions; and television productions (including network TV, cable, and pay TV); and
e. The non-exclusive right to excerpt from the Work in non-book printed materials issued by the Publisher and/or its licensee for the sole purpose of promoting the Work, including, but not limited to, bookmarks, post cards, buttons, and t-shirts; and
f. The non-exclusive subsidiary right, for promotional purposes, to serialize the Work in periodicals, newspapers, and magazines.
II. ACCEPTANCE OF MANUSCRIPTS AND CHANGES
a. Editorial revisions to the Work may be made at the suggestion of the Editor and/or Publisher. The title may be changed only by mutual consent of the Author, Editor and Publisher. Editor has final say on the substantive content of the Work.
b. The completed manuscript shall be deemed satisfactory in content to the Editor and Publisher unless within ninety (90) days of its receipt, Publisher or Editor gives Author written notice of the respects in which the manuscript is unsatisfactory. Author shall have thirty (30) days from receipt of that notice to make and submit such changes.
c. Editor reserves the right to choose not to include the Work in the Book, if Publisher declines to accept it, or for any other justifiable reason. In such event, this Agreement is null and void; all rights revert to Author, and Editor does not owe Author payment.
III. WARRANTIES AND INDEMNITIES
a. Author represents and warrants that she now owns all rights granted hereunder, free of liens or encumbrances, and has full power and authority to execute this Agreement; and further warrants that the Work is original with her and not in the public domain. Author will give formal written notice of any previous publication of the Work upon presentation of the final manuscript, including editorial addresses of periodicals and/or publishers.
b. Author further represents and warrants that the Work does not infringe statutory copyrights or common law literary rights of others, and does not violate the rights of privacy of, or libel, other persons.
c. Author agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Editor and the Publisher, and the publishing of any reprint or book club edition of the Work licensed by the Publisher, pursuant to the Agreement, against any final judgment for damages (after all appeals have been taken) against them in any action arising out of facts which constitute a breach of the foregoing warranties together with reasonable costs and attorney's fees incurred by them in defending such an action in which such judgment is recovered.
V. COPYRIGHT
Author shall retain copyright of the Work.
VI. PAYMENT
Author shall receive $75 to be paid by Editor via
Paypal or U.S. check within 90 days of publication of the Book.
VII. AUTHOR'S COPIES
Publisher will give to Author two (2) free copies of the Anthology.
IX. SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS
This Agreement shall be binding on the parties and her respective heirs, administrators, successors and assigns.
Labels: bdsm, BDSM erotica, bondage, bondage erotica, call for submissions, Cleis Press, paying market, Rachel Kramer Bussel, writers wanted
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