Wild Rose Press: A Suggestion
September 2, 2007
After this past week I have noted more and more mentions of a ePublisher called Wild Rose Press that seems to be attracting the stranded Triskelion, Mardi Gras, Silk Vault crews. Like some attorney handing out his card as the ambulance arrives. Being that I am ever so inquisitive I Googled up their site and decided to take a look.
Now I completely understand the need to stand out in a crowd. I honestly feel that ePublishers have to provide something unique and different in order to attract new readers. However, I never once thought to myself… “You know what? Those tired old categories like Regency Romance and Western Romance and Gay/Lesbian Romance. Well, They just get in the way of my eBook buying pleasure.” Never once have I considered the removal of such designators a potential benefit or a strong selling point.
My bad!
I must say I was surprised to find such clear and concise categories being used as Last Rose Of Summer and Champagne Rose and Cactus Rose. What do they mean? You have to ask? Don’t you see what they stand for? Well, the best I can tell Cactus Rose is supposed to be Western Historical Romances while Yellow Rose is supposed to be Contemporary Western Romances and Champagne Rose is supposed to be Alcohol Fueled Orgies… no no that looks like Contemporary Romances.
Now hey, it’s not my place to spoil anybody’s fun and if this is how you sell books then I say more flower power to you. I just think you have not taken this idea as far as it could go. I would have done something that reflects our childhood, yes, our sense of wonder, our sense of exploration. Something colorful and yet easily recognizable. Something warm and fuzzy that every man, woman, and child on this planet remembers to this very day. No, not Paris Hilton’s gaping hole!
Here is my solution.
Yes, My Little Pony is known and loved the world over. Hey, these cute color coded beasts are just waiting for someone to use them as a voice for the new generation of Romance Readers.
Triple Treat would do dandy for your Menage Category.
Twinkle Twirl Is ready to take a bite out of the Bondage/Capture Category.
Sweet Breeze would show her oral talents off in the Contemporary Category.
Cherry Blossom is chomping at the bit to do your Historical TSTL Virgin Widow Section proud.
Butterscotch is all set to find out what is under those manly Kilts in Scottish Time Travel Romance.
Cupcake is already there, her ass in the air, showing how she can pack some fudge for the Gay Romance Category.
Don’t let My Little Pony fade into oblivion. Give them the new life they deserve selling Romance in a whole new way.
Tags: The Wild Rose Press
I was frustrated as well when I checked their website. Couldn’t believe it!
BTW, loved you new romance-code LOL
LoL! Dare I even ask what “Pinkie Pie” and “Thistle Whistle” will represent?
I never knew how… dirty the names of these ponies could be if your mind is in the ghetto.
Bwah! There is some fine ePub snarkage going on this week. First Mrs. Giggles opened “Trisky Lion Publishing” and now you have redefined genre categorization with your Table of Elements-like MLP chart.
Thanks for the laugh!
I come here to share the sad news. My 8-year old left one of her Little Ponies out in the yard. Well. There’s no other way to say this. The dog got it. She is now slobbery, filthy, missing an ear, and has general maul marks all over her body. Hey! Now that I think about it, that’s what *I* look like after a fun night!
That SLUT!
No! Do not despoil my precious ponies! They’re innocent, they will lose their will to frolic and make berry pies and sing and grant wishes. (yes, Lauren has a three year old who is obsessed with MLP)
And now I must go chew on tums to forget the Paris Hilton comment.
My comment is awaiting moderation. Which is actually quite funny, considering it’s the mildest thing I’ve written in a long while.
Oops sorry I apologize for the delay. Sometimes this blog fails to let me know what is going on. I have a sneaking suspicion it is reading Lora Leigh books one after the other and forgetting to notify me.
No, no, Teddy! LKH has dibs on the ponies…or haven’t you paid attention to the descriptions of her men, with their psychedelic eyes, flowing manes of improbable colors, and so on?
Would that make Last Rose of Summer “The Old Grey Pony?” My novel, The Space Between nestles in that category, patiently waiting to be saddled.
– Chumplet
I bet they’re damn proud of themselves for all of that hard thinking they had to do. It’s a shame no one knows what the hell they’re talking about!
And hey, maybe it’s just me but the whole “we celebrate a man/woman relationship” sounds a lot like a fancy way of saying “gay people scare us in a ridiculous manner.”
Yeah, I saw that. Probably the clearest message on their site.
Well, they’ve ditched the roses for actual descriptions now, lol.
[…] have picked on The Wild Rose Press in the past but was surprised recently to find they had changed their hokey ways. So I decided then and there […]
Scared of gay people? Please! So I suppose we’re scared of Trekies, history buffs, and Martha Stewart wannabes?
Ask yourself this, do you read all the many genres in your local bookstore? Well why not? What are YOU afraid of?
I hope I’ve made my point. No, we are not afraid of homosexual people, lifestyles, etc. We simply choose not to publish that genre just as we choose not to publish Sci-Fi, Biographies, or Cookbooks.
And as to our categories, are they any different than the lines say by Harlequin? Next, Spice, Silhouette, Luna - are they anymore descriptive of what they are? I think not. Although we have adjusted our bookstore listings for simpler browsing by the newbie, our lines are still firmly in place and will remain so.
RJMorris
Publisher and Executive Administrator
The Wild Rose Press
Well RJ,
I work on a site that has 100s of developers. We spend weeks developing web functionality for a major bank.
“the lines say by Harlequin? Next, Spice, Silhouette, Luna - are they anymore descriptive”
No they are not, but the books can be seen all together on a shelf and picked up and the back covers can be read after viewing the front cover. In your case you need to get people to the particular shelf and then show them the book. This process has to be clear to the customer at all times.
If there is one lesson I learned from all the developers I work for it is to be clear and concise and use lots of “white space” whenever possible. Not for the sake of the “newbies” but for all “potential customers”. You will find the walk in sales make your managers, I mean your writers, happy too.
I am not a “newbie” to ebooks and yet even as a frequent consumer of ebooks and especially romance and erotic ebooks, I found your previous categories very confusing and honestly very silly. I am glad to see you have decided to change to a format that makes more sense, and I would think that as a business you would appreciate contructive criticism from prospective customers even if you may not agree with the comments themselves.
I actually liked the naming of the categories. That’s how I discovered one of my novels would fit nicely into one of them. I hope I didn’t get in trouble with the grey pony remark, RJ… it was meant in the most affectionate way.