Coming out of the Cave: Editors on the Prowl

by Nick Conrad

We don’t bite. Nor do we live in dark caves, only emerging at night to feed on the souls of our innocent supplicants. We never demand virgin sacrifices or firstborns. And sometimes—sometimes—we actually go home and do things that don’t involve editing at all. Like socialize. And eat.

Okay, so a fair amount of eating goes on when we’re at our desks, too. But most of us prefer standard fare over the blood of the living. Oh, and we like caffeinated beverages. Lots and lots of those.

We are the editorial department of Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc. We’re regular folks who have come from various parts of the US—and the world. The driving force that unifies us is our passion for the written word and our commitment to providing a product that reflects that. It’s a drive we share with you, the author, and we strive to cultivate your talents and let that passion reflect in your work.

So that’s why we’re here. We understand that sometimes the best way to get an answer is to go straight to the source. What do fiction editors look for in submissions? How do we decide if a story is “hot” enough to qualify as an erotic romance? Why in heaven’s name are we so anal-retentive about things like commas* and word choice and realism, for crying out loud? Isn’t it supposed to be fantasy? What’s wrong with a few creative liberties? (Answer: Nothing—in moderation and in good taste.)

We also want to put faces** behind those names you see just before the title page. Editors, like authors, are readers first, and what we do goes well beyond turning out a product. We’re with a book every step of the way from its submission to its release, and we take as much pride in our work as you do in yours.

Our goal for this blog is to engage you, the authors and aspiring authors (and readers). We will offer you a glimpse into our side of things, some helpful advice, and some exciting and interactive activities. (Psst—that just might include a few critical reads!) There’ll be occasional fun and games and humor—we’re not completely stuffy. Above all, we’re here to make contact with the outside world, to venture out of our cubes and help shed some light on the mystery of what goes on behind the scenes at ECPI and publishers in general—aside from the overconsumption of caffeinated beverages, anyway.

We hope you’ll join us!

*By the way, rumor-mongers, we at ECPI are not anti-comma. We do try to cut out overuse of them because large amounts of punctuation can make books in digital format harder to read. But we do use commas.
**For the literalists in the group, you’re not really going to see our faces. I’m very shy about my three heads, Mackenzie’s hair never holds still for the camera because snakes are hard to train, Meghan lost her soul the last time someone took her picture, Raelene always ruins the shot by shapeshifting at the last second, and Mary—well, it’s hard to be photographed when one doesn’t have a reflection.