Ellora's Cave Chicanery again...

And the hits just keep coming.

My mail today. Why does a check cut on September 30 have an October 25 postmark?

Why are books that I have had the rights returned still on sale?

"Eight Days Ablaze" was returned in Feb. I am not getting paid for it.

Why is it still available at Amazon, iTunes, GooglePlay, and Ellora's Site itself?

"Eight Days Ablaze" is apparently still theirs. I checked my reversion letters, and it is not mentioned. "For Love of Etarin" and "Raising the Dead" however, HAVE reverted.

"For Love of Etarin" is the same way.

And yet, it still available on GooglePlay.

Glad Hands and Privateer's Treasure are still up on Amazon, And the rights reverted back August 15.

The Reversion letter was weird:

Ellora’s Cave Publishing Inc. reverts to you as author all rights to the contracted and published works listed below, released under your pen name of NAOMI BROOKS. (1) We have ceased sales of digital copies of these works. We have notified our third party digital and print distributors (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Google, ARe, Ingram, OverDrive and others) to remove the books from sale; be aware it can take them several days to several weeks to implement a removal notice.

GLAD HANDS

HEART OF A FOREST

PRIVATEER'S TRESURE(2)

1) Naomi Brooks is NOT my pen name. Naomi is my writing partner. I write under my real name.

2) Misspelling of title. Can that nullify the reversion?

My Sexy Saturday: Sexy Halloween

So this week scare us in the best ways. Show us your sexy characters and their sexy romance on or near Halloween. Tell us the whole story on how they fell in love, what they do to stay in love and all the little details in between. Show us the good, the bad and the ugly as it’s those situations which pull us closer to those characters. 


From "Blood Roses" in Hungry Hearts:

Buy Link: http://www.inkstainedsuccubus.com/#!product/prd1/2799393611/hungry-hearts

Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Hungry-Hearts-Anthology-Erotic-Horror/dp/1502896915/ref=sr_1_13

Excerpt:

Dreams haunted her in the feverish sleep. She buried under quilts and blankets, and endured horrible nightmares of Michael, his travels ending in his death.

The worst one hung on her after she woke. In it, she had gone to look at the roses. They stood, black and dead, all the leaves fallen, above foul-smelling dirt. Michael had walked toward her out of the sunset, his eyes gleaming red as a demon's, his clothing filthy and his fair hair in thick matted clumps. With each step, he grew more gaunt and skeletal, his flesh hanging in rags just as his clothing did. She knew the roses did not lie. This Michael was dead. 

Yet she did not step away from him. She had to know how he had died and where he might lie. If she could not have her fiancé, she would know where to visit him.

“Lilah,” he croaked, his voice thick with the sound of grave dirt falling on a coffin, filling the occupant's throat and mouth. His jaw moved, trying to remember how to speak. “My Lilah. You waited.”

The apparition reached out decaying hands, and indeed she could see the bones through the rotting flesh in places. “True love never dies, Lilah. Neither do the roses. They just need to be watered.”

He sank the sharp tips of the fingerbones into her wrists, spraying her blood over the roses. The unwholesome earth drank it greedily and the withered stems pulsed with unholy life, bringing forth putrid black leaves and heavy rose buds. The pain was negligible, and she stared into his eyes, still the same dark eyes, overlain with the red of death.

Dead Michael held her in a close embrace and his smell filled her nose, salty and scratchy, making her itch with the need to wash herself. Once her cat had left a gutted mouse under the settee that no one had found for a week. The same odor had permeated the parlor for days and Mother had resorted to burning juniper and sulfur to clear the air.

Inkstained Succubus Anthology Calls

Anthologies

 Somewhere Out There
Deadline: December 15th, 2014 ​

Beyond our understanding lies a great, wide galaxy full of adventure, romance, and very, very hot beings. This anthology is fully science-fiction, both far and near future, with or without dystopia. Introduce us to your finest worldbuilding and storytelling, and show us your view of the future...and who will be with whom in it. 

Pairing: Any (M/M, M/F, F/F, Trans* and Poly inclusive) erotic
Happy ending not required, though Happy For Now encouraged. ​
Expected Release: March 1st, 2015


 [Untitled Anthology]
Deadline: March 15th, 2015 ​

The spectrum would be a dark place with only black and white, and gender is no exception. We want your finest genderqueer/fluid characters doing what they do best. Whether science-fiction, fantasy, steampunk, or paranormal, these stories should be plot focused and starring a character not on the normal gender spectrum. However, we emphasize that this is not an anthology for genderqueer issues. 

Pairing: Genderqueer, Any erotic
Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: June 1st, 2015
 NOTE: Also seeking an inventive, inclusive name for this anthology. 


Have Quest, Will Travel
Deadline: June 15, 2015 ​

With a strong arm, keen eye and fierce determination, the warrior heads into battle against impossible odds and terrifying magic. Heroic fantasy is the order of the day with this anthology, whether your protagonist is a battle-hardened mercenary, a barbarian, or a highly trained member of the city guard. Send them out to face the worst spell-slinger to ever blight the skin of the world, for whatever goal they seek, whether fame, fortune, power, or just their one true love. 

Pairing: Any (M/M, F/F, M/F, Trans* inclusive)
Happy Ending or Happy for Now Required. ​
Expected Release: September 1st, 2015


Winter Shivers​
Deadline: September 15, 2015 ​

Traditionally, winter is a time for weird and creepy tales, stories to pass the long, dark nights. So, give us creepy and chilling, sending a shiver down our spines as we huddle near the fire and turn the yellow lamplight up a little brighter against the darkness. Ghosts, spectres, unearthly creatures and things that go bump in the night lurk just outside that lit window, and sometimes...they look inside.

Pairing: None (Non-Erotic)
Happy ending not required. ​
Expected Release: December 1st, 2015


Badass
Deadline: December 15, 2015 ​

Cowboys, Space Marines, Soldiers, Swashbucklers of all types! Badass gives us heroes and adventure of a slightly different bent. Explosions! Excitement! Brawls and badassery abound in this action-adventure anthology with a twist. Whether your hero is a master of mayhem or a thinking cowboy, a pirate, a treasure hunter or a spell-binder, show him doing what he does the best for the reward he wants the most. 

Pairing: M/M erotic
Happy ending required (Happy For Now perfectly fine). ​
Expected Release: March 1st, 2016


Xenophile
Deadline: March 15, 2016 ​

They come from outer space and they want our bodies! Give us your sexiest story of alien lovers, in any combination with humans or all by themselves. Whether a close encounter on Earth or a first contact of a very personal sort, show us how the aliens of your imagination live and love, whether a dual or triple sexed spiecies, or something even more unusual. 

Pairing: At least one alien lover, all genders welcome.
Happy ending required (Happy For Now perfectly fine). ​
Expected Release: June 1st, 2016


Mythos for the Modern Age
Deadline: June 15, 2016 ​

Myths exist to explain the world to people. But the world has changed since the old myths were created. We know where rainbows come from now, and science has replaced mythology on many fronts. So now, we need new myths to explain new ideas. Examples would include Neil Gaiman's American Gods and Ananzi Boys or Harlan Ellison's Deathbird Stories. Whether new stories with old gods or entirely new ones, give us your interpretation of deity in the modern age. 

Pairing: None required (Non-erotic, though romance is fine).
Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: September 1st, 2016


The Kink Line

Due to the absolute pleasure we had in our recent anthology Dominant Tendencies, we've expanded our Open Calls to include an entire line of kink anthologies, not just of people enjoying BDSM, but of the kind of stories kinky people like to read. We're proud to introduce our speculative fiction Kink line.

Submissive Pleasures
Deadline: January 1st, 2015 ​

There is a heady sensation to giving up power, to being completely cared for and taken care of. Whether learning to find subspace for the first time, an experienced service submissive or a long-term couple in a TPE relationship, a single scene or a forever-couple, let us see the beautiful boys who adore serving their men, and the men who have proven themselves worthy of this devotion. Companion volume to Dominant Tendencies.

SF/F/Paranormal required. 
Pairing: M/M erotic.
Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: April 15th, 2015

Master Mine
Deadline: May 15th, 2015 ​

Few things are more beautiful than a willing girl in a collar. This anthology focuses on the realtionship between male Dominants and their female submissives. She can be exploring long-held fantasies for the first time, a strong woman who needs to let everything go on the weekend, or in a permanant D/s relationship with her top. All stories are welcome, but it must be F/SF/Paranormal.

Pairing: M/f erotic.
Happily Ever After or Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: August 15th, 2015

Mistress Mine 
Deadline: September 1st, 2015 ​

She may be a barbarian swordswoman, hauling her captive civilized scribe along to record her adventures, a powerful sorceress with a dedicated body servant, or a starship captain whose exec is a little more devoted to her than usual, but she is always the one in control. He lives to obey her and make her happy. A new couple or long-time partners, give us the sweet, the sexy and the Lady in charge.

F/SF/Paranormal required. 
Pairing: F/m erotic.
Happily Ever After or Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: Janruary 1st, 2016


Kagema's Sons 
Deadline: January 15th, 2016 ​

Hustlers, rent boys, role-players or other, let us see love - or at least sex - for hire. The world's oldest profession is an endless source of inspiration, and even more so when it's not limited to this world. What could prostitution become among the stars, or in a world with telepaths or paranormal creatures, or even in a fantasy milieu? Show us the boys of the night, who are looking for money from those looking for love. 

Pairing: M/M Erotic
Happily Ever After or Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: May 1st, 2016


For Sale By Owner
Deadline: July 1st, 2016 ​

There comes a time when a slave is no longer right for the owner, whether it's just time, the owner's status changes, or other circumstances lead to the block. That means it's time for a sale, which brings its own fears. Will the new owner be a better fit? Will the sale lead to happiness, or straight into nightmare? Give us the stories of this liminal time in a slave's life, the transfer of ownership.

SF/F/Paranormal required. 
Pairing: M/M Erotic
Happy For Now required. ​
Expected Release: October 15th, 2016


 All anthologies pay a 40% royalty, split evenly between authors. For more information, including the submission guidelines: http://www.inkstainedsuccubus.com

Release Day: Hungry hearts

It's release day!

Hungry Hearts is out from Inkstained Succubus.
Five sexy, scary stories just in time for Halloween.



Buy Link: http://www.inkstainedsuccubus.com/#!product/prd1/2799393611/hungry-hearts
Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Hungry-Hearts-Anthology-Erotic-Horror/dp/1502896915/ref=sr_1_13


Blurb: 
Inhuman lovers and kinky sexual encounters abound in this erotic horror anthology. The darkness inside all of us gets fed with these four chilling tales of lovers and terrors. Guardian angels, dreamscapes, and chilling revelations for all.

Includes:

Blood Roses by Angelia Sparrow

The yellow fever is raging, and lovers are parted by half a world, but as long as the roses bloom, there is hope. It's when they stop blooming...

Not Always As It Seems by Syble Baker

Sometimes, ignorance is bliss, and knowing too much about your lover only leads to heartbreak.

Persephone Is Bleeding by S. Zanne

What if Persephone was not a person but a title, the lover of the Lord of Hell? And Clay, fifth in that post, is discovering exactly what it means.

The Graveyard Angel by Shenoa Carroll-Bradd 

The guardian of the graveyard has been watching Emily for a long time, and loves her as he did her grandmother.

The Longest Night by Rick Wasserman

An ancient love and an ancient curse combine into passion on one night a year.

.

Welcome to Halloween

I know I'm starting 6 days late. Check my livejournal, valarltd.livejournal.com for the others.

I have driven 484 miles and and spent a weekend at a con. "And baby, I'm the walking dead..."

So, Sounds of the Season

Your creepy pics are all post-mortem photos and graveyard angels. As in these are real dead people.

My Sexy Saturday: Sexy State of Mind

There is no real prompt, so let's just get into a sexy state of mind.


So, we'll join the boys from Long Term for this one

Buy Link

Blurb: 

Teague Albright, a small-town university president, didn't think much about the little submissive that he used one night at a local club. But when he later encounters the same young man, who has been abandoned by his top and thrown out of their residence, Teague's protective instincts go into their usual patterns and the "Albright Sub Rescue Agency" is open once again.

But Ian McClean is more than just another kid to help, and he gets to Teague in a way none of the other "rescues" have. Teague wants to keep the boy, but all he's heard from other people, and even Ian himself, is that Ian's nothing but a grifter and a slut who lives off the men he gloms onto. External threats and internal tensions threaten to break them apart as the year wears down.

Yet as Ian learns and works and eventually proves himself, Teague discovers that anyone can indeed change...even him...

Your Seven Sexy Paragraphs:

Teague kissed him softly. “There is no should in this bed. You never need do anything that upsets or troubles you.”

“I want it,” Ian repeated, more sure of himself. He nuzzled Teague’s neck. “I want to lick you, touch you, feel you, skin to skin all over and inside me.”

“But you don’t,” Teague corrected. “You think you should want it so you try convincing yourself that you do. I can wait, Ian. I really can. I love you enough to wait.” His kiss landed softly on Ian’s forehead. “There will be other nights.”

Ian wondered, as Teague snapped out the lamp, how false those words rang. He wanted to be sure he was there. He had endured the punishment. There was no reason to leave.

He lay awake in the dark, planning, wondering if it was time to go. No. It was not. He reminded himself firmly of that. He had a place to live, work to do, and a man who loved him.

Ian turned that thought over a few more times. Teague loved him. It made him feel different than he’d expected, a little guilty, a little unworthy and oddly secure. No butterflies and fireworks, just a sense that he’d been given a very precious, very fragile gift. The problem was, he wasn’t sure what to do with it or if he could return it in kind. He worried he would drop it.

He lay in the dark, pinned by Teague’s arms, and thought until the clock showed single digits and he was no nearer a conclusion.

The rest of the blog hop:

Public Notice to Ellora's Cave

You are in breach of contract. All of you, company, owner and all.

My contract states:

1.1  If the Work shall be no longer in publication and if, after written notification from the Author to this effect, Publisher shall fail to place the Work in publication or license publication of a reprint edition by another publisher as permitted herein, within a period of six (6) months after the date of such notice, this Agreement shall thereupon terminate and all rights shall revert to the Author, with the exception of any outstanding licenses entered into by Publisher prior to such termination.

A Work shall be considered in publication based on any of the following standards:

• for a fixed term of eighteen (18) months following first digital release.
• for a fixed term of twelve (12) months following first print release, if any.
• for a fixed term of twelve (12) months following first audio release, if any.
• if combined sales through all sales channels of all editions, in all available formats (from whatever technology), exceed 100 copies in a twelve (12) month period.

A Work shall be considered out of publication when it fails to meet all the standards specified above. Should the Work be out of publication in accordance with the standards specified above, Author shall have the right to revert rights in accordance with the terms of paragraph 1.1. Such reversion of rights will be effective six (6) months from Author’s written notification via electronic or postal mail to Publisher.

(Emphasis mine.)

I requested rights back to EVERYTHING in an August 1, 2013 e-mail.

I have been notified by you that the following works under your purview have reverted:
For Love of Etarin
Raising the Dead
Eight Days Ablaze
Glad Hands
Privateer's Treasure

The following works are still held:
Cherry Tart (2009)
Spellbound Desire (2012)
Heart's Bounty (2013)

Cherry Tart remains compliant with the terms of section 1.1, Sales in 2012 equaled 642 copies; in 2013, 414 copies, and for the first 5 months of 2014, 151 copies.

Spellbound Desire was released in 2012. It is past the 18 month date. The print version came out in the 22nd month. Sales have been poor 2012, 83 copies. 2013, 45 copies. 2014, 7 copies.  By the third clause of Section 1.1, it should have reverted to me at the end of April 2014, since it had been out for 18 months, and sales in the calendar year had been less than 100 copies.

Heart's Bounty was released in 2013. It sold 55 copies in 2013, and 10 in 2014. For the first 12 months of its release, it sold 65 copies. Therefore, it should have reverted at the end of May.


I hereby serve notice to Ellora's Cave, Jasmine Jade Enterprises and all other affiliated entities, that I claim all rights to Spellbound Desire and Heart's Bounty as my own. You will cease and desist publication at once.