Topic: Readers of THE HUNTING GROUNDS - I need some advice
This message is meant primarily for the following folks:
Rhiannon
njc
Don Chambers
Tom Oldman
UnicornMom
Jeanne M. Bannon
...as well as anyone else who has been providing regular reviews for my paranormal romance/thriller THE HUNTING GROUNDS. I was going to post this thread in one of my subgroups (e.g., Romance), but it turns out you all are scattered across 3 or 4 of the groups I belong to, so I'm posting here instead. Hope everyone sees it.
First: I have some great news. Wild Rose Press is interested in publishing this novel!!!! [happy dance] I just found out this weekend, and I couldn't be more thrilled. By all accounts, Wild Rose appears to be a solid small press and, I think, a very good match for this story. (But anyone who has words of caution, please speak now -- I want to know.)
Now, the dilemma: I submitted THE HUNTING GROUNDS for the Black Rose line, which does most of their dark, paranormal stuff. The editor, Lara Parker, likes tHG very much, but apparently the heat level is a little too high for Black Rose. So, she's giving me a choice: I can tone down the heat level to keep tHG in Black Rose, or keep the heat level as is and have the novel placed in their Scarlet Rose line instead.
If tHG is published through Scarlet Rose, it will be marketed not only as dark/paranormal, but as erotic romance. (tHG doesn't quite make the cut for erotica, though Scarlet Rose publishes erotica as well.)
So here's my question: What do you guys think? Would the story lose something important if I toned down the sex scenes? Or would the novel read just as well (maybe even better) with a little less heat?
And for those of you familiar with the marketing end: What are the pros/cons of going for a straight paranormal/thriller market vs. a paranormal/thriller/erotic romance market?
What would Helen say?
What would Nathan say? .
..Strike that. We all know what Nathan would say.
What do you say?
All of you have been such great reviewers and I have a lot of faith in your perspectives on how to make this novel the best it can be. I would really really appreciate your input as I consider where to go with this decision.
As a point of reference, let me just add that chapter 16, the last one I posted, is the high-water mark in terms of sex scenes. There is one more amorous encounter later in the book that is equally explicit, but chapter 16 is about as far as I push the envelope, generally speaking.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts. You guys rock. This opportunity from Wild Rose couldn't have happened without your constant feedback & encouragement.