Call for Submissions

OC Press

Please tell editors/publishers you read their guidelines on the
Erotica Readers & Writers Association Website
www.erotica-readers.com

Call for Submissions

OC Press accepts unsolicited submissions of erotic novels and novellas. Please read the submission guidelines carefully. Failure to follow the guidelines may result in a rejection.

Payment & Rights: OC Press Authors earn 50% commission of net sales. Net sales are sales after distributor commissions.  OC Press retains exclusive rights of your publication for two years from publication date, after which time you may republish your work elsewhere. We accept previously published works, so long as you retain rights.

Literary Elements

Yes we are an erotica publisher, so sex is the focal part of the story, however, there are other elements of the genre to consider. Accepted novels will display the following literary elements:

1. Hot sex and plenty of it. Erotica readers are reading erotica because they want to be excited (much as a reader of horror wants to be frightened). This is erotica, so there must be sex in every chapter.
2. Well developed characters. We want to care about your characters. Who are they? What are their motivations to hook up? What are the nuances of their relationship(s)
3. Well developed plot. Give us a fully developed story with a beginning, middle, and an end. Include a climax, a love (or a lust) interest, and a compelling sequence of events. Make the reader want to stay up all night to finish your book.
4. A rich setting. Where is the story taking place? What makes the setting an integral part of the story? Is it a historical setting? A futuristic setting? A realistic setting? Give us a clear sense of place and context.
5. Avoid clichés. Unfortunately, erotica is prone to terrible clichés. Avoid phrases like heaving bosom, wave after wave of pleasure, and as hard as a rock.
6. Edit, edit, edit! We expect manuscripts to be as error free as possible. Before submitting, have someone else read and edit your manuscript for spelling and grammar. Bad grammar is distracting and may result in a rejection.
7. Cut the fat. Nothing can drag a story down faster than unnecessary details and descriptions. Comb through your novel and trim out anything that doesn’t move your story forward.
8. Fact check. Do your research and make sure you’ve got your facts straight, this is especially important for erotica that takes place in real contemporary or historical settings.
9. Sex positions. Must make sense! We’ve had a lot of fun trying to decide whether someone can be positioned doggy style over the top of a baby grand piano. Turns out, not really there are different heights to baby grand pianos, so it depends on which one the characters are using. Visualize, or better yet try, your sex positions to make sure they are physically possible.
10. Avoid porno style dialogue. This is literary erotica, and as such, dialogue like, “Oh yeah, fuck my pussy, baby,” and “Oh yeah, do you like it like that?” doesn’t usually work.
11. Echoes. Avoid overusing and repeating words. For example: “She had a great butt. He admired her butt greatly.”
12. Double check your timeline and characters. For example, make sure your character starts and ends with blue eyes and that the timeline of your story makes sense. (Did the events take place over the course of a day, a week, a year, or more?)

*Note these are general guidelines. Sometimes rules are made to be broken. Good writers who know what they are doing can sometimes break a rule or two quite successfully.*

Submission details at:
oceroticbooks.com/submission-guidelines

Guidelines page for Indie authors and small presses at:
oceroticbooks.com/author-guidelines

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