Today I thought I’d share a little behind the scenes of our Springtime in Surrey anthology process (which applies to our other Wild Blue Wonder Press anthologies to a degree).
I’ll be doing this interview style because it simplifies things, but I’m the one answering all the questions! 😉
Why did you decide to start publishing anthologies with Wild Blue Wonder Press?
Lately I’ve been mulling over this …
The whys of all the things I’ve taken for granted.
In this case, though, I’m talking about, “Why I decided to host 4 seasonal anthologies through Wild Blue Wonder Press.”
As you know, Springtime in Surrey is already launched, and that will be followed by Novelists in November (November 2024), Fingerprints in Frost, and Whispers in Waves.
Though it may not seem like it, these indeed represent spring, fall, winter, and summer (in that order).
Anyways, the reason I wanted to do this was twofold:
I felt that launching anthologies would give me an actionable way to encourage, highlight, and train new authors and/or work with indie authors I respect and admire.
I wanted to share a lot of stories with one purpose: honoring God and tackling tough themes.
Now, not all our authors fit neatly into those two categories (new/experienced) and not all our stories have ridiculously complex themes – some seem like simple, quiet stories.
But at the end of the day, they all are stories that matter. Stories of quality. Stories that are there to inspire you to think.
I write stories to encourage young Christian women to think deeply and pursue both grace and truth.
And getting to work with so many authors with a similar mission statement is a huge blessing for me – and I hope for them, too.
How do you select the authors and stories for your anthologies?
When submissions close, I look through all the form submissions and make a mental note of the people I would love to work with. It’s usually a lot more people than I can actually work with, but I also make sure that:
Some of the authors have experience … and some have none.
There’s a good variety of types of people (personality, stories, interests, ages, platforms).
They all bring something unique to the collection.
And they all have to be passionate about all the things Wild Blue Wonder Press stands for, of course!
I also try to discern who has a good attitude and will be a team player, no matter their previous experience with writing and publishing.
You can’t always tell, but I want to be on the look out for authors who are only in it for themselves and won’t bring any meaningful contributions to the anthology … and avoid them.
No matter how great their stories are, or how much they’ve done in publishing, it would be a let-down for both myself and the rest of the team to have someone along for the ride who isn’t willing to contribute.
Once I have this list (which includes all the authors with notes on which would be the best fit and why, but without any definitive decisions made), I download all the stories and start reading through them. I do a quick skim at first, and some stories get put on a “no” or “probably not” list at first. That said, I do not eliminate any authors/stories until I have read them all.
Once they are all skimmed, I choose the ones I will probably go with and go through, reading them more thoroughly and taking notes. I add them to the “yes” or “no” list until I have a final list of authors. Sometimes during this process, I end up eliminating a story that surprises me because it doesn’t fit the collection, or Wild Blue Wonder Press as a whole, or because there’s something significant that’s off about the plot, characters, writing, or other pieces of the story that just make it … well, not editable to the point of publication.
There are other factors, too, of course. It’s always a bad sign, for instance, when the author has put little time into their submission – whether it’s missing formatting guidelines, ignoring the requirements we’ve placed for short stories in terms of writing or genre, or simply not taking time to give thorough answers in the form.
There’s also another element there, of course … whether a gut feeling or a nudge of the Holy Spirit. But in truth, a lot of the time, I just can’t publish every single submission, so I have to make some tough calls!
What kind of support do you offer authors throughout the process of contributing to an anthology with Wild Blue Wonder Press?
This is one of those things that is difficult to quantity, but I try to do whatever I can to make sure authors who work with Wild Blue Wonder Press come away with a pleasant experience. I believe in going above and beyond the call of duty, especially for authors who have entrusted their stories to my business for publication, so I try to offer any aid I can along the way. If that includes extra help with editing, marketing, or anything in between, I give it!
How do you manage the logistics of publishing an anthology, from submission to launch?
As I mentioned before, publishing an anthology is a team effort. I believe that every author in the collection – no matter how experienced or inexperienced – has something to offer. Though I do take the lion’s share of the tasks, from marketing to critiques to all the little in between things – I have been blessed with a great team with both of my anthologies. We’ve all worked together to get these anthologies launched, all taking tasks and jobs. If you want to work with Wild Blue Wonder Press, we can absolutely be flexible to a degree … but this is a team endeavor, and being considerate to your team members means taking a task and doing it to the best of your ability in the time allotted!
Springtime in Surrey is currently available on Amazon. You can also purchase a copy directly from us here.
But as I mentioned, we’re having a CELEBRATION here … and that includes a giveaway!
How to enter? Simple – participate in A Year of Springtime in Surrey, our ongoing (casual) blog/social media/email list tour!
HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN A YEAR OF SPRINGTIME IN SURREY
- Make a post between July 15th-July 26th that features Springtime in Surrey in some way.*
- Enter the giveaway! The instructions are here:
HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY
- Post to any social media, website/blog, or share about Springtime in Surrey or one of our authors (mentioning Springtime in Surrey) July 15th-July 26th, 2024.
- This can be anything (a review of the book*, interview, guest post, spotlight) as long as it in some way features Springtime in Surrey.
- When your post is live, fill out this form to claim your points. If you have posted more than once or to more than one website, please fill out the form an additional time for each post. The form will remain live until July 30th.
*If you are interested in providing an honest review, I can provide a free ebook copy. Please email contact@kellynrothauthor.com to claim your ebook copy of Springtime in Surrey in exchange for an honest review!
However, it is very important that you do not claim any points for posting the review to Amazon, Goodreads, or any other review website or bookseller, and further, the content of this review must be your honest thoughts and include the proper disclaimers. Any attempt to claim points for posting a review to Amazon, Goodreads, or any other review website or bookseller will be immediately removed from the giveaway entries.
NOTES ON POSTS
They can be guest posts from the authors, interview, or simply a book spotlight/review. If you’re interested in a review copy, please send an email to contact@kellynrothauthor.com (see above).
The date of the post is unimportant as long as it’s between July 15th-July 26th, and you can post on any social media channel, blog, or even send this information to your email list to count. You do not have to give us prior notice before making this post. Simply fill out the form once your post is live. The form will remain live until July 30th.
Need a media kit? Please check out this one!
THE GRAND PRIZE WINNER WILL RECEIVE:
- A paperback copy of Springtime in Surrey
- A mug with the heroines’ names on it
- Special tea (of your choice)
- A $20 (USD) gift card from the online store of your choice
- A journal and pen
- Far too many rubber ducks
Open to international and US entries.
Please fill out the form to claim your prizes!
We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
TTFN!
~Kell~
Are you interested in getting to know me & my books better? Join my email list!
