Been a bit. When the situation had not changed much I was a bit despondent and not up to repeating the same old story. Things are looking up though

Demons: A Clash of Steel is still in editing…slowly moving along. Some edits, some contracts, even some payments are rendered. I’m trying to push the remainder of the first two through this week. I am attending Odyssey Con X in Madison, Wisconsin mid-April, and I’d really like to have the first copies of Demons there…

Assassins: A Clash of Steel will open to subs almost immediately after Demons prints. The submission period will probably run three months with the plan to have Assassins in hand for Dragon*Con the first weekend of September. As in all ‘Clash of Steel’ titles, the emphasis will be on the steel half of Sword and Sorcery. Magics will be allowed, though their use is strongly preferred on behalf of the antagonists. Word counts, process, and payments will remain consistent, though submissions will be restricted to the first 500 words and read and advanced/rejected as they arrive.

Roar of the Crowd is within days of ToC selection. Acceptances and rejections will go out March 14-15th. Then RotC will have to defer to the Demons timetable. Once that title prints, RotC will be the priority, again with the intent of having it in hand for Dragon*Con. Due to life economics, the pay scale on RotC has remained at $o.01/word. I had hoped to offer more, and there is still a small chance of doing that, as I am willing to adjust according to how RBE’s budget fluctuates between now and the actual publication date.

The 2011 signature R-antho will be announced as usual on the closing page of this year’s title, RotC. Two months after RotC’s publication, the official public announcement will be unveiled on this site. 2011 will return to shorter word counts, ranging between 5,000 and the 9,000 or 10,000 mark. The submission period I will again attempt to up the pay rate. The theme…will be popular and current.

Heroicologies have, unfortunately, taken a back seat. I have received numerous stories from authors excited to be included in the Build-Your-Own-Heroic-Anthology project. My artist submissions, however, have lagged. I am happy to note that one artist in particular has submitted several superb works that I anticipate being highly popular. I have also received several inquiries from readers equally excited about taking advantage of this opportunity to create their own heroic adventure titles. If you write or create heroic art, please consider being a part of this project.

Challenge! Anthologies are a new feature from RBE. These anthologies will be contest anthologies (possibly annual) that will require a fee with submission. The Challenge! Anthologies will accept any and all heroic genres, with submissions based upon the cover art and title of the book, and with prizes of publication, books, and money. Art and title will be announced one month prior to the opening of submissions, which will be accepted for only two months. Submissions will be vetted through a panel of three judges (to include the artist), with final determination made by yours truly. Submission fees (cast your vote in the right side bar now to help influence what this will be!) will be divided between fundraising for RBE, prize money for the accepted stories, and the artist. The first Challenge! Anthology will be announced as soon as cover art is selected.

Single author Novellas and Collections should be out in 2010 as well. I am currently reading for both from solicited authors and hope and plan for at least one of each to be out this summer.

As for the business side of things…Well, I’ve updated the website for Ralan/Duotrope and others, I’ve pushed review requests on numerous outlets, I’ve worked on advertising and exposure, I have two more interviews in the works…mostly I am editing and reading, spending too long working with Adobe, PagePlus, Word, WordPress on art, contracts, forms, ads, et al, and collecting a wee trickle of funds. While Amazon obviously gets RBE titles quite probably their most exposure, I have reduced the discount RBE ‘grants’ (who am I kidding, ‘is forced to give’ is more like it!) the book behemoth; thus they have eliminated all discount on books purchased through them. Sales took a dive the two months since I did that, but have actually started picking up again since New Year’s so that is good. All-in-all though, if you or anyone you know are interested in owning the fine anthologies of heroic adventure RBE has been praised for publishing, purchasing them here helps RBE more and could actually do the same for your pocketbook!

RBE thanks you ALL for your support and continued endorsement of the titles, authors, and artists that I am proud to work with and publish.