Sunday, July 27, 2014

PRAIRIE ROSE PUBLICATIONS--MAKING A DIFFERENCE by CHERYL PIERSON



In August, 2013, my business partner, Livia Reasoner and I decided to take the plunge and open our own publishing house. So many little companies were bursting on the scene that we wondered if we would be able to make much of a difference in the publishing world. Less than a year later, I want to share with you all what we’ve done.

To start with, I better talk a little about why we wanted to start Prairie Rose Publications to begin with. Livia and I both belong to a professional western writing group, the WESTERN FICTIONEERS, of which we are both very proud to be members. I am currently acting as President of the Western Fictioneers until 2016. We had both noticed that there were many women writers—good women writers—who were having trouble “breaking in” to the western genre. Many of these women wrote “gritty” western stories—not so heavy on the romance as on the “western” aspect; many of them wrote shorter stories than the normal popular length for a novel, or novella; and many were having trouble just because they were women—with the name to prove it.

Lots of publishers don’t like taking a chance on westerns anymore, written by man or woman—but when they have a choice, they’ll be publishing the ones by men—since men are more apt to buy western and science fiction works by another man than by a woman.

Livia and I agreed that one of the submissions requirements for our publishing house would be first and foremost, to submit, you had to be a woman. We have not been sorry, and have had more business than we can handle at times.

Another thing we wanted to do was encourage new writers as well as seasoned ones. We’ve got a fantastic mix of both, and have thoroughly enjoyed working with them all. Our royalty rate is one of the best anywhere, paying 80% net to the authors, who work so hard to write these wonderful tales and hope with everything in them to find a home for their stories. After years of being offered the traditional meager 35% for e-books and 7% for print, our authors are extremely happy with the royalty payments, and so are we.

We can do this because we don’t accept anything that requires heavy editing, so we are able to produce more quality stories and novels in a shorter time span.

It wasn’t long after we opened Prairie Rose Publications that we were asked if we published children’s westerns. And what about contemporary and science fiction? Well, did we also have an imprint for youngsters’ contemporary or fantasy stories? The answer became YES very quickly. Painted Pony Books is our imprint for Middle Grade, YA and New Adult western fare; Tornado Alley Publications is the sister imprint for Middle Grade, YA, and New Adult contemporary stories, and Fire Star Press satisfies contemporary, science fiction and fantasy categories for adults.

All of our imprints except Prairie Rose Publications are open to ANYONE to submit to—men and women, alike; newbies and experienced writers.

Since opening our doors, we have published many anthologies at PRP—Wishing For a Cowboy (Christmas 2013), Hearts and Spurs (Valentine’s Day 2014), Lassoing a Bride, Lassoing a Groom, Lassoing a Mail Order Bride, and Cowboy Cravings (Summer stories, 2014).

We’ve also put out 14 novels in the PRP line, as well as 6 novellas.

In the Painted Pony Books imprint, we’ve published 9 books, some for all three of our age groups.
In the Tornado Alley Publications imprint, we published our first anthology, THIS SUMMER STORM, for YA readers just a few weeks ago in time for summer reading for ages 13-17. We also released a “retro” novel about the Viet Nam era, Echoes in the Night, and will be releasing two more about that era in the next couple of months.



Fire Star Press has seen the release of one novella and one novel, with many more on the way.
Part of what we want to do with our company is to inspire people in many ways, and one of these ways is by helping others. We have partnered with some charities that are so rewarding and exciting to work with. One of them, The Lighthouse For Recovery Ministries, has many branches that reach out to all segments of the Birmingham, Alabama community—the homeless, abused animals, addiction programs, and programs for veterans who need help. http://www.thelighthouseforrecoveryministries.org/

Another of our “pet projects” has been helping with Westie rescue expenses by donating books to the Westie Rescue Missouri Fundraising Auction (here is the Facebook page for their event, for anyone who might be interested): https://www.facebook.com/groups/WestieRSQMissouriAuction/


What do we have coming up in the next year? More of the same! Prairie Rose Publications will have its first Halloween anthology, Cowboys, Creatures, and Calico making a debut in late September. But there’ll also be an anthology from Tornado Alley Publications for Middle Grade Readers this fall called My Dog Can Do Magic! For New Adult readers, we’ll have an anthology just in time for Halloween—It Could Happen—stories that have a love story with a Halloween twist. We have submission calls open for all three of these anthologies, if you have a story you think might meet the requirements!


Christmas will see two anthologies, Present for a Cowboy and Present for a Cowgirl in our PRP line.
And Valentine’s Day will be marked by another new anthology to be released in the middle part of January.

But even more immediately, we have a special CHRISTMAS IN JULY event coming up from July 25-Aug. 1! During that time period, we’ll have many new Christmas-themed novellas and short stories available for purchase at our brand new website!


We’ll have a lot of giveaways going on, too! We hope you’ll come join us during National Week of the Cowboy, the week we’ve chosen for our Christmas in July event—and get to know our authors. But don’t wait until then—here’s the link, come on over and join us now!

PRP WEBSITE: http://s528097299.onlinehome.us/books-2/christmas-in-july-2/



PRP blog: www.prairierosepublications.blogspot.com

Questions? Ideas? Thoughts? Please leave a comment with your contact information! I will be drawing the names of 3 lucky winners today!


Here’s what’s up for grabs from the PRP goodie bag!
1 signed print copy of GABRIEL'S LAW
1 digital copy of COWBOY CRAVINGS
1 digit copy of LASSOING A MAIL ORDER BRIDE
Winners will be announced tonight! Thanks so much for stopping by and celebrating with me!

33 comments:

  1. Cheryl & Livia,

    Yes! Publish, publish, and publish!

    Congratulations! (again)

    Charlie

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    1. Thanks Charlie! Dog anthology is back on track again! YAY! I'll be contacting everyone in mid-September.
      Cheryl

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  2. Cheryl and Livia are to be commended for creating a wonderful publishing outlet. Thank you, ladies.



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    1. Thank you, Frank! So glad to have you with PPB, and hopefully you'll have something else for us in the future!
      Cheryl

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  3. As you know, I thank and honor your committment to giving life to peoples dreams. Brava! Doris

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    1. Doris, that is so sweet of you! Thank you for being a part of PRP. Working together makes the world go 'round! LOL
      Cheryl

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  4. It's been wonderful to watch your PRP "empire" grow! Your passion for writing and publishing really shines through. Love all the creative promotions. Onward, upward!

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    1. Thanks, Vonn! Oh, yes, we do love what we do, that's for sure! Christmas in July has been so much fun, and it ain't over yet--(not until the Jolly Ol' Fat Man sings and that won't be until August 1).
      Cheryl

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  5. I'm thrilled to become a part of this wonderful enterprise. I have several of PRP on my e-reader and so far they've all been 5-star books. Keep up the good work.

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    1. Thanks, Agnes! We're counting down the days until your release day--August 14th! Drina's Choice has got me turning the pages! LOL We're so glad to have you with us!
      Cheryl

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  6. I know I'm very happy to be a part of PRP and its imprints. It's such a fun place to be and the atmosphere is very conducive to creativity. Cheryl Pierson and Livia Washburn Reasoner are great to work with as well as Kathleen Rice Adams and Jacquie Rogers who put in so much time helping us promote and encouraging all the authors. I have free-floating happiness!

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    1. YAY! That's how it should be, Sarah! It's hard to write when you feel pressured into it. We're so glad to have you with us. If y'all are curious about Sarah's Wilding family saga, jump on over to the PRP blog at www.prairierosepublications.blogspot.com and take a look at this wonderful Wyoming dynasty she has created!
      Cheryl

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  7. I've been impressed with your hard work! Kudos to everyone at Prairie Rose - and watch for my sneaky nod in your direction in the upcoming LUCK OF THE DRAW anthology from Western Fictioneers!

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    1. Can't wait, JES! Thanks so much for your kind words, my friend! Much appreciated.
      Cheryl

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  8. Congratulations, Cheryl and Livia, for your successful first year. Wishing you continued success in the year ahead.

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    1. Thanks, Lyn. Honestly, the year has just flown by. We've enjoyed it so much and gotten so much accomplished it's been a whirlwind of excitement for both of us.
      Cheryl

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  9. Prairie Rose has become one of my favorite publishing houses. I think that I have read most of the stories that you have in your western adult series and the anthologies that come from you are GREAT. I am thrilled that you are also publishing for the young adult crowd.

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    1. Lynda, we are thrilled about that, too. We plan to have many more excellent reads available for YA this coming year, as well, in both our Painted Pony Books imprint and Tornado Alley Publications.

      I'm so glad you have been enjoying our individual stories and our anthologies! We've had such fun with those.

      Cheryl

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  10. It's a real pleasure being part of the Prairie Rose/Painted Pony Books stable. Cheryl and Livia, you're both fantastic. Without your confidence in me, I never could have had a #1 Best Selling Children's Historical Fiction on Amazon. I owe it all to you.

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    1. Jim, your stories stand on their own merit and I've enjoyed working with you immensely! And Livia's covers always help sell books. No question about it. We are glad you threw in with us at PPB and look forward to many more great stories about Nate Stewart and his days as a Ranger.

      HUGE CONGRATULATIONS!
      Cheryl

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  11. *Cheers* to you and Livia and many happy book-selling years ahead for PRP. :-)

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    1. Thanks, Kaye! So glad to have you with us at PRP!
      Cheryl

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  12. Congratulations, and best wishes for more of the same this coming year.

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    1. Thank you, Caroline. You've always been a staunch supporter and we appreciate you!
      Cheryl

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  13. Trying again. Congrats to both you and Livia, Cheryl for creating PRP. I hope one day to be among the authors you have gathered around you. :)

    Liette

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    1. Thanks, Liette! I hope so, too! We will be looking forward to your manuscript. Thanks so much for coming by tonight!
      Cheryl

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  14. With these two ladies at the helm, how could it NOT be a huge success?

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    1. Thanks, Troy! I appreciate that, and I'm sure Livia does, too!
      Cheryl

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  15. And now for my winners for tonight's drawing!

    1 DIGITAL COPY OF COWBOY CRAVINGS--LYN HORNER!

    1 DIGITAL COPY OF LASSOING A MAIL-ORDER BRIDE--LYNDA MCCOY!!

    AND, ONE SIGNED PRINT COPY OF GABRIEL'S LAW--LIETTE BOUGIE!

    LYN and LYNDA, if you will, please e-mail me at fabkat_edit@yahoo.com and I will see that you get your prizes!

    LIETTE, please e-mail me at fabkat_edit@yahoo.com with your "snail mail" address and I will get Gabriel's Law off to you!

    Thanks so much to everyone who came by and read and left comments. As always, much appreciated! Thanks for all the very kind words and well-wishes. And CONGRATULATIONS to the prize winners!

    Cheryl

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    1. You made my day, Cheryl. And just with one of those books of yours I want to read. Thank you. Email sent to you with my address. :)

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  16. So proud to be a Prairie Rose. Thanks for the support and generosity,Cheryl and Livia. Oh, and merry Chistmas LOL.

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