Interview with Les Denton

by Daisy Willis

Les Denton is the owner of Assent Publishing, LLC, a publishing company she founded to bring quality authors and readers together. Les serves as the managing editor for Bad Day Books, Assent's horror, thirller, and suspense imprint. Les will be taking pitches at the Write Stuff conference, looking for new authors to sign and work with.

Assent Publishing supports their authors by offering them a full curriculum--for free--that teaches the skills and strategies needed for sales success. This curriculum is offered through Assent Academy. 

GLVWG member Daisy Willis contacted Les to ask her questions about her company and the types of writing she's interested in.

What inspired you to found your own publishing company, and what sets it apart from the rest?

When the internet broke ground, I offered services in technology. It was an exciting time and I was able to offer many new things to people and businesses. I also write and surround myself in that environment. Recent changes in the publishing industry brought this fresh opportunity to mind, just like the birth of the internet. It is an exciting new frontier where authors have more opportunity than ever before, which is why I founded Assent Publishing.

We are a new, groundbreaking publishing company that stands apart from half-effort e-publishers and old-school traditional publishers. We have proven strategies and an understanding of author marketing needs, a commitment to distribution solutions, and dedication to publishing high quality books. I am excited to be the only publisher to present Assent Academy, the first of its kind, which offers professionally taught marketing and book business curriculum and customized advice at no charge to our authors throughout their careers with Assent Publishing.

You're managing editor for Assent's horror, thriller and suspense imprint, Bad Day Books (great name, by the way!). What's hot in these genres and what's decidedly not?

Thank you for the kind words. The purpose of this imprint is to transcend horror to embrace all goosebump raising, fret inducing, bad day stories. Readers are in it for the ride right now and they seek adrenaline-pumping storylines. Thrillers are big right now. What better way to take a thrill ride without having to leave the comfort of your favorite reading chair. In horror, I love psychological horror and there is a lot of great new material out there drawing attention to the genre.

What’s not so hot? Don’t get me wrong, I love zombies, but they are weighing down the shelves a bit right now. My advice: Make zombies a support element, not the driving force of your book.

Can you tell us about something you've published recently that you're really excited about and that exemplifies Assent Publishing?

There is a great deal of talent out there and it is so hard to narrow the list. I like to think forward and there are a few books we are polishing that I am really excited about. As I mentioned earlier, thrillers are big right now. So are strong female characters. The Pact by C.N. Bring is the first military thriller in a series about a strong female character surviving in a predominately man’s world. On the fantasy front, Rise of the Raven Knights by Paul DeThroe takes an average, contemporary man into the realm of the supernatural, surrounded by demons, shape-shifters, ghosts, danger from evil forces, and a few ill-timed magical disasters.

I am also excited to publish books that assist authors. The second edition of Finding Author Success: Discovering and Uncovering the Marketing Power within your Manuscript by Deborah Riley-Magnus has been updated to address today’s hurdles to success for authors in this turbulent publishing landscape.

What's your role as an editor in the publishing process? What do you find most rewarding and most challenging about the job?

As managing editor for Bad Day Books, I stay with our authors from submission to publication and beyond. We are excited about the career of each author, and the submission process is a great way to find not only the right manuscripts, but to begin sharing a future vision with each author. Working with authors throughout the creative process of publishing is rewarding. Finding bandwidth is challenging and we are constantly streamlining our processes and developing new roles as new talent comes on board to accommodate growth.

Any gems of advice for writers gearing up to pitch or submit their work?

Writing a novel is a process. As a part of concept, and certainly along the voyage, the writer should interact with their target audience through research and marketing. By the time the manuscript draft is complete, the twenty-five word pitch, short description, and even some of the book platform should be in place. Pitching the book should be a natural extension of this process and not, mentally at least, a separate step. Build a plan that shows you know your target audience, your hooks, your competition, and your characters and storyline from different perspectives. By not waiting until you write “The End” to start doing this homework, your pitch will be solid and your knowledge and enthusiasm will sell both you and your work.

Interview With Don Helin

 

 

by Mark Meier

Don Helin writes fast paced thrillers with intriguing villians. Don gets some of his ideas and material from his years of military experience, including the three tours he served in the Pentagon.
 
GLVWG member Mark Meier recently got in touch with Don to ask him about his writing  and about the two sessions he'll be teaching at the Write Stuff conference.

Mark: When did you start considering writing as a possible career, and what was your first big break?

 

Don: When I left the Pentagon and Washington D.C. to return to Pennsylvania, I signed up for an eight-week travel writing seminar from The Washington Post. I worked as a travel writer for about four years until I got the bug to write fiction. I've always enjoyed thrillers so I thought, hey I can do that. It turned out that writing thrillers was much harder to do than I thought. It took me about four years before I got that wonderful call from the Acquisitions Editor at Medallion saying they wanted to publish my book. My wife thought I was crazy dancing around the kitchen with the phone in my hand. After that call, it took almost two years before the book actually came out.

Mark: How does your military experience inform your books?

 

Don: My protagonist works for the president's national security advisor with his duty station in the Pentagon. I'm able to paint a factual picture for my readers on life in the Pentagon and life in the military.

 

Mark: In one session, you'll be discussing the villain's journey. How did you come to start thinking about villains as on a journey, and who are some of your favorite villains and why?

 

Don: I've always been concerned that the villain is a match for my protagonist. In seminars, actually at The Write Stuff conference, James Frey and Donald Maass convinced me that a believable villain has to face off against the protagonist. Also that I should develop a biography sheet for each of my characters, particularly the villain and the hero. That biography sheet outlines the villain's journey:  How did he get where he is and why does he want what he does? There are many wonderful villains who nearly beat the hero, but of course, not quite. The godfather is a classic. And, who could forget Hannibal Lecktor?  John Sanford is probably my favorite thriller writer and one of his best villains was Carla Rinker. She is a killer, but had such a difficult youth that it almost makes the reader root for her.

 

Mark: In another session, you'll address pacing. What are some of the most common problems you've encountered with pacing?

 

Don: The most common problem I see is authors piling up a stack of back story in the first chapter. They feel the reader needs to know everything about the character before they will be involved. I've learned you must trust the reader and drop in bits of back story slowly over the novel. Only give the reader what he/she needs at that moment. The second thing I've learned it to try and leave the reader hanging at the end of a chapter or section. Make them want to keep reading.

 

Mark: In the thriller genre, which kinds of details must be absolutely true and which can be fudged a little?

 

Don: Thriller author Jim Rollins always talks about the telling detail. If you plant enough actual fact in the story, the reader will ride with you on the fictional parts. This is where my experience in the Pentagon helps me. I can write factually about weapons, communications, organizations, etc.

 

~~~

Don's first thriller, Thy Kingdom Come, was published by Medallion Press in March, 2009. His latest thriller, Devil's Den, was published by Headline Books in September, 2012. Don is hard at work on his next thriller, Red Dog.