Fall Fiction Contest Checks

Checks In Mail
Fiction Contest Checks for weeks 6 through the finals went to accounting today. There was a slight delay due to Martin having the flu, but accounting should have check out by mid-week. If you are expecting a Weekly Winner or other prize check it should be to you in about 10 days.

Royalty checks have been mailed for authors we had addresses for. If your story was included in our book (BetterSex.com Erotic Fiction Book), please email Martin if you did not receive a royalty check.

Another Contest Soon
Many authors have asked us about our next contest. We plan another Fiction contest in the Summer.

2nd Book Publication Date
Several have asked about the 2nd book. This book will combine Summer and Fall Better Sex Erotic Fiction winners into a book. We are working on the book now now and it should be ready for publication by May.

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - 3 Days Left

Only 3 Days Left To Vote
In three days three stories will go to a three judge panel to select the $3,000 Grand Prize. Way too many 3's there, but be sure to vote for your favorite and help an unemployed or under-employed writer.

Ahead now: A Safer Life

Followed by: Lucky Lady

Followed by: Seven Months

VOTE NOW

Better Sex Fiction Contest 5 - Semifinals

13 Erotic Fiction Stories Fight for 3 Slots
After hundreds of stories, thousands of votes and over $1,000 already in prize money to writers who won their week, the 5th Better Sex Fiction Contest comes down a big vote to determine the top 3 stories. Three stories with the most votes move to a 3 judge panel and one will win the largest amateur erotic fiction Grand Prize of $3,000 awarded on 2.16. Voting time is HERE and ends Sunday.

VOTE NOW

Current Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest standings (changing almost hourly right now):

Story 1: " Naughty or Nice "
3%
Story 2: " A Rule Worth Breaking "
5%
Story 3: " A Safer Life "
35%
Story 4: " Road Trip "
3%
Story 5: " Fantasy "
5%
Story 6: " Getting Personal "
11%
Story 7: " Lucky Lady "
16%
Story 8: " Under Inspection "
1%
Story 9: " Trade "
0%
Story 10: " Behave "
1%
Story 11: " Wet "
5%
Story 12: " Seven Months "
10%
Story 13: " A Valentine's Heart for Adam..& Rick! "
6%

Good luck to all authors!!!

Martin
msmith(at)Bettersex(dot)com

Happy Thanksgiving

We Are Thankful For....
What makes Thanksgiving a great holiday? Stopping and thinking about all those "glass is half full" moments in our lives. In truth, most of our glasses flow well over the brim. Sometimes we walk through our lives not seeing ever-present magic and grace. Sometimes we treat our partners, lovers and friends with indifference. We take them for granted.

Thanksgiving is our national day of atonement. The pilgrims survived hardships we can't conceive much less find our way through. They fought for a toe-hold in a hostile new world. They sat down together to breathe a collective sigh of relief and give thanks. Thankful for the abundance of their lives, full lives with challenges at every turn, they gathered to hold a moment, to be thankful, to share and love.

Times and challenges change, but a day to hold, share and be thankful is a valuable tradition. If you are reading this on Thursday we are home with our families and friends being thankful for things such as:

• our customer's support, intelligence and involvement in our business
• the opportunity to help people find each other
• the privilege of service our chosen profession affords
• great employers and employees
• the honor to do what we love and get paid for it

A bullet list seems a little impersonal but it is past 3:00 and I have to go gather things to re-heat for my Thanksgiving meal with my brother Drew tomorrow. I don't cook as much as I heat up since that is the safer thing to do (by far). Cooking is an art and one I've never mastered. If you are cooking tomorrow I salute you.

I am not going to proselytize too much in my Thanksgiving message, but there are a few things going on right now you should know about:

• 25% off Sale Ends on December 2nd (we are also calling this our Better Sex Black Friday Sale) and it ends on Tuesday morning December 2nd.
  
  
• Testing Lower Free Shipping - Got permission to test a $39.00 "trigger" on our free shipping during Thanksgiving. This too will end on December 2nd.
  


• How Free Standard Shipping Works - When you place $39.00 or more in your cart standard shipping is on us. The cool part, and something 50% of our customers do, is you can upgrade to 2 Day Air for $6.00. This upgrade gives you a tracking number, gets your purchase picked faster and cuts shipping time (especially to the west coast) down to almost nothing. Best $6.00 you will spend.
  


• Erotic Fiction Voting - One of my favorite authors has 3 stories in our contest this week. Vote counts matter, so please read K. Pratt's stories and pick your favorite here: http://www.bettersex.com/t-erotic-fiction-contest-story1.aspx.
  


• Save Your Love Life, Save The World - We received great feedback on our desire to share our bounty around the world. Many people have asked to help by selecting donate to DKT International as one of their "free gifts" at check out. Don't know about you, but I love the idea there is a little girl or boy somewhere in the world who is alive today because DKT helped protect their family. Save Your Love Life TO Save The World, and thanks.
  


• 5 New "Helping Hands" product videos - Our customers love what we call our "helping hands product videos" because they show how our toys actually work. In our latest videos, done by some true Pros From Dover, you can HEAR how powerful the vibration is and get a real sense of every product feature. Here is where you can find our new product vids:
  
  We-Vibe (yes we do)
  16 Function Rabbit (finally back in stock!!!)
  Silicone Triple Orgasm Cock Ring (become part of the cock ring revolution)
  Lucid Dreams #14 (14 different levels of cool pleasure here)
  B3 Tuyo (this little ball will rock your world)
  


• We lost our "Tweet" coupon there for a few days, but it is back now and don't forget to follow us on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/bettersexweb. I am about to post what using Tweet in our secret code area will get you now that it is fixed.

Lots more cool stuff coming soon. We've been working almost nonstop, think Santa's exhausted helpers, so stay tuned and have a GREAT THANKSGIVING.

Martin
msmith(at)BetterSex(dot)com

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Winner

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Better Sex Summer Erotic Fiction - Finalists

4 Finalists Go To Judges Today
After 11 weeks, hundreds of stories and thousands of votes, four stories are finalists in our Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest:

Semifinals Week 1 Winner: Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs by Annie Kerns

Semifinals Week 2 Winner: Beach Break by B. B. Giddens

Runner Up 1: Innocent Corruption by Larissa Lyons

Runner up 2: Temple of Venus by Anna Bookner

The Grand Prize winner will be determined by a 3 judge panel. Four stories (two semifinalists and two runner ups) went to the judges today. We will post judge's decision here the day after Labor Day (September 2nd). We modified our original idea from 3 stories to 4 stories as "Finalists" after voting irregularities were discovered last week. Temple of Venus, the best finishing second place story during our contest, was elevated to winning Week 9 replacing the story that experienced voting irregularities. I blogged extensively about this problem in my The Way Things Go Sometimes post on Friday August 22nd.

Vote for your favorite!
The $2,500 Grand Prize will be awarded by our 3 judge panel. We want to know what story you like best. We will update this blog posts with links as soon as they are available.

Good luck to all authors! Don't forget the deadline for the Fall Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest is November 1st. Fall will be similar to Summer in the way the contest operates. Full details will be posted here next week. If you would like to get a jump on our Fall contest, send stories to:

siiweb @ BetterSex .com "Fall Fiction Contest submission" as the subject.

Wondering why we created the Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest = use that link to read my explanation to one of our writers in our Revolution blog.

Yes, our "Ivoted" code still knocks $5.00 off your order if you vote for your favorite story in this week's non-binding poll.

VOTE NOW

Thanks,

Martin

Msmith @ BetterSex . com

The Way Things Go Sometimes

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Better Sex Summer Erotic Fiction Contest - Semifinals

Martin's Dream
I had a Sleepless Night last night. I dreamed about Snow White and a Vampire wearing Sensible Shoes. The was a girl named Penny and she was reading a story called Penny's Pleasure in the back seat of a car caught in a Traffic Jam. I kept shouting, "I'm innocent, I'm innocent," to a judge who said, "you are Innocently Corrupted." I woke up realizing I needed to blog about our Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest Semifinals.

Last Weekend To Vote...Round One
Here is how the votes shape up as of Friday around lunch:

Story 1: "Sensible Shoes"
9%
Story 2: "Innocent Corruption"
26%
Story 3: "Penny's Pleasure"
7%
Story 4: "Snow White & the Vampire"
39%
Story 5: "Traffic Jammed"
5%
Story 6: "A Sleepless Night"
13%

Your Vote & A Writer's Dream
Your vote may make a writer's dream come true because our top prize is worth over $2,500. The money is important, but most of our writers are also looking for some street cred. They want confirmation, support and encouragement.

Remember three stories will become finalists. Read the stories and vote for your favorite even if they aren't winning this round because your favorite could still win the GRAND PRIZE.

Why am I so tired today? Must have been that crazy dream I had last night :).

Have a great weekend everyone.

Martin
msmith @ bettersex . com

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - New Stories

Read Housesitters

Housesitters by last year's winning author A. J. Riley won last week's vote. Use the link above to read HouseSitters.

New stories are going up this morning including:

A. Erotica by Madison Page

B. Blindfold by Elle Buchanan

C. Stay with Me by Wade

Vote for your favorite now. Only 2 more weeks left in our Better Sex Summer Erotic Fiction Contest. Semi-finals will start on Monday August 11th. Weekly winning stories will compete against each other to make it into the 3 story final.

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Break A 3 Way Tie

Vote before Monday and break the tie...
Week 9 has 3 erotic fiction stories neck and neck. Your vote could break the tie. Here is where voting stands as of 1:35 EST on Friday.

Story A: "The HouseSitters"
35%

Story B: "A Close Shave"
33%

Story C: "Road Trip"
32%

Week 9 Better Sex Erotic Fiction Stories use that link to see all 3 stories. Be sure to cast your vote before Sunday at Midnight. We will post the winner of Week 9 here on Monday.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Better Sex Web Team

Better Sex Fiction Contest Update & Fall Contest Details

Reading the blog, I see the date for letters to go out (see note below) to people who submitted stores has passed, but I haven't heard anything regarding my submissions. I entered three stories prior to the release form being a part of the application process--I think when I entered it was something you would send to us.

I also understand that you have other contests lined up, or rather, that you had enough submissions for more than one.

thanks for your time, making a great website, and offering the contest in the first place.

MB

MB is right we are way behind on notification. The Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest for Summer is over and full. We have not been able to get notes out to everyone due to the crush of entries and other duties. We received enough great stories to fill 3 contests and will be contact authors about our Fall Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest as soon we se see daylight (hopefully in the next few weeks).

Other Publications Rule = Relaxed
We will relax this rule and allow stories submitted to us to be published on other web sites and remain eligible for the Better Sex Fall Erotic Fiction Contest.

Fall Contest Deadline = November 1st
We will manage the Better Sex Fall Erotic Fiction Contest differently. Instead of using rolling admissions, we've set a deadline of November 1st for story submissions. This will allow us to read all submissions before awarding publication slots.

Better Sex Fall Contest Slots
We think there will be about 40 publication slots for the Better Sex Fall Erotic Fiction Contest. The contest will extend through January with semi-finals in February (at least that is the plan now).

Limited Release
Our Limited Release will not change, so, if you would like to expedite your entry, please use the link above to review the release, sign and fax to 919.732.5393, sign, scan and email to msmith @ BetterSex . com or mail to Sinclair Institute, Attn: Fiction Contest, West Campus, 402 Millstone Drive, Hillsborough, NC 27278.

Thanks to everyone who entered. Writers who submitted stories may use the code "fiction" in our cart to save 10% on their order. Don’t forget to click “update cart” as this action confirms the discount.

Martin
Msmith @ BetterSex . com

P.S. Thanks for the kind words MB, you made our day.

Better Sex Fiction Contest - Sleepless Wins

A Sleepless Night by Heather Line won Week 6 of the Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest

New stories went up today including:

A. A Dark Stormy Night or Is that a gun in your pocket or are you just happy to see me by Dee Guisée
B. Delicious by Roxanne Rhoads
C. Flat Tire (The Adventures of Jarenda Monroe) by L. R. Stewart

We are working on author notifications this week (week of July 7th) and hope to have notes out to all writers by Friday.

Martin
msmith @ bettersex.com

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Update

Traffic Jammed - Week 5 Winning Story
Our first international victory belongs to Traffic Jammed a story that made us want to be stuck in traffic. Our congratulations and a check is headed to Oh Canada. Author Lynn Lake actually mailed our limited release to us explaining there were no faxes that far north yet. We think she was only half kidding.

Read Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest Winning Stories - Use this link to read all 5 winning stories.

Read and Vote For Week 6 Stories
Week 6 stories awakens old and new passions, discusses a first sexual experience and ends with a sleepless night. Use these links to read and vote for your favorites:

• A. An Awakened Passion by Antoinette La Femme
• B. The Day That Changed Everything by Scott Douglas
• C. A Sleepless Night By Heather Lin

Haven't Heard From Us?
All authors should have received a receipt for stories received. We had a few bumps when the contest started, but the last few weeks evryone seems to be hearing from us. If you are wondering if your story is in the contest, we are only a week out right now, so not all stories have been selected. Our goal is to have all stories selected and author's notified the week after the 4th. Just as we use a "rolling" admission cycle we read in batches too.

Great Writing, Great Stories
The death of the written word is grossly exaggerated based on contest submissions. We could fill three contests with quality writing, exciting narrative and engaging stories (and that is our plan). We know how hard it can be to write without reward or encouragement. In fact, our desire to create rewards for hard working writers is why this contest got started. Now the reward is ours since we get to read fantastic encouraging work. Thanks to everyone who sent us their work and please be patient as we work through the last available slots and send notes to every author.

Great work everyone!!! Thanks.

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Barn Burner

Week 5 is another close race, an old fashion barn burner between all stories.

Petula Ceasar's hot professor puts a new spin on laundry in Right On Schedule.

Lynn Lake makes getting stuck in traffic fun in Traffic Jammed.

Chris Phillips changes your life with a simple Afternoon in the Park.

Hot stories for a hot summer. Last week we were visited by a very erotic Snow White, some pesky dwarfs and a Vampire. Use the link below to read weekly winning stories for each week in the Better Sex Summer Erotic Fiction Contest.

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Stories Weekly Winning Stories

Don't forget to vote in this week's Ali vs. Frasier erotic fiction smack down.

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Update

Tuesday June 24th

Snow White Wins Better Sex Erotic Fiction Week 4
Snow White, sexual dwarfs and a lusty Vampire won the most votes we've had this year barely edging out a great story by a previous fiction contest winner. Use the link below to read last week's winning story:

Snow White and the Vampire by Annie Kerns

Congratulations to Annie for writing such an innovative story. Many writers have asked about the correct length, the word count, for our contest. Annie's story is one of the shortest this year. With a word count of just under 500 words Snow White and the Vampire proves that word count is not the most important issue. Several previous winners emailed how innovative and interesting they found Annie's idea. Great titles are also always good and Snow White and the Vampire is a great title.

Week 5 Stories are up and include:

A. Right On Schedule by Petula Caesar

B. Traffic Jammed by Lynn Lake

C. Afternoon in the Park by Chris Phillips

Our poll software, PollMonkey, has been acting up again. It was impossible to vote on Monday because the poll was frozen. Apparently our Monkey needed more bananas (translation an upgrade in our account). Vote counts for week 5 will start now and we will monitor the tool and the contest closely. If we need to add an extra day to this week's stories to make up for the inability to vote yesterday we will. We will see where vote counts are by the end of the week and post notice here and on our site if we need to extend.

Summer Erotic Fiction Contest Now Closed to new entries
We've received hundreds of great stories. The Summer Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest is now closed to new entries. Any story received after today will be read for our next contest tentatively scheduled to begin in the fall.

We will be setting the schedule for the rest of the contest in the next few days. We will be able to confirm publication slots and email authors we will be holding to our next contest in the next week or so.

Better Sex Summer Erotic Fiction Contest - Update

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Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Update

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Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - Update

Chaucer Week
The first week of the Better Sex Erotic Fiction contest features three stories by Chaucer, a previous Erotic Fiction winner. Chaucer's three stories for this year's contest are:

• Aroma of Worked Wood
• Sensible Shoes 2
• Greenhouse

Read and Vote for your favorite.

Stories are still being accepted. Email your story to siiweb@bettersex.com.

Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest Rules - use this link to review this year's contest rules.

New erotic stories every Monday! All Summer Long!

Erotic Fiction Contest - Progress

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Erotic Fiction Writer Comments

2007 Erotic Fiction Winner Comment

We asked previous winners of our Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest to share their experience with the contest. We can share why we created this contest out of passion and love for great erotic writing, but we've all been tained to be good skeptics. We share comments from past writers so you will see how our passion and beliefs guide our actions. This isn't to say we don't mess up (we do), but our intentions are honorable. Here is a comment from Wade creator of the story Going Home.

Writing stories has always been fun for me. The thought of trying to be published however, never appealed to me for that very reason: Writing is supposed to be fun. Getting published, I thought, was hard work and too competitive for my liking. That said, the experience that I had last year with Martin and his team was wonderful. If you have a story in your heart and mind, I encourage you to enter the contest. It's a very pleasant process.

Comments from other writers - click that link if you would like to read more writer comments.

Enter the 2008 Better Sex Erotic Fiction Contest - use that link to learn details about this year's contest.