A Change Of Plans
They say timing is everything.
A day after I posted an article about how wonderful it’s been to work with my editor, Don D’Auria, we learned he was let go by Samhain. The outpouring of anger and disappointment with Samhain and love and admiration for Don has been overwhelming. I tried to follow as much as I could just on Facebook yesterday and couldn’t keep up. Suffice to say, we’re all in Don’s corner. I feel terrible for Don, but I also know that he will find a new home, one that I hope will appreciate his talent.
I could use this space to rant and rave and call people out, but I won’t. Cooler heads must prevail. Let’s just say I was reeling when I heard the news. To work with Don for 5 years only to have the rug pulled out from under me is a blow, for sure. Just have to stay positive that we will ride again some day.
Needless to say, I won’t be submitting future works to Samhain. I just don’t feel that erotica and romance editors will get the horror vibe. Call me crazy. I already work with several other publishers, so I’m not crying that the sky is falling. I promise, you will have new Hunter Shea books in the coming years. Heck, there are 3 slated to come out next year alone.
I do empathize with the authors who have only worked with Samhain who now have to hustle their asses off to find new publishers. And what about those first timers who signed with Samhain and Don whose books have yet to be edited or come out? What the hell are they supposed to think or do? As someone who got accepted by Leisure a month before that place went kerplooey, I know how they feel. Unlike with Leisure, Samhain will still have a horror line, but it won’t have the same cache. Think of a high school football star being signed up by a college with a legendary coach, only to fire the coach before they step on campus. There are other great horror publishers out there, but just so many open slots. Things will be a mess for quite a while.
For those of you who have been following my latest writing project, We Are Always Watching, through #HunterWrites, I wanted to let you know that manuscript is going on the back burner. I was working hard to get it to Don before Christmas. No need to do that now. Instead, I’m going to work on some side projects in a totally different genre that I had promised myself to get to after the new year. I do plan to jump back into We Are Always Watching during the Christmas break. I’ll then restart #HunterWrites and you can stand over my shoulder, so to speak.
Yesterday was a dark day. But like the Dude, we will abide.
We will abide.
13 responses to “A Change Of Plans”
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- - November 5, 2015
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Hunter Shea 
This is a sad state of affairs. While I didn’t know Don personally, I read quite a number of books he brought to Samhain. The books were always quality and enjoyable. If Hunter and others that Don brought in are no longer going to be publishing with them then Samhain doesn’t publish anything I would be willing to read. I hope the realize just how many loyal readers they will be losing.
Thanks, man. This means a lot. I hope we get to work together with Don again in the not too distant future!
To Keven…I mean To you, the next Steven King. I’m much older and have lived to experience, on a regular basis, the old adage-every cloud has a silver lining.It’s the patience that takes work.Chin up, march ahead and don’t forget old friends when you make it to the top!
I am so sorry to see Don go. He’s been wonderful to me and to so many others. I don’t know if I’m going to be submitting future work to Samhain; it’s just too early to decide and my next few projects (some of which are not horror) are too difficult to scope out at this point. You’re right, it’s a blow. I wish him the best and hope he lands somewhere terrific.
He’s like a cat. He’ll be on his feet in no time.
While I agree that Samhain made a bad move in letting Don go, you are incorrect when you say the editors won’t do a good job because they don’t “get” horror. Many of them don’t just edit romance or erotica, they also edit sci fi, fantasy and, yes, horror. A few of them even write it. It won’t be the same, no doubt. The powers that be have shot themselves in the foot by doing this, but I have a feeling it had more to do with economics than with any ill will toward Don.
Don is a god of horror. He’s great. He’ll land on his feet somewhere else and hopefully there will be spots for everyone there. Until then, you might actually give the other editors a shot and not be short sighted about this. Samhain sort of left Don hanging for a long time without developmental editors and other assistance he could have used, but he was on the road to finally getting quality authors and releasing quality books. It’s too bad they couldn’t have hung onto him for another couple years to see what a great line he’d have grown for them.
We all know this was an economic decision. It’s impossible to hate Don. 🙂 I understand that a good editor can edit any genre, but it’s very hard to be on par with someone who has a true passion for a genre. That’s what Don brought to the table, as well as his eye for talent. We’re all in wait and see mode for now.
Having worked with some of the other editors myself, I’m just saying that there are a few of them who DO love horror, sci fi as well, but most of all they’re good at polishing stories, finding holes in story lines, helping authors develop well rounded characters. So, I’m just saying give them a shot and you might actually find you can have a good working relationship with them, too. Never hurts to have more than one venue for our novels. 🙂
That is very true. You can’t have enough publishers on your side. 🙂
What a bunch of morons Samhain are for firing Don. As a voracious horror reader I can say with certainty that Don is the best at what he does: discovering and nurturing the world’s best horror writers. If Samhain weren’t making enough money then it was a fault on their marketing, it had nothing to do with the quality of the books they were releasing.
Who knows the rationale behind it, but it was a hell of a blow to the writers and readers. I’m sure he’ll pop up somewhere soon and the horror will continue!