[Publisher] Tyrus Books

[Giant Baby]

Benjamin LeRoy (founder, publisher) and Alison Janssen (editor) have left Bleak House Books to start a new a new house, Tyrus Books. They're still focusing primarily on crime and dark literary. Submission guidelines are here.

Ben talked to Sarah Weinman about the change, posted on her Confessions of An Idiosyncratic Mind blog. That interview is here.

 

[stevewed]

Alison is good people. If you do dark/noir kind of crime stuff, you should check them out. At Bleak House, they did Victor Gischler, A. Neil Smith, Nathan Singer, Craig McDonald, many others.

 

[James D. Macdonald]

URL: http://www.tyrusbooks.com/

 

[Giant Baby]

Interesting bit in PW yesterday.

Tyrus Books, launched by Ben LeRoy and Alison Janssen with three releases last month, may be a small Midwestern literary press, but the founders hope to have an impact on the literary landscape in the Deep South as well. <snip> ...the press is sponsoring a short story competition, the DELTA YOUTH Writing Contest, open to high school students in the Mississippi Delta, an economically-impoverished area with an estimated 60% adult literacy rate. Authors of the top short stories (2,500 words or less) will be invited to take part in the Guild’s 2010 writers conference next summer. The top author seeking a degree in the literary arts will also receive a $1,000 college scholarship.

In addition, next spring, Tyrus is releasing 10 fiction titles, including Delta Blues, a short story collection, to be released with a 10,000-copy print in April. Delta Blues, edited by Carolyn Haines, features fiction by James Lee Burke, John Grisham, Charlaine Harris, Ace Atkins, and other writers, plus a foreword by actor Morgan Freeman... <snip>

I've spent some time with Ben. He's a good and thoughtful guy. And I've noticed that a number of Bleak House authors I recognize have made the jump to Tyrus. Janet Reid said this in a blog post a few weeks back.

 

[Giant Baby]

They're giving away free Tyrus titles to anyone who asks until 12/23, hoping it'll help the cash-strapped give the gift of books this year if they so fancy. They'll include whatever note requesters wish to send to the recipeints, and they'll pay the shipping and handling. Details are here.

Ben's been updating the Tyrus feed on Twitter about the holiday free books, too.

 

[Unimportant]

Tyrus is currently closed to submissions.

 

[OneWriter]

Has been for a while now, though Ben has been attending conferences and taking pitches, if you happen to have one in your area...

 

[ScribeLady]

Has anyone submitted to this publisher recently? What about advances, payment of royalties, etc.?

Scribelady

 

[happywritermom]

I queried for my first novel last week. I've heard nothing yet, but I'll post when/if I do.

 

[flygal716]

I'm looking at them, too, and will submit my mystery if I don't connect with an agent.

 

[happywritermom]

Partial request Saturday. Thrilled! Tyrus would be a great match for this novel.

 

[happywritermom]

Enthusiasm dwindling as I follow Tyrus on Twitter. Tweets are all about music reviews and blog posts. I see few attempts to market current titles other than book give-aways.

I realize there are plenty of other ways to market books, but this is a cheap and easy one that most publishers take advantage of. It also indicates, to me, a lack of passion. I could be wrong. It's just Twitter, but ...

 

[priceless1]

Lori, knowing Ben, there is nothing that doesn't lack passion when it comes to his books. You may not see it, but the proof is where it counts - the genre buyers.

 

[Giant Baby]

Priceless, may I presume a small fix?

Lori, knowing Ben, there is nothing that doesn't lack passion when it comes to his books. You may not see it, but the proof is where it counts - the genre buyers.

And word. Lacking passion is the last thing Ben could ever be accused of. If anything, his passion for writers and their books is the thing that hits you, coming in the door.

 

[priceless1]

Yah, yah, you got me. Had way too many mai tais last night for daughter's 25th b-day, and not nearly enough coffee this morning.

 

[Giant Baby]

Had way too many mai tais last night for daughter's 25th b-day, and not nearly enough coffee this morning.

You're a brave woman even to be powered up. Happy birthday to your daughter!

 

[priceless1]

Thanks! She's terrified to return to Boston. It be cold in yer neck of the woods.

 

[Giant Baby]

Thanks! She's terrified to return to Boston. It be cold in yer neck of the woods.

I can't write it down here (because everyone knows that acknowledging New England weather changes it instantaneously), but have her check out the Weather Channel for today!

 

[happywritermom]

Glad to hear that, Priceless, and happy birthday to your daughter!

I ended up pulling the partial from consideration, but not so much for that reason. I did a lot of thinking over the holidays. I've decided that I need to move in a more consistent direction with all my work.

I am still unpublished and, therefore, I still have a chance to get it right. Part of that involves taking another look at both my finished novels and deciding whether to do major overhauls in hopes of landing one agent or one publisher for both.

The second novel is straight-forward mystery/suspense -- not something Tyrus publishes. The WIP is mystery/suspense with literary edge.

I have to admit though that I was nervous to begin with since F&W so recently bought Tyrus. Then to see what seemed like a lack of interest in the tweets was a bit disconcerting. I didn't want to end up with a novel stuck in publishing limbo.

I'm glad to hear that I was mistaken.

 

[priceless1]

I'd also like to add that Ben is very good about tweeting upcoming releases and the many specials he has on his titles. Truth be told, few can outdo Ben in the promo department.

 

[Chumplet]

If you follow @TyrusBooks on Twitter, Ben lets you know when he's hosting a live TV show on YouTube. He has guests who talk about anything, usually writers. He wants me to be a guest, but I'll have to psyche myself up for that.

Anyway, it's entertaining, usually every night, and if they stray off topic you can always tweet him a question.

Stay tuned!

 

[railroad]

I met Benjamin at a conference in October. He asked for 25 pages. I just got my rejection this week. So just be aware that it may take time to hear from them.

 

[Chumplet]

If anyone is interested learning how Tyrus Books got started and how they're doing now, here's a recent blog post by Ben.

 

[stevewed]

So back in 2009 up there I said how cool the folks at Tyrus Books -- Ben and Alison -- were.

Well, in 2013 we signed with them for my debut. Small world.

Amazing to me how useful this site has been for me and others over the years, though I mostly lurk.

 

[railroad]

congrats!