The publisher tells all...
The strange and twisted tale of Living Beyond Reality Press (now ten years old!)

Sting...Carl Jung...a failed Canadian publisher...a little guy named Shinny...Star Wars erotica..."Soulful Sex"...what a long, strange journey it has been. Get ready, if you dare, to read the story of a tiny publishing house called Living Beyond Reality Press.

Sting and Carl Jung. In 1990 I developed a peculiar fascination with Sting (the punk/reggae fellow back in his Police days, not the mellow guy of today). In my efforts to explore All Things Sting, I came upon his mentor/inspiration: Carl Jung, the inventor of psychoanalysis. Feeling that I myself could use some psychoanalysis, I studied Jung for over a year. In the process I developed a sort of pop, self-help version of some of his theories, which I put in a book called Living Beyond Reality: A Jungian Primer for Enhancing Your Life. I also realized the Jungian implications of an unpublished novel I had written, and buffed that up a bit as well.

My Canadian publisher turns out kind of "eh." In the mid-90s I sought a publisher for my two titles, and managed to find one at last. Edmonton-based Commonwealth Publications seemed the answer to my prayers, until shortly before Living Beyond Reality went to press, the company folded. Being a never-say-die sort of chick, I decided to publish both books myself in a short run, and that I did in 1998. Thus was founded Living Beyond Reality Press.

That crazy place called the Internet. I also launched www.livingbeyondreality.com in 1998, the platform by which I would promote, sell and distribute my two titles. Sales were not exactly booming, but the site became a hit nevertheless. My Jungian-inspired features, such as my analyses of celebrities as archetypes, were quite popular. Meanwhile, I started a little corner of the site dedicated to hockey humor and dubbed it "Hockey Snacks." In no time I was publishing a new issue of this little ezine every week. It was hosted by Shinny, my left index finger with a drawn-on face and tiny plastic goalie mask. Thousands of fans came to adore this weird fellow between 1998 and 2002. No one was more surprised than I. Beginning in 1998 I also undertook to create an online biography of Guy Carbonneau, a French Canadian NHL player of some renown (now coach of the Montreal Canadiens). The bilingual site became probably the largest for any professional sports player and has been featured on French Canadian radio and TV. I kid you not. And by the way, I'm from Wisconsin, not Quebec or even Ontario. Told you this story was weird.

My writing takes an interesting new turn. In 2003 I posted something new to www.livingbeyondreality.com: a couple pieces of Star Wars fan fiction. One of these was an erotic romance story. Maybe you're aware of the virulent popularity of Star Wars fan fiction, particularly of the erotic variety. I wasn't. But soon I was getting emails from readers all over, raving about my story and telling me I had a uniquely beautiful style. I will admit I had been writing erotica privately since high school, but it had never occurred to me to actually publish the stuff. But now that total strangers were suggesting it, I thought the idea might actually be a good one.

Diana Laurence is born. While I was busy publishing Hockey Snacks, the web and the publishing industry had been changing like mad. Suddenly there were lots of new ebook and small press publishers out there seeking new authors. So, in late 2003 I submitted my work to a couple of them. Unlike back in the 70s, 80s and 90s when I was freelancing, this time I found a publisher in a couple of weeks. In fact, I found two. Almost simultaneously in spring of 2004, I released ebooks under my new pseudonym Diane Laurence via these two publishers. Alas, one of them ("The Company Whose Name We Do Not Utter") proved to be less than honorable about their contracts and I dropped them. But the other, New Age Dimensions, was great to work with and became the home of Diana Laurence's "erotica with soul," including the Soulful Sex anthologies.

It only took me 35 years to become a success. When I was 13, 'Teen magazine published my short story "The Orange Crate with No Second Floor." While I did make some money freelancing during the ensuing 35 years, I never got close to that kind of exposure again. However, the Diana Laurence books took off: they sold like hotcakes, won awards, and I became New Age Dimensions' bestselling author. The internet and other technological changes made all the difference. I had found my audience and life was great!

What is it with me and publishers? Then in early 2006, my publisher New Age Dimensions decided to close business. Being a never-say-die sort of chick, I looked at this as a great opportunity. The Diana Laurence books had found a market and people were clamoring for the new release planned for March. So in a whirlwind of effort, I took back the rights to my titles and determined my ever-present tiny publishing company, Living Beyond Reality Press, would re-release all of them at once. And it would also publish the new book, Soulful Sex Volume III, as soon as I could get that puppy to press.

Go, LBR Press, go! And so, never content to do things conventionally if I can help it, I am now a publisher with a rather larger titles offering and ongoing plans for more. I love all aspects of publishing, including the book design and the marketing, so I am having a blast. LBR Press releases are all my own books, which I hope you will appreciate as not an act of vanity but one of low risk. And after all, I do still have my day job 40 hours a week. Crazy, yeah I know...but I do tend to live beyond reality.

Should I give a cut of the profits to Sting? It's a thought.

Diane Lau, Publisher
Living Beyond RealityTM Press