Promoting Diverse Romance to Readers
As part of its always-on promotions, Harlequin helps readers discover books with Black main characters on it’s Black-Led Romance webpage. New titles are added quarterly so that readers can find a variety of new releases and backlist favorites each time they return. Harlequin promotes the page through its monthly e-newsletters and Harlequin.com website banner promotions (like the one shown above).
Harlequin takes a similar marketing approach for LGBTQ+ romance titles that can be found all year around on the Love Stories For All page on Harlequin.com.
Harlequin Selects Mentorship Author
Simone Sims has been selected for Harlequin’s 2024 Romance Includes You Mentorship, earning her a one-book publishing deal with Harlequin to publish her debut novel. As part of the mentorship, Simone receives a grant to help further her writing career and starting this fall, she will work one-on-one with her mentor editor at Harlequin Intrigue for a year to complete her debut novel for publication.
Simone’s thrilling reunion romance with a crime-story backdrop was one of 160 submissions that were individually reviewed by Harlequin editors and publishing team members, before narrowing the field down to 10 finalists. “Simone’s story stood out with its intriguing premise and high suspense that left our judges wanting to read more. Her writing potential and sheer enthusiasm for the romance genre came through loud and clear in her submission and I am excited to begin working with Simone as her mentor editor,” said Emma Cole, Editor for Harlequin Intrigue and one of the mentorship judges. Well done, Simone!
Spotlights on Representation
WriteforHarlequin.com features authors whose stories include characters that readers don’t see often enough in the romance genre – those with disabilities, LGBTQ+ identities, neurodiversity, and characters of all backgrounds and communities.
Recently, Elle Douglas shared the joy of seeing more LGBTQ+ romance stories in bookstores and a greater variety of stories being told in the LGBTQ+ romance space. Author Cynthia St. Aubin talked about her experience living with late-diagnosed AuDHD and how it shaped writing her latest book, The Summer of Perfect Mistakes. Thank you to Elle and Cynthia for sharing your experiences!
Library Journal Day of Dialog
We took part in Library Journal’s annual Day of Dialog in October, showcasing a diverse group of top authors with new titles arriving next year—Alka Joshi (Six Days in Bombay, May 2025) on historical fiction, Yigit Turhan (Their Monstrous Hearts, May 2025) and Kylie Lee Baker (Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng, May 2025) on horror, and Jane Yang (The Lotus Shoes, February 2025) on a debut author panel. Almost 70 authors participated in day-long sessions.
