Warriors Wanted: Get Ready for the Historical Blitz Bootcamp!

The Harlequin Historical series is excited to announce a new blitz for aspiring authors opening next Friday, June 5th!

We’re looking for talented new voices in Viking, Medieval and Highlander romances. This is an opportunity to showcase your historical warrior romance to our editors, get some helpful feedback in an accelerated time frame, and maybe even become the newest Harlequin Historical author! 

Join our bootcamp over at the Harlequin Writing Community on Facebook next week for these events:

Monday 1^st June: Author and editor tips!

Tuesday 2^nd June: Videos from new Medieval authors Ella Matthews and Melissa Oliver!

Wednesday 3^rd June: Q&A with award-winning Harlequin Historical author Jenni Fletcher—one of our most versatile authors, who has written Roman, Viking, Medieval, Regency and Victorian romances for the series! 12 noon EST (5 p.m. UK BST).

Thursday 4^th June: Q&A with Carly Byrne, an editor on the Harlequin Historical series team. Carly has worked with a variety of Historical authors and loves a Viking! Find out how to write a great submission from her! 12 noon est (5 p.m. UK BST).

Friday 5^th June: The Blitz is launched!

If you’re interested in submitting to our blitz:

• Check out the Harlequin Historical guidelines, the Warriors Wanted! blitz page, and visit the blitz page in Submittable when it’s live on June 5th.
• Request to join the Harlequin Writing Community on Facebook in advance of the bootcamp next week!
• Follow the editorial team on Twitter @BryonyGreenHqn, @CarlyMByrne and @C_Tricot for more updates!
• Read some recent books to get the best idea what our readers want! Here are some great reads:
  • A Healer for the Highlander by Terri Brisbin
  • Secrets of a Highland Warrior by Nicole Locke
  • Uncovering the Merchant’s Secret by Elisabeth Hobbes
  • The Warrior Knight and the Widow by Ella Matthews
  • Stolen by the Viking by Michelle Willingham
  • Falling for her Viking Captive by Harper St. George

Tips on writing your submission:

• Think of a really exciting, dramatic first scene to hook your reader straight into your characters’ lives!
• Show your characters’ personalities with everything they think, do and say. Then you won’t need to explain too much to the reader—they’ll get it!
• Keep your story focused on the hero and heroine—one or both of them need to drive every scene.

Warriors Wanted! Blitz—everything you need to know:

• Opens Friday 5^th June 2020.
• Make sure your submission is long enough. One chapter should be about 3000-5000 words.
• Submit the first chapter and synopsis to Submittable when our blitz page goes live next Friday.
• Closes at 7 p.m. EST/midnight UK BST Sunday 21^st June 2020.
• All submissions will be read and responded to by 12 noon EST/5 p.m. UK BST Monday 6^th July.
• If we love your submission we’ll invite you to submit further chapters and work with you on developing your story.

This blitz is specifically targeting Viking, Medieval and Highlander era romances, but we’re always looking for Historical submissions from under-represented authors set in other historical time periods. You can submit to Harlequin Historical at any time via Submittable. We’d love to read your story!