As we’ve said before, Harlequin series editors need to buy 4 books a day to make next year’s commitment—and while we’ve got a group of talented and prolific authors, and dedicated senior editors who keep a close eye on inventory, sometimes some lines have more openings. We thought we’d spotlight a few for this month…
Do you have a book for us? These lines are particularly open at this time!
Love Inspired Suspense:
Due to the upcoming increase to six books, the Love Inspired Suspense team is certainly looking for new authors! Though you can check out the Writing Guidelines and the Harlequin Community for more areas, Executive Editor Tina James says she’d like authors to remember that the suspense needs to be evident from the very first page, that she’s looking for settings with interesting groups that lend themselves to suspense (like the K-9 unit!), and that the protector hero is always popular.
Harlequin Superromance:
Superromance books have broader scopes and mainstream themes to fill the higher page count. Senior Editor Wanda Ottewell is looking for stories that are meaty yet uplifting with a powerful romance. She’d love to see how you take stories with emotional resonance and give them new dimensions. Check out the Writing Guidelines and the Harlequin Community for more details.
Harlequin Heartwarming:
Heartwarming is still in its first full year of publishing original “clean” romances, and it’s brought on a number of new and compelling authors—as you have no doubt seen in this blog! Senior Editor Victoria Curran passionately supports these debut authors and the Heartwarming team has a great eye for spotting talent. Check out the Writing Guidelines and Community and see if your novel can deliver that romantic, inspiring (though not inspirational), warm and charming feel!
Harlequin Cosmo Red-Hot Reads:
These Red-Hot novellas are growing fast! So far there have been no first time author acquisitions, but HarlequinE Director Malle Vallik is open to changing that! A Harlequin Cosmo Red-Hot Reads story is like the magazine. Sexy, contemporary, featuring fun, fearless women taking what they want in the job and in bed! The Writing Guidelines and reading the novellas will give you some clues, but always keep in mind that your heroine is the type of woman who’d read Cosmo—and your story might be one that could inspire an article!
Depending on the month, these might change. But if you have a story for any of these lines you’ve been polishing, now is the time to send it in to the editors. They are eager and excited to make time for you!
Get reading–and writing!