Update on HARLEQUIN/SILHOUETTE - from RWA National 2007 - part 3
*** From Cindi Myers’ eNewsletter ***
We’ll start with a look at the Harlequin Single Title Spotlight from the Romance Writers of America conference. Diane Moggy, Director, Global Single Titles served as moderator for this workshop, which covered Mira, HQN, Red Dress Ink, Luna and Spice. She started off by announcing that in the first six months of 2007, Harlequin single titles have been on the NYT bestseller list for a total of 101 weeks, an increase of 15% over the same time period in 2006.
Senior Editor Valerie Gray spoke about Mira Books. Mira has been around 13 years. She characterized Mira as a “relationship-focused line.” All of the stories have something to do with relationships. “We examine the human condition in whatever area the story is taking place.” Mira’s roots are in romance, although they publish a lot of genres, including thrillers, historical fiction and contemporary literary fiction. Most of the books do have a romantic thread in them, though they are not romance. Mira titles have “great stories with complex characters and situations.” Mira takes risks editorially and creatively. They don’t want “run of the mill stories.” They are looking for “thought-provoking stories that will resonate with readers.“ They are always looking for new authors and new voices and have published several new authors in the past year. Currently, they’re looking for 5 main types of books: relationship novels (women’s fiction), thrillers, historical fiction (not historical romance), paranormal fiction, and commercial literary fiction. The editors are very selective and work with agented authors only.
Editor Tara Parsons spoke about HQN. “HQN is the place for big romances.” They publish all kinds of romance — contemporary, historical, paranormal, and romantic suspense. They publish primarily in mass market paperback, along with some hardcover and trade books. HQN covers have changed in the last year, trying for a more sophisticated and distinctive look. She urged authors to look at the current list to see if their book fits in with what HQN is already publishing. She suggested in pitches that authors point out how their book is similar to a book on the list, but also how it is significantly different. HQN works primarily with agented authors, but will look at queries only from unagented authors.
Editor Kathryn Lye presented the portion of the workshop devoted to Red Dress Ink. Red Dress Ink is devoted to contemporary chick lit. They publish one title a month in trade paperback. In he past year they had two debut authors in the line. They are buying new submissions but are very selective. They do have quite a full inventory right now. They are primarily interested in books aimed at 18-24 year old readers. RDI will consider query letters only from unagented authors.
Associate Editor Margo Lipschultz provided information on Luna. Luna publishes up to 12 titles a year. The line publishes single title fantasy with romantic elements, primarily in trade paper. Right now they publish primarily urban fantasy and other world fantasy. The books focus on a strong female protagonist who is coming to terms with some sort of magical power. They’re looking for believable world-building, accessible fantasy story lines and a strong romance. They are striving to appeal to both the core fantasy audience and romance readers and mainstream readers. They like new ideas and fresh voices. They’re looking for loosely-linked series of stand-alone books with strong female leads. Luna will consider proposals and sample chapters from both agented and unagented authors.
Susan Swinwood (formerly Susan Pezzack) spoke about Spice, Mira’s erotic fiction imprint. Spice launched in May of 2006. They’re looking for erotic fiction — very, very sexy. Graphic and explicit sexual content with an exceptional story. They’re definitely open to submissions, but are selective. They want very high quality. They don’t require a romance in the stories. The stories should be female focused. There are no real boundaries. Her only caveat is that while characters may have same-sex experiences, they should be primarily heterosexual. Spice Briefs launched in August. Spice Briefs are erotic short stories — 5000-15,000 long — published exclusively as ebooks. Submit Spice Briefs online at spicebriefs@harlequin.ca. They publish two Spice Briefs per month. For Spice, Susan prefers to see a full manuscripts, but will look at chapters and a synopsis. 90,000 - 110,000 words.
For all the above imprints, writer’s guidelines are available at www.eharlequin.com (go to the very bottom of the page and click on Writer’s Guidelines.)
***From Cindi Myers eNewsletter. Subscribe by sending a blank email to cynthiasterling-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Black Lyon Publishing is acquiring
Black Lyon Publishing (http://www.blacklyonpublishing.com) is a new publisher (established January 2007) publishing romance in ebook and trade paper formats. Black Lyon seems to be aiming to fill a niche other publishers aren’t. They’re interested in acquiring ’sweet’ romance. Sexual tension is a must, but no swearing and no graphic sex. Contemporary romance may have an urban or rural setting. Manuscripts should be 40,000 - 60,000 words. On the historical romance side, the editors prefer European set stories that take place between 1000 and 1600 AD. 60,000 - 90,000 words. Paranormal romance may be steamier — in fact, these books should have a “dark, sensuously gothic feel.” 60,000 -90,000 words. The editors are also actively seeking historical romances set prior to 1000 AD for a new Ancient Times Romance line. 60,000 - 90,000 words. The editors prefer email submissions. Guidelines are available at their website.
Update on DORCHESTER - from RWA National 2007
*** This information is taken from Cindi Myers eNewsletter. ***
The Spotlight on Dorchester was presented by Editor Leah Hultenschmidt and Senior Editor Chris Keeslar .
“Dorchester is one of the oldest independent publishers, in business since 1971,” Chris said in his introduction to the company. Dorchester publishes all varieties of mass market paperback fiction (and a little bit of trade and hardcover fiction.) They are not a small press and have wide distribution in all major outlets.
They publish all genres — westerns, thrillers, horror, science fiction and fantasy, romance, and detective fiction. Romance is the major part of their list. They have a number of bestselling authors on their romance list. They also buy a number of new authors each year. They have three romance editors on staff. Each authors gets individualized attention. They can react quickly to changes in the market and are willing to try new things. The acquisition process is streamlined. There’s no huge editorial board that has to approve acquisitions. “We don’t pay as large an advance as some larger companies,” Chris said. “But that allows us to take chances.” They buy books they love.
Each year they do a contest for new writers in conjunction with Romantic Times — the American Title contest.“We like to publish things that are different, that don’t fit into any particular categories,” Chris said. “Books that really touch nerves.”
“Things that don’t pigeonhole well are perfect books for Dorchester,” added Leah.
Historical romance continues to be strong for them. They do all kinds of different settings and time periods from ancient times through the 1930s and 1940s: Americana, Victorian, Scottish, British Colonial, World War II, Native American historicals. They were one of the first houses to publish paranormal romance. They do dark and light paranormal, historical and contemporary. Dorchester publishes contemporary romance “with a twist.” They do very little straight contemporary romance. There should be a touch of paranormal or mystery or something that makes it different and unique.
Chris prefers contemporary romance with strong humorous elements. They’ve also published a lot of humorous romantic mysteries. They publish romantic suspense — darker, fast-paced and “thrilleresque.” There must be a suspenseful, valid mystery and a believable romance. Editorial Director Alicia Condon is especially interested in romantic suspense. Dorchester has always published futuristic romance and continues to do so. This is a special interest of Chris’s. He doesn’t see enough of this.
All the editors work on all the different sub-genres and authors may submit to any of them. If something comes in that doesn’t work for them that they know will work for another editor, they will pass it on. If your work doesn’t get passed on to someone else you’re probably wasting your time to re-submit to a different editor at Dorchester.
Dorchester publishes African-American romance, edited by Monica Harris.
Shomi is a new line of speculative romance set in other realities. Their goal with this line is to pull in new, younger readers. The books have Manga-style covers. The characters are edgy and cutting-edge. They are still romances at the core, with happy endings. The relationship between the hero and heroine is still the driving force, set in unique, interesting world with new, different premises.
If you’re interested in writing for Dorchester, submit a cover letter, the first three chapters and a synopsis. Submit by snail mail only. Http://www.dorchesterpub.com for full guidelines. You can query first also or submit the entire manuscript. The editors work with both agented and unagented writers. Turnaround times can be “slow.” (Six months or more.) Don’t hesitate to contact the editor if something has been at Dorchester for several months. All manuscripts should be between 80,000-95,000 words.
Deb Yates finals in “The Golden Pen”
Deb Yates’ medieval manuscript, A Secret Heart, finaled in The Golden Pen, a contest judged by Golden Heart finalists and winners. It’s now off to be judged by Helen Rosburg at Medallion Press. [10/21/07]
Laura Griffin debuts at #1 in Austin
Wow! Our own Laura Griffin’s debut novel, One Last Breath, was #1 in Austin (Barnes & Noble, Arboretum) last week! [10/20/07]
Marian Stevens finals in the “We Dare You”
Marian Stevens’ manuscript The Rebel finaled in the Saskatchewan We Dare You contest. The contest does not have categories, simply the top five entries are sent off to Tara Parsons, Harlequin editor.
Julia London’s latest on NYTimes List
Our very own Julia London hit #7 on the Hardcover Fiction New York Times Bestseller list for the week of October 7th with her newest book, Jonathan’s Story. [10/5/07]
Deb Yates takes first in the “Heart to Heart”
Hooray for Deb Yates! Her historical manuscript, A Secret Heart, took first place in the San Francisco RWA’s Heart to Heart contest! [10/5/07]
Christine Keach takes third in the “Heart to Heart”
Congratulations to Christine Keach (w/a Lexi Connor) - her manuscript, To Catch a Falling Star, took third place in the contemporary category of the San Francisco RWA’s Heart to Heart Contest [10/5/07].
Harlequin to Publish Frontlist E-Books
Harlequin Enterprises announced September 19th that they have become the first major publisher to make their complete front-list catalog available in the e-book format. Harlequin releases more 120 titles per month, and their complete e-book list may be found at www.harlequinebooks.com.
“Women have embraced eBooks,” says Malle Vallik, Director Digital Content & Interactivity. “They demand portability, immediacy, availability, depth, breadth and convenience and, by making our entire front list and exclusive digital editorial available to them, we are meeting that challenge.”