ALL ABOUT HARLEQUIN ROMANCE
Harlequin Romance stories are all about real, relatable and strong, deeply desirable characters experiencing the intensity, anticipation and sheer rush of falling in love. Prepare to sweep readers away by these contemporary, emotional, glamorous and uplifting romances!
Harlequin Romance Key Elements
- A Harlequin Romance novel can have a strong focus on the heroine. Our heroines need to be real and relatable, and her story should make the reader wish they were in the heroine’s shoes!
- We need a hero we can immediately trust, who is worthy of the heroine. Not all of our heroes are super rich international tycoons (although some might be!) but they’re successful in their own right and should be a strong man our heroine would aspire to be with.
- We are also happy to see LGBTQ+ romances that deliver that same feel of sweep you away romances in wonderful locations around the world.
- Glamorous, international settings are encouraged and work well to add the aspirational element to our romances.
- We welcome protagonists from all backgrounds and nationalities.
- NEW Level of Sensuality: High sensual tension, matched with high emotional connection. While these stories do not have graphic sexual detail, we welcome scenes that go beyond the bedroom door to explore the emotional fulfilment that comes with sexual intimacy.
- Captivating internal emotional conflicts that will sustain the story over 50,000 words.
- Couple-focused with minimal secondary characters to generate emotional depth and intensity.
- Delivers contemporary, fresh takes on classic romance themes.
- This is the home of feel-good, entertaining and fresh paced romance.
- While these romances are tender stories, it doesn’t mean they can’t be edge-of-the-seat exciting! Throw your reader straight into the story!
Featured in HARLEQUIN ROMANCE
Some of our most popular storylines include: Cinderella (rags-to-riches), convenient marriages, runaway brides, weddings, pregnancy, secret babies, billionaires & millionaires, royalty, aristocracy, single moms, working together, falling for the boss, couples reunited, friends to lovers, amnesia, single dads, seasonal (e.g. Christmas and summer). In Harlequin Romance we are no longer acquiring small town and Western settings or cowboy and military heroes.
Harlequin Romance is…
One Fine Day for its warmth and tear-jerking properties, The Notebook for its emotional depth, The Vow for its emotional conflicts, Dear John for its focus on the central relationship, Life as We Know It, The Proposal and The Back-Up Plan for their fresh storylines.
We are actively seeking to acquire authors from underrepresented backgrounds and nationalities to reflect our diverse global readership. If you feel that’s you, and you have a story to tell that features the key elements above, then we would love to read it!
One reply on “Spotlight on: Harlequin Romance”
Gardnerk001@comcast.net I am working on a story which I plan to submit to Halequin called The Gangster´s Daughter. It is about the 19 year daughter of Jewish gangster. It is set in the 1960s. Her father is murdered and she sets out after the men she suspects of committing the Hit. She is helped by an older (in his 20s) Jewish veteran and some people who knew her father. She falls in love with one of them. It is set in a city based on Chicago but with a different name. With the background of the events of the 1960s, should i submit it with 55,000 word count to Intrigue or Regency with a 70,000 to 75,000 word count? Also, if the 1960s is too current, I can move it back to the 1950s, if that is better? I want to establish that her father was involved in Prohibition distilling and rum running in the great Lakes area. He is now respectable, but involved with was then considered illegal white collar ctrime such as gambling, Hollywood, loan sharking, and labor racketeering. If 19 is too young, I can make her 21. I like your writers such Debbie Herbert. I want to make my firt novel to you a great one.
Comments ( 7 )
I spent the entire shutdown working. Had no time to wind down. I didn’t see my son much when school shutdown. My one co worker was told to stay home for 3 weeks so I picked up her hours. This year has been really crappy.
Ugh, Janell. Here’s hoping the rest of your summer is better.
Thanks for the info, Carol! Everyone is different in how they deal with the shutdown! I stay at home all the time since I don’t work so I haven’t been too effected but my shopping and errands sure have been effected!
Valri, I’ve been doing most of my shopping online. My local Target is still low on some items – mostly cleaning supplies. Grocery store is pretty much back to normal. Most of the dining in our town is outdoor. I can’t imagine have school-age kids!
Wow–getting your creative process on track must have been daunting–especially with “extra-large dog” glad to have you home. You don’t like coffee–I love coffee and have enjoyed my fortifying 2 cups in the morning even more than usual! How as COVID affected your story lines and characterizations? Best Wishes for all releases!
Interesting question, Virginia. You’ll have to tell me if the tone of my “COVID” books changed any! LOL
Life has changed so much! My dad passed Feb 2. The assisted living facility my folks were at went into hardcore lockdown the beginning of March. Mom couldn’t leave her apartment for 4 months! She was on the third floor, Will be 89 in two months & doesn’t use the phone. My husband and I remodeled the lower level completely and moved her in with us July 1. What a life change and difficult transition for the 3 of us! But we’re working thru it!