What do editors want? That age-old question.
Well, we can’t speak for all editors, but the Harlequin Medical Romance Team can certainly speak to what we’re looking for. So, if you’re considering submitting to Medical Romance, to paraphrase Meredith Grey “you’re our people”, and this one’s for you!
Life or death!
Will they, won’t they? This usually refers to our heroes and heroines and that delicious romantic tension simmering between them. But we’d love to see even more life and death medical scenarios in our stories where patients’ lives really are in the hands of your characters.
Medical Romances are still uplifting, life-affirming romances at their heart so we want to keep that at the forefront of readers’ minds. But having your hero and heroine working together on high-octane, high-stakes cases with a dash of touch-and-go, is bound to get their (and our) pulses racing. The only questions are where will it lead…?
Do think about where these exhilarating stories might be set? What medical specialties or settings might be fueled by life or death drama? Because we know that there are plenty of ups and downs that occur – inside hospital wards and out, close to home and in far flung locations across the globe. We just want to be in the thick of it alongside your hero and heroine.
Putting on the glitz (and glamour)
Medicine may not be the most glamourous of vocations at the best of times. Add in a medical emergency or two and it certainly isn’t. Besides, that’s not what medicine is about. It’s about that sense of community, helping people, saving lives.
However, that doesn’t mean for the sake of fiction you can’t have a little fun with the private and professional lives of your medical professionals. Think billionaire docs, surgeons to the stars, private clinics… Less diamond in the rough and more Cartier!
And it’s not just the high-flyers that can have all the fun. Everyone can experience the thrill of a little luxury in their lives sometimes. City docs, GPs, doctors practicing in the depths of the jungle. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of finding a special someone to share it with…
We’re bringing sexy back…
We know that one of the reasons our readers love Medical Romance is that we publish stories with a range of sensuality levels. And we want to give them even more chance to experience the sexier, more passionate side of Medical Romance.
Whether you whisk us off to an exotic location or bring us a hero and heroine who play just as hard as they work, we want you to satisfy readers’ longing…for a Medical Romance where passion isn’t just the recommended course of treatment, it’s a promise!
Something for everyone
The world is beautifully diverse place. And the medical world is no exception!
So, whether you’re writing a story based on classic tropes or embracing a fresh new take we’re keen to see a wider range of diverse and underrepresented characters in our medical romances, especially in Own Voices stories (after all the medical community, and its patients is a very broad church, and we’d love to see stories that really reflect that). But we want you to write the story that you are comfortable and confident in writing. Because we know that’s when your passion for the story shines through!
Medical Romance is for everyone and we want everyone to see themselves reflected in the stories we publish.
And remember, whatever your storyline, whoever the medical professionals at the heart of your romance, what we want most is to invite readers to get swept into the world of dedicated (and delectable!) medical professionals. Stories that deliver on emotional and romantic intensity of navigating the high stakes of falling in love in the pressured world of saving lives.
We look forward to reading your submissions!
Please submit to Harlequin Medical Romance via Submittable: https://harlequin.submittable.com/submit
