[Publisher] Harlequin Enterprises Ltd.

http://www.brendahiatt.com/id2.html

Not sure what you consider "low" but numbers reported for the self named lines are about half way down the page.

JL_Benet said:

http://www.thepassivevoice.com/06/2011/write-more-for-harlequin-receive-less-money/

Click to expand...

Wow, just.... wow.

I always thought it took a signature and agreement by both parties for any change in a contract to be made. Wonder what any agents involved will be saying to this.

Has anyone sent a manuscript to Kimani Press?

IMO, Harlequin's advances are very modest because, in their eyes, you are "trading" your manuscript for the reputation, dependability, and distribution of the Harlequin brand. Also, once you get your foot in the door, it's somewhat difficult to never sell to them again, and they like their authors to be prolific (2-4 books a year).

michael_b said:

Wow, just.... wow.

I always thought it took a signature and agreement by both parties for any change in a contract to be made. Wonder what any agents involved will be saying to this.

Click to expand...

I've heard a few grumbles from category writers, but I believe Harlequin's contracts are pretty boilerplate, with little to no room for negotiation (hence why it's easy to launch a career as a category romance author with no agent--and also why category romance authors are more vulnerable to contract changes).

Sent full, keep querying? (mereged into Harlequin thread in BR&BC)

Harlequin requested a full from me last week, which I sent. So, should I keep querying other houses or cool my heels and wait for Harlequin to get back to me?

Assuming Harlequin doesn't want exclusives (I know some publishers do), yes, keep querying. Publishers can take forever to get back to authors, and there's no sense putting your search on halt.

Hmmm. I was just bebopping around on their website and saw that they want exclusive submissions. So, hmm.

Celoise, did they specifically ask you for an exclusive? If not, then I recommend that you continue to query around. Harlequin is lovely, of course, but you want to do what's best for you. If Harley wants it, other wonderful presses will be interested as well. Good luck to you...and congrats.

To quote the Stones: "You can't always get what you wa-ant..."

I don't believe in exclusives unless the publisher has asked upfront for one and you've decided that saying "okay" is in your best interest. I agree with Priceless...until they use the word, send to whom you will.

Yes, the wait times at Harlequin can be bad. For instance, the Blaze line has a reported wait time of 9 months for agented submissions.

FWIW I've had fairly quick responses from the Desire and Intrigue lines, usually 1-7 months. The Cravings line has had a requested full since February...of 2011.

Does anyone know the wait time for the Romance line?

I'm not sure the time wait in general, but they have a fast-track going on right now where you're guaranteed a response within a month of the deadline. Details here:
http://community.harlequin.com/forums/write-stuff/meet-harlequin-romance-editorial-team-fast-track-submission

Thanks to all the awesome advice I've decided to go ahead and start subbing to other publishers. Especially after I saw that someone's been on sub since last February (eek!). Thanks for all the input!

Hey, I just wanted to double check this:

"Do not send any material that is being considered by another publisher. Multiple submissions are not acceptable. "

http://www.harlequin.com/articlepage.html?articleId=539&chapter=0


Any Harlequin authors out there that can confirm this is still up-to-date information?

Do they really want an author to wait 7+ months -- or until they get back to you before you can submit to another publisher?

I see there's a discussion here: http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=238810 and it looks like the waiting times are long.

So anyone know how firm that no simultaneous submission policy is? I know sometimes websites don't get updated to reflect new information or a page gets missed.

I don't have up-to-date info, but the last I knew, yeah, they mean it.

The thing is, their category lines are really quite distinctive -- it's been too long since I followed them, so I don't remember the details, and it goes beyond word count to more subtle issues -- so a book that's right for a specific line isn't likely to be right for any other publisher.

At least, I always had problems with that -- when I'd get a rejection from H/S, there really wasn't anywhere else it could go without a major rewrite.

JanDarby said:

I don't have up-to-date info, but the last I knew, yeah, they mean it.

The thing is, their category lines are really quite distinctive -- it's been too long since I followed them, so I don't remember the details, and it goes beyond word count to more subtle issues -- so a book that's right for a specific line isn't likely to be right for any other publisher.

At least, I always had problems with that -- when I'd get a rejection from H/S, there really wasn't anywhere else it could go without a major rewrite.

Click to expand...

I wonder how true that is now since Entangled, Avon Impulse, Loveswept and other publishers are getting into e-book category romance. For example, some of the Entangled Indulgences are similar in style and tone to Harlequin Desires and Presents, right down to the titles (such as Blackmailed by the Italian Billionaire). It'll be interesting to see how things develop in the future. If anything, it looks like there may be options beyond HM&B, and that's always a good thing.

I'd forgotten about bringing back the Loveswepts, etc.

I still think there's an EXTREMELY limited, shall we say, array of options for a book that would fit a Harlequin line to submit elsewhere. It's not like single title, where there are a lot of places to submit (including agents, few of whom take on category authors unless the author has already sold to Harlequin).

I'm not saying the long wait is fair, or even necessarily that authors should follow that particular rule, just that there's both an upside (good promotion and publisher name recognition) and a downside (the manuscript may not sell and may be too specifically category to find a home elsewhere) to writing a book specifically aimed at Harlequin.

I'm not sure that's true about Harl. Historical, except perhaps for the length. I'm told many publishers in the historical romance business want 90-100K, which of course is long for Harlequin. Anybody with current experience weigh in on this?