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[Publisher] Harlequin Enterprises Ltd.

gingerwoman

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I know that in the US, the HQ paperbacks were so ubiquitous that thrift stores and used bookshops would not even take them for trade, much less cash value.

I had a friend who wrote for HQ back in the 80s...basically work for hire, one payment for book, publisher takes all rights. She said it made it hard to fall in love with her characters, and easy to write to a formula.
The 80s was a very long time ago in publishing. I'm pretty sure it wasn't work for hire in the 90s.

The royalty percentages have always been described as very much on the low side. The massive reach was well worth it, although the rise of digital has done significant damage to what was a well cornered market.

As far as digital sales go now Harlequin authors are also often but not always impeded by all the old school territory restrictions resulting in consumers wanting to buy your ebook and being blocked from buying it by their IPs, or location of their credit card.
 
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avnelson

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So I got a request from Kayla for the Nocturne line during #DVPit and I'm excited but nervous. I've always dreamed about writing for Harlequin but I'm afraid it will just be another form rejection! All the full requests I've gotten from agents in the past two years have been forms, some of them deservedly so as I was a 21 year old jumping the gun with the writing to match, but it'd be nice to at least get a little feedback so I can revise my manuscript. I believe my writing has improved drastically since then, because every year I look back on my previous year's writing and think it is garbage. I guess 23 is a bit young to cement your voice and I know most writers don't get published until later in life, but there's always the odd chance! :tongue
 

JustWonderin

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Does anyone have timeline info for any of the lines? How long are submissions taking these days?
 

Deb Kinnard

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AVNelson, here's hoping your work finds favor! But I suspect by now you will have heard something from HQ. Their process is slow, but not THIS slow.

JustWonderin, I have had response times from HQ ranging from 3 months to two years to never. The tale at that time was that they "never" forgot to respond on a submission, but mine they did. I also have a partner who writes romance who got a rejection at about 4 months, and then a week later got a second rejection by a different editor at HQ, to whom she hadn't sent it. I joshed her that she was the only writer I know who could get the same project declined by two different people at the same house.

She hit me.
 

JustWonderin

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Haha! Thanks for the reply, Deb! I've only ever submitted to Carina before and they've always responded within 10 weeks-ish. I just didn't know what to expect from the other lines. I guess it'll just be a long waiting game. Maybe they'll respond to a nudge if I got a pub offer from some where else.
 

Sarah M

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Hi. Has anyone published with through Harlequin lately, more specifically their series collection (i.e. Romance)? I've been searching indie publishers and found them on a list. I googled them, but I haven't found much. Also, I noticed they're in the UK. Do they publish authors from the US as well?
 
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Sonya Heaney

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Hi. Has anyone published with through Harlequin lately, more specifically their series collection (i.e. Romance)? I've been searching indie publishers and found them on a list. I googled them, but I haven't found much. Also, I noticed they're in the UK. Do they publish authors from the US as well?

Hi Sarah,

I recently signed with a Harlequin imprint (first book out later this year). I’m not sure why they would be on an indie publisher list when they are the biggest traditional publisher of romance in the world…

Harlequin (and its many, many imprints) is owned by HarperCollins. It’s a worldwide business, and different Harlequin/Mills and Boon lines are based in different countries, including the US/Canada, the UK, Australia…

*However*, they will publish people from all over the world. For example, the Romance line is called True Love in the UK, but everyone submits through exactly the same website. (Harlequin/Mills and Boon lines that accept unsolicited submissions use Submittable.)

You send off your cover letter, synopsis, and the first three chapters of your manuscript, and that gets read by an editor, who may or may not express an interest in the rest of it. It really doesn’t matter where you are in the world. I’m in Australia, and I know Harlequin authors from all over. A Harlequin writers’ group I’m in includes people from New Zealand to Poland to Nigeria.
 

Sarah M

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Hi Sarah,

I recently signed with a Harlequin imprint (first book out later this year). I’m not sure why they would be on an indie publisher list when they are the biggest traditional publisher of romance in the world…

Harlequin (and its many, many imprints) is owned by HarperCollins. It’s a worldwide business, and different Harlequin/Mills and Boon lines are based in different countries, including the US/Canada, the UK, Australia…

*However*, they will publish people from all over the world. For example, the Romance line is called True Love in the UK, but everyone submits through exactly the same website. (Harlequin/Mills and Boon lines that accept unsolicited submissions use Submittable.)

You send off your cover letter, synopsis, and the first three chapters of your manuscript, and that gets read by an editor, who may or may not express an interest in the rest of it. It really doesn’t matter where you are in the world. I’m in Australia, and I know Harlequin authors from all over. A Harlequin writers’ group I’m in includes people from New Zealand to Poland to Nigeria.

Okay. Thanks so much! :)

And I think the reason why it was on an Indie publishers list is because with their Harlequin Series (Romance, etc.), you don't need an agent to submit your work.
 
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Sonya Heaney

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Okay. Thanks so much! :)

And I think the reason why it was on an Indie publishers list is because with their Harlequin Series (Romance, etc.), you don't need an agent to submit your work.

Ah, that makes sense.
 

Sonya Heaney

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Also, just putting this out there for everyone again. Here's a list of what you can submit to without an agent - including detailed descriptions of each line - and the links to actually send in your stuff.

Harlequin is constantly changing things around, closing new lines and opening others, so it's a good idea to keep track of what they're actually publishing at the moment.

I've heard that the Special Edition line is slow to respond at the moment - too many submissions to get through. Of course things will change, but it's something to keep in mind for now.


Submittable Link


Carina Press is included above. Escape Publishing is another Harlequin/HarperCollins imprint, focusing mostly on stories from Australia and New Zealand (though I believe anyone can submit.)
 

KE-writer

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I came here looking for some recent experience with submitting to Harlequin and how long it takes to hear back. Didn't find much, so I thought I'd add my (so far) experience with the Romantic Suspense line of Harlequin. I met a Harlequin editor at a writers' conference. She did not do romantic suspense and also thought my pitch sounded like something more suitable to HQN. She gave me her card and asked me to send her the full MS plus a pitch. The idea is that she would pass along my MS to the editor at HQN. A few weeks after I sent her the MS, she told me that HQN was not a good fit based on my pitch, but she liked what she'd read enough to suggest I submit the full MS directly to an editor she named who worked in the Romantic Suspense line....even though my project was 10K over the limit! LOL

So I did. I've been waiting 13 weeks now with no response. I will be at 14 weeks at the end of the week, so I'm going to send a nudge, as they said any response takes 12-14 weeks (typically). I am not sure if that timeline is real or not. I also feel as if I'm a bit different in how I ended up with an editor in the first place. But maybe this is common for romance authors at conferences? I don't know. I'd love to know if 14 weeks is just a pipe dream and even if I sent a nudge email, will I be waiting a LONG time to hear back????
 

Sonya Heaney

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I've been waiting 13 weeks now with no response. I will be at 14 weeks at the end of the week, so I'm going to send a nudge, as they said any response takes 12-14 weeks (typically). I am not sure if that timeline is real or not. I also feel as if I'm a bit different in how I ended up with an editor in the first place. But maybe this is common for romance authors at conferences? I don't know. I'd love to know if 14 weeks is just a pipe dream and even if I sent a nudge email, will I be waiting a LONG time to hear back????

Hmm I've never pitched at a conference, and I don't write for a category line, so I'm not much help! However, I've been hearing that some lines' response times are really long at the moment (I heard about a different one where - at the moment - the wait time is a year!).

I would definitely nudge in a week. I don't know anybody submitting to Romantic Suspense at the moment, so I'm not sure how behind they are. The editor must have thought your manuscript was pretty great to work so hard to find a home for it. :)
 

KE-writer

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Thanks for replying, Sonya! I didn't think my book was category either, but who knows? The editor suggested I send it anyway, even though i told her it was first person. So maybe Harlequin trying to branch out a bit in what they fit under a line? I also felt pretty positively after the editor took the time to read at least a little bit of what I'd done, even though it wasn't her area. I would highly recommend any writer find the opportunity to pitch directly to editors, if you ever get so lucky. In this case, I was on a writers' cruise and was able to eat dinner next to this editor several nights in a row. Was an amazing opportunity.
 

cool pop

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Harlequin is an independent publisher meaning they are not part of a conglomerate like the big five. Not "indie" in terms of self-publishing of course.
 

Sonya Heaney

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Harlequin has been a division of HarperCollins since 2014. Harlequin deals come through HarperCollins departments.
 

Sonya Heaney

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, I was on a writers' cruise and was able to eat dinner next to this editor several nights in a row. Was an amazing opportunity.

I'd probably say something really stupid in that situation. I'm the kind of person who over-talks to compensate for incompetence!
 

EKWriter

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I came here looking for some recent experience with submitting to Harlequin and how long it takes to hear back. Didn't find much, so I thought I'd add my (so far) experience with the Romantic Suspense line of Harlequin. I met a Harlequin editor at a writers' conference. She did not do romantic suspense and also thought my pitch sounded like something more suitable to HQN. She gave me her card and asked me to send her the full MS plus a pitch. The idea is that she would pass along my MS to the editor at HQN. A few weeks after I sent her the MS, she told me that HQN was not a good fit based on my pitch, but she liked what she'd read enough to suggest I submit the full MS directly to an editor she named who worked in the Romantic Suspense line....even though my project was 10K over the limit! LOL

So I did. I've been waiting 13 weeks now with no response. I will be at 14 weeks at the end of the week, so I'm going to send a nudge, as they said any response takes 12-14 weeks (typically). I am not sure if that timeline is real or not. I also feel as if I'm a bit different in how I ended up with an editor in the first place. But maybe this is common for romance authors at conferences? I don't know. I'd love to know if 14 weeks is just a pipe dream and even if I sent a nudge email, will I be waiting a LONG time to hear back????

You're welcome to nudge at 14 weeks, but it's not uncommon to not hear back by then. I know people who have been waiting for six months or more. Some lines and some editors are really swamped.
 

KE-writer

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Just thought I'd update...still nothing. I nudged via the Submittable form and got no answer, so I tried the email address provided and was told pretty much to keep on waiting. I'm now around 19 weeks, in case anyone was curious. Hard to find details about the waits for each line. I'm already assuming my book is just not a good fit....but who knows?