Earlier this year I signed a contract to write for Harlequin Intrigue. I am absolutely thrilled to have six books scheduled and am hoping for even more…once I get these written. When I announced the deal, some folk, mostly fellow authors, asked why I was writing category romance (shorter romances with a limited time on the bookshelf) since I’ve been writing single titles for years. See, the theory – one I think is outdated and wrong – is that you start in category romance and then, hopefully, make the jump to single titles. Seems to me writing is writing and it makes more sense to do both if that’s what an author wants to do.
So, here are the quick and dirty reasons why I added Intrigue to my writing schedule:
1. Great respect for Harlequin: The financial world fell apart last year and everyone lost money. Well, every business except Harlequin. Harlequin made money. That means stability. There are enough unknowns in the publishing world, so why not write for the Big Mamma of romance publishing.
2. Option Clause: This is one of those business things. The business reality is that by virtue of the contract I have with Kensington, my single title publisher, there are limits on what kind of books I can submit to and write for other publishers. Because of the shorter length of category romance, writing for Intrigue does not impact my Kensington option clause at all. Because who wants to get sued by their publisher? Not me.
3. Fell In Love All Over Again: I used to read a good amount of category romance then stopped. Then two years ago I judged the Romance Writers of America RITA contest (for best published romance) and got four or five Intrigues in my judging stack. I loved them and started picking up Intrigues again. When my agent later asked me if I had considered writing category romance in addition to single titles and I told him I would love to write for Intrigue, he said: “Then why aren’t you trying to do that?” Consider this my “well, duh?” moment. So, I wrote a proposal and six weeks later got the call from my Intrigue editor, Denise Zaza. Now I’m an Intrigue author or I will be in March 2010 when my first one, UNDER THE GUN, comes out. [Notice how I put a promo plug in there?]
4. Romantic Suspense: I love romantic thrillers, suspense and adventures. Short, long, written on napkins – the length doesn’t matter. Also love writing them. Having the opportunity to write something so fast paced and suspenseful and romantic makes me giddy.
5. Because I can: Really, it’s that simple. I love to write and want to do this for a living. Whenever authors try new things you see a “she’s following the market” or “she must have been told to do something else” or some other strange speculation. For me, I love to write all lengths, including short stories (stay tuned for more news on that), and plan on writing a bunch of different things. I hope my readers will follow me when I try these new things.
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All good reasons, HelenKay.
I’m looking forward to reading Under The Gun!
by cathryn fox November 13th, 2009 at 12:29 pmGreat move. Good luck. Here’s to increasing your readership.
by Lynette November 13th, 2009 at 12:46 pmIf you write it, I will read it. Congrats!
by JoyceZ November 13th, 2009 at 12:50 pmGo for it, HelenKay! I’d do it all if I could, too. Category, ST, novellas, ebooks…why not diversify?
by Jill Sorenson November 13th, 2009 at 2:21 pmWhee! I love harlequin. Sometimes I have issues with certain titles/lines – but overall, I think its fantastic. Yay you!
by limecello November 13th, 2009 at 3:12 pmI read a couple of authors in the series line. They are great reads. I love how you can pick one up for a quick read. Congrats.
by Judy F November 13th, 2009 at 5:34 pmCongratulations, Helen! I’ve always enjoyed your Bravas and look forward to reading your Intrigues! Limecello, nice to see you here–great taste
!
Tessa
by tessa radley November 14th, 2009 at 3:57 amI’m really looking forward to reading your Intrigues! Congratulations on all your projects ~ happy writing!
by Robin November 15th, 2009 at 10:03 amHelenKay, I think that categories and single-titles are just different kinds of books, and not all authors can write both. I’ve been enjoying your single-titles and am definitely looking forward to reading your categories! Best wishes in this new project!
by Fedora November 15th, 2009 at 10:59 pm