Report from Publishers Lunch:
Harlequin Adds Self-Publishing Line
Following the same model as Thomas Nelson's recently-announced WestBow Press, Harlequin has started a self-publishing line. Like Nelson, they are outsourcing most of the work to Author Solutions as their partner. Unlike Nelson, they aren't afraid to use their own name for the line, which is called Harlequin Horizons.
As they say on the site: "The intent behind creating Harlequin Horizons is to give more aspiring romance writers and women's fiction writers the opportunity to publish their books and achieve their dreams without going through the submission process with a traditional publishing house.
"However, we understand you may aspire to be published with a traditional house - a noble aspiration. While there is no guarantee that if you publish with Harlequin Horizons you will picked up for traditional publishing, Harlequin will monitor sales of books published through Harlequin Horizons for possible pick-up by its traditional imprints."
Harlequin Horizons site
4 comments:
It's a controversial move by Harlequin, all right.
I'd just like to point out, however, that the cover used to illustrate your article is by no means a vanity published book, but one by Marion Lennox, who is a prolific, bestselling and multi-award-winning Australian author. She's a professional author, whose books are sold in 26 languages around the world and have been for years.
The use of this cover to illustrate this article illustrates the very reason Harlequin authors are reeling from this move, which puts the same brand on vanity publishing efforts and books written by professional authors for a highly competitive international market.
Marion Lennox is not a vanity press author, but an established and respected romance novelist whose books have won the RITA (the Romance Writers of America's most prestigious award). It hardly seems fair to put her book up as an example of whatever Harlequin Horizons might turn out to be.
Could you perhaps find their corporate logo to illustrate your blog piece -- in the interests of accuracy?jac
I deliberately chose that cover illustration because she is such a successful author, so synonymous with the Harlequin brand, but in view of the valid points you make I shall remove it immediately.
Thanks for troubling to write. And my apologies to Marion Lennox if I have caused any upset.
Thank you for your quick response and for removing Marion Lennox's cover.
Would that Harlequin would be as responsive to the concerns of its authors!
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