My Harlequin Moment: Beth Cornelison

You may have heard the expression, “You never forget your first.” Well, in the case of the first category romance I ever read, this is definitely true! The first series romance I read was a Silhouette Special Edition from September of 1991.

I had been writing novels for about a year, trying to find my voice, my niche, my direction, when a critique partner said, “Beth, you’re writing category romance. You should try to sell a book to Harlequin.”

I was a bit surprised by my friend’s assessment. How could I be writing romances if I didn’t read romance? Still…I loved the idea of happily ever after, of fairy tales, and of true love triumphing over all else, so I gave her suggestion serious thought. In fact, I headed out to my local supercenter and bought my first Silhouette Special Edition, "Longer Than…" by Erica Spindler.

I still have my copy of that book on my keeper shelf after all these years, and I’ve reread it several times. The story features a tortured, misunderstood bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks who becomes the hometown hero and wins back the only woman he ever loved. "Longer Than…" made me cry, made me cheer, made me sigh happily as I fell in love along with the heroine. One book, and I was hooked on category romance!

After exploring many of the lines Harlequin and Silhouette had to offer, I focused my reading and writing efforts on Silhouette Intimate Moments. I loved the combination of emotion, suspense and well-drawn characters. Many authors who are still my favorites today wrote for Intimate Moments: Linda Howard and Suzanne Brockmann, anyone? By 1998 (I took about five years off when my son was born), I was submitting my manuscripts to Intimate Moments.

My magic Harlequin Moment, my dream come true of being a Harlequin/Silhouette author came on June 17, 2004. I had been submitting to Allison Lyons for more than two years trying to find THE BOOK that was just right for my first sale. (And feeling a bit like Goldilocks…this book was too this, another one was too that.) But I didn’t give up. I knew Intimate Moments was the line for me and I had the patience—the stubbornness—to keep writing and submitting until I got it right.

I’d been at Vacation Bible School that morning (June 17th), and I came home to find a message on my answering machine from my agent. “Beth, I have really good news!” After playing a frustrating game of phone tag for the next couple hours, my agent reached me around 1 o’clock and said Leslie Wainger, then senior editor of Silhouette Intimate Moments, wanted to buy my Golden Heart finalist Unseen Dangers.

I’d done it! I would become a member of the Harlequin family of authors writing for my favorite line!

Retitled "To Love, Honor and Defend", my debut book with Intimate Moments hit shelves in March 2005, just in time for my local RWA chapter’s conference booksigning.

I was fortunate to have my editor, Allison Lyons, on hand to celebrate with me my first Silhouette booksigning for To Love, Honor and Defend. My journey to that booksigning started with one special, heart-rending story that still lives in my “Harelquin Memories.”

So thank you, Erica Spindler, for inspiring me with your fabulous book, "Longer Than…"!

Today, four years after making my first sale to Harelquin, I’m “living the dream,” and my 5th book with Silhouette Romantic Suspense (same line, new name!) is in print. (For more about Rancher’s Redemption (Oct. SRS) and the Coltons: Family First continuity, check out this month’s Inside Scoop!) Happy Birthday to Harlequin (60th next year) and thank you for letting me share one of my many special Harlequin Moments with all of you. Happy reading!

About The Author:

Beth Cornelison started writing stories as a child when she penned a tale about the adventures of her cat, Ajax. As a teenager, Beth swore three things: She'd never work in fast food, never attend the University of Georgia and never date a man with a mustache.

Fate laughed at her oath, and she found herself working fast food (and loving it!) the summer after she graduated from high school. Four years later, she received her bachelor's degree in Public Relations from the University of Georgia and married a wonderful man with a very handsome mustache!

After working in public relations for a little more than a year, she moved with her husband from Tennessee to Louisiana, where she decided to pursue her love of writing fiction.