Header PromotionTranscript of the Q&A with Desire Senior Editor Krista Stroever
by Rae-eHarlequin on June 24th, 2009, 4:34pm
If you happened to miss our live chat with Sr. Editor, Krista Stroever, here are the questions and answers. Please note that Krista will not be answering questions in this thread, this is just for you to read if you missed the live chat. Also, I will be posting these in segments as there were eight pages of questions, answers and some assorted chat to go through to make this easier for you to read.
Questions Part One:
Q: What has changed in content or style requirements since the last podcast?
KS: There haven't been any wholesale changes, but we do like to remind authors that while the hero should certainly be alpha--he can't be cruel. We have been seeing some really dark ones in our submission pile.
Q: What do you like to see in an initial submission? Synopsis? First three chapters? Complete?
KS: synopsis and first 3 chaps are fine. You can also do a query letter w/synopsis--we're not going to be mad if we get one over the other kind.
Q: Are you still interested in the traditional hooks? Pregnancies, marriage of convenience, etc?
KS: yes, we are interested in the traditional hooks, but I'm really looking for authors who take those hooks and "turn them on their heads" after a fashion. The recent THE TYCOON'S REBEL BRIDE, is a good example.
Follow Up: I thought it was interesting because it came so close to a love triangle
KS: I'll be honest; the love triangle is a hard thing to do, not least because you've only got 50K words to establish a credible romantic relationship between your main characters. If he or she is in love with another person for part of that time, you've made your job that much more difficult.
Q: I'm interested in the "turn them on their heads" idea...I love the traditional tropes but I've been working on a few ideas that I don't see a lot of like "younger man, older woman" and a heroine who has some psychic abilities (nothing heavy paranormal, but enough for a plot twist)...would those concepts be too outside the parameters?
KS: we're not the right line for paranormal really--we're quite traditional in our outlook.
Q: What hooks would you say are working best?
KS: We find that the hooks authors are drawn too and write with passion about are the ones that do the best. As I said, traditional hooks with a twist are the ones that readers love.
Q: Are there certain types of stories that you aren't seeing that you would like to see more of?
KS: We're looking for top-notch writing--well-written, passionate, high concept stories are the ones I want to see.
Q: Are there any books from the line you would consider the "Gold Standard" that we should check out?
KS: if you haven't picked up this month's titles, please do so after you leave the chat. Generally, authors like Maureen Child, Day Leclaire, our beloved Leanne, Cathy M are all great people to find. There are people I can't type fast enough to include but we'll have some new books from Liz B too! One thing I don't think readers realize is that we do look for multicultural stories too--Brenda Jackson's work is top-notch and she's got ONE NIGHT W/THEWEALTHY RANCHER coming out in August.
Q: Would a story about a nurse and a doctor, on face value, not generate interest by editors when the recent titles have sheiks and princes?
KS: absent any other detail (is either of them rich?); it'd be hard to say if a nurse/doctor story would be right. Joan Hohl did THE MD'S MISTRESS in Fall '08, if you'd like to see that one.
Q: Are there any particular storylines that make the editors just squeal with delight when they see them?
KS: That's a hard one to answer, because what really makes us squeal is not so much that it's a rancher, or that she's his ex-wife, or that there's a secret baby, it's that the writing really takes us out of ourselves--we forget where we are when we're reading.
Q: Are Canadian settings acceptable?
KS: We're a Canadian company; Jayne would throttle me if I said no Canuck stories!
Q: Will you consider a couple of sample pages with a query letter?
KS: we'll consider synopsis w/query letter, but if you're going to send pages, you may as well send the 1st chapter or the first three chapters.
Q: Is the blog-to-book genre dead?
KS: I don't think so--I know our non-fiction arm has reviewed a couple of those. If you haven't checked out the harlequin non-fiction line, do take a look through eHarlequin.
Q: Krista, can you talk about your vision for the line - where you'd like to take the line in the future?
KS: my motto is "if it ain't broke..." Desire is a very successful line--I’d like to continue that, obviously, and see if we can get even stronger. We're experimenting a bit with a linked miniseries done in 2-in-1 format. (So 3 back to back anthologies) and that'll be out in '10.
(TBC)
Part Two
Q: Krista, do you like foreign settings for the line?
KS: I do like foreign settings, but they've got to make sense within the story.
Q: How foreign, Krista? Exotic foreign?
KS: How foreign? Another country, even a fictional one, but not another planet.
Q: I know that some of the Desire heroes are foreign. Do you prefer the heroines to be primarily American?
KS: I don't have a preference on nationality--we do tend to be predominantly American, both in setting and nationality, but I'm not going to lay down the law if a different nationality or location makes sense in your story and makes it stronger.
Q: Are there any movies/tv shows that epitomize the tone of Desire?
KS: Movies/TV Shows--I may actually toss that one to the authors to see what inspires them. I know, for my part, when we were thinking of the mini-continuity (Hamptons-set/Polo), I was thinking of Pretty Woman and the opening of this season's Gossip Girl.
Q: Krista, we’ve all seen how you turned Steeple Hill around and put them “in the black”, so to speak. Not saying Desire needs renovation, but what if any INNOVATIONS do you have planned for this line?
KS: Thanks! It was a fun set of lines to run. The mini-continuity is part of our innovation--shorter-form stories. But again, Desire is a very classic line, so I'm not going to rip it apart. It's a question of what will make it stronger and entice our readership.
Q: Is there any particular plot or theme that you would like to see?
KS: I hate to say it, but that's the one question editors hate answering, because if we say cowboy aliens, then our submission pile becomes only cowboy aliens for the next 11 months. We like diversity!
Q: Must there always be a fairy-tale ending? I like realism without being too real. My writing tends to be about a fictionalized version of my life with the boring bits thrown out. It seems false to stick a happy ending on something like that.
KS: there are 2 kinds of endings--the satisfying ending (how the end of THE ONSTANT GARDENER could be happy w/both protagonists dead) and the HEA. We look for the HEA--that's part of our promise to the reader.
Q: on average how many query letters does Desire receive in a month? If a writer hasn't heard back in a certain amount of time (and has sent the SASE), should they assume their query was lost in the mail and re-query?
KS: 3 months is our ideal turnaround time. We try for faster, but aren't always successful. Go ahead and re-query if it's been longer than 4, but make sure you mention you're requerying in your letter, so that we don't just think we got duplicates.
Q: Are the old standbys of runaway bride, amnesia, marriage of convenience, secret baby, revenge, and reunion books still prevalent, and if so, which of those would you like to see more (or less) of in upcoming submissions?
KS: we're actually a conflict-driven line. Multi-layered, rich conflicts and well-developed stories are what I want to see. Are old standbys still relevant? Yes. But read current books to stay on top of what we're doing.
Q: Is an older couple reunited in their 50's okay as H/h?
KS: We haven't done too many of the older heroes & heroines, but we'd be open to a query.
Q: How does it work when an editor from a different line requests your manuscript targeted for Desire because of a contest win?
KS: Send your ms to the editor who has requested it, and mention in your cover letter that it was written w/Desire in mind. Our editors can edit for multiple lines.
Q: I have a crit partner that is a desire writer and she thought my MS at 55,000 words would be too long. Is that the case?
KS: Our word count is in our guidelines--Desire's current official word count is 50,000-55,000. We tend to prefer that they're closer to 50 than 55, though. Actually, if people in here haven't read the guidelines--please do that first thing! We've got an updated podcast coming any day now too.
Diana Ventimiglia: Yes read the guidelines! It will make your life much easier when writing and submitting.
Final
Comment: I found the author podcasts were a great thing to listen to also...
KS: and read the current crop of books. I read them all each month, myself, though that kind of goes without saying!
Q: how interested are you in hearing that I author would have multiple stories to bring to the table?
KS: When we sign an author we hope that it's the start of a career together--mentioning additional ideas is always cool.
Q: I absolutely love the Desire line. A few years ago the line went in the new direction of very alpha, successful males (and they have been SO yummy!) Krista, now that you are managing the line, are there any other areas you'd like to see evolve/areas you'd like authors to develop in differently?
KS: at the moment, no. I said above (I think you've entered recently) that the line is doing well--so I'm not looking to make dramatic changes.
Q: I've been told that the arts, acting, sports, etc are no no's in romance. I've read the Desire continuity on the movie producing family and wondered if Desire was open to some of these other occupations for our hero/heroines (as long as the hero is rich ?
KS: writers writing about writing is often a toughie, as are sports and arts, because usually the author adds WAY too much detail about, say, golf. But there are always those exceptions.
Q: I love Olivia Gates and her lush writing style and sensuality...seems steamier than usual. Are you looking for more books with this level of sensuality and does this seem to be a popular trend?
KS: Lush is exactly the right word for her. I’d love to see more of that if anyone's writing it.
Q: Krista, can you describe the variety of voices you have in your line and if there is anything you are looking for?
KS: good question. We have very traditional voices. We try to get a good representative mix each month, but for classic western tones--Sara Orwig. Kathie Denosky's another long-timer. Brenda and Olivia are super sexy. Jen Lewis, Yvonne Lindsay, Maureen Child, Leanne Banks all have a fresh approach and Michelle Celmer is really inventive with her royalty.
Q: How long should we wait for a "This has been received" postcard to be returned before we write again to confirm a manuscript has been received?
KS: 3-4 months. Sometimes we don't see the postcard.
Q: Are the Desires still 60/40 on point of view? Some of the more recent ones seem to be
about 50/50.
KS: we try for 60/40 yes.
Q: You said a few months on a query, is the turn around time the same on a full?
KS: Yes.
Q: Can I submit a query for a second book while an editor reviews the first?
KS: Wait to hear back before sending a new query.