Harlequin Teen Romance: A Hard Sell To Parents And Teens
Posted by meredith on 02-25-2009
If the droves of "Twihards" didn't clue you in, teen girls are into romance in a big way. But does that mean they'll be into romance novels? Harlequin hopes so, and come this April when they launch their new Harlequin Teen Romance imprint, they'll get their answer. For better or worse. Personally, my bets are on the latter.
The main problem I see is that Harlequin's brand of romance has already been well defined for young readers. I mean, don't we all summon up the same classic image of a bare-chested Fabio clutching a corseted damsel in distress? And while this may be the exact opposite of what you'll actually find in their YA offerings (the writing guidelines posted on The YA YA YAs promises a spectrum ranging from the likes of Stephenie Meyer to Jay Asher), I think it'll be hard for most to get past the association. For pre-existing younger fans (and I'm sure they're out there), a Harlequin teen series most likely sounds like a watered down version that has all the good bits edited out. For girls who have never picked up a Harlequin before, it doesn't give them much motivation to do so now.
The other reason I'm weary of the series was the site the publisher set up to recruit a Teen Panel. Hosted by the animated Quin (get it? like Harlequin) it entices potential readers to join the panel (with their parent's permission) by promising free books, quizzes and prizes. Which is all well and good. What bugged me were inauthentic details that I know won't be missed by teen eyes. Like signing off a letter "TTFN." I actually had to Google what that meant and when I found out ("Ta Ta For Now?!") I just shook my head. Trying to use cool acronyms and failing? Just not the way to teen hearts. Sorry, Harlequin.
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Categorized under: Books & Print
February 25th, 2009 at 2:13 pm
I don't know. You are jumping to a lot of conclusions for never having seen the books. The teen market is big and Harlequin realizes this. I doubt they will do watered down versions of their adult romance. They know what they are doing. I'm sure the books will be great. They will include some romance, just like most YAs, but not Fabio and bodice-ripping.
February 25th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
Thanks for the comment! I totally agree that Harlequin is smart enough NOT to put out a watered down version of their adult books for a YA audience. I was referring to readers' expectations. As you said, the teen market is big. That means they have a lot options and my feeling is that teens' familiarity and possible aversion to the traditional Harlequin brand (bodice-ripping, Fabio, etc) just poses one more obstacle to getting their attention. I'm just curious to see if they're up to the challenge.
February 25th, 2009 at 5:33 pm
I won't comment about the content of the books until I have a chance to read some of them, but I have to say that I agree about the branding issue. I'm not sure putting Harlequin in the imprint name is the best move for them. Why even put it in the name if it's a single-title imprint? The non-romance single-title imprints that have been successful for them (Mira, arguably Red Dress Ink and Luna, since they're still around) don't highlight the Harlequin connection in their names. Not to mention, if the YA books aren't necessarily going to be romances, again, why put Harlequin in the name? When you hear Harlequin _______ or Silhouette _______, the expectation, even among people who don't read their books, is that it's going to be a romance. And while they do mention Meg Cabot and Stephenie Meyer in the writing guidelines, no way would I consider the Jay Asher book romantic. I do like the breadth that they're aiming for, I just don't think it's a good idea to have this kind of variety under one imprint called Harlequin Teen. With the traditional H/S lines (Harlequin Presents, Harlequin American Romance, etc.), you pretty much know what to expect in terms of content. Doesn't seem like it'll be the case with this one.
I also agree with you, Meredith, that putting Harlequin in the imprint name may turn some teens off, so teen panel notwithstanding, are they actually targetting parents who might be buying books for their teens? Adults who are already reading H/S books AND YA books? (Because, while I don't spend much time reading non-romance book blogs, my feeling is that romance readers are much more receptive to YA than readers of other genres.) And returning to the topic of reader expectations, as for the teens who are already reading H/S romances, if I were Harlequin, I'd be more worried that they might pick up a Book Thief-type book and get upset that it's not a romance than those same teens not reading a Harlequin Teen book because they think the good bits won't be there.
One more thing I'm curious about: how will Harlequin Teen affect Kimani TRU?
February 27th, 2009 at 10:27 am
Hello Ypulse,
I'm the senior editor of Harlequin Teen, and I wanted to correct a couple things in your post (I've alerted SLJ to them as well). The correct name of the new imprint is Harlequin Teen, and we're launching in August 2009 with Rachel Vincent's first Soul Screamers story, MY SOUL TO TAKE, followed in September by Gena Showalter's INTERTWINED. Harlequin Teen is a single titles program, not a romance series. We are focused on building our individual authors' profiles, not the imprint name, much as you see with imprints such as Harper Teen and Little, Brown. We have a wind range of genres, including paranormal, fantasy, contemporary and futuristic stories, and we hope to find some historicals as well. The stories and authors mentioned in our guidelines are very much the type of books we will be publishing.
To answer the poster who wondered about what Harlequin Teen means for Kimani Tru–they are two separate programs. Kimani Tru was created to serve the African American teen market, much as Kimani Romance serves the adult African American romance market. Kimani Tru will continue to publish as they have.
Thank you for your interest in Harlequin Teen. If you would like more information on our program, please contact me.
–Natashya
February 27th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Actually, this is probably a ridiculously easy sell to teens and parents. There's really nothing in the world that would have made my mother happier than if there had been teen-appropriate romance novels (other than what cherie bennett writes) so that she wouldn't have had to deal with the fact that I read all the same romance novels that she did.
February 27th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
I am looking forward to the line just like I enjoyed their Red Dress Ink line when it came out. I remember that the Harlequin brand didn't overwhelm the covers of the RDI Books, and some of the books like 'Milkrun' and Carrie Pilby were really unique (both are sadly out of print and could be enjoyed by teens as well!!!) By the same token I bet some of us adults will be reading the Harlequin Teen line. I expect great things.
March 2nd, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Hi Meredith,
My name is Rachel Vincent, and I'm one of the launch authors of the Harlequin Teen program. I currently have three urban fantasy books out with Mira (the Shifters series) and am so incredibly excited about my upcoming YA series. I understand your doubts about the marketing challenge, but I hope that you and other readers will give the line a chance.
I don't know much about the other books being offered, but I know that my own stories are gritty urban fantasies dealing with issues every bit as dark (in some cases, darker) than what I tackle with my adult novels, and neither the language level nor the plots have been toned down.
My series is about a teenager who thinks she's losing her mind–and has, in fact, spent time in the mental health ward–when she starts to get death premonitions. But it turns out that she's not crazy. She's a bean sidhe (banshee).
I've had more fun playing in this new world than I've ever have with any other novel, and I really hope these stories find their target audience. I feel like we have a lot to offer, to both teens, and to adults who like well-written YA novels, as I do.
March 19th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Hi Meredith,
My name is Julie Kagawa, and I am also one of the authors who will be debuting with Harelquin Teen. Like Rachel, I have a YA urban fantasy series, set to come out in the spring of 2010. And I promise that, while the series does have romantic elements, there will be no corset clutching, bodice ripping Fabio anywhere in the story. :)
THE IRON KING, the first book in the series, is about a teenage girl whose kid brother is stolen away by faeries. Iron faeries, born of technology and progress, deadly to regular fey and completely immune to iron. Machina, King of the Iron Fey, is after her, but she has no idea why.
I'm an avid reader of YA, especially YA fantasy. Some of my favorite authors include Holly Black, Melissa Marr, and Maggie Steifvater. I hope readers will look beyond the Harlequin name and pick up the books for their stories. You'll be pleasantly surprised.
April 4th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
I'm very excited to see what Harlequin Teen has in store for YA readers. I'm a teenager myself and I think Harlequin made a smart move by starting up an imprint aimed at teens. I adore love stories so I will definitely be on the lookout for these new books. When I pick out books, I don't even look at who publishes them so as long as the covers and synopsis' look interesting I'd say Harlequin Teen has a great chance of success.
April 12th, 2009 at 10:21 am
I agree with Katie. I don't think the "Harlequin" name will be a handicap in trying to promote the new line of books to teens. When I was a teen (I'm mid-20′s now :)), I never paid attention to the publisher when selecting a book. If the cover artwork and jacket copy caught my eye and the story seemed engaging, I'd buy the book. I also think the teen panel is a great idea. Who better to test your product on than your target audience? :) I also think that will actively engage teens in the brand and the books, and hopefully they will spread the word to other teens.
June 3rd, 2009 at 12:10 pm
[...] peek at what's coming from Harlequin Teen. I still have some misgivings (see comments) about the name of the line, but the books themselves sound [...]
June 28th, 2009 at 12:13 am
[...] Naysayers? We'll see if they're right after the line has had time to establish itself. Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Harlequin to Launch Teen Imprint ▶ Comment /* 0) { jQuery('#comments').show('', change_location()); jQuery('#showcomments a .closed').css('display', 'none'); jQuery('#showcomments a .open').css('display', 'inline'); return true; } else { jQuery('#comments').hide(''); jQuery('#showcomments a .closed').css('display', 'inline'); jQuery('#showcomments a .open').css('display', 'none'); return false; } } jQuery('#showcomments a').click(function(){ if(jQuery('#comments').css('display') == 'none') { self.location.href = '#comments'; check_location(); } else { check_location('hide'); } }); function change_location() { self.location.href = '#comments'; } }); /* ]]> */ Click here to cancel reply. [...]
August 13th, 2009 at 4:22 am
I actually just signed up for the Teen Panel today, and I think the young adult off-spin of Harlequin will be great. Romance is in most YA novels, and from all that I have read there will be a wide range of categories so the books can appeal to all teens. As for association with Harlequin, most people my age don't even know what it is, and won't be affected at all.
September 1st, 2009 at 9:06 pm
When I was a young adult, Im 23 now, I read harlequin. Of course, the romance novels I read are not watered down. Harlequin is the biggest producer of romance novels, and they just turned 60. So even if young adults don't read this from harlequin, I bet you in the coming years half of them will eventually turn to the publisher. If you are romance novel lover, you will eventually read a book published by harlequin.