Okay, so I have a confession to make. My mother loved to read Harlequin romances. We often made trips to the mall with her to peruse the romance section of the local Coles so she could pick up one of her books. I couldn't tell you what the attraction was for her as I was still a teenager when the car accident happened and never got to ask, but I do know that I sure as heck read a lot of them over her shoulder growing up.
I mean what pre-teen girl didn't read Sweet Valley High and its equivalents? And if was I was feeling particularly brave, I'd dig out the one I half wrote in Grade Eight while I should have been doing math. It's hilarious. Seriously. And then I got all snotty and stuff, did two fancy pants degrees, discovered all kinds of different books in my adolescence and never really looked back.
So when a friend of a friend kindly put forth my name for freelancers to write some marketing copy for one of the 1200+ books they put out during the year, I sort of jumped at the chance. I mean, my mother would be so proud of me, and sort of tickled pink, I think. And I've handed in my first assignment, which went okay. I'm working on my second right now and I know that a third is on the way. Fingers crossed I can balance out the throbbing loins with the love of their lives enough to entice people back into the fold. All in all, it's the most fun I've had writing for pay in ages. I enjoyed the heck out of it even if I'm still sort of stretching my fingers in terms of getting the right tone and quality of copy.
Come on, confess, you've read at least one in your lifetime, right?
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10 comments:
How fun! I'm jealous!
In high school, my best friend Steph and I used to read Harlequins by the truckload. We'd get them for like 25 cents each from the used bookseller in town. Those were some good times.
I used to read Harlequins before I was married. I got bored with seeing the same face (Fabio) on the front covers, and eventually the stories got boring because they were always the same. So I stopped reading them.
Don't think I have read any Harlequins in the last 7 years since I came to Canada.
Of course - it was a rite of passage when young.
I bet every woman has - whether they continue to read them is another story (so to speak).
Congrats on the freelance work!
a touch jealous as well...i would love to write some bodice ripping marketing copy.
tear away girl. tear away.
You know, I never got into the whole Sweet Valley High thing for some reason but I did love historical romances. Rebecca Brandywyne was my favourite and of course, her name cause my father no end of amusement. Heh!
Harlequin has a number of lines, some of them more sophisticated than others, and they employ tons of freelancers for a variety of roles including editing which was a mainstay for my mother for many years.Got her started in the freelance editing business.
Yup, I remember hding the Harlequins under the mattress as a curious pre-teen.
How cool is it that you get to write the copy for them. That's a fun freelance job I could get behind!
Sweet Valley High, of course. I must have read the entire series in junior high. Then, in high school, I read...A Knight in Shining Armour by Jude Deveraux. I think the title says enough.
Congrats! It's wonderful to have a job that's fun AND pays. Who knows? Maybe you might one day write your own Romance...
Me? I read ONE Harlequin many years ago, when I was about 13. I borrowed it from a girlfriend, whose mother devoured the damn things. I hated it, and vowed I would never read another. And I haven't.
Very interesting to see this post. As a Harlequin Superromance author, I'm counting on the cover copy to help sell the book. You make the reader pick it up and I'll try to keep the story interesting!
Good luck!
Ellen
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