Shana Asaro

I am seeking submissions for our new(ish) trade paperback imprint, Love Inspired Trade, which publishes Christian Fiction in a variety of sub-genres. These are books of 80,000-100,000 words that offer a longer, more complex read than our category-length romances. I would especially love to see rom-coms, domestic thrillers, dual timelines, women’s fiction, high-concept fiction and humorous mystery (think Only Murders in the Building). Historical fiction and romantic suspense/thriller are also on our list. At this time, we are NOT seeking Amish fiction or contemporary romance for Love Inspired Trade.

Books I’ve acquired for Love Inspired Trade: Her Darkest Secret by Jessica R. Patch, A Cry in the Dark by Jessica R. Patch (both psychological thrillers with FBI agents and serial killers) and One Southern Summer by Heidi McCahan (Southern women’s fiction). Upcoming in 2024: The Garden Girls by Jessica R. Patch (psychological thriller) and The Summer of Keeping Secrets by Jill Lynn (contemporary fiction/family drama).

I am also actively seeking category-length inspirational (Christian) romance for Harlequin’s Love Inspired (contemporary romance) and Love Inspired Suspense (romantic suspense) series lines. These are sweet, clean, trope-driven romances with an integrated faith element set against a backdrop of family and community. We want both hero and heroine points of view, strong conflicts, layered hooks and compelling emotional relationships.

Some things I’d love to see in submissions:

• Amish romance (contemporary or suspense)
• Stories with kids (including babies) and/or dogs
• Secret babies
• Action-adventure suspense plots
• Black ops or spy heroes in suspense
• Western settings
• Reunion romances
• A suspense story that includes a weather disaster (but it needs a real villain, too)
• A “back from the dead” hero (not zombies)–a character everyone thought was dead but who turns out to have been alive all along. Juicy!
• A little bit of quirkiness or light humor. It doesn’t always work, but if you think this describes your writing, I’m your go-to editor at Love Inspired. 🙂

Some things I don’t want to see in submissions:

• Conversion stories
• Cozy mysteries or whodunits
• Anything sexy or sensual–our books focus on the emotional romance, not the physical
• Characters who are in love from the beginning
• Love triangles (one hero and one heroine only, please)

Some authors I edit who are a good example of the types of stories I’m looking for:

Lee Tobin McClain, Jill Kemerer, Heidi McCahan, Jessica R. Patch, Sami A. Abrams

Submission Guidelines

For Love Inspired Trade, I only accept agented submissions. For Love Inspired and Love Inspired Suspense, I accept both agented and unagented submissions. Authors, please submit through Submittable and address your submission to me. Agents may submit by email. Please send Word documents, not pdfs.

Guidelines & Details