Here they are—the details you’ve been waiting for! Following the announcement of Mills & Boon’s Romance Includes You 2026 Mentorship, we’ve pulled together everything you need to know if you’re interested in entering the competition. We can’t wait to read your submissions!
Who Should Apply
We’re looking for romance novels by debut writers in underrepresented communities that could be published in the Modern, Love Always or Medical romance series. This includes, but is not limited to, writers who identify as Black, Indigenous, people of colour, biracial and multiracial, writers in LGBTQIA+ communities, members of marginalised ethnic and religious cultures, writers living with disabilities and neurodiversity, and writers from low socioeconomic backgrounds.
We welcome submissions from writers who are legal residents of the United Kingdom, who are unpublished or self-published and not already represented by a literary agent. For this mentorship, we’re interested in submissions from writers in underrepresented communities, as described above. Entries will be accepted in the romance genre for adult readers only and entry submissions must be in the English language. We cannot accept submissions from outside the United Kingdom due to legal requirements.
What the Winner Will Receive
The Romance Includes You Mentorship is all about finding new voices in romantic fiction that bring more diversity and representation to the genre. We’re looking to offer the writer of the top submission a one-book publishing contract with a £2000 advance, a one-year mentorship with a Mills & Boon editor to complete their debut story for publication, and a £1500 writing grant to support their early writing career.
What We’re Looking For
We are looking for unpublished romance stories by debut authors that would be suitable for publication in one of the following Mills & Boon’s series romance lines; Mills & Boon Modern, Mills & Boon Love Always or Mills & Boon Medical.
Your submission must include:
• a one paragraph summary of the story’s pitch and a strong synopsis outlining the story arc, characters, plot, themes and ending (maximum 1000 words);
• the first chapter or first 5,000 words (whichever is longer) of a romance novel, not the complete manuscript;
• a cover letter that includes a personal statement explaining why you’ve applied, what you hope to get out of the mentorship if selected, and what greater diversity and representation in the romance genre means to you (maximum 300 words).
There’s no experience necessary, and we’re not expecting the full story to be written already. This mentorship is for new writers who haven’t been traditionally published before (authors who have self-published only are eligible)—we’re looking for storytelling potential over craft knowledge! The call for submissions is being announced early to allow time to prepare your submission.
We are looking for stories that have not been published before. Authors may have self-published other stories, but we are looking for new content to publish.
We’re interested in series romance novels. Series romances are typically 50,000 word contemporary romances and range from spicy to sweet. They have a strong romance at the centre of the plot, an equal focus on the romantic and emotional journeys of both main characters, and a happy ending. Inclusive romance stories with all gender and identity pairings are welcome. To learn more about the Mills & Boon’s Modern, Love Always and Medical romance series, please read the writing guidelines.
The submission must be entirely your own original content, and you must own its publishing rights to be eligible for the mentorship.
Submissions of young adult (YA) romance, other fiction genres and nonfiction are not eligible.
How to Submit
When: Submissions will be accepted from 12:01am British Summer Time (“BST”) on 1st July to 31st July 2026, at 11:59pm BST through Harlequin.Submittable.com
How: Upload a single Word document, including your cover letter, synopsis and first chapter/5,000 words of your story, to the ‘2026 Romance Includes You Mentorship’ inbox on Harlequin.Submittable.com between 1st July and 31st July 2026 before 11:59pm BST. The inbox will open 1st July and won’t be visible before then.
Please Note: We will accept only one submission by each eligible applicant, and only your first submission will be considered if you submit more than one.
Submission Reviews
All eligible entries will be reviewed by members of the Mills & Boon editorial team. Up to ten submissions will be shortlisted and evaluated by a judging panel to select a winner.
We will assess submissions based on the writing quality of your story sample and synopsis; the creativity of your story, characters and ideas and the strength of the romantic element; its suitability to be published in Mills & Boon series, adhering to the series guidelines for either Mills & Boon Modern, Mills & Boon Love Always or Mills & Boon Medical; and an assessment of your interest and commitment to publishing a romance novel as demonstrated in your personal statement (cover letter).
The Timeline
• Shortlisted candidates will be announced via blog.millsandboon.co.uk on or about 1st September 2026.
• The mentorship winner will be notified before the end of September 2026, and announced on or about 1st October 2026.
Have questions?
• Visit our FAQs page!
• Read the mentorship Terms and Conditions
• For any other queries, please contact submissions@harlequin.com