An index, events pages, resources, a blog and newsletter celebrating Romance novels written by Canadians and authors living in Canada
Dear Reader,
The short and sweet: HEA Canada (formerly CanLit Romance and also formerly Love From The True North) is a website by Catherine (Hi! I’m Catherine!) hosting an Index of Romance authors who live in or are from Canada, Events pages + newsletter for Romance author and reader events across Canada, a directory of Romance-friendly Resources for Authors in Canada, and a guest blog experience for Romancelandia Canada, by Romancelandia Canada.
But wait, there’s more!
The concept for CanLitRomance.ca dates back to late 2017, when I was volunteering with a local literary festival celebrating Canadian writing. Since Romance is the best genre ever (not even sarcasm), and because Canadian artists deserve all the time in the spotlight they can get, I wanted to recommend some Canadian Romance authors as potential festival VIPs.
That was when I realized that I had never consciously read a Romance novel written by a Canadian. As a dedicated Romance reader for 20+ years, and a long-time volunteer with a national Canadian literature organization, that moment of epiphany broke my heart. I had to fix that.
Finding a starting point for my quest to read Canadian-authored Romance was daunting. There was no robust directory available online for Canadian Romance novels. There were some published articles, but when Google’s first suggestion for me was The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill, I was floored (phenomenal book; not a Romance). I put up a call on Facebook and received zero personal recommendations from my friends and family. I continued poking around online and crafted a list of authors, then proceeded to my library website. Hello Disappointment, how are you today?! I then went in to my branch and had a wonderful chat with a librarian, also a devoted Romance reader, who was horrified that she had also never dedicated time to reading Canadian Romance. She could only come up with one name. I took this as confirmation that the lack of education wasn’t just a me problem. But I realized that me was the person who had to do something about it. And here we are (I’m so happy you’re here!).
So, what’s with the genre identifier “CanLit Romance”? Canadian literature (CanLit), a beloved branch of Canadian content (CanCon), is vital to Canadian culture. CanCon provides a vibrant voice on the world stage in every facet of the arts. Without the arts, what are we even doing? So, CanLit is the genre and Romance is the subgenre. Also, I know that there are lot of people who read CanLit thinking that Romance doesn’t belong and my URL proves otherwise, thank you (also so does every official definition of “literature”).
And also, so, what’s with the HEA Canada part? Romance novels, as a genre, must end happily, often referred to as the HEA (Happy Ever After) or HFN (Happy For Now), and the Romance must be the/a central plot point. Romance celebrates feminism, healthy romantic and platonic relationships, multiculturalism, individual identity and sexuality. CanLit Romance deserves to have a louder voice on the world stage, and right here at home. This is what my CanLit Romance content is here to support.
And since I want CanLit Romance to become a generalized term, I’ve rebranded my *points at everything* to HEA Canada: A CanLit Romance Hub.
But let’s get back to the past. Turns out my first CanLit Romance was sitting on my ereader, and I had no idea. I had picked up PUCKED OFF by Helena Hunting since many members of online reading groups I belonged to raved about it. But I didn’t realize Helena was Canadian until I’d not only finished PUCKED OFF, but started at the beginning of the PUCKED series (PUCKED OFF is book 5, ha ha oops; works as a standalone though!). As I was reading the first book, PUCKED, I was equally charmed and suspicious that one of the main characters in this Chicago, IL, USA-based series was from Guelph, ON, Canada of all places. I flipped to the author bio, and there was confirmation that, at last, I was reading Canadian romance. And while I love this kind of discovery, I want it to be easier for anyone looking specifically for CanLit Romance authors to find them, have them at their events, and sell some books.
As for the blog part of this website, rather than craft traditional reviews, I used to write letters to the next reader. I want to amplify CanLit Romance. I don’t want to analyze the books cover-to-cover; I want to celebrate their existence. I want you to be excited about the book you’re about to read! And it turns out that I really am terrible at regularly writing blog posts (probably because I used to do it for a living and burnt out…), and so I’m turning that over to you. Yes YOU! Go Resources page to find the submission link.
In 2017, I was stumped, but I’ve got a ton of recommendations now. Please read (and buy, and ask your library to buy) CanLit Romance. Share your recs with your reading circles, leave reviews on retailer websites, Let’s make sure it has as much of a voice as any genre, worldwide.
Cheers and butter tart best wishes,
HEA Canada: A CanLit Romance Hub
a.k.a. Catherine (she/her)
P.S. If you enjoy my work and have a few dollars to spare, I’d love a ko-fi!
HEA Canada: A CanLit Romance Hub 