Read on for April’s TGTBTU Harlequin Insider from the fantabulous author Michelle Styles. Read on and learn more about what we will see from TGTBTU in April – showers of books and deluges of contest (is “deluges” a noun?)…

TGTBTU Harlequin Insider: April showers us with books and contests
by Michelle Styles

April marks the publication of Liz Fielding‘s 50^th book for Harlequin Romance. Liz is a two time RITA winner and one of the most popular authors in the Romance series as well as being a dear friend. She is doing a year long series of contests on her blog, featuring books from her author friends.THE MARRIAGE MIRACLE , the 2006 RITA® winner for best short contemporary feature an unforgettable wheelchair-bound heroine.My favorite Fielding featured the curvy heroine, Dodi who has seriously good taste in hamburgers and chocolate — THE BRIDESMAIDS REWARD.And her latest, THE BRIDE’S BABY, is full of the same wonderful Liz Fielding magic. This is the start of a new mini series – A Bride for All Seasons. Other authors participating in the series will include: Trish Wylie, Fiona Harper, and Shirley Jump.

Shirley Jump is the launch author in a major new continuity for Harlequin Romance – The Wedding Planners – with her book SWEETHEART LOST AND FOUND. Six friends from Boston are the Wedding Belles who specialize in making other people’s weddings come true. But are they always the wedding planner…never the bride? The authors of the series have created a website full of information about the series. According to Melissa James, the concept for the series came from the authors and features former SR authors: Shirley Jump, Myrna Mackenzie, Melissa McClone, Linda Goodnight, Susan Meier and Melissa James. All the authors involved are really excited about the series which starts in April.

April sees the Harlequin Historical debut of Sarah Mallory with MORE THAN A GOVERNESS. Sarah is a new and exciting voice for Harlequin Historical. She is also published in the UK as Melinda Hammond with Robert Hale [publishing house] where she writes Georgian adventure romance.

Presents Extra is being launched this month with its own flash and numbering system. Book Number 1 of the series is Julie Cohen‘s MISTRESS IN PRIVATE (UK title: ALL WORK AND NO PLAY). Julie is especially proud of her ironing board surfing scene in the book. She keeps hoping that it will be mentioned in reviews, so it gets a mention here. Anyway, it is a fun and flirty book and she laughed a lot when she wrote it.

The winners of the Presents Instant Seduction contest have been announced. Lynne Rae Harris who also finalled in the Golden Heart contemporary romance series – suspense/ adventure won first prize with her entry THE SPANISH MAGNET’S REVENGE. Many congratulations but I suspect she will be one busy lady in the coming months. The runners up were Dani Collins and Elba Junco writing as Eve Powers. The editors were very impressed with the overall standard of writing and the great love of Presents that the over 600 entries showed. A successful contest all around.

Any aspiring Nocturne Author should be sure and enter the Nocturne Editorial Pitch with Ann Leslie Tuttle. The deadline for entries is 9 April and the pitch takes place on 23 April. Full details of how to enter on the e-harlequin site. Online pitches at e-harlequin have proved a popular method for finding new authors as the Desire editors indicated in their February podcast. So look for more pictching opportunities in the future.

This month’s podcasts are SSE and American. SSE podcast contained the information that US Today bestseller Christine Rimmer who pens the very popular Bravo Family Ties will be revisiting an older family mini series – The Jones Gang – with a Bravo meets Jones book in January 2009 – THE STRANGER AND TESSA JONES. It is part of the SSE First Families series. SSE is two-thirds mini series and includes books from a wide emotional range and on a number of different topics — from Karen Templeton‘s humor to Raeanne Thayne‘s emotional Women of Brambleberry House mini series. If SSE had to be a television series, it would be along the lines of Brothers & Sisters.

A new SSE series from Crystal Green — The Suds Club — has just started with MOMMY AND THE MILLIONAIRE being the launch book. The other two books in the series will be coming out in June and October.

SSE is also the subject of this month Harlequin Spotlight here on TGTBTU.

May promises to hold lots more exciting things happening at Harlequin including the start of my Viking mini-series, the debut of Desire’s latest author and much more.