Dear Readers

Today I saw this marvelous thing on Facebook. They’re called Ghost Apples.

What happens is that the freezing rain coats rotting apples and then the fruit leaves behind this beautiful frozen shell. If you’d like to see the post on Facebook it’s here: Ghost Apples.

Readers often ask where I get my ideas from, but with a world as rich as ours, getting ideas is the easy part!

Thank you to the readers who responded to last week’s email. I received a few requests to describe my writing process so I’ll be working on that and hopefully sharing it soon. If there are any other topics you’d like me to discuss, please let me know!

You may have received the first chapter of my wizard detective novel The HighFire Crown this morning, courtesy of MailChimp. If you did, I hope you enjoyed it!

WHAT I’M WORKING ON

I’m currently halfway through writing a gritty urban fantasy novel with Colby R. Rice. I started the cover this week so I’ll have something to show you soon. It’s set in Johannesburg — again! Which always makes it interesting to write as most of my readers are in the US and UK. Hopefully, the story and action will translate smoothly and you won’t be confused by the sprinkling of South African words … plus, Colby is American, so there will be a slight American twang ( :

We’re aiming to finish the book by the end of the month, then the editors and proofers will have their turn. Can’t wait to share it with you!

I also can’t wait to get back to writing suspenseful, dark-humored short stories. I love crafting shorter fiction so I’m really looking forward to the next collection of Sticky Fingers up.

Of course, I’ll be sharing one or two with you as I progress, so watch this space if you’d like to pick up some NEW free short stories.

TRY THIS INDIE AUTHOR

Dead Silence
K.G. Reuss
4.8 stars out of 5 (70 reviews) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Dead. Not Gone. Definitely not silent.

My name is Everly, and I’m haunted by the dead. Or maybe hunted is a better word since it seems the dead want to make me one of them. Luckily, I have Shadow on my side, the formidable, powerful being who’s been with me since the beginning. He never speaks. But I know he’s my protector, slaying the demons that get too close and saving me from whatever seeks to harm me, even myself.

Nothing is as it seems … not even Shadow.

Dead Silence is Book 1 in The Everlasting Chronicles.

(Reader Discretion advised due to dark subject matter.)

>> Get it here!  https://books2read.com/deadsilence

I’ll be back in your inbox next Friday with a freebie. But for now I’m going to put my head down and get this book finished!

Have a great weekend!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

Short Story Collection
Sticky Fingers 1
Sticky Fingers 2
Sticky Fingers 3
Sticky Fingers Complete Box Set

Blood Magic series
The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Witch Hunter
The Ember Isles
The Chaos Jar
The New Dawn Throne (March 2019)

When Tomorrow Calls series
Why You 
The Sigma SurrogateWere Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls Box Set
The Stepford Florist

Non-Fiction
The Underachieving Ovary

PS. Want to make sure you never miss a release? Follow me on Amazon or BookBub.

Hello!

I hope you’ve had a good week so far!

I’ve got a bottle of bubbly in the fridge because I hit a milestone today … two million pages read! I’m thrilled and I only have you to thank.

But it’s not all champagne-drinking and swanning about over here. This week I’ve been preparing to dive into writing my new book, which I start today.

It’s the last full-length book I’ll write for a while as I’ll be focussing on shorter works this year. I’m really looking forward to getting lost in the story.

The kids are settled at school, Felix the kitten has entrenched himself as cutest member of the family, and I’m ready to get back into my writing schedule and make things happen. I hope you’ll join me for the ride!

PS. If there is anything you’d like me to write about in my newsletters, let me know! Are you interested in my writing process, or my publishing schedule for 2019? Or do you just want to see more kitten pictures?

PPS. If you think of yourself as a fan of my books, you may want to join our Superfan Facebook group. It’s a place where we can chat more often than a bi-monthly newsletter, and the conversation can go both ways. If you’re interested, I’ll see you there!

***

GREY MAGIC AUDIOBOOK

I have Audible UK promo codes to hand out for this new audio release. Sorry that I’m out of US codes, but they were snapped up by my ravenous review team!

Did real-life witch Raven Kane murder one of her clients?

“Love and fear, murder and mayhem, animals and potion gardens. The past and present collide in this story and sparks fly.”  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Audible US: http://bit.ly/GreyMagic 

Audible UK: http://bit.ly/GreyMagicUK (promo codes available)

If you’d like a UK promo code to download the book for free, please reply to this email confirming that you have an Audible UK account and I’ll send you one. Audible UK accounts are open to anyone regardless of location.

… Not a fan of audiobooks? You can grab the ebook or paperback here.

Hope you enjoy the story!

***

THANK YOU TO MY PATREONS

Thank you so much to Nigel Perels for his Patreon pledge! My first coffee tomorrow is dedicated to you.

Thank you also to my loyal long-time supporters. I always feel humbled by your generosity. Thank you for believing in my work.

***

CHECK OUT THIS URBAN FANTASY ANTHOLOGY

SOULS & SHADOWS

So this box set isn’t available on Amazon yet, but if you shop on one of the other retailers you can pick it up already. It’s already #1 on Kobo in the contemporary fantasy category!

Fans of Jim Butcher and Ilona Andrews will get lost in this heart-pounding magical collection of 27 tales from today’s USA Today bestsellers and talented new authors.

Our brand new novel, EverDark, is included in the set. More about that some other time!

***

I hope you have a lovely weekend filled with love and books.

Thanks again for your support!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

Hello!

I hope you’ve had a lovely break and an easy start to the year.

We’re back from a wonderful holiday at the Wild Coast and the kids started school yesterday. James enjoyed his first day in grade one!

I’m taking it slow — I promised myself a month off work in January after the grueling 6-books-in-6-months wizard challenge — so I’m catching up on emails and admin and taking a few courses to ease into what is sure to be an exciting, prolific year.

I’ll be doubling down on short stories this year, as I love writing them and the reviews have been good!

My Sticky Fingers readers email me often to ask when the next collection will be out, so I’m planning on publishing 3 more collections in 2019.

In the meantime, I wanted to let you know that Book 4 in my wizard detective series, The Ember Isles, is live today. 

It’s a fun, light-hearted, escapist adventure. If you read it, I’d love to know what you think!

That’s all till next week, when I’ll have some audiobook codes to hand out.

***

Thanks again for your support and I wish you all the best for 2019!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

Our new kitten, Felix, had the best first Christmas ever. His favourite part was trying to knock the tree over, which delighted my children.

It’s steaming hot here in Johannesburg, with temperatures peaking at 34 degrees Celcius (93 degrees F) so we spent most of Christmas day in the pool with lilos and chilled MCC.

It was lovely to take the day off and spend time with my kids, and I hope you had a wonderful break, too. I also hope you enjoyed reading (or listening to) Dasher, if you got around to it!

And while everyone (including the kitten) is now recovering from lots of fun, I’m trying my best to finish this final wizard book before my deadline on the 31st of December.

Please keep your fingers crossed for me! It’s going to be a slog, but I’m determined to make it!

BOOKS

If you’re looking for something to read and you enjoy fantasy, there might be something here that appeals to you. I’m afraid I’m sharing this link a few days late, but I’ve just checked and most of the books listed are still 99c.

Also, my book Grey Magic is now available in audiobook format!

If you’re new to Audible, you can listen to it for free here:

Audible US: http://bit.ly/GreyMagic
Audible UK: http://bit.ly/GreyMagicUK
Audible FR: http://bit.ly/GreyMagicFR
Audible DE: http://bit.ly/GreyMagicDE

Thanks again for your support this year and I wish you all the best for 2019!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

I am so grateful to you for your support this year.

Without you, I wouldn’t be able to afford the time to write. Thank you!

Here is your gift: A Christmas-themed short story, perfect for the festive season.

I’ve made it free from today till the 25th of December.

Dasher

A heartwarming tale of a down-and-out Santa Claus and his decapitated reindeer.

Get your gift now!

Also, if you’re new to Audible, you can listen to the audio version for free.

Audible US: http://bit.ly/dasherUS
Audible UK: http://bit.ly/dasherUK
Audible FR: http://bit.ly/dasherFR
Audible DE: http://bit.ly/dasherDE

TRY THIS INDIE AUTHOR

Bound by Sorcery
Antara Mann

For a limited time Bound by Sorcery is on sale for only 99c

A supernatural apocalypse is brewing. And only secret magic can defeat it.

Alexandra Shaw may be an elemental mage, but she prefers the quiet life, running her struggling occult bookshop. With secrets of her own and a magical lineage shrouded in mystery, she keeps a low profile. But when a New York banker is found gruesomely murdered with an ancient symbol carved into his chest — one representing a cult of demon hunters long thought extinct — the supernatural community, including the Magic Council, is stunned.

Bound by Sorcery is the first book in the Half-Goddess Chronicles urban fantasy series. It features a kick-ass heroine, a hot hero, mystery, and otherworldly adventures. Fans of Ilona Andrews, Ella Summers and Linsey Hall will likely enjoy this series.

Get it now.

Thank you for supporting indie authors. Happy reading!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

Yesterday I gave the cover of The Sigma Surrogate a quick refresh.

I’ve decided to make it free for a few days.

If you haven’t read it before, I hope you enjoy the story!
Ebook (FREE)
US: https://amzn.to/2rA3ltX
UK: https://amzn.to/2zTX0xY

Audiobook (free if you’re new to audiobooks)
US: http://bit.ly/TheSigmaSurrogateUS
UK: http://bit.ly/TheSigmaSurrogateUK

In other news, Amazon has very kindly selected Sticky Fingers to be included in their Prime Reading program, so if you’re a Prime Member you’ll be able to read that for free, too.

This is great timing for me, as next year I’ll be doubling down on short stories. I love the creative freedom they offer, and it will make such a nice change from writing six back-to-back books in the same series!

Speaking of which, I am a third of the way through writing book 6 in my urban fantasy series, and I’m chomping at the bit to type THE END.

I’ve loved going on adventures with my protagonist, wily female wizard detective Jax, but my brain is totally fried. My brain is demanding piña coladas and warm seas.

BLOOD MAGIC SERIES update:

Book 3, The Witch Hunter, is LIVE TODAY! Thank you to everyone who pre-ordered it!

Book 4, The Ember Isles, will be available to order soon.

Book 1, The HighFire Crown, still 99c, will be going up to full price on Monday, so if you’d like to grab it, DO IT NOW OR YOU WILL FORSAKE $3 AND WEEP FOR ETERNITY.

Before I go off for another marathon writing session, here is a book you may be interested in.

TRY THIS INDIE AUTHOR

Unleash
Lauren Harris
4.3-star average (32 reviews) ★ ★ ★ ★

Magic Mafia. Sorcerer Police. A girl on the run from both.

Helena Martin doesn’t know who she hates more, the sorcerers who fired the magic-laced bullet or the gang-lord master who used her mother as a shield. It’s not the price she expected for escaping magical slavery, nor is the unstable power now pulsing in her veins.

“A visceral, heart-pounding ride of a book that will keep you guessing until the final bloody breath.”

Get it now!

That’s it for today!

Thank you for supporting indie authors, and happy reading!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

My kids wanted to name our new kitten Fifi Marshmallow Lawrence, so we settled on ‘Felix’ for short.

Felix has settled in beautifully, eats his weight in posh kitten food, and likes to explore. It’s so touching to see my young kids form a bond with him. (I’m not crying, you’re crying!)

The other good news is that I finished and submitted book 5 in my wizard series (shew!) and have started writing the final book. It’s been quite an adventure, and I’m so tired I can hardly form a coherent thought, so getting the words down is currently requiring a vast amount of coffee.

(When I think of quitting, I just remember the price of the posh kitten food and I press on).

I can’t wait to celebrate the submission of book 6 at the end of December! I hope you’ll celebrate with me. We can do a giveaway!

Until then …

>> For those of you on my list who are not here for urban fantasy, I’ll be taking a break from wizards and orcs to write some more Sticky Fingers story collections next year, so stay tuned! I will also email you less frequently from January onwards.)

>> For those who ARE here for urban fantasy, The Witch Hunter will go live on the 14th of December.)

In the meantime, you can…

TRY THESE INDIE AUTHORS

Rite to Reign: A Limited Edition Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy Box Set — only 99c

Willful witches, supernatural sorcerers, cruel queens, and powerful priestesses fall out of favor and rise to rule in this highly sought-after collection of spellbinding stories!

Grab your copy now. If you pre-order, you’ll also receive a bonus 12 ebooks by clicking here.

If you do end up reading my new releases, The HighFire Crown or The Dream Drinker, please let me know what you think!

The Witch Hunter will go live on the 14th of December.

And thank you for supporting indie authors. Happy reading!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

It made me realise how deeply I’m immersed in my character’s world. Writing six books in six months in an intense experience, and even more so when your protagonist doesn’t know how to stay out of trouble.

I’m currently in the middle of writing Book 5 and loving the adventure. If you haven’t yet tried out this urban fantasy that’s taking over my brain, you can sample it for free on Amazon, here.

Just download the free sample and you’ll get to meet Jacquelyn Denna Knight, the best wizard detective in the city.

And, speaking of wizards, if you enjoy fantasy you’ll love Angela J. Ford’s ‘Realm of the Beasts’.

Realm of Beasts: An Epic Fantasy Adventure with Mythical Beasts
Angela J. Ford
4.6 star rating (23 reviews) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A feisty enchantress. A mysterious wizard. A sarcastic dragon. From the international best selling author of The Four Worlds comes a tale of mischief and mayhem. 
When darkness creeps into Paradise, bringing the mysterious Nameless One and an omen of death, Citrine realizes the consequences of her actions spell danger for herself, her beasts, and Paradise.

As time runs out the undead come to life. Citrine faces the ultimate showdown as everything she holds dear is ripped away.

“The magic of this book is in the writing! Brilliant!” ★★★★★ 

Apart from being a bestselling author, Angela is one of the most supportive readers I know. I hope you’ll give it a try.

Thank you for supporting indie authors, and happy reading!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The HighFire Crown
The Dream Drinker
The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
Uprising
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water

Hello!

I have so many exciting projects coming up, I can’t wait to share them with you.

THE MEMORY HACKER
I published The Memory Hacker last week, if you’re keen to check it out you can click here.

THE UPRISING
One of the projects I’m currently working on is publishing a Dystopian 12-book boxed set anthology. It includes my book The Sigma Surrogate and will be out next month! We’ll publish at the crazy price of 99c … I’ll let you know when it’s live.

STICKY FINGERS
The Sticky Fingers series of collected short stories is doing really well, sharing chart space with Neil Gaiman and Stephen King. I couldn’t be happier!

Sticky Fingers 2 will be out in audiobook format next month, if you are an audio fan. If you’re not, you’re missing out! I’ll send you an email in the next couple of weeks all about audiobooks and how you can try them for free.

A FEMALE WIZARD?
What’s taking most of my time at the moment in a book about … a wily female wizard!

I know it’s a bit different to what I usually write (apart from Grey Magic), but when the co-authoring opportunity came up, I grabbed it with both hands.

THE GOOD NEWS: We’ll be releasing a 6-book series before January 2019.

THE BAD NEWS: I have to write 6 books in 6 months. YIKES?

Luckily, Book 1 is already in the bag. It’s called ‘The HighFire Crown’ and I submitted it yesterday. It was so much fun to write! WIZARDS! GOBLINS! VAMPIRES! ORC MAFIA! Honestly, it feels like too much fun to call it work. I’ll keep you posted on the progress!

TRY THIS INDIE AUTHOR for only 99c

Eye of the Colossus
Nicole Grotepas
★★★★★
4.9 stars out of 5 (15 reviews)

Some think the City of Jade Spires is a utopia. It very much isn’t.

Holly Drake is in prison for defending herself from a murderer. That’s the kind of corruption thriving in the city where evidence is destroyed and the innocent go to jail.

But everything’s about to change. Someone exonerates Holly and she walks free. She has no idea who. Or why. But they have a job for her.

Grab your copy now for just 99c.

That’s all for today.

Happy Reading!

Janita

• JT Lawrence •
Author / Playwright / Bookdealer
www.jt-lawrence.com

The Sigma Surrogate
Why You Were Taken
How We Found You
What Have We Done
When Tomorrow Calls
2054
The Stepford Florist
Grey Magic
Sticky Fingers Collection
The Underachieving Ovary
The Memory of Water
Every Breath You Take
The JT Lawrence Suspense Box Set