Jason Letts's Blog, page 2

Bar Harbor Vacation Spectacular II

It's becoming sort of a family tradition that we rent a house over in Maine for a week in August to see each other, relax, and get out into the outdoors a bit. We had a great time last year, and for all I've been doing this past month I've definitely deserved it. Suspense is all but done, and we'll get the release underway as soon as I get back. I've also been getting together plans for an audio version with an old friend of mine, plus getting the house ready for my incoming housemates. I've been pounding away at the sequel to Suspense, Expense too, and I'm halfway through, which was definitely my goal for the month.

So now it's time to enjoy a little...


And hit the Precipice trail at Acadia National Park... (Yes, there are little bars there that you climb up. This trail is NOT for the faint of heart.)


Hopefully I won't be early enough to see any of this, but it'll be nice to get out kayaking in our little cove.

See you in September as we kick off a great fall!

Suspense: To Be Released September 9th!

After a hot summer full of furious typing, I'm very pleased to announce the upcoming release date of Suspense, the first book in a new YA (16+) dystopian trilogy named after the heroine, Spencer Nye!

Maybe this is something authors say a lot, but I have no doubt that this is the best piece of fiction I've written yet. If I've done my job, the action will hit you right away and won't let up until the very end.

To give you some idea about the future in which Spencer lives, imagine a world where everyone has enough. Food, things you need, things you want, they all come from a machine called a molecular synthesizer. If everyone has enough, crime would disappear, then police, then laws, then money, then war, then governments, and what would be left?

The answer is entertainment. The Culture Industry remains to provide people with movies, music, etc, and the focus of the world revolves around a group of mega-celebrities known as the Idols. These Idols compete for the only currency left that has any value, the currency of human affection, and they fight for popularity with more than just hit singles and blockbuster releases.

Spencer Nye is a diehard, more than just a fan or follower, and she's part of a small militant group that fights for an Idol named Cleary Mintz against diehards of the other Idols. Most people don't understand that the Idols are at war with one another, but Spencer does, and when she discovers a murder plot that threatens Cleary's life, she'll do whatever it takes to save the movie star she idolizes.

That's kind of functional as a rough description, isn't it? Hopefully the stuff we have planned for the release will be almost as exciting as the book. There'll be big ticket giveaways for Kindles/Nooks, Suspense cover skins for those devices, and signed copy and e-book giveaways on a number of great blogs. Here's hoping it's a big success!

New Blog!

As you can see, I've jumped ship from my old blog, which was attached to www.powerlessbooks.com, and I'm moving in here to jasonletts.blogspot.com . I'm hopeful that I'll be able to give readers more access to what's going on with my books, work, and life, while at the same time having an easier time keeping everything updated and current.

I'll be making individual pages for The Powerless Series and The Inevitable Trilogy, piling relevant news into those sections. The most recent development is that I've sold all 8 books to Turkish publisher ARVO Basim Yayin, and I'm excited to see the results of the translation process and the publication process as the books are released sequentially until January 2012. Exciting!

There will also be a page for The Spencer Nye Trilogy, as well as lots of news about that once we get a little closer to the release of Suspense around September 8th. There'll be big prize giveaways, book giveaways on a number of great blogs, and I'm hoping to get an audio version out there eventually.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll check back here for news and other cool stuff!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows #2

[image error]Walking out of the movie theater after the final Harry Potter movie came to a close, it's still hard to put into words what J.K. Rowling accomplished with her series about a boy going to wizard school. How could such a thing start? "I want to create something of a scope and size that defies the imagination." How could such a thing be built? "I want to make something deceptively childlike and wonderful for all its density and complexity."

But the truth is, stories are conceived one tiny fragment at a time, and books are written by putting one little innocuous word after the other. And on the backs of those little ideas and minuscule words, a compounding occurs that breaths life into those who come in contact with them. It's both inspiring and awe-inspiring.

As for the movie itself, I don't know how anyone could be upset with it. How could it have turned out any other way? But the unfolding was smooth and the villains were vanquished, and each character had his or her own special hero moment. There was pain and loss, forgiveness and triumph. And above all, the story has sustained all of the meaning that we've given to it, leaving an indelible mark on the lives of a generation, though some of us more than others.

Some say this is the greatest story of all time, and it may be true for those specific individuals, but I think the point for me is that every idea has the potential to grow into something great like this. We watched this story rise up to its full stature right in front of our very eyes. The first few books had already been out by the time I'd heard of it. And like many I scoffed, was converted over time, and now stand full in the ranks. Let us give J.K. and all those who toiled on these creations their due, but then let's look for the next great story that shares in this epic conversation.

It's out there, waiting for us.

My One-Year Anniversary!

A year ago today, I became an author and published the first book in my Powerless series through Amazon. A couple friends and I threw a twitter party, and a couple kind souls ponied up for the book. I was still in Japan teaching English then and despite reading as much as I could about it, still didn't understand much of what I was doing. Fast forward to now, when my job is to write fiction and I make no bones about being an author. I've sold nearly 25,000 books, and writing is how I finance my life. I'm working hard on a new dystopian novel entitled Suspense, and I plan to keep writing for as long as I possible can. To me, it's an amazing accomplishment that leaves me staggering that I'm lucky enough to do my best to entertain readers. Because it can't be said enough, let me express my profound gratitude to everyone who has given my work a chance over the past year. Thank you!

I think it's also worth mentioning a few parts in the middle. After coming back from Japan last August, I set myself to the task of finding a new job because at the time my writing income wasn't nearly enough for me to support myself. I have a Master's degree and am industrious, but it was shocking how dismal my job market experience was. Every job I applied for had hundreds of candidates, and I never got a single call for an interview. To this day I get the occasional rejection email, which is actually nice because it reminds me that if I'd gotten any of those jobs I probably wouldn't be doing what I am successfully doing now.

A big part of why I've been able to break out has to do with the other authors I've had the pleasure of getting to know and work with. There are prominent indie authors that I talk to every day and benefit from their experiences, like David Dalglish, Victorine Lieske, Mike Crane, Sean Sweeney, Rob Duperre, David McAfee, Dan Arenson, and several others. And then of course there's another list of authors who I personally admire that I wish I was able to talk to more, headed by the extremely busy yet profoundly generous (and talented) Amanda Hocking. To all the authors I know and converse with, thank you for sharing your knowledge and support with me!

More thank you's, because if there's one thing you should take from this it's that no one ever does anything alone and there are so many who deserve it, thank you to Casey Hickey for all of his work on this website, my books, and even my computer! Thank you to my homegirl bloggers Lisa Reeves and Jessica Estep. Thank you to my good friends Garrett Alley and Grace Onorato, both of whom I've met in person over the past year and can vouch for their awesomeness. Thank you to Paula Hataaja, Elizabeth Trudgeon Brown, Steve Windwalker, Big Al, the Kindleboards crew, and you for reading this blog post on my site! It's my sincere hope that this second year will be bigger and better!

A couple of updates: Amazon has made the first book in the Powerless series available for free here, and already about 8,000 people have downloaded in just a couple days. Hopefully that helps make it easy for new readers to get into the series. Also, I'm almost halfway through writing Suspense, and I'm very excited about it. With any luck the book will live up to the name. Go Spencer Nye! Lastly, I hope everyone has a superb summer. Soon I'll be heading overseas to Europe with stops in London, Paris, the French countryside, and Venice. I'm sure I'll be taking lots of pictures. Thank you again! –Jason

Release of Incredible, the Final Book of the Inevitable Trilogy!

After putting in a ton of work over the past few weeks, Incredible is finally available on Amazon and BN.com!

In this last book of the trilogy, the craziness reaches all new levels as Nathan and Apoxy struggle to be reunited despite huge gaps in time and cosmic shifts in the universe, treacherous villains intent on toying with them, and foolish decisions that have exploded in their faces.

I'd say more, but I'll leave it up to you to discover what happens. I hope readers find it brings a satisfying conclusion to the story is this unfortunate young man and the spirit who took pity on him.

After this, I'll start working on a dystopian novel entitled Suspense, named after the heroine, Spencer Nye. I anticipate that it'll get released in September or October. But getting started on that will have to wait another day because I've just been whacked with allergies and am practically swimming in my head. I'm so glad this didn't hit while I was writing!

To all my readers, thank you so much! I hope you enjoy Incredible!

–Jason

New Covers for Powerless

Now that all the books in the Powerless series are out, I had Matt Youngmark redo the covers to give them a more consistent style. I'm interested to see what kind of impact this has, but I have a feeling it'll be good. A big thanks to Matt, and it's possible to check him and his work out here: http://indieboomdesign.com/

Release of Powerless: The Carafers!

The final book of the Powerless series, The Carafers, is now available on Amazon and BN.com!

And it's been a long time coming, too! I started writing this series exactly two years and two weeks ago, and I really never could've imagined how the story could've turned out once I started, much less how it would do once readers got a hold of it. But I've been genuinely impressed that it's been able to find readers who've enjoyed it.

For those readers, it's all come down to this. Our little group of heroes from Corey Outpost have been through a tremendous amount in their adventures, criss-crossing the countryside and battling enemies from within and without. Now the end of their journey is in sight, and there's plenty of cause for excitement and worry.

It does get harder to talk about the series the farther it's gone on, mostly because I'd hate to spoil things for readers who are just starting out. Talking about the end of the end must be particularly precarious, but after reading a number of different series and seeing lots of different ways they end, I am definitely ready to stand by this one. Hopefully readers find this final book provides a satisfying conclusion! To all of you who've taken a chance on this series, let me offer you my profound and heartfelt thanks.

My next release will be Incredible, the final book of the Inevitable trilogy, which should be released in late May. For updates, I recommend you visit our facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/authorjasonletts

Release of Impossible, Book 2 of the Inevitable Trilogy!

So much has happened in the two months since Inevitable was released that I can hardly keep track. The book has blown away all of my high expectations, and it continues to find new ways to shine. To give you some idea of how well it's doing, the book is currently ranked #657 on Amazon and #176 on BN.com. In just a few days, I'll have sold 10,000 books. I've been fortunate enough to enjoy some nice reviews as well. It seems like readers are responding favorably to this new paranormal paradigm, featuring a spirit from Infinity who controls the outcomes of all actions across countless parallel worlds.

I can only hope that readers find the second book in this trilogy, Impossible, just as fascinating. The book is now available on Amazon and BN.com.

The action picks up right where Inevitable left off; Nathan's world is thrown back into chaos. Despite his attempts to stay strong, this new threat is too much to handle, and the magical spirit who came into his life must find a way to save him before their relationship and his family are destroyed forever.

I definitely don't want to give too much away, but the second episode of this trilogy does a lot to expand the universe these characters inhabit and shows how their decisions can have a dramatic impact on the course of their lives. I hope you find it exciting and interesting! Thanks for reading!

And, just for fun, I'd like to share a song that I think would make the perfect theme song for the Inevitable Trilogy. In case you didn't know, I'm the biggest sucker for female vocalists, and this one is just mesmerizing. The song is called "Soft Rock Star" by Metric. Check it out!

FYI: My next release will be the final book of the Powerless series, The Carafers, which should come out by the end of April. In the meantime, I'll be getting right to work on the final book of the Inevitable Trilogy, Incredible!

Review: Matched by Ally Condie

Just to prove that I don't just write blog posts when I am releasing a book, I'm going to share my review of Matched by Ally Condie, which I was drawn to because of its similarities with The Hunger Games.

It seemed like a great twist, turning the reaping into something love related, and the beginning of the book is chock-full of obvious references, like the line: "May you have optimum results," mimicking THG's "May the odds be ever in your favor." That line never appears again in Matched, and really has no consequence whatsoever. Even the Capitol has its counterpart in the Society. Apparently things are scary when you capitalize them. Unfortunately though, the deliberate homage to The Hunger Games created an extreme contrast with what actually happens in Matched.

The whole time I read the book, I kept waiting for the action. The clearly oppressive Society was about to meet its match in the young, lovesick Cassia Reyes, and then it would be a battle to the death until one came out on top. But instead nothing of the kind happens, and readers must instead consider how each tiny action with Xander or Ky tugs on Cassia's heartstrings. It would've been fine if the beginning of the book had let me know this story was just about teens in an ultra-conservative society. I'd probably have enjoyed the everyday teen life of the future a lot more if I didn't feel like they should all be running through the woods for their lives.

My expectations based on the beginning of the book aside, I had an easy time reading Matched. I was interested to know the spark that made Casssia and/or her family and/or her boyfriends break away from the Society, but unfortunately that was withheld. From where the story goes, it seems like the Society is pushing them to break away, thus depriving them of choosing to do so themselves. Freedom of choice is a big part of the romantic side of the story, and I would be impressed if this is what Ally Condie intended for this half as well.

Digging into the romance, I actually do think making points out of those tiny interactions is a good way to form the building blocks of a relationship between characters, but having Cassia hop back and forth between men like it was nothing troubled me. She didn't even seem to be aware that she was leaping in two different directions sometimes even on the same page. Obviously she had to make a choice different from what the Society wanted for the story to work, but I can't say I was excited about the prospect of her being with Ky even though they shared some interests I enjoy.

I'm glad I read this book to get a sense of the continuing legacy of The Hunger Games trilogy, but this story doesn't do as much to capture a reader's attention. The twists are too narrow in scope, and the present tense really isn't necessary because of the lack of action. It did make me want to take a crack at writing something dystopian though. Maybe after The Inevitable Trilogy is over. Hmm. Matched gets 3 stars from me.