Jason Letts's Blog

I'd like to take a quick moment to thank everyone who has tried out my most recent release, Girls' Trip!

It's exciting to have a book receive such strong opinions like this, but at the same time I think it's fair to say it has gotten some mixed opinions.

I don't pretend to be Shakespeare, and each reader is a new battle. What's important to me is doing my best to tell the best story I can.

Considering this response, I'd encourage those who loved Girls' Trip and want a sequel to be very clear about telling me. I would love to write it, but there needs to be demand for it.

I've also seen that when stories are completed and made whole, it can resolve the issues some people may have had with the first part.

I'm going to keep writing, and I'll leave the ball in your court about if you'd like to come back for a Girls' Night!

I just wanted to quickly share the new cover we've got for The Scars of Ambition! The sequel, The Vendetta Clause, will probably be out in November, and I'm very optimistic about it!

As for Scars, the book has been getting some great reviews. Here's a recent one from reviewer Jake Scholl:

"Ever get tired of a Medieval Fantasy setting? Or have you ever wondered what would happen when Middle Earth’s technology would become like ours? With The Scars of Ambition, Jason Letts answers these questions.

The novel takes place in a land called Cumeria, where the government hardly has any serious power, and wealthy all powerful corporations control nearly every aspect of life. Much like Game of Thrones, these wealthy families behave much like the squabbling Houses of Westoros. But, the background setting is much like modern day. There are airplanes, gas powered vehicles, computers, phones, guns, etcetera.

You may ask how Scars can be Fantasy with all of these modern pieces of technology, there still are some elements, like magic, creatures, and swords, that are in most Fantasy Novels. I honestly didn’t know if Letts could pull the fusion of new and old elements off, but Letts does amazingly well, and makes the plot his own rather than follow the normal conventions of the genre.

The story centers around the Bracken family. It centers around Lowell Bracken, the father & head of the family business called Bracken Energy. The Bracken’s have been leaders in the land of Cumeria for hundreds of years without resistance. That is, until forces beyond his control turn on him, and he doesn’t know who to trust…That’s all I can say about the without spoilers. All I will say is that the tale will keep you guessing till the end. :)

As for the characters, they are well done too. Every character is fleshed out well, even characters who you only see a few times will stick with you.

If you are a fan of G.R.R.M, the TV show Dallas (When you read it, you’ll know what I mean.), and Steampunk Fantasy, this book is made for you."

After a hiatus of over a year, I've finally published another piece of fiction, the newly released The Scars of Ambition, the first book in a new series called The Cumerian Unraveling.

Why did I stop? Why did I come back? Why does this book look so different than my previous books? The answers to all of those questions are tied up together in the basement, and it's time to let them out.

When I was writing full-time for a living, the market pressure of publishing in order to earn became too large a factor in what I was writing. Some of my previous novels failed to connect with readers, probably because I wasn't really being true to myself and what I really wanted to write. In truth, I wasn't connecting with my characters in some of those books or their stories. I told them because that's what I thought YA readers wanted to read, but in truth I'd stopped being a YA author long ago.

Suspense barely deserves the YA label. It's dark, mortality is a constantly at the forefront of the narrative, and the characters generally have a rough ride. Maybe too rough and too dark, because some readers found parts of it jarring. It took a long while for me to put some of those old stories behind me so that I could feel like I could start fresh and align myself with a story I felt passionate about.

Other circumstances changed as well. If this book doesn't sell a single copy, I'll be just fine. And because of that, I'll be able to go ahead and write the sequel too knowing full well that the only thing I have to accomplish is writing a kick-ass story, one that means something to me. Now all I have to do is hope there are some other people out there who are something like me. I bet there are.

That brings me to The Scars of Ambition, which at 95,000 words is the longest book I've ever published. It's got more characters, more time for development, and more attention to the various aspects of Cumeria's troubled society. At the heart of it, the Bracken family knows they can only rely on each other, but even that comes into question as Lowell and his children (early thirties to late teens) take on their own challenges. I won't give away too much more, but what I like about this novel is that the characters often struggle with trying to be good in a world that seems to compel them to be bad.

Want to find out more? Here's the description, and the map.

“The ancient family sword’s immaculate steel blade reminded him that there were still parts of the world where this was the only weapon people had, the old ways were still alive and well, and there were creatures out there and powerful things beyond what he could ever imagine.”

Lowell Bracken had complete control. His empire, his ruthless executives, his family’s legacy, his wife, his children, they all had a part to play in the near omnipotent control he exerted in Cumeria. But a freak attack exposed how tenuous that control really is, and Lowell scrambles to preserve it, discovering he is only playing a small part in larger, darker schemes for control.

From the shadows, mysterious and disturbing threats disrupt the already-turbulent business landscape in Cumeria. When blood is spilled, the fight for survival becomes more than just a euphemism for going out of business, and the Brackens’ struggles to retain order might be the only thing keeping all of Cumeria from plunging into chaos.

I'm excited to announce the release of Overflow, a new paranormal romance novel now available on Amazon.com! Still waiting to go live on BN.com, but this will be updated with a link when it does.

So what is Overflow about? For fans of the Inevitable trilogy, they should have some idea already. A young couple caught in a world where things are spiraling out of control. Except this time the couple is a pair of 19 year olds getting married on a cruise ship. Beck has something up his sleeve to make his wedding a perfect one for Sydney, but little does he know he's laying the seeds for a catastrophic disaster the likes of which the cruise industry has never seen.

Here's the description!

Getting married at 19 years old would be enough to make anyone nervous, but Beck Eisley isn't the kind of guy who backs down from a challenge. His bride Sydney is beautiful, adventurous, and comes from a powerful family that paid to have the ceremony on a luxurious cruise ship. So what could possibly go wrong? While Beck executes his plans to make it a wedding no one will ever forget, he finds out Sydney's family may have some skeletons in their closet that will make his wedding day more of a challenge than even he thought he could handle.


I hope you enjoy it and thanks for reading. It's been an incredible year of writing for me, publishing six novels and selling over 40,000 copies of my books. I send my deepest thanks out to everyone who's given my work a chance. Here's hoping next year turns out to be even better!


You can find Overflow on Amazon here!

After months of hard work, I'm ready to announce that my next novel will be entitled Overflow, and it should be set for release in the first week of December! I'm also revealing the cover, which was produced by Claudia at Phatpuppy Art.

Fan of the Inevitable Trilogy and my other novels should feel right at home in this new paranormal romance about a disaster cruise ship wedding. To tell you a little bit about the story, a young man named Beck Eisley is getting married to the daughter of an automotive titan named Sydney, both of whom are 19. Her father, Domonic, has generously offered to take them out on a cruise for the ceremony, but Beck discovers he may have an ulterior motive for being generous, namely that there are rumors about mysterious auto-worker deaths that he's trying to avoid. Beck is convinced that Sydney is a match made in heaven, but some of her family's secrets can't stay buried under the surface.

So there you have it, Overflow, which is set to be released in early December. I hope you enjoy it!

[image error] I'm excited to present the second book of the Spencer Nye Trilogy, Expense, which is now available on Amazon.com. Links will be added to BN.com and other sites when the book becomes available.

For fans of Suspense, I think this book will provide a whole new dimension to our understanding of who Spencer Nye is, what her friends are like, and what makes up the world she lives in, one she's absolutely turned upside down. There'll be more action, more sparks, and more glimpses into a future world where the things we know about how people use technology have been taken to even greater lengths.

And, as always, great thanks goes out to the readers who have given me the time to work on these books. I hope you find something that resonates with you within these pages!

Alright folks, this is your one-week warning. We're getting close to the release of the second book in the Spencer Nye Trilogy, Expense, which will continue the series with tons more action, craziness, and revelations!

The response to Suspense continues to be amazing, and I think this second book is going to get an even tighter grip on readers. A lot's changed in the world in the aftermath of Spencer's struggles in the first book, but if there's one thing you can count on, those struggles aren't going to go down without a fight.

Stay tunes for the release announcement, and thanks to everyone who's picked up the series!

Did you hear Amazon's announcement today about their new tablet, Kindle Fire? It's pretty incredible!

While I wouldn't say I'm an expert, these devices are pretty fascinating for me. Amazon completely revamped their Kindle product line, which now starts at a $79 Kindle, a $99 Kindle Touch, and goes up to the Fire for $199.

The Kindle Fire has a 7" screen, runs on Android operating software, and features a neat webbrowsing system called Silk, which is supposed to speed up page loading by combining the device's software with some of Amazon's server strength. It'll be interesting to see how well that works in practice.

Though you can find out everything you ever want to know about the new devices here, it's going to be impressive what this does to the book publishing industry and authors like me who primarily make a living by selling e-books. The $100 e-reader threshhold as been holding many people back from getting Kindles, but now there are going to be millions and millions more of them floating around after the holidays.

So what do yo think about it? Is anybody out there thinking about grabbing one of the new models? They are accepting pre-orders now, and then shipping starts in November sometime. I doubt I'll be able to resist picking up one of the tablets, and maybe a few of the Kindles for people on my shopping list.

I have to admit it's been a lot of fun reading reviews for Suspense over the past couple weeks. Whether it's the action, the window into the future of social networking, or the characters and the story, it seems like everybody has found something that resonated with them. That's what this trilogy is all about, and as I get down to work on the sequel, I wanted to make sure I've got a good handle on why people feel the way they do about the story.

I think the reviewers said it best in their own words:

Aeicha at her blog, Word Spelunking, says: "This book is truly a page turner…seriously, I read it in one sitting and every time I told myself "Just one more chapter", I'd get to the end of that chapter and something exciting would happen and I'd have to keep reading to find out what happens next…and this kept happening until I finished the book and realized it was about 5am and I stayed up all night just to read it."
Spencer Nye is such a likable, yet flawed, heroine. She doesn't always make the right choices but her heart is in the right place. Plus, I like a character that isn't afraid to stop asking questions and kill the bad guys already! Spencer's romantic interests seem pretty clear cut when you first start reading, but take an unexpected and awesome turn! Original and crazy!"


Grace on her MotherLode blog says: "As soon as I started the book I realized we were in a different world than I know, with the personal nodes, the connect system, and the idols. I love how this world was implied rather than explained, and I gradually figured out what made this world tick. The idea of Connect, sending messages simply by thinking and finding the information you needed in front of your eyes in a split second, was really easy to visualize yet unimaginable at the same time. I really liked the creativity in creating this futuristic world that is still really relatable, and I could picture us here in another hundred years."
Well said! A thrilling story, a thought-provoking world, compelling characters. I've been lucky enough to get it right for these reviewers and I hope plenty more people are feeling the same way.
I'll also note that we're 2 weeks from the end of Suspense's grand prize Kindle/Nook giveaway! If you haven't heard about it yet, check out the giveaway tab on our Facebook page!
Suspense, the first book in my new YA (16+) Dystopian trilogy can be found at Amazon, BN, itunes, and Smashwords! The paperback version is out now too!

Suspense, the first book in my new YA (16+) dystopian trilogy is now available on Amazon (and BN soon)!

Just as exciting, I'm pleased to announce that early readers of Suspense will be eligible to win a new Kindle Wifi or Nook Touch, as well as other great prizes! All of you have to do is read the book and answer 4 simple questions by Oct. 9th. All of the details and questions can be found on the giveaway tab of my facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/authorjasonletts

Here's the description of Suspense.

Spencer Nye can't control the rage bubbling under her skin over the world around her. The trouble is, by the year 2102, the world has solved most of its great problems. Without hunger, war, greed, or even money, people obsess over the glamour of the Culture Industry and its mega-celebrity Idols, who vie for followers over the social networks of Connect.

But Spencer discovers there is plenty to fix within the Idols' competition for more popularity. She becomes a diehard and promises to do anything to help her Idol, a dreamy movie star named Cleary Mintz, bring his vision of hope and purpose to the world. When she stumbles onto a threat against his life, she'll have to fight harder than she ever thought possible or lose the man who means more to her than any other.

The story is a bit more adult than others I've written before, and so it's recommended for readers age 16& up. I'm very excited about the story though, which is full of action. Hopefully you like it too, and maybe that'll mean a new Kindle or Nook for you. Thanks for reading!