Jaye Wells's Blog, page 9

Come ask me questions about DEADLY SPELLS and the rest of the Prospero’s War series on Feb. 10 at 11:30am CST.

Fans of Kate Prospero will be excited to learn that FIRE WATER is out today! This novella is a prequel to DIRTY MAGIC that follows Kate on one of her first cases as a rookie cop. You’ll also find out how Kate and Baba met for the first time.

This is the perfect way to whet your appetite for the big launch of DEADLY SPELLS (Prospero’s War 3) on February 10!

For an excerpt of Fire Water, click here.

Or just jump right in and buy it now!

Well, folks, it’s time to close the books on another year. This year went by way too fast, but when I looked back over everything that happened it suddenly feels like I lived two year’s worth of busy. Looking forward to 2015, it doesn’t look like things will be slowing down at all. But that’s just the way I like it.

2014

Projects Completed:

1 novel (Deadly Spells)

3 novellas (Children of Ash, Fool’s Gold and Fire Water)

I also wrote 1/3 of a spec novel (Moon Hollow)

Projects Released:

Dirty Magic (January)

Cursed Moon (August)

Fool’s Gold (November)

“Bluest Hour” (Released in Fantasy for Good Anthology-Dec.)

Books Read: 30

Cities Visited: 9

Other Accomplishments:

Started grad school to earn my MFA in Writing Popular Fiction at Seton Hill

Sold Dutch Rights to Dirty Magic and Cursed Moon

Dirty Magic nominated for RT Book Lover’s Reviewer’s Choice Award (Best Urban Fantasy)

Some other exciting stuff that I can’t talk about until next year

Speaking of …

Upcoming Releases:

Fire Water (Jan. 6) – Prospero’s War novella

Deadly Spells (Feb. 10) – Prospero’s War 3

Children of Ash (March) – Meridian Six novella

Upcoming Events:

MFA Residency – Pittsburgh (Jan. 9)

Coastal Magic Con – Daytona Beach, FL (Feb. 5)

Murder by the Book signing – Houston (Feb. 12)

Virginia Festival of the Book (Mar. 18)

RT Book Lover’s Convention – Dallas (May 13)

I’m really proud of 2014 and am super excited about everything coming in 2015. We’ll be spending New Year’s Eve at home with a fire and a nice meal and lots of family time. On New Year’s Day, I’ll be attending a special yoga event to do 108 sun salutations to welcome the new year.

Whatever you’re planning to ring in the New Year, I hope you’re safe and happy. May 2015 be filled with good times, great friends, and even better books!

Fire Water comes out in one week! This is the first novella set in the Prospero’s War universe.

Here’s the blurb:

Rookie cop Kate Prospero only has one more training assignment to pass before she’s officially sworn in to Babylon Police Department. But the veteran cop in charge of the river patrol boat is a salty old guy isn’t happy about playing tour guide to a rookie and seems even less interested in real police work. But while on patrol, they stumble on to what appears to be a floating dirty magic lab. This highly combustible situation might finally be the key to these two unlikely partners finding common ground.

An excerpt from FIRE WATER by Jaye Wells

Pretty much any cop can tell you the story of their first arrest. Also the first time they pointed a gun at someone–or had one shoved in their face. The first handcuffing, the first black eye, the first time a perp puked on them–and, for some, the first person they killed.

My first collar wasn’t all that memorable. Just a speeding ticket that led to an arrest for outstanding warrants.

My second was mildly more interesting, but not exactly earth-shattering. Underage girl selling three-dollar blow jobs in an alley off Stark Street. When she’d seen me coming, she hadn’t fought at all. Not surprising since I basically caught her with a mouthful of incriminating evidence.

No, my first two busts weren’t that impressive. Sure, the second got a couple of laughs when told over beers at O’Malley’s near the Cauldron cop shop. But it wasn’t a contender for best war story compared to some of the fucked up shit the veteran cops on our squad had seen. Working in a magical ghetto didn’t have a lot of advantages–except when it came to outdoing your cronies with fish tales of junky wizards and potion peddling homunculi.

However, my third bust was the stuff of Cauldron legend. Ever since it happened, cops in Babylon referred to in hushed tones and begged me to retell it over beers. But to me, it was more than just my go-to war story.

It was the story of how I became a real cop.

Kindle | Nook | iBooks | Kobo

Huge news! For today only, Amazon has made DIRTY MAGIC the Kindle Daily Deal. The ebook version is on sale for only $2.99! Now is the perfect time to use up those gift cards or fire up that Kindle you got under the tree.

Read the first chapter of Dirty Magic here.

What people are saying about Dirty Magic:

“Jaye Wells has created a fresh, magical world full of potion junkies & alchemists that promises to break new ground in paranormal thrillers.” – Laurell K. Hamilton

“Kate Prospero is my new favorite heroine—imperfect, haunted, driven, and dangerous.” – Kevin Hearne, NYT Bestselling Author of The Iron Druid Chronicles

“Dirty Magic showcases seasoned pro, Wells, at the top of her game, and establishes newcomer Kate Prospero as the urban fantasy heroine to beat.” – Vicki Pettersson, NYT Bestelling Author of The Signs of the Zodiac series

Happy Holidays and a Bright and Happy New Year!

-Jaye

My holiday newsletter was sent out to all subscribers this week. In it, I shared some cool news, a writing tip, information about all my upcoming releases (three in the next two months!), and announced the winner of a chemistry-themed bar set and $50 Amazon gift card. I thought I’d share the newsletter here for anyone who wants to know what’s what.

If you’d like exclusive updates, excerpts, and prizes, sign up to receive the newsletter each month. I promise I won’t send update too often (usually just once a month unless something really big happens), and I will never, ever share or sell your information. Plus, there are some great things coming that I can’t wait to share with you in the new year!

Regardless of whether you sign up , I hope you have a wonderful holiday season with good friends, family, and lots of laughter.

Read Jaye’s newsletter here.

Paul Goat Allen, who is one of the most respected reviewers of dark fantasy in the industry, is doing a series of posts at Blue Ink Reviews to help readers find the best examples of self-published fiction in several categories. Today, he posted his top ten picks for best vampire fiction. I’m thrilled to announce that my novella, MERIDIAN SIX, earned the no. 1 spot!

“A masterful fusion of post-apocalyptic fiction, dark fantasy, and subtle social commentary, this is, simply put, the best self-published vampire story I have read in my 20 years of reviewing. And it’s just the beginning of a series that has the potential to change the landscape of genre fiction. Mark my words: It’s that good.” –Paul Goat Allen 

To read the entire list, click here.

The sequel to Meridian Six, called CHILDREN OF ASH, will release in March of 2015.

Buy MERIDIAN SIX now!

Amazon | B&N | Apple | Kobo |Audible 

It’s December and you know that that means: Lots of people asking you to spend your hard-earned money on stuff. I know, I know. It’s exhausting. I’d like to tell you that I’m not about to do the same damned thing, but I try not to lie to you. However, I will say that I think it’s important over the stress of the holidays to take a few moments to relax and get some you time. To that end, I’ve put not one, not two, but THREE of my books on sale this month for just $.99!

Did you know I’ve written three Sabina Kane novellas since that series ended? Violet Tendencies, Rusted Veins, and Fool’s Gold are all on sale via a special promotion from the major ebook retailers.

Fool’s Gold  is a Sabina Kane prequel novella where you get to see her first job as an assassin. (You also get to meet reader favorite, Slade Corbin for the first time.)

Buy Fool’s Gold now: Amazon| B&N | Apple | Kindle

Rusted Veins is a Halloween novella that revisits Team Awesome after the action of Blue-Blooded Vamp. This is your chance to meet Giguhl’s kids and find out some juicy stuff from Adam’s past!

Buy Rusted Veins now! Amazon | B&N | Apple | Kobo

Violet Tendencies is a novella that happens between the action of The Mage in Black and Green-Eyed Demon. It tells the story of why Valva really left the team. Plus there’s a vampire strip club melee. What’s not to love?

Buy Violet Tendencies now! Amazon | B&N |Apple | Kobo

While you’re at it, go ahead and preorder the Fantasy for Good Anthology. It’s coming out on December 9 and benefits the Colon Cancer Alliance. This collection of thirty-one stories from the brightest stars of the fantasy world features everything from urban fantasy to high fantasy and everything in between. Plus all the proceeds go toward the research, prevention, and support of colon cancer patients.

Featuring brand new fiction from Piers Anthony, Michael Moorcock, Carrie Vaughn, Kelley Armstrong, Alan Dean Foster, Katharine Kerr, David Farland, Jane Lindskold, Nnedi Okorafor, Todd McCaffrey and many more, alongside classic tales from George R.R. Martin, Jay Lake, Kevin J Anderson & Rebecca Moesta, and Neil Gaiman. 

Buy Fantasy for Good! Amazon (ebook)  | Nightscape Press (Print)