The Wednesday Letters is out in paperback!

Whew! Finally! After many months of working with the fantabulous peeps at Penguin, specifically their Berkley imprint, TWL is available nationwide in a gorgeous paperback edition. I just couldn't be happier with the way it turned out.

Equally exciting is today's ad in USAToday! It's a first for me to have an ad in a national publication and I owe the folks at Penguin a big thanks (and some free pizza) for rolling the dice and running this. (It will run again next week. And a different version featuring Recovering Charles more prominently will run in mid-September.)

So if you don't yet have your copy of TWL in paperback, might I suggest your local Wal-Mart, Target or online at Amazon :-)

New and improved fall schedule is live!

We just updated the fall schedule with all sorts of craziness. Check it out here:

http://www.jasonfwright.com/events.php

Please let me know if you're near an event and plan to say hello!

What will your second verse sound like?

I've been thinking a lot about my dad lately. Specifically, I've been wondering what he'd think of my life and career if he were still alive.

When I was young my dream was to be an author who wrote books that both my parents would enjoy and be proud of. Of course my mom is my number one fan, and I love her for it, but I also wonder what dad would say about the craziness that's become my life.

As I was writing Recovering Charles I began to realize that too often life's tragedies sing a tune we choose not to hear. It is the sweet, comforting sound of a second verse.

Many of you may know that when I was 16-years-old my father was taken by cancer. In the weeks and months after I heard only sorrow, grief, self-pity and loneliness. But in time I learned to hear something more.

My life had a second verse.

Not only do I now think of my life's greatest tragedy with a set of more mature emotions, I have learned to value it. I have been blessed in the years since with a deeper understanding of who I am and what my dad's legacy was.

So far my life's second verse is trying to be less selfish, more charitable, and more kind each and every day.

I have a long, long way to go, but at least I can hear my second verse playing faintly in the background.

I believe we all can have a second verse, if we choose. And it's not just individuals, it's couples, angry neighbors, families and yes, even an entire community.

A few years ago I was gripped by Hurricane Katrina. The coverage was numbing and the suffering so intense and real I found myself aching for complete strangers.

It was something I hadn't felt since 9/11 and it was, perhaps, even stronger.

It was during those days following this national tragedy in the Crescent City that I began to believe that even a city deserves a second verse, not just the people on planes and buses aimed for new lives. It deserves to be rebuilt stronger and smarter and safer.

Yes, New Orleans deserves a second verse. So too does the entire Gulf.

And the drunk driver, the widow, the widower, the neighbor, the wayward child, and you.

But only you can write it.

So what will yours sound like?

Latest greatest schedule for fall tour

OK, this is hot off the presses. I'd love to know who lives near any of these cities so I can be on the lookout for you!

Sept. 6 - Sacramento, CA – Speaking engagement
Sept. 13 - Springfield, MO
Sept. 16 - New York – Borders, Columbus Circle
Sept. 17 – New York – B&N, Long Island
Sept. 19 – Springfield, MA
Sept. 20 – Springfield, MA – Speaking engagement
Sept. 23 – Harrisburg, PA
Sept. 24 – Pittsburg, PA
Sept. 25 – Akron, OH
Sept. 26 – Woodstock, VA
Sept. 27 – Winchester, VA
Sept. 30 – New Orleans, LA
Oct. 2 – Phoenix, AZ
Oct. 3 – Salt Lake City, UT
Oct. 4 – Salt Lake City, UT
Oct. 14 – Indianapolis, IN
Oct. 15 – Lexington, KY
Oct. 16 – Nashville, TN
Oct. 18 – Portland, OR – Speaking Engagement
Oct. 20-24 Dallas & Tulsa
Oct. 25 – San Antonio, TX – Speaking Engagement

No dates yet: Richmond, VA; Charlottesville, VA; Fairfax, VA

Nice mention for Recovering Charles in Publishers Weekly

It's starting to get exciting! Seeing this article in PW today really opened my eyes to just how close we are to the street date. Not to mention it reminded me how crazy my schedule is about to become.

I've had lots of interesting experiences lately and I promise I'll share them asap!

My first visit to CNN's American Morning

We've been talking about trying a segment here for about a year. Finally happened on Wednesday morning. How'd we do?

We have our winners in the "Win Jason's Hannah Montana Tickets" Sweepstakes!

Well it never goes exactly as planned, does it? Despite our wild ending, we finally have a grand prize winner! He/She will receive my tickets to the Stadium of Fire extravaganza on July 4th featuring Glenn Beck, Hannah Montana and the Blue Man Group.

We also have five runners up. Are you a winner? Watch the video to find out! And if so, please drop me an email pronto. Congrats!

Check out my famous nephew!

One of my sister's 42 kids was featured in this newspaper article today. He made tote bags to haul around his Fablehaven books after author Brandon Mull paid a visit to his school. What a great kid! If you like, drop him a nice comment here and I'll be sure my Sis reads them to him. You'll make his day!

Warning: Only watch these clips if you literally have NOTHING else to accomplish in this life

Jason wears an unnatural amount of makeup on Friday's FoxNews interview

Never have they caked me up so thick with makeup. My face gained 11 pounds with all this gunk!

See Jason's grey hair on BYU-TV tonight

If you’re interested, or bored-to-death, I’ll be on BYU-TV tonight at 6:30, EST. The interview was taped so long ago I have no clue what I said. Hopefully nothing as crazy as giving out my cell phone number!

Lyrics to Love Me if You Can

Quite a few have asked why I posted the song, Love Me if You Can, but not the lyrics. The only easy answer is that I'm a dope :)

“Love Me if You Can”
by Cherie Call

Tonight I tried to write the perfect song of love
But all the words I sang were blue
Because I’ve tried and I’ve tried to win you over
And I’ve done the best I can do
So we may never be together
But my heart is in your hands
And if you ever think about me in your long-lost dreams
Love me if you can

I know that you’ve moved on, it’s what you had to do
I never had the chance to say good-bye
It’s on my list of all the things I never said
It goes on for pages and it keeps me up at night
And my heart is missing pieces
That only you could understand

So if you ever think about it in your long-lost dreams
Love me if you can
So this song I sing is a little sad
And it’s unrehearsed
I just hope you hear that this broken life
Has had a second verse

’Cause in those days gone by, I tried to build you castles
And maybe they just turned to sand
But if you can only love who you wished I could have been
I wish you knew it’s finally who I am
I remember how you needed me
And I know yesterday will never come again
But if you feel me reaching for you in your long- lost dreams
Love me if you can

We have a winner in the Amazon.com review contest!

We have a winner in the Amazon.com Wednesday Letters review contest!

Congrats to P. Brown Wagner (Pennsylvania). Drop us a note with your full contact info and we'll rush out your advance copy of Recovering Charles.

Have an idea for how we could away another copy? Tell us!

Recovering Charles theme song released

I've hinted at this before, but it's finally time for the official release of the theme song for Recovering Charles. It's called, "Love Me if You Can."

The music and lyrics are by my ridiculously talented good friend, Cherie Call. The vocals are by newcomer Paul Jacobsen. The song fits the book's central theme so perfectly! Truly, I'm so blessed to have partnered with them on this project.

Ready to hear it? Click here!

Can't wait to hear what you think...

L.A., B.E.A., and T.I.R.E.D.

Well that was a nice break at home! Kodi and I returned Wednesday evening, recovered Thursday, and Friday morning I got up at 4:00 to head back to the airport for a flight to L.A. for the annual Book Expo America show. It's the Super Bowl of book conventions with authors, publishers, movie reps, agents, etc.

Quite a few awards are given out dring the week, and we just learned that The Wednesday Letters won the Ben Franklin Award for Audio Book of the Year in the fiction category. Congrats to Art Allen! He's the actor who did the audio performance.

Yesterday I met with folks from Penguin about their paperback plans for The Wednesday Letters. They've got big plans for the August 26th release and it will be interesting to see how they differ in distribution and PR from my hardcover publisher. It's all such a fantastic learning experience.

Today's my official signing of the advance reader copies of Recovering Charles. (1:00-2:00 PM, if you're at BEA) I look forward to hearing reactions from folks; it's always a bit nerve wracking! You can count on about 8 fingers the number of people who've read the book thus far, but that will change in a hurry after today and it's pins and needles waiting to hear feedback.

Finally, I have to post two pictures from Peru. Kodi took these and they might be my favorite from the whole trip. The first was taken as we approached Machu Picchu, the second from just inside the ruins. I love the tree in the second photo. Looks like the tree of life, eh?

I'll be posting many more on my Facebook page if you're interested.

More soon!

Winding down from Peru

Terribly sorry I haven't been able to post more during our trip. Internet access was actually OK most of the time, but I simply didn't have much time to sit and breathe, much less write!

Right now I am sitting in the amazing lobby of the Libertador Hotel in Cusco. It's a fantastic hotel by any standards. I'll try to post video later.

We leave in an hour for the airport to return to Lima. We'll spend the day seeing the sights before heading for the airport this evening and flying home at about midnight. I'll be home in VA in time to greet my kids as they get off the bus tomorrow. Can't wait! I've missed them terribly.

So many unforgettable memories from this trip. People and images I will never forget. I promise to post more - including photos - when I'm home.

Quick not about the panda. I take him everywhere I travel and always send back pictures of his adventures to my wife and kids. In this case, of course, just the kids. This panda has seen his share of excitement, that's for sure! In this pic, Panda is sitting atop the west side of the ruins at Macchu Picchu overlooking the river.

More soon.

Greetings from Peru!

Hola! Kodi and I are safely in Cusco and having a grand old time. Today we see a few more sites near the city and then take a train to Aquas Calientes, the "base camp" - for lack of a better term - for Machu Picchu. Aguas Calientes is probably my favorite little city on the trip. It's tucked tightly between two huge mountain ranges and the houses and hostels are built literally right against the sheer mountain faces.



Here's a photo from yesterday. If possible we'll post again tomorrow after our adventure to Machu Picchu. It's truly one of the most magnificent things I've ever seen, and I can't wait to share it with my wife and a whole new group of travelers.

Adios!

Thanks San Diego!

What a week! I'm frantically trying to get packed and ready to leave for Peru on Wednesday morning. I'll try to check in from the road; we'll see how well I'm able to connect.

My wife Kodi is coming along this year. Thank goodness for grandmothers! Kodi's mom has flown in to watch our four little vandals while we're gone.

Also, I'm embarrassed it's taken me so long to say this, but thanks, thanks, thanks to the many wonderful women who attended the Time Out for Women conference in San Diego last weekend. We had such a great time and I fell in love with your fantastic city.

Most of all I'm so glad I able to see my Aunt Annabelle and crazy Cousin Cheryl. (pictured) Thanks for coming! It's always nice to look out at a crowd of 1,000 faces and see one or two you actually recognize :)

San Diego was my last event of the TOFW spring schedule. This fall I look forward to meeting thousands more wonderful folks in Nashville, Sacramento, Portland, San Antonio, Springfield, and St. Louis.

Sneak peek of Recovering Charles is FINALLY online

Moments ago I posted the long-awaited, much-teased sneak peek of the new novel, Recovering Charles. My fabulous editor is frantically editing so they can go to press with a few thousand ARC's tomorrow. (ARC's are Advance Reading Copies. These are sent to reviewers, book store buyers, managers, newspapers, VIP's etc. They're paperback and are produced quick and cheap.)

So without further ado, click here to read the Prologue, Chapter 1, and a snippet of Chapter 2. I hope it whets yer whistle!

I'm off to a Time Out for Women Event in San Diego. I can't wait to leave my Virginia allergies at the airport...

Win Jason's Hannah Montana tickets

So here's the scoop. Have you heard about the sold out Stadium of Fire event in Provo, Utah on July 4th? This is a huge annual extravaganza, even without Miley Cyrus. Throw in the fact that Glenn Beck is emceeing and you have one of this summer's hottest tickets.

And I have four of them! (and they're great, great seats)

Guess what? I'm going to give them away. No strings, no purchase necessary, no see stores for details, and no some restrictions apply must be 18 to enter nonsense.

The question is, how?

Traditional drawing? A video drawing like I did last time with my kids? A letter writing contest?

I'm open to suggestions. Let's hear them!