J.P. Jackson

Well, here I am, looking at my blog and thinking…damn, I need to post something. Anything!

I should probably tell you what’s been going on for the last few months. There has been quite a bit of activity in my life – despite the pandemic.

Why don’t I start with the writing…because after all, I assume that’s why most of you are here. I have several projects on the go. I think I’m crazy. If not, I’m sure I will be soon.

Summoned

For those of you wanting some sexy-fun-times in your queer urban fantasy, buckle up. Here it comes (all the puns intended). This story is about Dev and his best friend Cam. Dev wants nothing more than to have something paranormal happen to him. And he’s been studying the occult for years. Except nothing has ever happened. No ghosts. No psychic premonitions. No tarot readings that come true. Nothing. And all this is killing him. He wants it so bad.

Dev ends up purchasing a summoning board from the local pagan store. He makes Cam do the ritual with him. They each wish for three things…

Let’s just say the old adage of “Be careful what you wish for” becomes a bit of a theme. Dev and Cam find themselves thrust into the Shadow Realm – the supernatural community – and discover big burly male witches, werewolves, and fae. There’s a century old blood feud, morally gray magic, new found relationships, and wishes gone bad.

Sound like fun? Well, I sent off my first round edits last week, and I’ve completed my cover form for the cover artist, so we’re getting close to publication. I’m hoping Summoned will be out late March or early April.

Blood and Sacrifice (Inner Demons #2)

This is the sequel to Magic or Die. I’m about ten chapters in, and 30,000 words. That’s a little more than 1/3 into the writing of this story. Same cast of characters, James, Isaiah, Ning, Annabelle, and Chris – along with some new additions. You’ll meet Kelsey, Azadore, Hayle, Daddy and James’s tormented and troubled sibling Shauna who has been diving head first into blood magic – causing all kinds of chaos.

The story is all about choices – tough ones – and how our misfit team of magicals are forced into making some big decisions. It’s also got a zombie-esque, voudon style of magic flavoring the tale. It’s also told from the point of view of Isaiah. I’m having fun with it.

A Darker Side of the Rainbow

A couple of years ago, I wrote some short stories that were included in a few anthologies that NineStar Press had put together. Into the Mystic (vol. 1) and Once Upon a Rainbow (vol. 1). These anthologies were built using the talented writings of many authors. Our contract was for two years, and over the course of time, other authors decided to do things with their short stories, and so these anthologies are no longer available. However, the two shorts I wrote are near and dear to my heart, and I wanted to have a way to get them back into the hands of readers. I came up with an idea to write a short story for each letter of the acronym LGBTQ. NineStar Press loved the idea, and so I’m finishing up the last of the short stories that will be included in this collection – all my own writing. The stories will be:

L – “A Tended Garden” – about a lesbian witch and a dryad who confront the high priestess of the local coven who has twisted a tradition into something evil. This story was originally published in the anthology, Into The Mystic (vol. 1).

G – “Hood’s Ride is Red” – a gay retelling of the classic Little Red Riding Hood, but with an all-male cast, and werewolves. This story was originally published in the anthology, Once Upon a Rainbow (vol. 1).

B – “Within These Walls” – a young couple, of whom the husband is bisexual, purchase their first house next to a quaint old cottage with a beautiful garden. They meet and develop a friendship, which leads to a relationship with their new neighbor, not realizing that he’s old retired incubus, who’s neither old, nor retired. Brand New Material!

T – “Skinwalker” – the story of a transgender Navajo descendant who is in the wrong body, and discovers that the traditional stories of skinwalkers are alive within them, allowing them to take on the gender they were meant to be. Brand New Material!

Q – “Dragged to Hell” – the queer origin story of Azadore Necrophilia Hex, a drag queen who is also a medium and sees the ghosts of the dead around everyone. Azadore is one of the characters in the Blood and Sacrifice novel from the Inner Demons series. Brand New Material! On a side note, I truly love this story – and I hope you all fall in love with Azadore as much as I did.

I think we’re shooting for a Fall release with this book. I’ll update you more as we get closer.

IQARUS

Not a book. But it’s all about writing, and readers. For the last handful of months, I’ve been hard at work with a fantastic group of people who wanted desperately to be able to go to a book convention, but because of the pandemic, haven’t been able to. So we thought to ourselves, “Why not make our own convention!” And so that’s exactly what we’ve done. May 08-09, 2021 we will host the first annual IQARUS (International Queer Authors & Readers Uniting Stories) online book con, and it is shaping up to be a fantastic day of Author Readings and Panels. We are aiming to live stream the event on YouTube. Come check us out – we have our own website – and we also have all the social media accounts. Come follow us and stay up to date on what’s happening, who are guests will be, and what topics we’ll be discussing on our panels.

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

My Secret Pet Project

Yup, as if that wasn’t enough, I have a little something that I’m working on. For now, I’m keeping it all to myself, but it is writing. It is a new story in a new universe of its own. It’s turning out to be very dark, and violent, and sexy. I think that’s all I’m going to say about it for now. But I’ll leave you with this image. Can you guess what I’m writing about?
Share your thoughts in the comments!