New here? I write fast-paced, slow-burn paranormal romance where strong women, good men, and impossible pressure push love to its limits. 💜

The Front Page

Hello from the getting-closer-trenches,

This newsletter is arriving a little later than usual because what I thought would be a quick website update turned into a full day of repairs instead. Apparently, websites don't always like to play nice.

The good news is... I finally have something I've been hinting at for weeks.

I've decided on a new approach for all of my future series.

From now on, my plan is for the first book in each new series to be just 99¢ on retailers... and FREE directly from me.

That means no waiting until several books have been released to see if I'll put it on sale. No wondering if the first book will ever become free. If it's the first book in a new series, you'll be able to start reading for free through me from day one.

Which is a little bit of foreshadowing for something that's coming soon. 😉 But today, I want to start with Cursed to Love.

If you'd rather pick it up from your favourite retailer, it's now just 99¢. But if you'd like to download it directly from me, you can grab it completely free. Just click the button below and it's yours.

One more reminder before I let you get to the free book... I still have two tickets (plus after-party passes) to give away for the Readers & Writers Author Event in Seattle on July 25. I'll be giving them away as a pair, so if you'd like to come, simply reply to this email and let me know you're interested.

I hope you enjoy the book, and as always, thank you for being here. It means more than you know.

Blake Akerman’s first love crushed his heart. Reeling from the pain, he swore off love forever.

Now a family curse demands true love. And it haunts him with ghosts tortured by heartbreak, as if that would make him want to fall in love. Not likely.

Then the universe lands his first love, Paige Goshko, right in the middle of his path.

She’s everything he remembers and loved. Except now she’s a single mom out of an abusive marriage, homeless, and determined never to be reliant on a man again.

Just because he’s sworn off love doesn’t mean he won’t help a friend. And if helping her leads to a second chance at being friends—with some benefits on the side—why not?

As long as he guards his heart.

Too bad the curse didn’t get the memo, because as it grows stronger, they’re forced to risk not only their hearts, but their lives, to break it. If they’re not too late…

Click Here To Get FREE From KJ

Click Here to Get for 99¢ on Retailers

Now... onto this week's question...

✨ The 52-Week Journey — Week 28/52 ✨

Last week I asked: Would you rather be haunted by what you lost… or by what you almost had?

You said: Haunted by what you lost, but it wasn't by a huge margin.
55% said Lost and 45% said almost had.

This week: Would you rather be underestimated… or feared?

Underestimated

Feared

Full Rules, Deadline, & Details Here.

Now I better get back to working on the next reveal...💜 /KJ

Behind The Pages

Journal with Perfect Crossed out and Progess Quote.

A New Three Part Post: The Story Behind the Story.

Part I: The Parts You'll Never Read

One thing you may already know about me as a writer is that I'm a planner.

I don't sit down with a vague idea and hope inspiration strikes. Before I write Chapter One, I've already spent days—sometimes weeks, or even months—building a detailed outline. By the time I start drafting, I know the major scenes, the twists, the emotional beats, and exactly how the story is supposed to end. My outlines are pages and pages long, so I don't often wander off the path.

At least... that's the plan.

Every once in a while, though, a story decides it has other ideas. Hidden in Magic is probably the best example of that.

Long before it became the book you know today, Jack was the main character. His father, Daniel, was still alive, and I'd built an entire storyline around him. There was a murder, an FBI investigation, and Lisa wasn't just a mention—she had a major role. I even wrote a huge confrontation where Daniel delivered a dramatic speech that was inspired by A Few Good Men.

On paper, everything worked. The outline made sense, the mystery was unfolding exactly as I'd planned, and I was happily writing away.

But something kept nagging at me.

Every time I sat down to write, I found myself wondering what Meredith was thinking. I'd finish a scene with Jack and immediately want to jump back into Meredith's head. Little by little, I realized I wasn't nearly as interested in the mystery as I was in the woman quietly changing because of it.

Eventually, I had to admit something I hadn't expected. I wasn't writing Jack's story.

I was writing Meredith's.

Once I accepted that, everything else started to fall into place. The mystery became smaller because it was no longer the heart of the novel. Some characters disappeared altogether. Others found completely different roles. Entire chapters that I'd spent hours writing no longer belonged because they were part of the story I thought I was telling, not the story I needed to tell.

Looking back, I don't regret writing any of those scenes. Daniel's speech won't ever make it on the page. No one will ever see the original FBI investigation or meet the version of Lisa who played such a prominent role. Those chapters are gone, and that's exactly where they belong.

But I couldn't have written the book you know today without first writing the book that no longer exists.

I think life has a funny way of working like that. We all have parts of our story that few people will ever know. The job that taught us what we didn't want. The relationship that changed us. The dream that quietly faded away. The version of ourselves we had to leave behind before we became the person we are today.

From the outside, those chapters in our lives can look like detours or mistakes. We wonder if we wasted our time because they didn't become part of the life we eventually built.

But maybe they were never meant to be. Maybe those chapters did exactly what they were supposed to do. They shaped us, taught us, and quietly guided us toward the story we were always meant to live.

Sometimes the parts no one will ever read are the very ones that make the ending possible. 💜/ KJ

Off The Page

Here's a bit about what's happening with me outside of writing...

Top/Left Image: Strange but true... I wear off the keys on my keyboard. So... My fabulous hubby bought me a keyboard with replaceable keys. And not only are they purple—they have witches!!!!

Middle Image: On one of the very few sunny days we've had without rain this summer, I was reading outside at lunch time and Solo decided he wanted to read my book too!

Bottom/Right Image: Solo has decided that the lounge chair in the backyard is his. He's willing to let others sit it in, but he just might decide to join them!

The Next Pages...

So much is coming! Keep watching...

Until next time.... Wishing you a little hope, love, & magic every day! 💜

Get in touch

kj@kjwarawa.com

https://kjwarawa.com

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Cursed to Love is free... and that's just the beginning 💜