Kakapo Arts Ltd – New Company, New Start

Since starting my new production company Kakapo Arts Ltd, I have had the time of my life. I am working with some really interesting people and in the process of pitching work to BBC Radio, Sky Arts and Channel 4 as I speak. I have had the opportunity to work some wonderful artists who have brought some wonderful interpretations of my work. It was a dream to meet and work with James Wilby (Maurice & Regeneration) who read some of my poetry so beautifully that I was brought to tears in the studio. I have also worked with the lovely Claire Goose (Waking the Dead, The Coroner), Hugh Quarshie (Holby City), Martin Shaw (Judge John Deed), Maxine Peake (Funny Cow) and Steven Berkoff.  At the end of this week I will be working with the wonderful Emilia Fox (Silent Witness).

I have a new novel out in February, The Man Who Made Them Happy is a little delayed, but it is on its way… honestly! I also have a novella which is done and hopefully I can get that out soon.

CREATIVE WRITING TUITION

Why not explore your own literary potential with bespoke creative writing tuition in one-to-one tuition with Jon Lawrence? Sign up for a single one-hour session at a time or book a block and save yourself a little. To save even more, simply click LIKE on the FACEBOOK PAGE

All sessions will take place via Messenger video call or Skype, so you can converse with Jon from anywhere in the world. All you have to do is click from the choice below and you will receive an email organising a date for you session(s)

Learn about scene-setting, character development, asking questions, planning, symbolism and much more, and try to improve your own writing.

 

£25 per hour for followers of JONLAWRENCEWRITING  Facebook page

 

£30 per hour for non-followers of JONLAWRENCEWRITING  Facebook page

 

£80 for 4 x one-hour session for followers of JONLAWRENCEWRITING  Facebook page

 

£100 for 4 x one-hour session for non-followers of JONLAWRENCEWRITING  Facebook page

 

Jon Lawrence is a published novelist, poet, playwright and lyricist. He has written four novels, four novellas, hundreds of poems, children’s songbooks, a full-length play and a number of children’s musicals.

Silence and Songbirds OUT TODAY

I am so happy that my latest novella is out today. Thanks to Eyrie Press for their faith in my writing. I am really proud of this very personal little story which I feel covers some really universal themes – young love, grief, friendship and duty. I am also very proud for the very kind endorsement of Silence and Songbirds from Eva Jordan (Author of 183 Times a Year and many others). Read her review below. You can get you copy by going to the writing page. All copies bought from the website will be signed.
 
Silence and Songbirds is a thought provoking tale that transports the reader across the sea to the beautiful islands of the Marlborough Sounds, an extensive network of sea-drowned valleys at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. Tane, the story’s narrator, is an indigenous islander whose name means ‘man’ in Maori culture. He shares his name with the god of forests and light who is also, it is believed, responsible for creating the tui bird. Tui, like most songbirds have two voice boxes which enables their complex variety of songs and calls. Early European colonists called them mockingbirds, and for good reason. Like parrots, the tui bird has the ability to clearly imitate human speech.
The story begins with Tane heading towards the end of his. “My ancestors’ voices are sounding. When I close my eyes at night, I can hear them calling me in my native tongue… Soon I shall take a final voyage, this time into the mysterious underworld. I am not afraid of death.” Tane reflects on his long life, and in particular, his formative years when, through a terrible accident resulting in the loss of those closest to him, he not only suffered great pain and sorrow but also his ability to speak. However, by striking up a carefully nurtured, and mutually respectful friendship with a local tui, and a chance encounter with a young English girl called Emily, Tane once again discovers his voice, enabled by the healing power of love and friendship.
A story that everyone can relate to, Silence and Songbirds is a beautifully written, evocative tale of love and loss. A coming of age story that demonstrates the positive power of friendship, in whatever guise it manifests itself. Sad and joyous, Tane’s thoughts and feelings are as complex and colourful as his surroundings, “where the dolphins play and the orca hunt, where the plates of the earth rise up in thunderous earthquakes, and, of course, where the tui sings.”

Good Grief: Five Deserts in Search of My Father and I £6.99 (Coming Soon)

Following the death of his father from cancer in 2017, author Jon Lawrence embarked on five mammoth treks through five deserts on five continents to raise money for The Big C cancer charity. The treks forced Jon to face his grief and depression, while helping him understand his sometimes difficult relationship with his father. Good Grief follows Jon as he walks through the Atacama, Sahara,  Rangipo, Wadi Rum and Mojave deserts as he grapples with seering temperatures, altitude sickness and a damaged shoe.

Good grief is a poignant, yet humorous account of one man’s journey to find his way through his grief and mental illness, to find his father and, in doing so, himself. It’s a story which will make you laugh, cry and think, from the author of The Jack Newton Radio, Playing Beneath the Havelock House and Silence and Songbirds.

Pre order here

Live shows – Good Grief

I am looking forward to a little run of shows in some lovely venues around the country to promote the new book about my desert treks, Good Grief – Five Deserts in Search of My Father and I. Really looking forward to talking to audiences about the treks and my relationship with my father in what I hope will be a poignant yet funny show which will include some music, talk and film. The current shows are:

St Nicholas’ Chapel, Kings Lynn – Thursday 14th November Tickets on sale now!

The Century Theatre, Coalville, Leicestershire – 15th November Tickets on sale now!

Stamford Arts Theatre – Wednesday, 5th February

Birnam Arts Centre, Perthshire -Friday 21st February (Tickets on sale later this year)

Fisher Theatre Bungay, Norfolk Thursday 12th March Keep posted!

Wells Maltings, Wells-next-to-the-sea, Norfolk, Friday March 20th Keep Posted!

Little Theatre, Picton New Zealand

Good Grief!

I am delighted to announce that I will be performing some one man shows to support my upcoming book Good Grief: Five Deserts in Search of My Father and I. The show will include recollections of my time in the desert and how I began to understand and deal with my grief.

Keep posted to the website and the Facebook page for further details.

Ask Jon – Episode 2

ASK JON! – EPISODE No.2

It’s time again, for you to ask me any questions you have about … anything you wish to ask! If you have a question about writing, a question about a particular poem I have written, about my method or anything else which I deem appropriate (hahaha!) then, write it down below and in a couple of days I will broadcast another episode of Ask Jon with the answers.

The question will receive a signed copy of my illustrated novella, Bisha. The answers will be posted on my Facebook page.

Music Man’s Songbook 2 Out Now!

HERE IT IS! The Music Man’s Songbook 2

two years after the success of the first book, here are some new songs for the little ones. They include The Tickle Man and Harry the Hedgehog – two particular favourites with the hundreds of children I visit each week. It is full of really lovely Illustrations by Chris Skinner (Lestaret) and comes with a CD so that you can sing along with your children at home. I love writing novels but there is something special about creating silly songs which bring so much pleasure to children. I am lucky to see these reactions every day at the nurseries and pre-schools I visit, I hope you get a chance to see the same reaction with your own children when you give them The Music Man’s Songbook 2.  You can get your copy by visiting my writing page.

Latest News

Well it’s all go at the moment! I have recently finished my five treks, on five deserts, on five continents, raising well over £4,000 for The Big C Cancer Charity. I finished off in the Mojave in the USA having started in the Atacama in August last year. I am in the process of writing a book about this which will be available later this year. I have also just published my second children’s book, The Music Man’s Songbook 2, which was beautifully illustrated by my good friend Chris Skinner. These are available from the website. I have been commissioned to write the biography of an extraordinary man from Norfolk, whose wartime experiences will, I hope be inspiring to all who read the book. More on this to follow soon. I am coming to the end of writing my latest novel The Man Who Made Them Happy a poignant tale of an old man coming to terms with his guilt by giving his friends what they have always desired. It’s set in nursing home on Shetland and is based, in part, on two true stories. Later this year Eyrie press will publish my latest Novella, Silence and Songbirds. You can watch a little video on my Facebook page about this. Hopefully the book will be out this autumn. https://www.facebook.com/jonlawrencewriting/videos/1137333316426843/