She Down There - the novel about being in love with the ocean

SHE DOWN THERE

- the novel about being in love with the sea -

Feb 2021 Newsletter

CELEBRATING A YEAR IN PRINT

Of all the compliments I have received since SHE DOWN THERE came out in print a year ago, the ones that touch me the most are when readers express how they felt transported into the ocean during the underwater scenes. Writing a novel which, through its characters, both human and non-human, takes readers into this magical realm which I love and care for so deeply, was always my intention.

Some readers have shared that the novel is cinematographic. One reader told me that the book, “Started playing like a fictionalised Jacques Cousteau movie”. So I shouldn’t have been too surprised when a respected film producer approached me in December with the view to optioning the motion picture rights to SHE DOWN THERE. We are in discussion ...

Thank you to all the readers who have taken the time to give me feedback. It’s invaluable. Paying forward I am giving away twelve signed copies of SHE DOWN THERE. See below for details.

In this newsletter there are details about where you can purchase a copy and I share the inspiration behind one of the story’s scenes. Enjoy!

Lynton Francois Burger

SIGNED COPIES GIVE-AWAY
(South Africa only)

To celebrate the first year of print in South Africa, I am giving away signed paperback copies of SHE DOWN THERE to the first TWELVE readers who respond to this offer.

Email me HERE to get your personalised copy. (Mailing costs not included)

LIKE TO BUY A COPY?

In South Africa, get your paperback copy from:
EXCLUSIVE BOOKS (Stores countrywide and online)
WORDSWORTH BOOKS (Cape Town stores)
READERS WAREHOUSE (Online)

as well as these fine independent bookstores
KALK BAY BOOKS
THE BOOK SHOPPE (Tokai)
CLARKES BOOKS (Long Street, Cape Town)

And GLOBALLY as e-Book

(e-Book ISBN: 9781485904458)

Amazon/Kindle

As well as:
Google Books
Snapplify
Booktopia
Takealot
Kobo
Readerswarehouse

Please leave a review and a rating once you've enjoyed the read ... 🙏🏼

Talking reviews, did you see this great review in the Sunday Times?

"With each dive Claire and Klaas make, Burger creates an atmosphere and tone so textured, lush and alive that it is as if the reader is beside them: tasting the salt, smelling the kelp, witnessing the sea life, all while experiencing the feel of the water's might and gentle caress.

'The descriptive and characterisation genius of John Steinbeck and Ernest Hemingway have played a big role in shaping my writing style,' says Burger. As influential as these authors may have been, Burger has created a novel that embodies a vivid writing style of its own."

Tiah Beautement, Sunday Times - read full review online

THE MERPEOPLE ROCK PAINTING SCENE

Shortly after we meet love-struck nineteen-year-old Klaas on the farm he grew up on in the Karoo, he discovers a cave with beautiful Bushman rock art. One of them depicts what appear to be magical swimming merpeople. The piece speaks to Klaas, connects him to his ancestors, and sets off his ocean discovery journey. This is a photo of the real rock painting that inspired this scene - in fact much of his character. It’s located on a farm in the southern Karoo.

“They stay in the cave for a long time that day. Klaas goes to the horses tethered in the shade and fetches the water bottles and some biltong. The loose shale clatters under his veldskoene when he scrambles to rejoin her. And he decides then that these figures are indeed magical, and that he won’t forget them. Not ever. They are a part of him and he a part of them. From now on, this will be their special place. They don’t talk much as they sit, chewing and sipping, staring out over the flat land, much as his forebears must have done in this exact place. When he glances over his shoulder at the merpeople, they swim into his subconscious. And when he looks away over the land and closes his eyes, his mind is filled with the fantastic creatures he will discover when he goes down there – into the ocean. Becomes the man he knows he must become.”

SHE DOWN THERE author Lynton Francois Burger has had a lifelong love affair with the sea.

As a marine biologist, master diver and award-winning underwater photographer, Lynton writes about a world he knows intimately.

He serves as an advisor to ocean-impact ventures in several countries, including the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town.

Lynton is an inducted member of the Ocean Artists Society and a fellow of the International League of Conservation Writers. She Down There is his first novel.

Image: Lynton with dugong off Bazaruto, Mozambique - credit: Lucas Mueller

Copyright © 2021 Lynton Francois Burger and Penguin Random House, All rights reserved.
Cover images courtesy of Jaques Kaiser, She Down There cover designer

You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

This email was sent to <<Email Address>>
why did I get this? unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences
Lynton Francois Burger · 124 Main Road · Kalk Bay, Western Cape 7975 · South Africa