Me: Welcome John and thank you so much for getting on board for having an Author Q&A Session with me. First briefly tell me about your latest release, The Dark Winter: Crescent Moon and About the Dark Winter series in a whole.
John: Thank you Aditi, it’s a pleasure to be part of your blog.
Dark Winter: Crescent Moon is the second book in the Dark Winter series. It follows the events of the first book, Dark Winter: The Wicca Circle. In the first book, we learn about the Mirror that the protagonist Romilly receives. It’s fair to say she is not prepared for the responsibility, and many things happen to conspire against her, forcing her into an uneasy alliance with some girls from school.
In Crescent Moon, the fall out from the end of The Wicca Circle is obvious from the very first page.
Me: Many authors choose to be a crime author, historical fiction writer, why did you choose to be a YA paranormal/horror author? Is it because YA paranormal is most widely read genre in the world compared to other genre?
John: That wasn’t really a motivation for me. I think a writer will write what he or she feels. There is a feeling that maybe one should get behind the most popular thing, in order to be successful. In my view, if you don’t write what you feel, you end up fitting other people’s templates, and that is very constricting for a writer. Maybe others can do it. I certainly could not.
Me: Very well said John! What inspired you to turn your pen into a scary one? Did you had any real-life experience or come across any paranormal activity or presence in your life? Because normally, they say that "if you have a worthwhile experience in your life, then you can make yourself a brilliant author".
John: As may be known by some people, it was not Dark Winter but actually Stormling that was my first attempt at a full length novel. The protagonist, Ophelia, is in contrast to Romilly in a number of ways. But the original concept for Stormling was that of a much darker tale.
After I wrote the first draft, I realized it needed a lot of work, but I was exhausted from working on it. So I left it a while and began to write Dark Winter. You could say that the darker elements of Stormling made it into Dark Winter, thus making Stormling a lighter tale.
I am glad for that decision. At the time, I was asked by friends and some other readers ‘why do you create tortured heroines?’ and whilst my answer would be ‘well something has to happen, otherwise, what’s the story?’ it made me think what I really wanted to do with the characters of Ophelia and Romilly. Ophelia is 13 – younger than Romilly is in Dark Winter, so she has different issues to her.
The other decision was to make the world of Mordana more fantastical, so for Ophelia’s story to work, I had to do extensive world building for Stormling. I believe I pulled this feat off, because I was happy with the end result. It was much more ambitious as a result, and was completed after Dark Winter: The Wicca Circle came out.
Both have elements of fantasy horror but I think Stormling is the lighter tale. Sometimes writing Dark Winter got me into a rather dark place – I had to think about the things that really scared me, or actually happened to me. Readers can make up their own minds about what is real and what is not. Obviously, I have never met a Zeryth, or been chased by someone wielding an axe. I would like things to stay that way!
So of course, I’ve had a number of scary experiences that I hope made the books feel more real, because I did use some of those things in the story.
The Priory in Crescent Moon is based on White Ladies Priory in Shropshire, England. St Margaret’s Hospital is based on a real mental institution less than five miles from where I live. It now stands as a ruin but these two places are probably the scariest places I have visited.
Me: Yes, John, when I read your book I have to look over my shoulder all the time, and I bet people who read The Dark Winter series will always remain damned scared of a "little blond girl". What makes you write things with so much clarity?
John: From a fiction standpoint, I can honestly say that one of the things that scared me the most was the twin girls in The Shining. They were well depicted in the book, but the movie seemed to carry their menace across even more so.
It would not have been enough to create a copy of them for my own scary story. Dana, the blond girl in the story who is one of the key antagonists in Dark Winter, certainly is scary to me and should be scary to readers. I needed to create some kind of urban legend for her back story. Her story, ultimately, is a tragedy, so readers have to make up their own mind whether or not they hold some pity for her or not.
The story of Dana, and how her back story is told in The Wicca Circle, gave her whole story a real shape for me. I can honestly say that whilst writing certain scenes for her in Dark Winter: Crescent Moon, I did have some rather bad nightmares about her. She remains a very terrifying vision for me.
Me: John, you're a self-published author. Is it hard to market your book among your readers all over the world after the book's release? What are the hardships that you face being a self-published author?
John: I was just visiting my local library today, the Library of Birmingham, and I was overwhelmed how many books are in there. However, why do we write? It is to sell loads of books? Is it to sell a few, and hope we gain a few new fans? Or is it purely for the joy of writing?
There are days when one point outweighs the others, but I think all of them are true. Marketing the books successfully is without doubt the hardest part, but it’s like anything. If you didn’t like flying, but wanted to visit far away countries, getting on the plane is something you have to do.
There is no one perfect solution to this issue. You can hope a book catches fire, and people really love it. It may not even be the one the author regards as their favorite. I suppose the hardships are that one must accept that this is not a route to riches or fame, nor should it be. You’ll gain and lose friends along the way. It’s all experience. How to market the book in the right channels, and hope you do it right, catching enough people’s attention to give the book a try.
I’ve also had to accept that even in the traditional route of publishing, there’s a lot to take on, and also accept that you as the author may get let down. It’s not the agent’s fault – they have so many manuscripts to go through, I know that mine can just slip through the net. I cannot afford to worry about that, but just move onto the next project. There is no guarantee that getting a publishing deal means success. And you may have to compromise your vision in order to be published. I have to say, that would be a nightmare for me – and I am so happy there is a platform out there for authors to get their work out there.
Me: You are so talented, people must definitely know about your hidden talents, apart from being an author, you're a full-time Martial Arts Teacher Tell us more how you juggle so many things in your daily life? And which one of the job is your one true-dream job- being an author or a Martial Arts coach?
John: I have taught martial arts for more than twenty years. As much as I love it, I have to admit that the years of training have taken their toll on my body. I retired from competition in 2008, and despite my love for competing, I won’t be returning. In 2009 I started writing the non-fiction book, The Essence of Martial Arts. It gave me some closure to my desire to compete. It gave me
Me: John in a year you release more than one book. So what is the exact time frame to finish one book? And really John, how do you unwind after a long days work? Or do you even get time to unwind yourself?
John: The simple way to answer this, is to say that a book is done, when it’s done. It will need several re-drafts, re-reads and edits. Even in fantasy, paranormal or otherwise, there are rules. People will see and condemn a plot hole, a mile off.
I don’t really get much time to unwind. I am constantly busy, and perhaps maybe the thing I do is listen to some radio before sleeping. That tends to help my brain calm down.
something else – something that was missing, and I didn’t even know it! I wanted to write, and it did not matter what genre, fiction or non-fiction. I have a desire to make my mainstream career as a writer. I am on the way, and that’s exciting.
Me: What's next up on your writing sleeves? Surprise us with your next writing venture.
John: I am writing the psychological adult horror ‘Clara’s Song.’ It’s about a woman, bored of her marriage, who meets the man of her dreams after a freakish accident involving her car, and the man she thought she had run over and killed. This book is more adult than my previous works, but it fits the narrative of the story, so I am okay with that.
In addition there is the final full story to complete of Romilly and friends in the paranormal horror ‘Dark Winter’. Of course I will be working on a return to Mordana with the second installment to Stormling too.
Whilst the third Dark Winter book will end the story arcs of the main protagonists, I have not ruled out a return to Gorswood. I think if something has been fun to do, it would be churlish to disregard it. But we will see, of course.
Me: What's your favorite location to write a book? Or do you travel places to get an idea for your plots?
John: I have a study in my home where I can be free of all distractions. It’s the only way to get a book written. However I would consider writing in a library or in a local coffee house.
Me: I can only wish you all the best for all your future endeavors. And thank you once again for sparing time to have an interview with me.
John: Thank you Aditi for hosting this Q&A. I am very honored! All the best to you as well!
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John's Bio:
John Hennessy is a young adult / new adult novelist whose preferred writing genre is horror, and has authored the Dark Winter series as well as the fantasy epic Stormling.
A huge fan of the paranormal, he will actively visit reported ghost haunts and it could be said that they served as inspiration for his debut fiction novel; Dark Winter: The Wicca Circle.
Inbetween writing Book Two of the series, Dark Winter: Crescent Moon, he released the fantasy epic Stormling, which is the first book of the Mordana Chronicles.
Autumn will see the release of the first Tale of Vampires, titled Murderous Little Darlings
The first short story he ever wrote brought together Fagan, Lizzie Bennett, Sherlock Holmes and Dracula, which despite impressing his long suffering English teacher, thankfully remains unpublished.
For recreation he will visit paranormal hotspots, but prefers to write about ghosts rather than meet them. He also believes almost any problem can be overcome so long as there is an inexhaustible supply of tea and biscuits.
Connect With John On: Facebook | Twitter | Email
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