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You are about to publish your novel Drowned Sorrow. Can you
tell us in a few phrases what it's about?
Drowned Sorrow is about an odd little
town where the shops sell nothing but water and where the villagers commit
grisly murders when it rains. When a divorced mother and her teenage
daughter arrive at the village, they will discover its terrible secret,
but when they do, it might be too late to escape.
What can you
tell us about the style of the book?
The best word to describe the book would
be eerie. I believe that my main talent is creating suspense and
keeping a constant creepy atmosphere. My roots are in horror cinema and
that shows too. People easily compare the book to horror films such as
Dead and Buried, Dark
Water, The Ring and
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death.
What were your
inspirations to write exactly this book?
The first idea I had for Drowned Sorrow
was a ghost materializing from the water particles in a steam bath. That
scene is still in the book and it’s one that I really like. The odd New
England town was clear in my head since the very beginning. I knew what
the town looked like, what the villagers were like and I knew that
something terrible was hidden inside that lake, something that if you knew
what was there, you wouldn’t want to go into that lake, wouldn’t even
want to approach it.
Is Drowned
Sorrow your debut as a writer, or have you written/published other
stuff before?
Drowned Sorrow is my debut as a novelist,
but not as a writer. I’ve written and sold two screenplays before, both
in the horror genre.
When, how and why did you get into writing
in the first place?
I think I was 23 years old when I
realized that I wanted to write stories. I lived in London at that time
and I remember watching Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, which was a play at
The Young Vic Theatre. It was then, during that play, that I realized that
I should write fiction.
Writers that have influenced you?
My main influence comes from film. I love
all kinds of films, all kinds of genres: horror, thriller, comedy,
romance, drama, action. I don’t think that a specific writer or
filmmaker has influenced me. I always have some specific books or movies
in mind when writing and I take them as an example for the quality I want
to attain. These movies or books are different for every story that I
write. For Drowned Sorrow, there was a major influence: the seventies film
Let’s Scare Jessica To Death. This film is an example for me when it
comes to eeriness and atmosphere, but the story has nothing to do with
mine. Drowned Sorrow is much more action oriented as well, but it has the
same kind of creepy atmosphere. Also the depiction of the village in
Drowned Sorrow is entirely based on the one in Let’s Scare Jessica To
Death and I put a few small references to that film in the book. I hope
that the film will find a few more fans thanks to this novel. Not many
people know Let’s Scare Jessica To Death, but John Hancock has made a
real masterpiece here.
Your
website/mySpace/whatever else?
The official website for Drowned Sorrow
is at www.drowned-sorrow.com.
It is more than just a promotional site. It has a horror trivia quiz with
three difficulty levels. Thirty eerie scenes from horror films are the
basis for this quiz and you have to guess the title for every scene. The
quiz is definitely the most popular feature on the site. Another important
section is Real Ghost Stories, very short stories about eerie paranormal
events that really happened. Everyone can send in their own true ghost
story by sending an email at trueghosts@drowned-sorrow.com.
I’m currently looking for some more stories to post on the site, so I do
encourage everyone to send me theirs. It can be anonymous or with your
personal name or the name of a website. Pictures are also welcome.
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The 64 dollar-question:
When will your book come out and where can it be found?
I’m still waiting for the actual
release date. There have been some delays, but it will be on the market
later this year. Drowned Sorrow will be available in all the good
bookstores around the country and you will be able to order it on a
multitude of websites such as Amazon and B&N.
Is
horror your favourite genre, or is it just a coincidence that the book
turned out a horror-suspense-mystery?
No, it’s not a coincidence at all. Horror is not just my favourite genre. It’s even more than a
passion, really. It feels as if horror is in my soul and in my DNA. I’ve
been born as a horror girl; I remember liking the macabre when I was still
a toddler and I’m certain that I will still like it when I will be an
old lady with fifty cats. Good horror is what excites me and what moves me
forward in life.
Your interests
away from writing?
Watching movies, eating out, spending
time with friends, eating sushi, reading non-fiction books, kissing my
cat.
Your website also features a section
called Real Ghost Stories. Do you believe in ghosts, and do you
have a Real Ghost Story of your own you'd like to share?
I wish I could tell you my own real ghost
story, but I’ve never encountered something paranormal. That’s a pity,
because I would love to have some proof for ghosts or life after death.
And I love listening to creepy stories that have really happened.
Since
this is primarily a film site: Your favourite films?
When it comes to horror, I would say
Let’s Scare Jessica To Death, Salem’s Lot, The Children Of
Ravensback,
The Shining, In The Mouth Of Madness, Prince Of
Darkness, The Brood, Alone
In The Dark, Race With The
Devil, Fright Night, Inseminoid, The Tourist
Trap, Don’t Look Now and Two Thousand
Maniacs! And away from the horror
genre: Frances, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Sue, The Good
Girl, Mask, and
Love And Death On Long Island.
Any
future projects?
I’m currently writing my second novel
which is about a cursed town with more cats than one could handle. It’s
a paranormal thriller and it’s going to be extremely creepy.
Thank you for the
interview.
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