Coming Up in 2013: Haunted by William Hussey (and exclusive cover reveal)

Back in January I ran my annual 'Coming Up In...' feature. At the time, Witchfinder author William Hussey expressed an interest in taking part, but he really wanted to wait until the book cover had been finalised by the lovely people at OUP. Naturally, as a lover of William's Witchfinder series, I was desperate to find out more about his new book, Haunted, and so I have been waiting patiently for the moment to arrive. 

And now it is here, and not only do I have the honour of hosting a fantastic guest post by William, but also the very first public reveal of the book cover for Haunted (so remember where you saw it first). It is a little different from most of the YA covers around at the moment, and I totally love it! Rohan Eason's illustrations are so incredibly spooky, and I could stare at the image for hours (and as the book isn't due to be published until September I'm just going to have to make do with this for the next few months). Make sure you click on the pictures to view the images in all their big sized glory.

And now, over to William:

After completing the Witchfinder trilogy, I was really keen for a new storytelling challenge. Witchfinder had been pretty epic: a story that spanned over a quarter of a million words, virtually every monster in the mythical bestiary, and a timeline that started a moment or two after the Big Bang and reached right up to the present day (by way of the Stone Age and the English Civil War!). Now I wanted to write a story with a tighter focus, a tale that concentrated on a few characters over the course of a week.

A week in which a huge, heart-stopping supernatural drama would be played out…

I’m a great believer that writers should always be challenged by their next project. They ought to step into those early pages of a new book with their hearts lodged firmly in their mouths. ‘Can I really do this?’, ‘Am I good enough to pull it off?’ Those questions should forever be ringing in the writer’s mind.

With HAUNTED I set myself two formidable (for me, at least!) challenges. First, I would tell the tale from the point of view of a sixteen-year-old girl. Up until this point, I’d always written my books from a boy’s perspective; could I really capture an authentic voice for a teenage girl? As I got deeper into the story, I began to realise that I shouldn’t always be conscious of the gender of my hero, Emma Rhodes. What did I know about this character? She was clever, strong-willed, determined, resourceful, grieving, robust and yet sensitive, especially to cruelty and injustice. Those were the things that mattered about her, and they were characteristics I admired and felt able to convey.

At this point I should tell you a little about the story:

Emma Rhodes begins the book in a state of complete isolation. Some months ago, her little brother Richie died while in her care. Since that day Emma has been haunted by grief and guilt, a state which has driven her friends away and left her fragile and alone. Into this lonely world comes a mysterious American – a teenager who moves into the derelict Sparrow House across the street. His arrival changes everything. Shrouded in mystery, he begins to draw Emma out of her isolation by revealing to her a shocking truth. Someone in the little town of Milton Lake is using the fabled ‘Ghost Machine’ to call the spirits of the dead back to our world. Now it is up to these two lost souls to find out who is operating this strange invention before it is too late. For call by call, the hungry dead will be unleashed…

My second challenge was to introduce a ‘celebrity historical cameo’ into the book. The Ghost Machine is an antique telephone from the 1920s, its crackling line a pathway to the world of the ravenous dead. But here’s the thing: the Ghost Machine is based on a true story.

Thomas Edison

In 1920 the world-famous inventor Thomas Edison – the man who developed the light bulb, the movie camera, the telephone and the record player – claimed to the world’s press that he was on the verge of inventing a phone for speaking with the dead! No kidding, he really did! After his death ten years later it was thought that Edison had been pulling one of his famous pranks on a bunch of gullible journalists… but what if he’d been telling the truth?

Why would Edison have covered up such a fabulous invention? What might have caused him such mortal terror that he hid the device from the world? And what if the Ghost Machine was still out there, waiting for some desperate soul to start making calls on it again?

Once I’d hit upon the idea of the Ghost Machine in a modern setting (with Emma battling to discover its whereabouts before it tore her world apart), I knew that Thomas Edison himself must feature in the story. What followed is essential for any writer hoping to recreate a historical setting and personality: LOADS of research. I read four HUGE biographies on Edison, as well as several books on the development of early telephones. Once I’d absorbed all my notes, I was ready to write the chapters in which Edison revisited his famous Menlo Park laboratory and, at dead of night, began his experiments with the Ghost Machine.

Research helped to make this ‘character’ seem real to the reader. I had to recreate the way the Great Man spoke, how he moved, how he thought, how he listened (tricky as Edison was almost stone deaf!). I had set myself this challenge before when writing Witchfinder: Gallows at Twilight, which featured the real historical character of Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder General. But in that case I was helped by the fact that very little is known about Hopkins, and so I could create the character pretty much as I wanted him. With Edison, I felt a huge amount of pressure to get the real man down on the page as faithfully as I could.

Of course, the real Edison never experienced a night of supernatural terrors, as he does in HAUNTED, but I had to know enough about him as a character – his history, his family, his strengths and prejudices – to make the scene seem as genuine as I could, both for readers who had no clue about the historical Edison and for those who knew his life inside out. It was a terrifying challenge, but one I absolutely relished!

So what more can I tell you about HAUNTED? Well, here are a few teasers: we have a Circle of very unlikely and very ruthless necromancers (or ‘conjurers of the dead’); a haunted house once owned by a mass murderer; a deserted theme park in which a decidedly grisly ghost decides to manifest; a troubled boy with a secret so surprising it will (hopefully!) take your breath away; a hero who faces her grief and terror only to discover one devastating revelation after another; a school library like no other; an antique shop harbouring the most terrifying wonders the world has ever seen; a collector of bric-a-brac who will chill the very marrow of your bones; a mystery that goes to the heart of Emma Rhodes and blurs the line between the worlds of the living and the dead; and a nerve-shredding finale so spooky it made Michael Grant (of GONE fame) lose sleep!

But wait a minute…

Is that a phone ringing in the next room…? No, it’s OK, I’ll wait here.

I think it’s for you…

A note on the cover: this is the first EVER reveal of the HAUNTED cover, especially for the brilliant Book Zone. The artist is the very talented Rohan Eason, whose previous work includes The Wolves of Willoughby Chase. What we all wanted from this cover was a very stark fairy tale vibe to go with the gothic spookiness of the story. Lyrical black-and-white imagery contrasting with the red lettering fitted the bill perfectly. I love how the ghosts – or the ‘unmade’ as they are known in HAUNTED – swirl around to frame Emma as she ventures towards the Sparrow House.

A place where many dark secrets wait to be discovered…

Attention Grabber #2: Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide by William Hussey

Attention Grabber is my new weekly feature where I post what I think is a great opening paragraph to a book, the sort of opening that pulls young readers in and hooks them from the start.

This week's Attention Grabber is the one I had originally intended to launch this feature with, and it comes from Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide by William Hussey. If any of my students start a story with "It was a dark, stormy night" I immediately direct them towards this:

‘HELP! Someone – anyone –please, help me!’

A roar of thunder drowned out Luke’s cries. Step by stumbled step, the strangers dragged him across the bay. The boy’s pyjamas dripped with rain and his bare toes squelched in the wet sand. A rope had been tied around his wrists and, with every tug, he looked up at the figures that held his leash. Robed and hooded, the strangers appeared ghostly in the moonlight.

‘Who are you? Where are you taking me?’

No answer – just the rumble of the sea, the screech of the wind and the whip-crack of lightning.

*** Witchfinder Trilogy Competition Result

The lucky winner of the set of three Witchfinder books signed by William Hussey is:

Jack Clark


Well done and thank you to all of you who entered. I will now endeavour to contact the winner through by email. Please reply within 48 hours or I will draw another name out of the hat. Many thanks to William for providing the prize.

*** Competition: WIN a set of signed Witchfinder books

At the beginning of September OUP published the third and final book in William Hussey's superb Witchfinder trilogy. Now, thanks to the generosity of William I have the third official signed set of books to give away to one lucky reader of The Book Zone. Each book will have a confirmation signed by William on the title page - something like 'The Official 3rd Signed Set of the Complete Witchfinder Trilogy, dated...' then the winner's name & a dedication. In order to be in with a chance of winning this fab prize all you have to do is  fill in your details on the form below.
 

The first name drawn at random after the closing date will win this signed set of books. Deadline for entries is 8pm GMT Monday 26th September. This contest is open to UK residents only.

Contest open to UK residents only.
Neither the author or I will not be held responsible for items lost in the mail.
I hold the right to end a contest before its original deadline without any prior notice.
I hold the right to disqualify any entry as I see fit.
I will contact winning entrants for their postal address following the close of the competition. Winners have 48 hours to reply. Failure to do so in this time will result in another winner being randomly selected.

Review: Witchfinder - Gallows At Twilight by William Hussey

Eight pale hands - some with fingers stripped down to the bone - rose out of the earth. Slimy with rain, the rat-gnawed heads of four soldiers loomed into view. They moaned at the sky and their cry moulded itself into a word: 'FLLLLLLEEESSSSSSSSHHHHH!' The Demon Father has escaped from hell and walks among us, his trident symbol branded into the earth in countries all over the world. A scorching beacon. A call to arms. A sign that war is coming. Jake is struggling to harness his powers and live up to his reputation of the boy who closed the demon door. But now he must push all doubt aside. To stop the Demon Father Jake must change the course of history - embark on a treacherous journey deep into the past and into another dimension, filled with horror and pain. A place where innocent people are tried and tortured. A place where the law of the Witchfinder rules. Let the rushes be lit for there will be gallows at twilight.

Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide was one of my favourite books of 2010; it was the Book Zone Book of the Month for March, and was instrumental in awakening in me a love of horror fiction that had lain dormant for most of my life. Needless to say, I have been waiting impatiently for this book to be released for almost a year. I was therefore really excited when someone at Oxford emailed me asking if I would like a pdf version of the book, and I jumped at the chance as I had recently bought myself a Kindle.

Was the wait worth it? Yes.... every single second of it. Dawn of the Demontide was a very good book, but this is what I would call a great book. It is The Empire Strikes Back to Dawn's Star Wars in pretty much every way. The story is far darker than the original, taking reluctant hero Jake Harker to places that no sane person would willingly choose to venture into; it is more complicated that the original, with the action taking place in the modern day (both our world and the borderland world between ours and the worlds of the dark creatures), and also in the 17th Century; and like in Empire you have that constant feeling that this time maybe things won't turn out ok for the good guys at the end of the story. With the introductions all having been taken care of in the first book Mr Hussey is also able to spend more time fleshing out his characters even more, so when bad things happen to them (and believe me, bad doesn't come close), we really feel their pain. Add to this that Jake discovers that the girl he loves is seeing his best friend and I think the parallels are almost complete, although this is very much a horror story.

For me the highlight of this book was William Hussey's genius decision to take Jake back in time to 1645. Now I know some of you may let slip a small groan of dismay or ennui at the thought of yet another time travel plot line, but bear with me, for this author does it in a way that fits perfectly with what has come before, and the story he still has to tell in this book. Jake's father has been grievously injured, and Jake is led to believe that the only item that can save him from death is Josiah Hobarron's witch ball, last seen falling from the old witchfinder's hand as he sealed the Door back in the 17th Century. With Crowden alive and well and gathering witches from all over the world and Tobias Quilp rescued from imprisonment beneath the Hobarron Institute, Jake decides that he has only one option - to take the Scarab Path and travel back through time. Unfortunately nobody thought to explain to Jake that appearing out of thin air, engulfed in a magical fire and firing explosive ball of light from his hands was probably not the best method of arriving in a time period famous for its witch trials and the anti-witch paranoia that was prevalent in many areas. Oops!

Anyway, where was I.. oh yes, Hussey's genius decision, etc. Taking Jake back to 1645 has enabled the author to use as a key character one of the nastiest men that ever existed - Matthew Hopkins (aka the Witchfinder General). A real historical person such as Hopkins is a gift to any horror author - who needs to spend time creating a truly evil and despicable character when real life can be so much more scary and nasty? Jake's problems are compounded by the fact that Hopkins also has a grudge to settle with Josiah Hobarron, and being cloned from the DNA of the original witchfinder means that Jake is the spitting image of Hopkins's nemesis. Oops again. So begins a section of the book which is not a comfortable read at times as Jake is proclaimed to be a witch and tortured for his confession. And again, this is made all the more horrific by the fact that the torture of innocent people in this way really did happen. Now I am no expert historian, but I am guessing from the descriptions of the time, its people and everything else that happens, that this is a time period that William Hussey knows well, and has been fascinated by for some time.

Hussey manages the time travel aspects of this book far better than many others who have tried and failed. He also introduces a clever plot device by which Jake's friends in the 21st Century are able to follow, albeit intermittently, his progress (or lack of it) back in the past. Unfortunately for Jake he is very much on his own, striving to reach his goal but never knowing if he will be able to return to his own time and if, should he manage it, he will be in time to save his father and the world. It is these moments in the past in which Hussey really shows his great ability at character development as we witness the gamut of emotions that Jake experiences, from despair to anger to love for a girl he doesn't know, or does he?

And if all that this isn't enough to sate your hunger for the horrific then there is more: English civil war solder zombies; cannibalistic witches; a super-coven gathering at Wembley Stadium; and probably nastiest of all - the Khepra Beetle. I will not say any more about this creature at the moment, but believe me when I say that a headache will never seem the same again after reading about this little monster.

Witchfinder: Gallows at Twilight is officially published today but if you have not yet read the first book then you really should as this is a series that must be read in order. Book three in the trilogy, The Last Nightfall, is scheduled for a September 2011 release, and if you have seen the cover you will know that things are probably going to get worse for Jake and his friends before they get better.

News: Book Cover - Witchfinder: The Last Nightfall by William Hussey

Long time readers of The Book Zone will already know that I am a huge fan of William Hussey's first Witchfinder book, Dawn of the Demontide. The second in the series, Gallows at Twilight, is scheduled to be released in the new year, although a certainly online store already has copies in stock. I was lucky to receive a pdf of Gallows some time ago (it was the first book I read on my Kindle), and I can tell you that it is possibly even better than the first. Watch this space for my review, coming very soon.

This morning I logged on to Twitter and saw mention of the cover for the third book in the series, The Last Nightfall, scheduled for a September 2011 release. And what a stunning cover it is - artist David Wyatt has impressed me hugely with his covers for the series so far but this final one outdoes all that came before it. I love the image of (presumably) Jake Harker standing on a mound of rubble with the remains of Tower bridge in the background, all in those chilling shades of blue - it suggests that the final instalment is going to be brutal and epic. I can't wait!

*** Witchfinder Contest Result

The draw has just taken place and the lucky winners of the Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide contest are:

Sassyele
and
Kate Barber

Well done and thank you to everyone who entered. I will now endeavour to contact the winner through twitter. Please reply within 48 hours or I will draw another name out of the hat. Many thanks to William Hussey for providing this fabulous prize.

(Note: all names were drawn randomly using a nifty little freeware programme called The Hat)

TERRIFYING TALES FROM THE HAUNTED CRYPT… OF FEAR! - Guest Post by William Hussey (author of Witchfinder)

TERRIFYING TALES FROM THE HAUNTED CRYPT… OF FEAR!


or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Horror

Aaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhhhhh!!!


Sorry, did I scare you? Well, it is sorta my job!

But here’s a real brain-buster: why, when you’re reading a really scary story, do you feel ‘the fear’? You know what I mean: the author has set the scene – something unearthly, unnatural, unholy has stirred in the pages of the book clasped in your quaking hand. The characters you have come to care about are in mortal danger. Death stalks them in the form of a vampire, a zombie, a demon or a ghoul risen from the grave. Now this creature is slipping stealthily out of the book. It crawls through your eyes and into your head, like a burglar breaking through a window and taking possession of an empty house. This stranger has complete control of your senses. You have been drawn into a world of horror and your body begins to respond to…

THE FEAR!

This physical response usually begins with what I call ‘Terror Worms’ wriggling in your stomach. Next, an icy chill snakes its way along your spine and makes the fine hairs at the nape of your neck bristle to attention. Your lips feel parched, your mouth dries up, your throat tightens with terror. You try to comfort yourself with a nervous laugh, holding humour out before you like a crucifix in the face of a vampire. But the laugh is feeble – no match for the imaginary monster that continues to haunt your dreams long after you have put down the book and turned off the nightlight…

Hmm. All this makes reading horror sound like a pretty unpleasant experience, doesn’t it? And for some people, it is just that. They just don’t get why anyone would want to put themselves through such an ordeal! But here’s the thing: being scared on your own terms is one of the purest, most primal, most pleasurable emotional experiences you can have. Some people love to laugh; others feel a huge emotional relief from a good cry: we horror hounds just enjoy being scared! There are any number of theories as to why this is the case. Some people put it down to the fact that the fear response is a basic part of our DNA – a powerful survival emotion programmed into our very souls. Without fear, our species would not have lasted very long. Our distant ancestors would have just toddled over to the nearest sabre-toothed tiger, pinched its fearsome cheeks, and cooed, ‘Who’s a cute li’l kitty cat, then? You are, that’s who! Yes, you are! Yes, you are! Yes, you aaaarrrrggghhhh!!!’ Fear taught us to head for the hills when faced with such danger and gave us the adrenalin to fight when we were cornered. Fear made us feel our mortality, our vulnerability, the fact that we were just one swipe of a sabre-toothed tiger’s paw away from death. In short, it made us feel alive.

I believe that experiencing such fear in a safe environment – reading a spooky book or watching a scary film – reignites those ancient survival instincts. Sure, a shudder of terror makes us feel uncomfortable, but it also reminds us that we exist, right here and now, in all our magnificent, vulnerable glory.

But to go back to the original question: why, when we know the monster in the book isn’t real, do we feel fear? I can only answer that question by delving into my own experiences. Let me take you back fifteen years: I’m six years old and it’s my birthday. I’m sitting at the kitchen table, tucking into a special birthday breakfast (spam and beans – yeah, I know, I was a weird kid!). The kitchen door is kicked open and my dad staggers into the room, his arms cradled around a huge cardboard box. Box lands on the table with a thump and my imagination runs wild. There really is nothing more exciting to a kid of six than an unopened box. Infinite possibilities encased in cardboard! My dad flips back the lid and takes out…

A tatty, torn, tired old comic book. My young heart sinks. As a big Transformers fan, I’d been hoping for Optimus Prime (the toy, you understand, not the real Optimus Prime – the box isn’t that big!)…

(Ok, so this story may seem a little familiar to those of you who have read Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide. Yup, Jake Harker is me! Except, he’s braver and can do magic!).

My dad hands me the first comic – it has a picture of a terrified man being dragged into a swamp by a hideous zombie. The title blazes, and my eyes go round with wonder:

TALES

FROM THE

CRYPT

From that very day, I was hooked on horror! (I should add that my mum was absolutely mortified by this gift. Horror comics for a SIX YEAR OLD???!!! What was my dad thinking???)…

Before we continue, I must say a quick word about Tales from the Crypt. Starting life as The Crypt of Terror, this landmark comic book series was the brainchild of publisher William M Gaines and his Entertainment Comics (EC). During the 1950s, Gaines employed some of the best artists and writers in the business to come up with sublime tales of terror. Such EC luminaries as Johnny Craig, Feldstein, and the immortal Jack Davis were as god-like to me as Marvel Comic’s Stan Lee, Steve Ditko and Jack Kirby. Gaines also managed to convince horror authors of the stature of Ray Bradbury to write for his monster mag.

Each issue of Tales was graced with a startling full-colour cover that never failed to whet the appetite for the shiversome stories to come. And what stories they were! More often that not involving a femme fatale, a shady businessman or a mad scientist getting their comeuppance, these were morality tales populated by every classic monster you could think of: vampires, werewolves, ghosts, gremlins, zombies, even the odd killer robot!

The iconic ringmaster of this grisly crew was that old ‘GhouLunatic’ himself, The Crypt-Keeper! Aided by his friends, The Vault-Keeper and The Old Witch, good ol’ CK introduced most of the stories in Tales, and is now regarded as a proper horror icon in his own right.

Honestly, I could go on and on about the history of EC and the Tales comics: my favourite stories; the splendour of the cover artwork; how Gaines and his colleagues were eventually shut down by the infamous Comics Code; the intriguing story of how Tales from the Crypt was blamed for the weird incident of the ‘Gorbals Vampire’ in Scotland in the 1950s. So many brilliant and bizarre histories.

But we’re here to talk about my experience of reading horror, and why tales of terror still have the power to unnerve me.

I go back to Tales from the Crypt. Like all good horror stories, the best of these had the ability to draw you in completely. Time seemed to stop. The outside world faded and fell away, until all you could see, hear, smell, feel and taste was channelled through the world of the story. When reading a classic Tales story, or any good spooky book come to that, I find myself actually inside the horror scenario. I am living it with the characters. I am immersed in the world that has been created for me. And so my brain tells my body to respond in an authentic way. I shiver. I sweat. I fear. My heart begins to pound. That nervous laugh bubbles through my dry lips – it is an attempt to draw myself back to the real world, but it doesn’t work. The writer has sparked my imagination, and my imagination will not let me go. Such is the power of story. When, finally, I emerge from this fictitious realm the sense of fear has energized me, made me feel vital, real, alive. That is the buzz of horror, and that is why I return to it time and time again.

Since the age of six, I have felt the pleasure of being scared. Horror has introduced me to new and terrible worlds, vivid and wonderful dreamscapes. And the very first of those worlds came to me from the classic tales told by a certain cadaverous Crypt-Keeper….

And so thank you, CK, you loveable ol’ bag of bones – you’re forever in my nightmares!

~~~~

William Hussey is currently very busy promoting the release of Dawn of the Demontide, the first book in his Witchfinder series, as well as trying to meet writing deadlines so I am very grateful for the time he spent writing this fantastic article. You can read my review of Dawn of the Demontide here and a brilliant interview William did for The Book Zone here. If you like horror and haven't yet bought a copy of Dawn of the Demontide then why the hell not?

*** Contest: WIN a signed copy of Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide by William Hussey

Some time ago I posted a review of the first book in William Hussey's Witchfinder trilogy. Subsequently Mr Hussey very kindly took part in an interview for The Book Zone. Now, we bring you the chance to win your very own signed copy of this fantastic new horror book.

Thanks to the generosity of Mr Hussey I have two signed copies of Dawn of the Demontide sat here in front of me. In order to win a copy of this book all you have to do is follow me on Twitter and add a comment below this post answering the following question:

Who is your favourite horror book/movie villain and why?

Please also include your Twitter name with your comment. The first two names drawn at random after the closing date will win a signed copy of the book. Deadline for your emails is 8pm Friday 9th April. This contest is open worldwide.

Terms and conditions

Contest open to entrants worldwide.
I will not be held responsible for items lost in the mail.
I hold the right to end a contest before its original deadline without any prior notice.
I hold the right to disqualify any entry as I see fit.
I will contact winning entrants for their postal address following the close of the competition. Winners have 48 hours to reply. Failure to do so in this time will result in another winner being randomly selected.

** Interview with William Hussey (author of Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide)

Back at the beginning of this month I wrote a review of the brilliant Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide, published by OUP and scheduled to be in shops in March. This is William Hussey's first foray into the world of YA books, having previously written two novels for the adult market. Based on this book I feel he has a long future ahead of him writing for this younger market. Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide is the first book in a trilogy, with the second book in the series due to be published in January 2011. I was very excited when William kindly said he would answer a few questions for my blog:

How did you get the idea for the Witchfinder Trilogy?

Witchfinder came together from various sources. I’d always been fascinated by the English Civil War, and by that brief but terrifying period in the 1640s when people like Matthew Hopkins, the infamous Witchfinder General, went around the Eastern Counties hunting down and hanging suspected witches. For a long time I’d been intrigued by the 17th Century idea that, in order to work her spells, a witch would need the aid of a demon summoned from hell. I’d done a lot of research into this area over the years and hoped that, one day, I could mould a story around these ideas: witchfinders, witches, demons, magic and monsters. I wanted it to be a big, epic tale – lots of action and drama – but I had to wait for the right story to come along.

Meanwhile, I’d been writing horror books for adults. It was while attending a book group discussion for one of my adult books that I met Deborah Chaffey, a Waterstones bookseller who specialised in children’s fiction. Deborah told me how much the kids in her reading group loved horror, and challenged me to write a really exciting, scary book for children. And so I went away and read lots and lots of Young Adult thrillers in order to get an idea of what was popular. Although I loved most of what I read, I realised that the idea of a 17th Century witch – one with demons at her command – had not yet been fully explored in this area. So that was the genesis for Witchfinder – a modern take on an ancient horror idea!

Dawn of the Demontide is the first book in your Witchfinder Trilogy. Have you plotted out the storylines for the other two books already?

Yes, Dawn of the Demontide is just the beginning! The second book, Gallows at Twilight will be out in January 2011 and the third, The Last Nightfall in September 2011. The wonderful thing was that, on the strength of Dawn of the Demontide, Oxford University Press immediately commissioned the other books in the series. I’m finishing Gallows at Twilight right now, and I’ve got the whole saga mapped out in my head. The ending of the last book is going to be HUGE – just really EPIC. But Dawn of the Demontide is a self-contained story, too: it has a definite beginning, middle and end. We travel with these characters through various nail-biting adventures until we come to this great big, earth-shattering finale. BUT here’s the thing: at the end of Dawn of the Demontide you might think that you’ve seen every twist and turn that these characters can take; that the stakes can’t get much bigger… But just wait for Book Two! Gallows is a twisted time travel story – time travel and demons! – There are a lot more surprises to come!

What do you see as the main influences on your writing?

One of the main influences is my love of history. Real historical events pop up in all my books, but especially in Witchfinder. Ever since school I’ve loved reading history books, especially that period after the reign of Elizabeth II and up to the end of the Civil War. The intrigue, the personalities, the battles, the bloodshed, the fear and the religious passion that literally tore families apart and set brother against brother is just fascinating.

In fiction terms my biggest influences have been all those brilliant books I read when I was a kid. I think most writers will tell you that it’s those books they read in childhood that continue to have an impact on them later in life. For me it was Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories; Stephen King; JRR Tolkien; CS Lewis; HG Wells; Richard Matheson; Shirley Jackson; MR James; Robert Louis Stevenson and dozens of others. I lapped up anything with a strong plot and with lots of action and adventure. A few scares were always good, too!

You have already had two books published for the adult market. What made you want write for a younger audience?

First of all it was the challenge laid down by my friend Deborah Chaffey: to write a truly scary Young Adult series. It was while researching children’s horror and thriller books that I realised what an exciting, vibrant and challenging form of writing this was. As soon as I latched onto the Witchfinder plot I couldn’t wait to get started. I knew that this had to be a children’s series because of the action and adventure, but I also wanted to give Witchfinder a taste of real terror, like in my adult books. Another motivation was to write something that my nephew Johnny could read as he was growing up – that’s why I dedicated the first book to him!

How did you carry out the research when writing Dawn of the Demontide? Did you discover any really interesting facts during your research that you would like to share with us?

The really in-depth research I carried out for Dawn of the Demontide was of a scientific nature… but I can’t really go into that for reasons that will become apparent when you read the book! A lot of the witches and demon stuff I already knew from my previous research into the area.

The really heavy research didn’t kick in until book 2. Because a good third or more of Gallows at Twilight is set during the Civil War, I had to go back and brush up on the tiny details of that period – what people wore, what they ate, drank, what money they used, what kind of houses they lived in etc. There are several interesting facts about the witchfinder period, but I’m going to keep them to myself for time being as they will probably form the basis for the Witchfinder Tour, which will be visiting schools throughout 2010. The Tour is still in its early planning stages, but I’m hoping to come into schools and demonstrate to kids what it was like to be tried as a witch in the 17th Century!

One interesting titbit of information I came across during my researches that I can share: the last person to be tried as a witch in England was a lady called Helen Duncan. She was tried and convicted at the Old Bailey in London in the year… 1944! Only sixty years ago! Anyone interested should look her up on Google – it’s a fascinating story!

There are several pretty gory scenes in Dawn of the Demontide. How did you decide on the right level of violence for the story?

Honestly, there’s not much difference between writing adult horror and horror for kids. You can be just as gory and gruesome writing for children, but there is an element of fun in kids’ horror which is often missing with the adult books. I had such a good time writing Witchfinder – coming up with loads of gross horror ideas and throwing them into the pot. I guess the main difference is that kids’ horror has a sense of humour! There are some really funny bits amid all the carnage. Watch out for what happens to Lollygag the cat!
 
Some of the characters in Dawn of the Demontide share surnames with characters from Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Is this book a favourite of yours and are there any other similar references to classic horror in your book?

The Dracula connection was deliberate – a homage to my favourite horror novel. There are other homages in the book, mainly to the old EC horror comics of the 1950s. Like Jake Harker – the hero of Witchfinder – when I was a boy my dad bought me a huge collection of horror comics for my birthday. The stories from comics like Tales from the Crypt have influenced lots of horror writers, especially Stephen King. They were gory, grisly and gruesome – exactly the kind of qualities I wanted for Witchfinder!

Another homage in Witchfinder is to Charles Dickens – my favourite author of all time. He wrote some pretty creepy things himself – check out his brilliant ghost story The Signalman. A lot of the characters in my book have Dickensian names, like Mr Quilp (from The Old Curiosity Shop) and Mr Pinch (from Martin Chuzzlewit). Finally, I’ve always been a big fan of MR James: to my mind the greatest writer of ghost stories that ever lived. James was a master at describing ominous landscapes, and that’s something I’ve always tried to do in my own writing.

Are there any books or authors that you would recommend fans of your books to read?

I guess the obvious names like Darren Shan and Anthony Horowitz will already be familiar to many. I would also recommend rising talents like Michelle Harrison (The Thirteen Treasures), Sam Enthoven (Crawlers) and Barry Hutchison (Invisible Fiends). These guys are huge talents and their books never fail to draw you in.

Can you recommend one book that you think every boy should read at some point?

An old one – The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Brilliant writing, superb plots, scares, thrills and spills galore. These stories might be over a hundred years old, but they are as fresh today as when they were written.

Can you give us any hints as to what we can expect from your next book in the series, Gallows At Twilight?

Gallows will include: Demons and time travel. The Seer of the Pit. The Scarab Path. Ecto-suits. Warriors from the Wall. The truth about Simon Lydgate… And Matthew Hopkins, the real Witchfinder General, might just make an appearance. That’s all I’m saying!

Is there anything else you would like to say to the readers of this blog?

Keep reading! Especially if, one day, you want to be a writer. The most important thing any writer can do is read and read and read!


Thank you William for such great answers to my questions. I really hope that the Witchfinder Trilogy is a huge success - January 2011 is such a long time to have to wait for the sequel but if it is anything near as good as Dawn of the Demontide then it will be worth the wait. If you have not yet popped over to the Witchfinder website then it is well worth a visit, and some great new content has been added over the last couple of weeks, including the chance to win a pocket sized video camera.

Review: Witchfinder: Dawn of the Demontide by William Hussey

Jake Harker is an outsider, a loser whose nose is always in a horror comic. That is until horror stops being fiction and the Pale Man and his demon Mr Pinch stop Jake on a dark, deserted road. That night, under a tree called the demon's dance, Jake will learn the true meaning of terror...

Oxford University Press, the publisher of Witchfinder, is heralding William Hussey as "the New Master of Dark Fiction", and based on this story I would suggest that the people at OUP really know their stuff and are on to a sure-fire winner with this author. 

Dawn of the Demontide is the first book in a planned trilogy, but it is not just a vehicle for setting the scene for the next two books. In fact, so much happens in this book that I am finding it difficult to write a detailed review without any spoilers. This book has everything a young horror fan could thirst for: a horror-loving hero who is considered unpopular and a loner by his peers; a truly evil villain who thinks nothing of inflicting horrifying punishments on anyone who crosses him, members of his own coven included; ancient rites involving blood sacrifice; deadly mist that could only emanate from the depths of hell; witches and their terrifying familiars; the list goes on and on.

This is William Hussey's first venture into the world of YA fiction but he has honed his craft with two spine-chilling books written for the adult market (under the name Bill Hussey). However, in this transition to writing for a younger audience Mr Hussey has most definitely not felt the need to hold back from writing a very dark and terrifying story. In fact, there are a number of particularly gory moments in this book which lead me to suggest that this is definitely for the 12+ market, especially with Mr Hussey's talent for writing vivid horror scenes that are rich with blood-curdling detail. His other talent is for providing an intricately plotted narrative that twists and turns throughout, keeping the tension levels high and never quite giving the reader enough information to be able to guess just what is going to happen next.

The author certainly knows his subject as well. His passion for "horror stories, folklore and legends" (as stated in the short author biography at the end of the book) shines through in his writing, and also with his nods towards classics of the genre. For example, Jake Harker and Dr Holmwood are very obviously named in tribute to Jonathan Harker and Arthur Holmwood, the co-hunters of Dracula in Bram Stoker's legendary masterpiece, and with its similar tone of dark, brooding menace Dawn of the Demontide is the kind of book that you will struggle to put down. I therefore suggest you start reading it on a bright, sunny morning as you certainly won't be wanting to read it after the sun goes down and the creatures that prowl the dark night are itching to tap on your bedroom window. 

If you are a fan of YA horror then you will find this book a hugely enjoyable read; it is due to be published in March, with the second book in the series, Gallows at Twilight, and the third, The Last Nightfall, due for publication in January 2011 and September 2011 respectively. You can read the first chapter of Dawn of the Demontide at the official Witchfinder website.

(Thank you to the book's editor, Jasmine Richards at OUP, for sending me a copy of this book to review).