Thriller author Janice Tremayne is back in the hot seat today. We’re chatting about her new supernatural thriller, Bolder Guilt-Edged.
During her virtual book tour, Janice will be awarding 1 of 5 digital copies of the book via BookFunnel. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!
The book will be $0.99 during the tour.
Bio:
Janice Tremayne is an Amazon bestselling and award-winning ghost and supernatural writer. Janice is a finalist in the Readers’ Favorite 2020 International Book Awards in fiction-supernatural and was awarded the distinguished favorite prize for paranormal horror at the New York City Big Book Awards 2020.
She is an emerging Australian author who lives with her family in Melbourne. Her recent publication, Haunting in Hartley, reached number one in the Amazon kindle ranking for Occult Supernatural, Ghosts, and Haunted Houses categories hot new releases and bestseller. Janice is well-versed in her cultural superstitions and how they influence daily life and customs. She has developed a passion and style for writing ghost and supernatural novels for new adult readers.
Welcome back to Reviews and Interviews, Janice.
It’s my pleasure to be speaking to you today.
Please tell us about your newest release.
This book is the latest release of the Zack Bolder supernatural series. So far, I have written three books and working on the fourth as we speak.
This is the blurb from Amazon…
A demon hell-bent on playing psychological games. A guilt-edged past comes to the fore. Can Zack Bolder overcome his mental suffering and defeat the voracious demon?
In the Australian ghost town of Ravenswood in North Queensland, a gruesome suicide occurs after the famous annual Halloween ball. Bolder is called in by Detective Wellock to help track the evil incarnate responsible.
However, has Zack Bolder met his match? Can a trained parapsychologist by the Church withstand the guilt-edged torments of the demon? This poltergeist dangles psychology as its weapon by tempering that frail part of the mind to those that get in its way. Bolder is taken back to relive dark secrets—ridden and guilt-edged.
Can Bolder overcome this tempest of the mind and save the town before more people take their lives?
What inspired you to write this book?
It happened accidentally when I was studying Australian ghost towns for another project. I couldn’t get over how many ex-convict and mining towns there were in this country in the early 19th century that fizzled away after the gold ran out. Each ghost town has its unique stories of despair and ghost sightings steeped in mystery. After that, I created the characters, and I thought, what would be better than a priest turned detective and spirit hunter? This character would visit these towns to solve cold case murders of the supernatural kind for the police branch for unexplained crimes.
Excerpt from Bolder Guilt-Edged:
An ominous shadow glided across the room then rested on the classic armchair next to the window covered in blue police tape. The shadow transposed into an older man, well-dressed and carrying a gentleman’s walking cane with a lion’s head handle, appearing in front of him. He wore a distinctive 1842 Prince Albert coat, brown jacket, yellow vest, check brown trousers, and a gentleman’s bowler hat—a hard hat with a short, rolled brim and a thin grosgrain band. He placed his right hand on the rim, tipping in acknowledgment of Bolder’s presence. Then he took a seat and crossed his legs.
“Well, I’m glad to leave my eternity box for a while. My coffin that is. I keep forgetting you’re not from my time,” the poltergeist said.
Bolder squinted, looking straight ahead, his eyes fixated on the demon. It was a death stare and not meant to be welcoming. “It’s you? I can feel it.”
“Hmm, you were always more in tune with the afterlife than anyone I have encountered before. A special talent, if you ask me, my dear boy.”
Bolder took a couple of steps forward to get a closer look at the demon. “But that’s not why I’m here?”
“Ha-ha, you know that, too?”
“It’s not coincidental unless you think I’m stupid.” Bolder folded his arms across his chest and remained silent. He knew this demon was a conversationalist.
“I had to stage it, you know. Poor girl, she was so sweet, but I don’t deal with amateurs.” The demon pointed toward the balcony. “I encouraged her to jump, and she leaped without a second thought.”
“You killed a young, innocent woman?”
“No need to get emotional. A small sacrifice to get you here. Fimble-fumble. A lame excuse to get your chief to send you to this dreaded town.”
“I don’t understand.”
“We have unfinished business, you and I.”
“You took my Kelly from me, demon, and I’m not done with you!”
“A fighting priest … Revenge will get you nowhere. Or didn’t your God teach you that? Love thy neighbor, my dear boy.”
Bolder brushed his hand over the side pocket where he always carried a small bottle of holy water. He patted it gently to make sure it was still there.
“Oh, that water is useless,” the demon said in a sarcastic drone. “I wouldn’t even bother if I was you.”
Bolder took the holy water from his pocket, ignoring the demon’s claim that it was ineffective. He unscrewed the lid and raised it toward him.
“You know, my dear boy, a new demon often asks me how it feels to be splashed by holy water. It’s a good question, don’t you think?” The demon appeared to be more agitated as his mild-mannered tone became aggressive. “I tell them it feels like boiling water on your skin at the beginning—and yes, it’s painful—but after a while, you learn to manage that pain. It’s only short-lived.” The demon stood up from the armchair while resting on his walking stick and said, “But to avoid the pain of holy water … I have a surprise for you.”
“What surprise, demon? You only carry tricks, lies, and deceit.” Bolder raised the holy water, ready to propel it toward the demon.
The demon raised his hand for him to stop. “No, no, it’s not like that. I have someone who would like to say hello. And keep in mind that I can bring Kelly back whenever I like … She lives in my world now.”
What’s the next writing project?
I am working on book four of the Zack Bolder Series. It’s titled Bolder Ultimate Cause. I expect to release it in September 2021, and it’s available on pre-order.
What is your biggest challenge when writing a new book? (or the biggest challenge with this book)
The biggest challenge with writing Bolder Guilt-Edged was it became a personal battle for Bolder. This demon is different from the others. It plays psychological games by unleashing events guilt-ridden in our past and tucked away in our minds—suppressed from our daily lives. I had to enter the protagonist’s mind and feel his personal pain to write the book, and some scenes tormented me. It’s a battle between good and evil and how we a shrouded in events during our lives that we want to forget—until something triggers the memory, and it hurts. The mind can be frail and uncompromising in these circumstances.
If your novels require research – please talk about the process. Do you do the research first and then write, while you’re writing, after the book is complete and you need to fill in the gaps?
Every story I write has a unique setting. They’re real Australian outback ghost towns built on the back of death, misery, and suffering. They were gold mining towns that exist today and are tourist attractions—some with ghost tours. Most claim they are haunted in some way. I complete the research beforehand, but if I want to add a new twists to fill in the gaps, I dig further into history. I usually find something interesting like a haunted house or graveyard—perhaps a curse.
What’s your writing space like? Do you have a particular spot to write where the muse is more active? Please tell us about it.
This is an interesting question that I have often had challenges with. I have learned during my writing process to write twisted scenes; I need to be in my element. I mean that the environment has to be suitable to allow your creative forces to come forward. I need to remove myself from the structured and conditioned world and go through the escapism of the mind. To allow my mind to roar with ideas and to leave my mind exposed—to let my guard down. I have to be in my element.
Because I write in the horror and supernatural genre, I need to do this more than other authors writing in different genres. I have to touch, feel and experience the emotion of a confrontation with a dark ghost from the spirit world or a demon. Because if I can’t do that, my readers won’t be able to experience it either. I write in the third person omniscient, so I know what every character is thinking and feeling. That’s no easy task for a writer and can be difficult.
Lucky for me, I’ve always had a creative side and an incredible imagination since I was a child. Not everyone has this ability, and it can be difficult for some authors who are more technical in their approach. I develop relationships with my characters, and they become my friends. I hope that doesn’t sound weird, but it’s how I tap into their minds. The setting is also essential—if it’s a haunted church or house, you need to feel the walls, hear the creaks and the dark spirit’s moan.
So how do I do it? It’s a personal experience that works for me, and I have to be in the right frame of mind. The elements of the Earth help me—I like the sunny days where the endorphins kick in. In a café near a lake or a beach where I can see the waves rushing in, and the sun permeates over me in a shaded café or apartment balcony. I am an Australian, so I have been to Fiji and Northern Queensland in Australia to experience their beaches and climate. Disconnect and dissociate from the daily grind and routine. I also use music to push along the creative thought, and you will often see me with wireless headsets talking to myself. Now that is weird to someone else who doesn’t know you’re an author.
What I’m trying to say is to write twisted, psychologically bent scenes; you need to be non-conforming, unstructured in your thoughts, and trust your feelings. The rest will flow like a morning tide.
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Thank you for coming back to Reviews and Interviews!
Thanks for hosting!
Thanks for being part of the tour, Janice