Tag Archives: Research

Phantom Audition – Settings, Research, and Revisions

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PHANTOM AUDITIONMy new gothic mystery novel Phantom Audition is out now, and messing with the heads of readers to agreeable effect, judging by the plethora of five star rave reviews currently gracing sites like Goodreads and Amazon. I’m very pleased, as I put a lot of work into this book.

Preparation for writing any story of this kind involves research into a number of fields, but in this case I was able to draw on a lot of my own knowledge regarding film. Having worked in television, and had some limited involvement in film productions (including making my own short films on various occasions), I drew on what I already knew in many cases, but also investigated a number of fascinating facts from film history.

For example, the idea of a famous actor consulting a medium about whether or not they should take a role is directly inspired by the late, great Peter Sellers, who did exactly that. Rather more unhappily, cases of actors burying themselves in parts with alarming effects on their mental health are not uncommon. Perhaps the most notorious and tragic relatively recent example is found in Heath Ledger, who died of a drug overdose after finishing work on The Dark Knight, where he played the Joker. Heath Ledger posthumously won an Oscar, again something that directly inspired the story in Phantom Audition.

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Settings also play a key role in the novel, which briefly takes in Wardour Street in London – home to many film and television production houses – as well as Boars Hill in Oxford, where I used to live. However, the most notable location is the Jacobean mansion at the heart of the story. In Jacobean buildings, there really are sometimes priest holes from the times when Catholics were persecuted by the ruling Protestant monarchs in England. Said Catholics would often hide in these places to avoid arrest. Baddesley Clinton House in Warwickshire is one example, and another is Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk. Both are owned by the National Trust and are open to the public.

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Here is one final point of interest not about research or locations, and more about the writing process itself. Unlike my previous novel The Irresistible Summons, which had huge swathes of plot, subplot, and characters excised (almost 20,000 words) from first to final draft, Phantom Audition survived largely intact, aside from the usual editorial nips and tucks, with one key exception. Originally Mia’s best friend Bronwyn and hired help Verity were one and the same character. I did this to try and condense characters, but in this case it proved a condensation too far, and made the finale too implausible. It felt a lot more believable to separate the characters, so I undertook a significant rewrite to change that element of the plot.

Phantom Audition is published by Dragon Soul Press, and is available now in paperback or on Kindle. Click here to get your copy.

The Irresistible Summons: Settings and Research

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Simon Dillon - Irresistible Summons full resWhilst writing my latest supernatural horror/conspiracy thriller novel The Irresistible Summons, I researched a number of paranormal, religious, and scientific subjects, as well as locations that were crucial to the narrative. However, in this article I’m going to skirt around some of what I delved into, for fear of spoilers.

One of the primary reasons I wrote the novel was because I wanted a haunted house story that wasn’t set in a traditional gothic house, but instead in a modern office building. The seeds of this idea came as far back as my university days. One particular building where I attended lectures had been designed in such a way that when lights were mostly switched off, the lobby, corridors, and staircases looked very sinister indeed. I even partially shot my dissertation film – a vampire short – in that building. The late, great Ken Russell himself saw a rough cut of the film, and rather liked it. But I am digressing (and showing off)…

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When it came to write this novel, setting it in London became a no-brainer, because I wanted the climax of the film to take place in the labyrinth of abandoned and disused London underground railway tunnels. I often joke that the only thing I need to write a good story is an imperilled heroine and a sinister labyrinth. To that end, The Irresistible Summons features a haunted office block on Canary Wharf, where a software company and various other businesses are based. Underneath this building are secret lower levels where nefarious top secret experiments are taking place, which in turn connect with the passages that lead into the old railway tunnels, and even darker ancient secrets.

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It’s not all set in the city. Some locations in the south-west are important to the story too, especially Wistman’s Wood on Dartmoor. This ancient and atmospheric forest of stunted dwarf oaks has now featured in several of my novels, and one short story. However, this novel features, in my view, my most vivid, memorable, and emotionally resonant use of the location.

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As to the scientific fields I researched for the novel, I must remain tight-lipped so as not to spoil the surprise, but let me just say that one major theme of the story is far less outlandish than it sounds. Indeed, experiments and research into this particular field are being conducted and have advanced to an alarming degree. That’s all I’ll say, in the hope that it arouses curiosity about the novel.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that the main protagonist in the novel, Naomi Levinson, is from a messianic Jewish background (although she is certainly what you might call “lapsed”). A minority religious group often derided by both Christians and Orthodox Jewish communities (especially in the Middle East), this proved an interesting subject to delve into, as I personally know a number of people in these groups. I used my own background in television as a knowledge base for the characters involved in documentary productions, but other obscure subjects touched on in the novel required more detailed research (Kabbalah exorcism, for instance).

In short, as ever, the research process for this novel proved fascinating and illuminating.

The Irresistible Summons is published by Dragon Soul Press, and is out now. Paperbacks or Kindle downloads can be ordered here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

Researching Echo and the White Howl

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As with all my books, my latest, Echo and the White Howl, involved a considerable amount of research. I have not ever been to Alaska (alas), but nonetheless I had to find out a great deal in order to generate a convincing, atmospheric, dirt-under-the-paws level of realism for the novel.

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For a start, I had to learn a great deal about wolf packs and their habits. Everything from how cubs are raised, to how lone wolves are sometimes adopted into other packs. Mating, digging dens, pack pecking order, territoriality and hunting were topics I studied extensively in books, online and in documentaries. Much of this provided useful information with which I could punctuate the narrative.

Regarding the issue of hunting, how a pack take down large and small prey proved particularly instructive. There are a number of hunts in the story at key points, some of which coincide with vital character development moments, so it was important to get these details right. For example, following a hunt, the pecking order in a pack determines the order in which the wolves feed, with the Alpha male and female first, and so on. Having studied this, I was able to generate drama around post hunt feasting in the very first chapter, with certain wolves resentful and envious of others, setting up conflicts to come.

I also researched a great deal about Alaska itself, especially the wilderness where these wolf packs reside. Everything from the kinds of trees to flora and fauna were looked into, although I tried not to overdo the references in the novel itself. After a certain point, landscape description just becomes tedious. Indeed, I had to trim it back in earlier drafts.

Another key element woven into the story are the seasons, including perpetual sunlight and perpetual darkness, depending on the time of year. Again, I was able to use this to my advantage in the story, as the amount of daylight proves significant in a key moment at the end of act one.

Other animals had to be researched as well, including Orca whales, eagles, bears and racoons. Originally all four species played a key role in the story, although in the end the Orca subplot was cut as I considered it too outlandish. In the final draft, these whales do appear briefly, but only in passing.

Finally, the most fascinating thing I learned in my research – which didn’t have a direct bearing on the novel – is just how unfairly reviled wolves have been throughout the centuries, and how they have been needlessly and cruelly hunted down by humans, when in fact they pose no significant threat to us. Where wolves have been deliberately reintroduced into the wild, such as in Yellowstone Park for instance – entirely ecosystems have radically recovered as the balance of nature has been restored in an extraordinary domino effect. Check out this short video here.

Echo and the White Howl is a thrilling animal adventure for all ages. Click here for your Kindle download or paperback copy.