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Victim Souls
Andrew
Terech
Genre: Supernatural Horror
ISBN-13: 978-0692330234
ISBN-10: 0692330232
ASIN: B00PEASG6Q
Number of pages: 386
Word Count: 91,000
Cover Artist: Brianna Strawn
Book Description:
Sometimes, only bad guys can beat
the Devil…
The plan is simple: get the money
and deliver the car. What could possibly go wrong?
What can’t?
Things start to go south when Sam
Drake realizes that his brother Johnny is hiding something, a secret about
Sam’s troubled childhood that goes beyond his most feverish nightmares…
Then Johnny’s girlfriend, Ash,
starts sending Sam the kind of mixed signals that can only lead to big trouble…
As the trio of small time crooks
falls deeper into an abyss of betrayal and violence, they will discover that
the greatest danger they face is not of this world.
With everything he believes about
himself and the world around him shattered, Sam will become the unlikely
champion in a battle with true evil, a fight to save a soul that has already
been forfeited to darkness.
His own.
Available at Amazon
Excerpt:
The silver barrel of the Colt .45
glimmered in Johnny’s hand. The obese clerk behind the counter held his arms
up, eyes darting to each of our faces. His brown-stained, white t-shirt clung
to his sweaty man tits. Moisture dripped off his scraggly goatee onto his
protruding gut. The ceiling fan above him worked hard, trying to cool down the
un-air-conditioned, Arizona shit-hole that smelled like armpits and rotting
cheese. A large bullet hole from Johnny’s warning shot sat two feet from the
clerk’s head, along with the standard wall of cigarettes and liquor bottles
acting as a reminder of the poor bastard’s purpose in life.
Johnny’s smirking mouth twitched
with excitement. He had a scary look in his eyes—a man possessed with rage.
Ash clung to him, her blond hair
draped over his shoulder. Her hand gently palmed his shaved head as she leaned
toward the side of his face.
She
whispered something in his ear.
Butterflies
sliced the inside of my stomach with razor wings. This wasn’t the way we did
things. We were escalating. Normally, I kept everyone cool, levelheaded. All
control had gone out the window.
Simple
Bob behind the counter sobbed, looking terrified. Part of me felt pity for the
guy, but it was too late to turn back. “I don’t wanna be a part of no trouble,
now,” he said. “Why don’t y’all take what ya need and go? Please, I got a
family.” He glared at Ash. Four kids.”
Johnny
cackled. “Family? You hear this guy, Sammy? He’s got a fuckin’ family.” Johnny
gestured toward me. “That’s my family over there. My little brother. I
practically raised the pecker. Parents were killed… come to think of it—by a
fat, drunk piece of shit like you. So don’t talk to me about family.”
I
glanced at the clock above the entrance—eight minutes had passed. “Johnny, come
on man.”
Ash
sneered at me. “Not now. This is grown up time. Go grab us some food or
something.” Her dismissive tone dug into my nerves.
About
the Author:
Andrew’s a horror fiction writer
who is also a massive fan of the genre. He’s been writing short stories and
working on his novel for over 5 years. He has several short stories published,
as well as some editing credits. He moderates a writing workshop in Phoenix, AZ
where he’s been exposed to many different forms of fiction, which have
broadened his influences. He aims to write stories that creep out his readers,
while offering well-developed, rich characters they can sink their teeth into.
He’s also a fan of experimenting with form and structure to create something
uniquely my own.
Andrew grew up on Long Island in
New York, and has lived in Arizona for the past 7 years. His professional
background is in psychology where he’s carved out a nice career for himself.
However, writing has always been his passion.
Currently, he’s hard at work,
developing additional content to publish. He hopes to find an audience that
loves the genre, and is up for a good scare.
Interview
Where are you from?
Where are you from?
I’m from Wantagh (Long Island) New York originally,
but I now I live in Phoenix, AZ (since 2007).
Tell us your latest news?
I’m a little new to all of this, so I don’t have
much in the way of news. The best I can do is tell you that there will be a
special edition of Victim Souls
produced that will contain the short story that inspired the concept behind the
novel.
When and why did you begin writing?
I’ve been intrigued by writing fiction since high
school. I dabbled a bit in college, and would often tell people it was a dream
of mine. However, it was just talk until I met my wife who pushed me to start
making that dream a reality. I’m a huge consumer of horror fiction (film and
written). As much as I love the genre, I’m often disappointed with the product,
or feel I could take the same premise and make it better. My goal is to create
content that will effectively scare, entertain, and/or incredibly disturb
people. I like the idea of putting something on the page that can get a
visceral reaction, which is the experience I had reading my favorite books.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I have trouble with this one. My family, friends,
and supporters will often correct me when I say, “I’m trying to become a
writer.” They tell me I already AM a writer. But I guess I don’t want to give
myself that title until I put something out there that enough people actually
read (whether they love it or hate it). I’m not entirely sure what defines
“enough people” for me, but I suppose I’ll know it when it happens.
What inspired you to write your first book?
I watched this short story episode of a horror
anthology where a killer trucker picks up a killer hitchhiker. I didn’t really
like the episode, but I LOVED the concept so I wrote this short story called Come and Play with a vaguely similar idea.
The story was well-received in my little writing community and got published in
our independent literary magazine. At the time, I was writing a different novel
that was a total mess. I was so inspired by this concept that I wrote a few
sample chapters and the story just blossomed from there. I still have 72,000
words of crap from the novel I was working on, sitting on my computer that I
may go back to someday.
Do you have a specific writing style?
Probably? I don’t really know how to answer this
one. I pretty much stay in the horror genre. Every piece I write, I attempt to
find a different angle or style, whether I accomplish this or not is another
question. Ultimately, I like to challenge myself by choosing a form that I may
not be comfortable with. For instance, the sequel to Victim Souls is going to be a completely different style of writing.
My goal with Victim Souls was
frenetic pacing with relentless action and tension. Whereas the sequel is going
to be much slower paced with a subtle building of tension in an attempt to
write something that will legitimately scare people. All that being said, I do
have a tendency to write exceptionally flawed protagonists with questionable
morals that drop a lot of F-bombs.
How did you come up with the title?
I was watching a movie called Absentia and there was a line in the movie about “Victim Souls.” I
immediately looked it up and it fit perfectly. I didn’t have a title at the
time so I threw it up there as the working title and it stuck.
Is there a message in your novel that you want
readers to grasp?
Nothing intentional. I’m sure that I infused some of
my personal beliefs and values in my characters, but I tried to stay away from
the allegorical stuff. If anything readers may pick up on some of my personal
challenges with faith, religion and being agnostic.
How much of the book is realistic?
I believe the characters themselves are very
realistic. There’s a lot of supernatural in this novel, but I tried to make my
characters interact with that world in a realistic way… if that even makes
sense. Ultimately, it’s not very realistic, but it’s based on a lot of
folklore.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events
in your own life?
Aside from a handful of interactions within the
book, it is largely a figment of my imagination. There is an interaction with a
librarian that I wrote in as an F-you to a bookstore employee who refused to
tell me where I could find books by Aleister Crowley. She tried to discourage
me from even looking and directed me to the bible.
What books have most influenced your life most?
Stephen King’s On
Writing was probably the most inspirational and helpful book I’ve ever read
about writing. It definitely shaped my writing practices in a big way.
Personality
Plus at Work by Florence Littauer was an amazing
book. I was running a psychiatric hospital at the time and my Medical Director
gave it to me. It was an amazing tool for learning how to work with and manage
different personalities. It shaped me as a leader and improved my personal
interactions as well.
Ghost
Story by Peter Straub and The Lost by Jack Ketchum both have elements and writing styles that
I found to be incredibly effective and have attempted to learn from.
If you had to choose, which writer would you
consider a mentor?
If I was going with the fantasy here, I’d probably
just shoot for the stars and say Stephen King. I know that’s a weak answer, but
how can I not go with King as a horror writer?
A more realistic answer: I know a lot of independent writers and there’s this one writer David Nicol. He’s Scottish, lives in Phoenix and writes a lot of humor and drama. He’s also the editor of Victim Souls. He’s probably the most talented writer I know. If you end up reading my book and think its crap, I’d suggest you check out his book Mac and June: Love in the Time of Oil to cleanse your palate. It’s truly a delightful book. David and I are in a writing workshop together and I get to hear a lot of his work in the conception phases. I’ve learned a lot from him and I’ve tried to emulate how he does dialogue and character development. He’s quite brilliant. And if I told him all this, or if he ever reads it, he’ll just laugh and say “Aw F--- off” in his wry Scottish accent.
A more realistic answer: I know a lot of independent writers and there’s this one writer David Nicol. He’s Scottish, lives in Phoenix and writes a lot of humor and drama. He’s also the editor of Victim Souls. He’s probably the most talented writer I know. If you end up reading my book and think its crap, I’d suggest you check out his book Mac and June: Love in the Time of Oil to cleanse your palate. It’s truly a delightful book. David and I are in a writing workshop together and I get to hear a lot of his work in the conception phases. I’ve learned a lot from him and I’ve tried to emulate how he does dialogue and character development. He’s quite brilliant. And if I told him all this, or if he ever reads it, he’ll just laugh and say “Aw F--- off” in his wry Scottish accent.
What book are you reading now?
I’m reading No
Dominion by Charlie Houston. It’s the second of a series. My wife read the
series and recommended it to me because it reminded her of my book. I’m
enjoying the series thus far.
Are there any new authors that have grasped your
interest?
I’d have to say Charlie Houston as of late because I
am rally digging his books. I also love Joe Hill (I know he’s not that new),
but I’m all in on him. I will read everything he puts out.
What are your current projects?
I’m currently working on the (sort of) sequel to
Victim Souls, which will be much more of a straight horror novel set in the
same world with the same characters. The tone and pacing will be much different
and the story will be in 3rd person this time.
I’m also working on putting out an anthology called
Room 427, which is a compilation of writers who each wrote a different story
that occurs in the same hotel room. Each writer left an object behind for the
next writer to use in his/her story. It was fun project and should be out in
the next few months.
What would you like my readers to know?
I guess I’d like them to know that Victim Souls is a really entertaining
book. I’m not going to act like I wrote something groundbreaking or promise the
greatest horror novel of all time, but I can promise those readers who give it
a chance that you will be thoroughly entertained. The book is fast paced,
there’s a lot of straight forward action, and relentless tension. And if you’re
not interested, then I’d like to thank you for taking the time to read this and
wish you well.
If you have additional questions for me feel free to
go to my website http://www.andrewterechwriting.com
and I’d be honored to answer them. Thank you for your time.
Twitter @AndrewTerech
Tour
giveaway
5 Special Editions only available
in print that contains the short story- open to US Shipping
The excerpt is riveting, can't wait to read the rest of the book.
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