Monday, October 5, 2015

Special Levels of Earthly Hell by Merry Freer Interview


Special Levels of Earthly Hell
An Atheist's Experience with Demonic Possession
Merry Freer                           

Genre: Paranormal, Occult,
Horror, True crime
         
Date of Publication: July 3, 2015

ASIN: B010YBFKH2

Number of pages: 244
Word Count: 82,000

Cover Artist: Kalen O’Donnell

Book Description:

Drew Collins is an atheist who experiences the world in black and white. As an educated man of science, he rejects belief in the paranormal and the existence of demons. Until an energy he calls "The Beast" takes possession of his wife.

What he witnesses at night in his own bedroom cannot be reconciled with science. And yet he sees it with his own eyes, feels its presence, ominous and evil, with his entire being.

Against every instinct, Drew reaches out for help. It is not just his marriage that’s at stake. The evil force has permeated his wife's family, tearing them apart and culminating in bloodshed and murder. Drew must face a stark choice: sacrifice his beliefs and fight an entity he doesn’t understand and is reluctant to label, or abandon his wife and her family.


Available at Amazon

Excerpt:

The most difficult battle is with an enemy you can’t identify.
“This is what I’ve learned about The Beast,” Laura said. “It doesn’t exist in our plane of existence. It has no physical form. Use that fact to your advantage. It gains power from negative energy. Remove your negative energy and replace it with positive energy. Be its opposite. It’s the only way to fight evil.”
Spending his lunch hours receiving an intense and personalized lesson on the finer points of demonic shielding, as well as an education on the various cultural ideologies of good and evil, was the last place Drew Collins expected to find himself in his five-year plan. His plan was loose and flexible, but he was certain it included love. He even had a vision about it before he left on his dream adventure, traveling through Mexico after he graduated from the University of California at Santa Barbara with a degree in Bio-Psychology. He dreamed he was destined to go to Mexico to bring something back. What he returned with was better than his wildest dream and worse than his most horrific nightmare.


About the Author:

Merry Freer is an author of memoir and fact-based fiction. She is a native of San Diego, where she lives surrounded by a large, eclectic family and a treasured handful of truly close friends. While "Doctor, Doctor" is her debut novel, she has been a writer and editor for many years, including work with the San Diego Chargers and the San Diego Hall of Champions. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism from San Diego State University and has been a featured speaker for classes dealing with medical ethics.

Her controversial memoir, "Doctor, Doctor," topped the Best Seller List in True Crime/White Collar Crime for 10 months and received a "Best Books of 2014" award from "Suspense Magazine."

Interview
Where are you from?
          San Diego, California – a native
Tell us your latest news?
          My mind is swirling with ideas for a sequel to “Special Levels of Earthly Hell.” Readers are requesting one because they didn’t want the first book to end. A second book would have to come purely from my imagination, though.
When and why did you begin writing?
          I can’t remember ever not writing. I guess you could say it’s in my blood because whenever a strong idea, emotion, dream (fill in the blank) jolts me, the first thing I want is a pen and paper.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
          My second year of college. I still didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life and I needed a major. I scoured the blue book of “things you could get a degree in” and found Journalism. I couldn’t believe the university would give you a degree for asking people questions and writing down their answers. I got that degree and spent my entire career being a writer. It wasn’t until I wrote my first book that I consider myself an author.
What inspired you to write your first book?
          My first book was a memoir – 100% factual.  Not really a surprise when you consider that my training was as a journalist. It was an account of a three year period in my life that was quite astonishing. I kept the story inside for 25 years while my friends and family hounded me to write about it, so I guess you would say I wasn’t really inspired so much as hounded. When that book was successful beyond my dreams, I realized how much I enjoyed writing creatively. That’s what inspired me to write my second book.


Do you have a specific writing style?
          I’m told I write like a journalist. Give me the facts and I’ll write them down in an interesting manner. I had to learn to build characters and describe settings.
How did you come up with the title?
          The title is taken from a line in my first book that I really liked and that readers apparently liked because it was listed in my Kindle as a frequently bookmarked sentence. In the first book there is a special level of earthly hell that is inhabited by persons who have been cheated on by a loved one. In my new book, “Special Levels of Earthly Hell” refers to the agonizing series of events the characters endure, each one more agonizing than the next.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
          Yes! This novel was not written for shock value. It simply happens to be shocking. As the greater part of the novel is either true or inspired by true events, it wasn’t written as a horror story. It is as much a story about romance, cultural barriers and differences, abuse and family issues, and the struggle of a confirmed atheist who is confronted by the demonic possession of his wife.
How much of the book is realistic?
          If you are willing to acknowledge the possibility of a demon or an evil presence taking possession of an atheist’s wife, the rest of the book is not only realistic, but the most shocking and horrifying events are true. Google them.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
          Yes, but their names have been changed. I am related to many of them through blood or marriage.
What books have most influenced your life most?
          “Seat of the Soul” by Gary Zukav and “Conversations with God” by Neale Donald Walsch. Seems counter to what I’ve been writing, but I consider it a yin-yang thing – I need balance.

If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
          I have a mentor who IS a writer.  Her name is T. Greenwood and she has traditionally published nine books. She was my first editor and cheerleader and she writes incredibly compelling novels.
What book are you reading now?
          I’m  reading “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle.
 Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?
          It’s a different genre, but I really enjoyed Michelle Gable’s first book “A Paris Apartment.” I also thoroughly enjoyed reading  my critique partner’s book, “Evanthia’s Gift,” a multi-generational, multi-cultural love story set between Greece and New York. I’m not a fan of the romance genre, but this one grabbed me.
What are your current projects?
          Decompressing from the heaviness of spending every waking hour with a book like Special Levels. I’m playing with my family and trying to keep my mind clear (but those devilish ideas for another book keep trying to creep in).
What would you like my readers to know?
          I would like your readers to know that I write what I know. While some of the story lines in this book were written to glue it together, the horrific events, the misuse of power over children, the murders, and the demonic possession are all true. I wasn’t present for most of it, but I know the persons involved and I know the bones of this story. Some of the details of specific events were provided for me. A very small portion was invented – just to hold the story together and spice it up. If you want to know which is which, e-mail me.  merryfreer@gmail.com


Twitter:   @MFreerWriter








No comments:

Post a Comment