Welcome, Shani!
What prompted you to first start writing? What was the first thing you
wrote?
I’ve always written and became a freelance
copywriter for the travel industry two years after leaving university – a job I
still do. The first novel, however, was around four years ago and it was a
romance called The Runaway Year, about three friends and their varied love
lives set in the stunning surrounds of North Cornwall. Much to my surprise I
got several offers of publication for that book and added a second to it, The
Runaway Ex and a third, The Return. And then… I changed tack completely! I
loved writing romance but my heart has always belonged to the paranormal and
so, two years ago, I penned Psychic Surveys Book One: The Haunting of Highdown
Hall, which become an Amazon bestseller!
Can you summarise your latest work in just a few words?
44
Gilmore Street is the third book in a series of six concerning high street
consultancy, Psychic Surveys, who specialise in domestic spiritual cleansing. Having
problems of a ghostly nature in your house? It’s this team of freelance
psychics, spearheaded by Ruby Davis you’re going to want to call! Rather than
horror, each one is a paranormal mystery but the books do get darker.
What was the inspiration for this book?
A
real-life business idea! My husband Rob is a Structural Engineer and on
occasion, when called out to survey houses that people are moving into, he’s
been asked by the client ‘do you think this house is okay, you know, you don’t
think it’s haunted or anything?’ One day he replied that he did think the house he was surveying was
haunted; there was a really bad feeling in one of the bedrooms. The client
thought so too and was worried by it. When they moved in her son was supposed
to sleep in that room but he refused.
Calling Rob back to do some more work,
she mentioned it to him and, it just so happens, that my mother has undertaken
spiritual cleansing of rooms utilising purely holistic methods (ie Reiki and
crystals). Rob offered her services, the woman accepted and Mum and her friend
went along to tune-in. They got the impression someone had died there and
carried out the usual psychic cleansing routine and all was well after that,
the boy slept happily in his new room. Intrigued, the owner delved deeper into
the history of the house and sadly, there had been a suicide there with negative
residue perhaps lingering.
Regarding making it a real business, it’s an ethical
minefield, so I’ve taken the idea and reworked it in fiction instead!
Did you do any research for the book?
I
know lots about the psychic world because of Mum; she’s had a life-long
interest in it so I’ve been brought up with her talking about it. As a result,
I see the paranormal as something completely normal, after all, why shouldn’t a
spiritual world exist alongside our material one? It just makes sense to me.
But yes, I do research as well, usually pointed in the right direction by Mum!
Do you plot your novels in advance, or allow them to develop as you
write?
I have tried to plot them in advance but it just
doesn’t work for me – the characters take on a life of their own and, in the
end, write the novel for me. Trusting in them and the muse, I let them get on
with it! Sometimes I do wish I could plot a bit more, it agitates me sometimes
not knowing where it’s going but then it’s exciting too!
Which writers have influenced your own writing?
Just
lately, Shirley Jackson who wrote The Haunting of Hill House – that book is a
real lesson is less is more. Whilst writing Book One of my new series – This
Haunted World Book One: The Venetian – I really tried to employ that ethos. I
also love Susan Hill’s paranormal novellas, particularly The Woman in Black.
What can we expect
from you in the future?
There’ll be three more in the Psychic Surveys series, another Christmas
ghost novella and the launch of This Haunted World Book One: The Venetian,
which is the first in a series of standalone novels set in and around the
world’s most haunted places and mixing fact with fiction. The Venetian is set between
Venice and Poveglia, the latter the ‘world’s most haunted island’.
More about 44 Gilmore Street:
“We all
have to face our demons at some point.”
Psychic Surveys – specialists in domestic spiritual clearance –
have never been busier. Although exhausted, Ruby is pleased. Her track record
as well as her down-to-earth, no-nonsense approach inspires faith in the
haunted, who willingly call on her high street consultancy when the
supernatural takes hold.
But that’s all about to change.
Two cases prove trying: 44 Gilmore Street, home to a
particularly violent spirit, and the reincarnation case of Elisha Grey. When
Gilmore Street attracts press attention, matters quickly deteriorate. Dubbed
the ‘New Enfield’, the ‘Ghost of Gilmore Street’ inflames public imagination,
but as Ruby and the team fail repeatedly to evict the entity, faith in them
wavers.
Dealing with negative press, the strangeness surrounding Elisha,
and a spirit that’s becoming increasingly territorial, Ruby’s at breaking
point. So much is pushing her towards the abyss, not least her own past. It
seems some demons just won’t let go…
Psychic Surveys Book
Three: 44 Gilmore Street
More about Shani:
I
write ghost stories – vampires, werewolves and shape shifters need not apply!
Influences include the great Shirley Jackson, Anne Rice, Stephen King and Dean
Koontz. I’m also a mum of three children, and live in the funky city of
Brighton with them, my husband and four mad cats. I’ve always loved reading and
writing but occasionally I venture outdoors on sunny days and walk in the
stunning green downs that surround us. Other pastimes include hanging out with
friends and just having fun – life’s too short not to.
Social Media Links
Facebook Author Page: http://tinyurl.com/p9yggq9
Twitter: https://twitter.com/shani_struthers
Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/mq25mav
Website: http://www.shanistruthers.com