(This is a mock up cover I created and is not anything of...

(This is a mock up cover I created and is not anything official.  Just something I always do when I start a new writing project to get my creative mojo flowing.)
THE NEXT BIG “ERBAL” THING BLOG HOP: The YA EDITION.

Greetings mighty readers! I am here to share with you my second go-around of the Next Big Thing Hop. This time it's all about my first foray into the exciting, challenging world of Young Adult fiction.

I had the honor of being tagged for this nifty blog hop deal by my favorite Canadian writer and almost neighbor and one helluva guy, Sir Gord Rollo. If you haven't read any of the man's work, first, palm plant your forehead twenty-two times (how many is that in Canadian?) then, head on over to Mr. Rollo's website and check him out and buy some of his killer work!http://gordrollo.com/
My current WIP is a YA novel, with plans to write two more. I'm getting ahead of myself (again)Here we go again my friends.
This WIP is a true work in progress. (the last one was in the hands of beta-readers and in the middle of my own edits.) this baby is as fresh a the new-fallen snow.
Without further ado, let's jump into the world of THE NIGHT EATERS- Book One of the After School Monster Hunter Club.


What is the working title of your book?
The title THE NIGHT EATERS. It's book one out of three. (maybe four.)

Where did the idea come from for the book?
The story has some basis in truth. Not that much, really. Just enough to kick my Muse into gear. I wanted to do an updated and Erbal version of Scooby Do, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Monster Squad, but with more meat and less cheesiness. (although, I can never avoid infusing humor into my stories.)
So, the long and longer of it is, I was driving through my small hometown and went passed this old cold-storage building and I thought, “I could so, see some teenagers getting into some serious trouble in there!” and pulled over with the rough idea.

What genre does your book fall under?
Young Adult suspense, mystery, horror. I think I've covered most of the bases there. As with every story I write, by their very nature, they seem to breech genre boundaries and blend together into a pretty eclectic stew. I'm truly excited to see how this recipe turns out.


Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
Ah, the cast? Hmmm. That's one of my favorite steps in starting a new book. With this one, it's a bit more difficult because of the number of teenage characters. This will be an ongoing process. So, for the sake of this blog post. I will leave it as a WIP.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
When pets and students go missing in the small lakeside town of Shoalewater cove go missing, teenager Bernie Billings and his friends band together to solve the mystery of the Night Eaters.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
This project is all about going big, or going home. My HWA Mentor and friend, Jonathan Maberry (yes, shameless namedrop.. so what?) told me this was the story to write. So I am . My goal is to make this a kick butt book and get it into the hands of an agent and then onto the Big Guys. I am hoping this is the “one”.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
I'm in the throws of it right now. To be honest, it's been a rough go of it. Writing YA is a totally different bird than the normal stuff I write. So it's taking me a bit to get my YA legs under me. I'm getting there though and really loving it. I guess you can't keep the inner thirteen year old down, too long. I'm shooting to have the first draft done by St. Patricks Day, if not before. The holidays always throws my game off. But I really want to see how this story turns out.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Closed for the Season by, would be a good one. I'm drawing a lot of inspiration from R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series, which my daughter gobbled up in droves as a young'n. I'm relatively new to the YA genre and I am thoroughly enjoying exploring the great number of books out there.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?
It was a series of things. The “Who” part would be writers such as, Stephen King (The Body), Robert McGammon(A Boy's Life) and Jonathan Maberry (the Rot and Ruin series.) Those dudes know what to tell a tale. As far as what goes? I would say, the need to explore that world. I've done zombies, vampires, psychotic killers. It was time I jumped into a new realm and see what happens when teenagers get a hold of a book they shouldn’t read from and all hell breaks loose when they do. I also have been very concerned with the rise of bullying in our schools and our society for that matter. Being someone who had to deal with his own fair share of it back in school, I was familiar with the struggle and the pain of dealing with it. So, I wanted to tie in this issue with a really fun, dark story. I think it's working swimmingly, so far.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
I knew when I started to flesh the story concept out, that I would need to make it more than just another “kids find monsters in their small town and have to defeat them before they miss recess, kind of thing. So I mulled it over for a while and out of the blue, my Muse cleared her throat (yes, she is a she.) and tapped me on the shoulder with a shovel and gave me the most amazing solution I could have dreamed of. I won't share it now because well... then it wouldn’t be surprise now would it?
I'll say that it's the hook that would tie the all the books together and make the reader extremely happy that they decided to buy the book and join me on my adventure.

And now, I give you these amazing friends and writers to explore and support! You will dig them. I promise. Give them much Erbal love!

Brady Allen: http://www.bradyallen.com/Ben Eads: http://beneadsfiction.com/Kurt Criscione:http://kurtmcriscione.macabreink.com/