Horror Aficionados discussion
Group Reads: Guest Author Invite
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March 2020 Group Read #2 with Guest Author, Shannon Felton
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Hi guys! Can't wait to read along and get to know you all better. Thank you so much for having me!
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Kenneth wrote: "Shannon. This was your debut story and first submission. How long did it take you to write Prisoners and how did the whole process come about?"Prisoners took around seven months to write. The setting was immediate but it took some time to figure out what the story should be and who would tell it. The first month or two I struggled finding the right opening and the right voice, but once I put the two boys in the basement things really started to flow. The ending came to me after the first few chapters and after that I just had to puzzle together how the main character would get from point A to point Z.
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With Prisoners being my first novella, I pretty much tried everything at the start! I have pages filled with twenty-four plot point outlines, three act structures, the archetypal quest, and then also multiple files of free writing drafts as I tried to "pants" my way to a story. What wound up working best for me was starting with the end. Knowing the ending, I quickly outlined a few landmark things that needed to happen to get me there, and from then on the writing process really became a matter of just working my way forward to each of those signposts. Though there were still some surprises along the way!
Another thing that helped was knowing my theme. I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say that the theme of Prisoners was prison, and keeping that in mind I was able to move from one scene into the next in a way that still made sense for the overall story. For example, if a character needed to behave in a certain landmark way to achieve the ending I wanted, I used the theme to help me figure out what his specific motivation would be for doing so.
So short answer, I prefer working with a planned ending and theme to keep from getting lost in the weeds while I discover the story.
Hi Shannon. I read your novella this afternoon and thought it was pretty well written. It was well paced, I was able to finish it in about two hours. I like that this was not a typical horror story but the build up of the unknown, the possibility of a demonic entity, certainly added to the horror feel of the story. While the horror element is certainly there, there is so much more to the story. Intrigue and suspense, sadness for the main character and his struggles. We can feel him battling his own Inner demons as the story grows more intense. He’s relatable and I found myself rooting for him to overcome the horror that was coming. This reads and feels like it could be aimed at the YA audience as well as a full blown adult horror story.
Were you aiming for a crossover feel between genres and/or ages or did that just happen during the natural progression of the story ? I feel like mature teens, young adults and adults of all ages would enjoy this story and it’s unpredictable outcome. It does not seem to be written to appeal to just one market demographic.
I’m curious because that is how my first novel was written but it was not done so without any intent in the beginning. I did not have a demographic in mind when I wrote “Breach” but have since found that it has appealed to multiple readers across all ages and genres.
Thank you so much for joining us here for the discussion. It’s always such a great experience to be able to interact with the authors. I look forward to reading more of your stories.
Hi, Candace. Thank you so much for reading!I guess like you, I didn't intentionally set out to write for any specific age group, though I think Prisoners could definitely be enjoyed by older teens on up. While I never directly stated what year the story was taking place in, I did make a lot of references to the Nineties—Charlie's age as a Vietnam vet, Walkmans, the felt covered answering machine—so there was certainly a hope that people in my age group would read this and relate to what it was like growing up in that era, but that it would still feel relevant to younger readers as well.
As far as genre goes, I wanted Prisoners to be a classic, creepy horror story but also feature the mundane horrors of poverty, addiction, and abuse. Though, at one point while working on this, I realized it would've been much easier to start with a quiet, peaceful town that slowly descends into darkness, rather than starting with a town that's already pretty dark on it's own!
Thanks Shannon. I think you did a great job with the town setting. Sometimes when it already is bleak and dark, the town can take on a persona of its own, which only adds to the creepy tone of the story. I think you took the right approach for this story. It lended a nice darkness to an even darker situation. Maybe the next novel, you can take a perfect town and let us watch its slow descent into hell. : )
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Candace wrote: "Thanks Shannon. I think you did a great job with the town setting. Sometimes when it already is bleak and dark, the town can take on a persona of its own, which only adds to the creepy tone of the ..."Thanks! You're right, it wouldn't have worked any other way with the persona I wanted to create. We'll see what I can whip up next time! :)
Kimberly wrote: "I finished this last night. I loved the way you set the town up--again, the first few lines keep coming back to me! The atmosphere was easy to get sucked into, as you could so clearly see how thing..."Thank you, Kimberly. I'm glad you enjoyed it!
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This is definitely one I'll need to add on my physical shelves!
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This is definitely one I'll need to add on my physical shelves!
Hi Shannon. I really enjoyed your book, a very pacy read which just zipped along.Having created such a convincing setting as Stewartville, do you think you will write anything else set in that town? King has Castle Rock. You have shown a darkness hovers over Stewartville and you've painted a fantastic backdrop in terms of the landscape, I would guess this is something you could really exploit in future stories.
Hi Stephanie, thank you. I've definitely thought about returning to Stewartville! I wouldn't write a sequel, I don't think, but I could see using the town as the setting for a few other stories. The character in DEVIL'S DIP is from Stewartville, actually.
Dear Shannon -As soon as I read the 1st chapter, where the mom mentions 'I'll take away your SEGA system" as a punishment, this signified to me that it was a story set in the mid-90's, a time period I love and write about myself, so I was ALL IN!
Yours,
Jen from Quebec :0)
I'm glad you picked up on that, Jen! I love that period so I'll have to check out some of your stuff. Thanks! :)
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Thanks, Kimberly! This has definitely helped push me in that direction. Sorry it took a few days to reply, these are crazy times. Hope everyone at HA is taking care and doing well!
Shannon, this was a very enjoyable read. The sense of place was vivid and well-done; really created a feeling of desperation for the people who lived there. And I liked the ambiguity and fluidity between the villainy of the supernatural vs. the villainy of addiction and poverty. It would indeed be great to see Stewartville revisited. Thanks so much for joining us!
https://www.amazon.com/Prisoners-Stew...