‘Would you kill someone to survive?’ he asked.
‘It’s not survival when you’re already dead,’ she replied.
Paranormal Surveyance Ireland – PSI – are on the hunt for ghosts. When The Merrion Hub, a fancy new start-up, is gripped by strange and disturbing happenings, the owners ask Archer and his team to investigate.
The gang are determined to prove to the world that ghosts are real, but tensions are running high: Éabha clashes with Raven over her new clairvoyancy gift, Fionn feels isolated by the team and Davis is frustrated by the journalist who’s determined to expose them as frauds.
None of that matters when there’s a startling disappearance. Can PSI remember how to work together in time to save their friend from a horrific fate?
Amy's second book has just been released! Her first one came out last year and she was kind enough to visit us to talk about it. And now she's back to talk about her second!
Hi Amy! Welcome back to the blog. Thanks so much for visiting us again!
Thank you so much for having me, it’s wonderful to be back!
* What's changed for you since you were here last?
Honestly, the last year has very much been PSI focused, so in some ways not a lot has changed. But then I also wrote a second book since we last chatted! Moving from being a debut to sophomore writer was a bit daunting, because I felt like I should know what I was doing when I, in fact, have no idea what I’m doing. I started with a blank page in May 2023 and we went to production in January ‘24 so it was all a bit of whirlwind. But getting to see What Walks These Halls out in the world while working on Who Watches This Place was a big — and brilliant — shift.
* And what's changed for PSI in that time?
Ooooh a lot in a short space of time. Who Watches This Place takes place a few months after What Walks These Halls, and they’re all very much still reeling from the aftermath of those events. Raven and Éabha are butting heads over clairvoyancy, Davis is obsessed with making parapsychology a recognised field of research, and Fionn is feeling left out. There’s a lot of emotions going around.
* There are several proper "Whoa!" moments in the book. Did you plan them out ahead of time, or were you surprised as you wrote?
It was a mix really – there were a few moments I knew I was working towards from the very beginning and that I was building up to as I wrote, and then there were a couple of others where I was writing going WHAT IS HAPPENING? which was fun. It’s nice to have some surprises along the way.
* What was your favourite part to write? Least favourite?
There’s an emotional Cordelia/Raven scene towards the end of the book that I really loved writing, and a bit with Éabha (that I can’t spoil but I personally think is one of the spookiest scenes in the book) that I had so much fun with. I think my least favourite, purely because I felt so bad about it, was the Archer/Fionn argument – I really love my characters and feeling Fionn’s hurt was genuinely devastating (and yes I am aware I was the one doing this to them!).
* If you could write anything, in any genre, no matter how far fetched, for your next novel, what would it be?
Definitely a fantasy with queer pirates, mythical creatures, and utter chaos.
* And finally, since we've already done the Muppet question - what's the cartoon or TV show from your childhood that we just don't get shows like any more? What's today's youth missing out on?
Probably not a surprising answer from a Horror writer but Are You Afraid of the Dark? was a show I loved as a kid. I feel like it was a good entry level into spooky stories (and I really think every single person who watched it has one episode that has stuck with them to this day!). I could be wrong but I can’t think of any current children’s shows with a similar vibe – it seems like there’s not a lot of mainstream horror shows for kids anymore. I could be wrong though, so if anyone knows of any contemporary shows like it please do correct me!
It's a few years old (::checks dates::) er, yes, just a few years, but you might like William Shatner's A Twist in the Tale; William Shatner tells a spooky or strange story to some New Zealand child actors who then appear in it. And, oddly, there's usually some kind of twist! It's kind of fun!
Who Watches this Place is available now! Don't forget to check out the rest of the stops on the blog tour.
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