In Which I Play Tag

Bernie Mojzes tagged me and now I must write a post about my WIP - which is almost finished. Praise (insert here whichever deity or random object you worship) chocolate. I miss blogging. I miss having the time to catch up with blogs and twitter. I don't twitter as much as I used to. You may have noticed. Or not. I hope you haven't because that means a) I've got away with being semi-silent, and b) you're not stalking me; but it also means a) no one notices me, and b) darn, you're not stalking me.

Oh, and my WIP is a novella rather than a novel but I will start working on a novel again soon, I promise, maybe, no I definitely will. Sorry, the angel and the demon on my shoulders are having an argument (at least they're not chips). I just have one more project to work on (about 20,000 words long) and then I can write three books at once (two middle grades and one adult) because that is so happening.

What is the title of your book?

The Bureau of Them.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

The story was born of numerous places. Firstly, I fell in love with the Katy Perry song 'The One That Got Away' (check it out and try not to sniffle) and wanted to write a story about lost love.  Secondly, there is an old building that I pass on the way home from work. It's empty, it's ugly (1960s or 1970s), the windows are covered in grime and in that grime people have written messages - some obscene some the general x loves y. I realised one of my characters was trapped within the building. Thirdly, I pulled a page out of a catalogue (Urban Outfitters or something similar) that had pictures of objects - a metallic owl, blocks, a tape measure and other stuff, and wanted to include them in a story. Thus, The Bureau of Them was born.

What genre does your book fall under?

Horror. It's a ghost story.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Ooh, I've never considered who could play Katy and Glynn. Now I must think (cogs turn, cogs rusty). My knowledge of the current crop of young actors is rather limited so I'm going to pretend it’s the 1980s and cast Jami Gertz as Katy and Judd Nelson as Glynn. Jack Nicholson can play the twisted leader of the ghosts, Yarker Ryland.

What is a one-sentence synopsis of the book?

Evil question - I should just delete it but…

Ghosts watch from behind the windows of the abandoned building, waiting to destroy those who once loved them.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Neither. As it's a novella, I'll be sending it to publishers myself. Beware, the ghosts could land in your inbox soon (although, probably not as I suspect you're not an editor and if you are an editor, 'hey, you're looking good today' and please do not judge me on this sentence).

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

I can't remember. About a month. I could check in my writing diary but that would require effort. It's Monday. I don't do effort on a Monday.

What other books would you compare this story to in your genre?

Oh… Erm… I'm not certain I can.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

A little metallic owl.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

It's set in the streets I grew up in and I've kept some of the buildings from that era (although they're long gone) and moved them to a modern setting. I guess that would only interest the reader though if they were interested in stalking 'little me' and that's just odd or if they grew up in those same streets. Sheil Road Flats and Boaler Street school anyone? Anyone? Okay, shall have to think of something else to pique the reader's interest…

Well there is a little metallic owl if you're into owls and a broken butterfly pin if you're into butterflies or pins. If you like having your heart broken, then this is a tale of lost love that is determined to remain lost. These are ghosts who have forgotten who they were and do not recognise what was once dear to them; all they know is that they no longer exist and thus believe the places they haunted in life should disappear too. They are destroying the world and in doing so, Glynn is also destroying Katy.

Now, I'm supposed to tag five people. Of course, I don’t expect you to play along but as I'm falling behind on my blog reading and not up to date on what everyone is writing I'm going to choose some folk in the hope that I'll find out what their current WIP is the lazy way.

Kate Shaw

Katey Taylor

Aaron Polson

Mary Rajotte

Deborah Walker