Horror
Date Published: 06-10-2023
Publisher: Shadow Spark Publishing
Reece Rokowski never wanted to be a hero. A dedicated cop and stickler for law and order, Reece’s life is anything but orderly. His wife split, his gambling debts spiraled, and his past trauma haunts him.
Drowning his sorrows at a local watering hole, Reece meets Queenie, a woman too good to be true. He could tell Queenie anything, perhaps too much. On his way home, Reece stumbles upon a John Doe nearly sucked dry of blood and becomes the prime suspect.
As Reece defies his superiors and investigates, he encounters the Legion of the Lamb, a monster-hunting biker gang looking into the same case. Teaming up with the Legion, Reece discovers gaps of missed time, a hulking stranger pursuing him from the shadows, and a secret vampire coven. When the bloodsuckers capture Queenie, it's up to Reece and the Legion to save her before the Regens Noctis – the true ruler of the night – plunges the city into an orgy of blood.
Interview with Eric Avedissian
How many books have you written and which is your favorite?
Midnight at Bat Hollow is my third book. Previously I wrote Gargoyles & Absinthe, a steampunk YA novella and Accursed Son, an urban fantasy/horror novel. If I had to pick a favorite, I’d say Accursed Son. There’s so much personal history in those pages. I wanted to explore the Armenian culture through its ancient pre-Christian mythology and folklore. It’s also a book about grappling with an ethnic identity and the conflict over traditions, two themes I wanted to explore in fiction.
If you’re planning a sequel, can you share a tiny bit about your plans for it?
Midnight at Bat Hollow is a sorta prequel to Accursed Son. It’s the origin story of Reece Rokowski, a minor character in Accursed Son. In Accursed Son, we learn that Reece was once a cop in Modesto who joined the Legion of the Lamb after some dubious events. Midnight at Bat Hollow chronicles those dubious events.
I’m currently writing a sequel to Accursed Son, which is book one of the Martyr’s Vow series. The second book will be released this December and concentrate on the protagonist of Accursed Son, Armand Tarkanian.
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
The Martyr’s Vow series tells the story of Armand Tarkanian, from his humble beginnings as an embalmer, to his transformation into a monster hunter for the Legion of the Lamb, a biker gang tasked with destroying various supernatural threats. I’d like to expand the universe I’ve created with books like Midnight at Bat Hollow, which don’t include Armand but define more of the world and people around him. Midnight is not in the Martyr’s Vow series but a supplement to it.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
I’ve always had this idea for Bat Hollow as an ominous place, one where the veil between worlds is thin and supernatural entities come out and play. Not to spoil the book, but Bat Hollow makes an appearance. It’s where bad things happen to the heroes and where many other unfortunates met their collective doom, so it was a blast to describe and write about. The cover is purposefully designed with wrinkles to resemble a battered, aged horror novel. I wanted it to look like a well-worn book you find in the attic.
How long did it take you to write this book?
Elements of Midnight have been kicking around my brain for years until Accursed Son was published. I decided maybe following Reece would be fun. He’s loud, he’s obnoxious, he’s into martial arts. He’s an ex-cop with a grudge. Where did this dude really come from? Why is he the way he is in Accursed Son? It took me two months to write the first draft and six months of working with an editor. This book nearly broke me and almost shattered my spirit. As a writer, I pushed myself too hard writing this. There were missed deadlines, rewrites, and self-doubt galore. Fortunately, it all worked out.
What does the title mean?
Even though Midnight at Bat Hollow isn’t a Western, I wanted the title to reflect that genre. The novel contains elements from Westerns: people keep calling Reece a “cowboy”, there’s a stuffed horse toy that figures into the plot, and Reece uses a revolver instead of an automatic pistol during the final showdown. Midnight at Bat Hollow plays with the idea that something sinister is going down at Bat Hollow. It’s the cowboy myth with cops and vampires.
What did you learn when writing the book?
I learned about the daily workings of a police department and how the police do their jobs. I know the thin blue line stuff is controversial with some people, but I wanted to show the daily activities of law enforcement. Police see the worst of humanity every day, so it’s easy to become jaded and cynical. Some scars run really deep. I wanted the balance between the traumatic world police officers experience and the cop culture that dominates the media’s attention. Reece is thrown into a situation where he’s celebrated for making an arrest that later turns out to be excessive after he’s caught on video. His senior officers rebuke him, and launch an internal investigation into his questionable personal activities. Reece is also dealing with trauma from his past and the suspicious death of a respected colleague. So he’s not in the best place when the book begins.
What surprised you the most?
I’m surprised at how characters you think you know because you created them can take on a life of their own. The first draft I wrote Reece as a stereotypical, over-the-top 1980s movie cop. He joked too much, came off as boorish, and was terribly cliché. In short, First Draft Reece was a jerk. My editor said she couldn’t connect with First Draft Reece, so I changed him. I made Reece vulnerable. I gave him a few weaknesses and altered his personality to where he’s relatable and sympathetic. Characters continue surprising me because now Reece’s motivations are different and how he views others and himself have radically changed for the better. My editor liked the changes, and she normally doesn’t like police procedurals, but she told me, “You made me really care about this guy.” That’s a damn fine compliment for any writer!
Have you ever killed off a character your readers loved?
Spoilers! I’ve got an epic death scene planned for book four of the Martyr’s Vow series where one of my favorite characters dies.
What do you do to get inside your character’s heads?
I outline the background for each major character: who they are, what they look like, their family and history. Then I go deeper into their psychology: What are their goals and ambitions? Fears? Secrets? What’s their relationship to power? Have they lost anyone close to them? Do they have any mental or physical disabilities? Any special person who loves them or cares about them? What’s keeping them from achieving their goals? Once I figure out these things, I can begin to understand and develop my characters to a point where I’m effortlessly imagining them talk and act. Something miraculous happens when you conjure up a character; they start telling you the story and you chronicle their adventures. Some of those journeys are pleasant, while others are deeply disturbing. Nobody said writing would be easy.
About the Author
Eric Avedissian is an adjunct professor and speculative fiction author. His published work includes the novel Accursed Son and the role-playing game Ravaged Earth. His short stories appear in various anthologies, including Across the Universe, Great Wars, and Rituals & Grimoires. He lives in New Jersey with his wife and a ridiculous number of books. When not chained to his writing desk, he hikes the Pinelands and wastes too much time on social media. Visit him online at www.ericavedissian.com.
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