I left the United States to find inner peace. Instead, I find myself confronting a malicious ghost.
Welcome to one of the September 20th stops on the blog tour for Bly by Kelsey Ketch with Lola’s Blog Tours. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, author guest posts, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.
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Author Guest Post
The Inspirations and Research That Goes into Writing Paranormal
Though I integrate bits of my own knowledge and experiences in all my novels, I conduct in depth research for nearly every aspect of my writing. From character backgrounds, to settings, to physical descriptions, to types of magical powers; most of my inspiration comes from either researching online, reviewing maps, reading a non-fiction book, attending a course lecture, viewing a documentary, or visiting a historical or haunted location. I put my heart and soul into research to provide readers a unique and realistic experience.
For specifically writing paranormal, I look at three different perspectives: cultural, historical, and scientific. Culture is by far the most extensive of this research. I usually start by reading all different types of folklore and mythology from around the world, then narrow down my topics. For Bly, much of my inspiration was sparked from traditional ghost stories, particularly those that originated from the UK. But with the main character coming from the southeastern United States, I also combined several beliefs and works from Conjure, an African American-based magical practice.
History is another primary resource for my work. As part of my research into the paranormal, I turn to actual people/events that are similar to their paranormal counterparts in my novels. Some great examples would be Countess Elizabeth Báthory de Ecsed and Vlad III, both of whom exhibited vampiric behaviors. However, a person/event doesn’t have to be historical to spark inspiration. Like the murder-suicide that occurred in New Orleans back in 2006. While watching a documentary about the case, an interviewee indicated that they believed the man involved was possessed by the spirits. Whether this was the case or not, the interviewee’s perspective inspired me to investigate the stages of spiritual possession.
Being a biologist, I also enjoy analyzing the paranormal from a scientific perspective. There are two lenses I look through when doing my research. The first is the skeptic: what natural event could possibly explain the paranormal event? Could it be natural gas or a disease? Even Astyr in Bly first asks Mr. Hellings if anything natural could explain the strange behavior people were describing, before fully concluding it is indeed a haunting or possession. The second lens is through a biological aspect, particularly when writing mythological creatures: what biological requirements/adaptations would the species need to survive in the world I’m creating? Though I believe in the unexplained, I feel my biological background gives me a unique view of the paranormal world.
It’s a bit of a complicated process. Most often, I must be careful not to get caught up in the minor details, otherwise I can cause my own writer’s block. But through every novel, I learn something different, discover something new, and grow a little, myself. Each of the resources I use as a reference for building my fantasy, paranormal, or science fiction world are listed in the acknowledgements of each novel I write.
About the Author
Bly
by Kelsey Ketch
Publishing 22 September 2021
Genre: NA Paranormal Fantasy
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I left the United States to find inner peace. Instead, I find myself confronting a malicious ghost.
Astyr Salt is a spiritual and emotional empath who moved to England with the intent to forget about a traumatic, supernatural event that occurred during her freshman year of college. However, when she takes a spiritual cleansing assignment in a haunted country home in Essex, she is isolated with all her own pent-up emotions.
These emotions energize the ghosts inhabiting the country home, helping them draw their own tragedies to the surface. Searching for the truth, Astyr is forced to relive the past. And the deeper she dives into the country home’s horrific history, the more the intertwined memories place her in the path of an evil and demented predator.
A blend of contemporary fantasy, horror, and mystery, Bly is inspired by Henry James’s classic novella, The Turn of the Screw.
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Excerpt
Turning onto a long, gravel driveway, a four storey, stone mansion appears framed in the minicab’s windshield. The style resembles a castle rather than a country home. At least, any country home that I’ve ever seen. Then again, I’m in England, not the southeastern region of the United States. The car pulls in front of the massive oak door, from which I’m half expecting the cast of Downtown Abbey to emerge, and comes to a full stop. Without a word, the driver slides out of his seat to open the trunk and fetch my luggage. My nerves on edge, I gently touch the pentacle bracelet Nolyn gave me to feel his calming energy radiate from the tourmaline. Then, pulling Litten’s backpack carrier with me, I step out of the car. My eyes are unable to steer themselves away from the various gray stones and the muntins of the immense windows. Despite being a bright and sunny day, there is a dark shroud over the house. An ominous aura that is pulsing with both anger and sorrow. It’s obvious this home has witnessed a lot of tragedy.
I pause as everything grows still. The birds overhead stop singing. The soft breeze comes to an abrupt halt. I don’t even hear the driver shuffling my travel bags behind me. Yet, my other senses pick up an unearthly presence as the temperature drops to the point my fingertips grow numb. I turn my head to look up at the parapet surrounding the third-level balcony, focusing near the turret. There is nothing but thin air to the naked eye. However, by the icy goose bumps unraveling across my skin and the raised hairs along my lower arms and neck, I can tell I’m being watched. I can’t determine if it’s the energy of a spirit or something else. All I know is that I have caught its undivided attention.
About the Author
Kelsey Ketch is a young-adult/new-adult author, who works as a Wildlife Biologist and Data Analyst. During her free time, she can often be found working on her latest work in progress. She also enjoys history, mythology, traveling, and reading.
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Giveaway Alert!
There is a tour-wide giveaway during the blog tour for Bly. These are the prizes you can win:
- a signed copy of Bly along with a lavender wand (US Only)
- 10 ecopies of Bly sent through Bookfunnel (International)
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
I’m looking forward to the release date! Bly sounds like a perfect read for this spooky season 🙂
Great guest post! It’s nice to see this one again.
Love all of Kelsey Ketch’s books so far and can’t wait to read this one also
Thank you for participating in Bly’s Blog Tour!