Rita Delude isn’t your average horror writer. In fact, most of her writing isn’t horror at all. Her experience as a writer, both as a journalist and as a fiction author, has taught her a lot about the industry as a whole. I’m so honored she wrote a guest post for us today talking about Dracula’s Choice and her process in writing it. Enjoy!

The Interview

I’m so excited it’s October. Thank you for letting me interview you.

Today we are sitting down with Rita Delude talk about Horror Books and Dracula’s Choice and what makes her tick.

So, you’re a horror author. When did you first realize you loved horror?

I’ve been a Stephen King fan for years, since my oldest son, who is forty, turned me onto him when he was in the sixth grade. I like horror that’s not just blood and guts, but psychological, thrilling, suspenseful, and unexpected as much of King’s work is.

What came first? The horror movie or a scary story? Tell me about it.

Definitely the scary story. No movie can do justice to a book; there isn’t enough time, detail, interior monologue, etc. in a movie as there is in a book, so I always read the book before seeing the movie that’s a spinoff of a book.

Have you ever met a ghost or had a paranormal experience?

No, I haven’t personally, but my little sister and her husband moved into the house that our grandparents lived in after they died, and she swears that our grandfather haunted the place every night. Our grandmother was in a nursing home at the time. She has given me vivid details that I plan to use in my paranormal romance upcoming in a collection called Driven by Desire in the Possessed by Passion boxed set.

What is the hardest part of writing horror for you?

Putting in enough gore to please some readers of horror since I prefer the suspense of something jumping out at me or what can happen next, but many readers would rather see dozens of bodies hacked by axes and chain saws. That’s not what I write. For example, in Dracula’s Choice, which is an 18+ paranormal romance, I’m writing about Count Dracula, the king of all vampires, known as the Impaler for cutting off heads and leaving them on poles outside his castle to show enemies what his is capable of. He does that once in my story, but some readers would love that to happen dozens of times. He does other horrific things, too, of course.

How far do you go on Halloween?

I love Halloween. Always have, always will. I dress up as a witch each year and wait for the little ones to ring the bell, open the door, and shout boo before they have a chance to say “trick or treat.” Unfortunately, it scares the two and three year-olds more than I’d like, but the older kids love it. The house is totally spooked out with all I’ve collected over the years. 

Does your ability to write horror impact your ability to enjoy other horror books and movies?

Absolutely not, I’m inspired and challenged by them.

If you could only own one horror book for the rest of your life, which book would you pick?

The Shining by Stephen King for two reasons: my now deceased father and I watched the movie together; he had seen it before I did and a particularly tense moment in the film, he shouted boo and scared the sh*t out of me and laughed so hard he cried. It’s a fond memory now. The story involves a writer, which I love; in fact, Stephen King’s Misery would be a close second for horror books to keep forever.

(Interviewer interrupts: I also really enjoyed his short story the movie “The Secret Window” was based from.)

Do you listen to music while you write? What’s on your horror playlist?

No, when I write or edit, I have to have absolute silence. Sorry, that sounds dull, but I get too caught up in the music to concentrate on what I’m writing or editing.

And finally, what three pieces of advice would you give a fledgling horror writer?

Read the genre you are writing. Connect with and support other horror writers. Write every day whether you feel like it or not—be disciplined, if you are not, you are not serious enough about your work to be successful.

This is fantastic advice. Thank you for the interview!

Guest Post:

How Even a Paranormal Romance Can Be Suspenseful as in Dracula’s Choice

Author: Rita Delude

I can pick up a spider, a snake, a frog, an iguana, and many other animals that people think of as horrifying and not even cringe. But if you put me in a room with just one mouse or rat, I will claw my way out of the room if I have to in order to escape from its presence. Most everyone is afraid of something. That’s what horror fiction is all about—finding that trigger that gets the readers’ attention because it is repulsive or terrifying enough to them to want to keep reading out of sheer fascination about something they wouldn’t want to experience in real life, but can live through vicariously in the pages of a book.

In Dracula’s Choice, the Prince of Darkness, the Great Impaler, steals the virgin Emilia from her betrothed on her wedding day. How horrifying is that to anyone who knows that vampires will suck your blood and kill you or turn you into one of them with or without your consent? Emilia has no idea what Dracula wants with her as she’s swept away to his castle on a huge estate and guarded over day and night, yet not attacked by her kidnapper. The horror in that is the suspense of not knowing what is to come. Aren’t most people afraid of the unknown? After all, we have no control over what we don’t know is coming. At Dracula’s home, Emilia is a prisoner with no freedom, yet no chains that bind her there.

Because it’s a paranormal romance, things will work out for Emilia, but she is endangered because of what she does for Dracula. Again, the reader is left wondering if she will survive. Horror and suspense go hand in hand, and in Dracula’s Choice there is plenty of each with something to fear for many readers.

You’ll learn more about Dracula’s Choice tomorrow when I share an exclusive excerpt from the book. In the meantime, enjoy this book trailer:

About the Author

Rita Delude, an international bestselling author, writes horror, suspense, vampires, paranormal stories, contemporary romance, and YA. All have one connection—the motivation behind the actions of the protagonists.

Dracula’s Choice is her 18+ paranormal romance. Sister’s Revenge, a suspenseful/horror story, is on pre-sale now and releases on November 2. Her contemporary romance novella is Kaleidoscope. The sequel to Kaleidoscope is Baby Blues, about the most important love of all—mother’s love. A third novella in this series releases December 15, 2019, and is called Adam’s Anguish, about the infant born in Baby Blues. A contemporary romance novel based on finding love on a dating site is Catch. net. Its sequel, Caught in the Middle, focuses on the popular character of Wanda from book one in the Catch Series. Her YA romance is Bubble Gum Love, about much more than ice cream, bubble gum, and first love. Hoarder, Lemon Yellow, and Chance Meeting will release in 2020. 

She’s published short stories in numerous anthologies by multiple publishers, including in these: Absolution Anthology, Breakup or Makeup Anthology, Kissing Midnight Anthology, Christmas Past Anthology, Art Inspires Words Anthology Book 1, Art Inspires Words Anthology Book 4, TTYS Anthology, War Paint Anthology. Carnival of Strange Things, Insane Insomnia Anthology, What’s Your Superpower? Anthology, Vague Book Anthology, Moonstruck Anthology, Craving One Night, Getting Schooled, Catfish Anthology, Beyond Oz Anthology, Beyond Wonderland Anthology, Bending Time Anthology, Twisted Classics Anthology, and Our Christmas Nook.

She has also published dozens of non-fiction magazine articles and wrote a twice-weekly column for a newspaper and hundreds of feature stories for seventeen years. Rita Delude holds a MFA in Writing. She is retired from her position as a full professor at Nashua Community College, Nashua, New Hampshire.

She lives in New Hampshire, USA with her husband and their rescue dog, Daisy. They have four married children and nine grandchildren.

Follow Rita Delude at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRitaDelude/
MeWe: https://mewe.com/profile/5c4bf5331982a604fc8c524e
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ritadelude2797/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/rita-delude
Book and Main Bites: https://bookandmainbites.com/RitaDelude
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Rita-Delude/e/B078XJRF7X

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Make sure you stop by tomorrow and read all about Dracula’s Choice!