Blog Archives
Lone Crusader
The Camaro Murders follows a man straddling the line between two worlds who is tasked with gathering murdered souls and subsequently uncovers the identity of a young girl’s killer. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Music was a huge influence for this story, and so there were a lot of vibes and abstract ideas floating in my head that gelled in unexpected ways based on what I was listening to at the time. One of the primary examples is Coheed and Cambria. Their albums are concept albums, and the lyrics tell a story, but only part of the story. And sometimes seemingly small/inconsequential parts of the story, relatively speaking. There was a forum at the time where fans would try to piece the story together based on what they could glean from the lyrics, and I found the whole thing really interesting. And so, my goal with The Camaro Murders was to invoke a similar experience with the reader where they get most of the story but have to fill in some of the connective tissue with their own imaginations. But there was also a lot of my childhood in the story: the podunk town where my grandparents lived, the Knight Rider motif of a lone crusader and his car, the Biblical narrative of Cain and Abel, things like that. I would also call out Sheriff Bell from Cormac McCarthy’s No Country For Old Men as an archetype for Sheriff Hildersham’s character.
How long did it take you to imagine, draft, and write the world your characters live in?
The writing process was largely organic, and if I recall, took place over the course of about a year and a half. I was working mostly by impulse and with abstract ideas–impressions, if you will–and developed some basic ground rules for the world I was creating before piecing together the events of two winters, twelve years apart. It was the first long-form thing I’d done even though it was only 30,000 words, and so probably took longer than it would if I did it today.
I particularly enjoyed the technique of using four different narrators and perspectives. Was that a challenge to construct?
Thanks. I wouldn’t say it was a challenge per se, but it was a lot of fun at any rate. I really like getting into a character’s head and trying to speak and think the way they would. That said, it’s always easy to accidentally slip into your own voice, or sometimes cross wires on characters, so if there is a challenge in balancing multiple first-person POVs, that would be it. You want each character to have their own motivations and way of looking at things… The one nuance about The Camaro Murders is that the story is told out of sequence from a chronological perspective, and so I had to be cognizant of how the characters thought, spoke, and behaved at different times of their lives–in one case, this meant the difference between a seven-year-old and a college student.
Can we look forward to more work from you soon? What are you currently working on?
I’m currently writing the third book in my Reeve series, which is a Gothic Western, alternate history type of thing. The title is Riders of the Black Cowl. My goal is to have the first draft finished by the end of summer. That means I should have a final manuscript ready to go by the end of the year, but we’ll see. The interesting thing about this installment is I’m writing it completely organically. I haven’t done that since writing The Camaro Murders–I’ve employed an outline for every book since. So, there might be some more intense revising this time around.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Amazon
The man known as the Driver wanders between the living and the dead, tasked with gathering murdered souls. When he learns a young girl’s killer will act again, he must make a choice: carry out his duty or intervene to save a boy’s life.
The Camaro Murders
In The Camaro Murders, Ian Lewis crafts a compelling narrative centered around a murder in a small town, told from four distinct perspectives, including one from beyond the grave. The driver of the Camaro, a man straddling the line between the living and the dead, is tasked with gathering murdered souls. As he navigates this eerie realm, he uncovers the identity of a young girl’s killer, who poses an imminent threat. Faced with a moral dilemma, he must choose between following his orders and saving a boy’s life by intervening.
Lewis excels in creating an otherworldly atmosphere while grounding his characters in relatable human experiences. Each perspective is uniquely rendered, with narratives in the first person that are well-crafted and thoughtfully developed. The multi-faceted storytelling draws readers deeper into the plot, making it a gripping read from start to finish. The book’s non-linear timeline, which shifts back and forth, enhances the plot’s complexity and intrigue. This narrative technique adds depth to the story, making it more engaging as the reader progresses. The careful construction of these shifts in time demonstrates Lewis’s skill in maintaining a coherent and compelling storyline.
Notably, The Camaro Murders is a clean read, devoid of lingering graphic violence. Lewis’s sensitivity in handling violent themes with caution and restraint is commendable, ensuring that the story remains impactful without unnecessary gore. This thoughtful approach allows the reader to focus on the emotional and psychological aspects of the narrative.
The Camaro Murders is an excellent read, earning a solid four out of five stars. Ian Lewis’s experimental technique as a writer complements the plotline effectively, making the book a standout in its genre. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a thought-provoking and engaging read with a unique narrative structure.
Pages: 153 | ISBN : 978-1976976339
Prone To Brooding Alone
“From Legend” follows a law enforcer navigating a complex web of danger, mystery, and personal history, all while investigating a puzzling death that threatens to unravel the dark secrets of his catastrophic past. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Driving around running errands made me wonder what my mundane city might look like in an alternate history where fantastic things could happen. I began to envision a Sheriff-type of character (a Shire Reeve in the old language), and because of my fascination with the Batman mythos, he took on some of those attributes: peak athleticism, extremely intelligent, prone to brooding alone, etc. But I didn’t want him to be a vigilante–I wanted him to be above board and beyond reproach for where I planned to take him in the story.
How did you approach developing the character of Logan Hale, and what inspired his intricate relationship with Clara?
Logan starts out as somewhat two dimensional. He seems overpowered, but he’s got issues with his father’s legacy, a man whom he simultaneously admires and disrespects. This lurks beneath his outward confidence and acts as the foundation for his own obsessive tendencies that ultimately become destructive. I wanted him to struggle with duty and obsession, something that up until the events in this story he was able to keep married together.
Regarding Clara: Music inspires a lot of what I write–the moodiness and atmosphere of a song might create an abstract idea in my head, often entirely different from what was intended by the musician(s), I’m sure. In the case of “From Legend,” an entire album (Koi No Yokan by Deftones) fueled the pacing and to a large extent, the plotting of the book. The last track of the album suggested dreamy imagery to me, where the person represented by the song’s POV was following after a woman. There was an aspect to it that really struck me as the listener that nothing else seemed to matter to the POV but this woman. And so, I had the idea of ending the book with the protagonist chasing after a woman in sort of an obsessed, unhinged way. To do that, I had to reverse-engineer Logan and Clara’s relationship from there; I had to build something unrequited that would continue to dog Logan.
What inspired you to create the unique, distorted world of Beldenridge and its background of an alchemical disaster?
There are lots of post-apocalyptic stories as well as those where the world is hurtling toward apocalypse in the near future. The realization of that world-ending upheaval always looms large. I thought it would be interesting to see a world where said event happened at some point in the past, but instead of obliterating the world as we know it, the event stunts and diverts it. The world that emerges in the book looks a lot like Victorian or Colonial times despite the fact that it’s 2017. The analogy I like to use is tweaking the recipe for a cake. You have the same base set of ingredients, but altering the ratios or bake time, or even introducing one or two other ingredients, will result in something similar to the original intention, but decidedly off. Man’s pursuit of alchemy provided a convenient way to achieve that where the world up until that point was the same as ours–it was working with the same set of ingredients, so to speak.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I just started writing the third book in the Reeve series, titled “Riders of the Black Cowl.” Seeing as I’m on the very front end of the process, it’s hard to say when it will be available, but if I had to guess, I would think sometime late 2024. In the meantime, readers can check out the second book titled “Villains.” Stylistically, it’s my nod to Cormac McCarthy, as I was reading Blood Meridian while writing it.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website
From Legend
In The Reeve Book I: From Legend author Ian Lewis introduces us to the compelling character of Logan Hale, a Reeve entrusted with maintaining law and order in the town of Beldenridge. Intriguingly, this narrative is set in a world that has witnessed a dramatic regression, caused by a disastrous alchemical experiment in its past. Evidence of this catastrophe persists in the form of distorted humans and animals, leaving the environment starkly different from what one would anticipate in the stated year, 2017. Hale’s navigation of this world, beset with dangers and mysteries, is guided primarily by Clara, a character with whom he shares an intricate and complex history.
The plot thickens when Hale embarks on an investigation into a mysterious death, opening the door to a perilous journey that underscores the eerie nature of his world. The Reeve Book I: From Legend echoes the stylistic choices of classic Gothic horror, drawing parallels to the works of Algernon Blackwood and Clark Ashton Smith. Lewis’s writing thrives on creating an atmospheric tension that simultaneously captivates and disconcerts readers. The world Hale occupies is oppressively off-balance, and Lewis’s narrative skillfully highlights this aspect.
Punctuating the looming darkness are sequences of action, providing a refreshing break from periods of exposition, though their frequency is perhaps inevitable given this is the opening act of a series. Lewis’s narrative employs a mix of third and first-person perspectives, oscillating between the present and reminiscences of earlier times. This may require some adjustment for readers used to a single narrative voice, yet this is a minor point in an otherwise gripping tale.
Overall, The Reeve Book I: From Legend offers an engaging read, with its protagonist, Hale, being a richly developed character. However, it ends on a suspenseful note, leaving readers inquisitive about his true intentions. This sense of anticipation certainly sparks interest in the forthcoming sequels, promising to unravel more of this intriguing, albeit bleak, world.
Pages: 270 | ASIN: B07PGSDVC9
LITERARY TITAN 