We are delighted to welcome author Michael Aronovitz to Omnimystery News today.
Michael's latest novel is Phantom Effect (Night Shade Books; February 2016 trade paperback, audiobook and ebook formats) and we recently had the chance to catch up with him to talk more about it.
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Omnimystery News: Give us the elevator summary of Phantom Effect.
Photo provided courtesy of
Michael Aronovitz
Michael Aronovitz: A serial killer is stranded on Rt. 476 in a rainstorm at midnight with two flat tires and a dead body in his trunk. Soon, the ghost of the corpse possesses him.
OMN: Tell us a little more about the characters in the book.
MA: The serial killer is Jonathan Martin Delaware Deseronto, a six foot five Native American, with long black hair sketching patterns of rage into the driving wind. His thirteenth victim, (the girl in the trunk) is Marissa Madison, the lovely co-ed who was so recently attending Widener University as a freshman in their nursing program.
OMN: Suppose Deseronto were to meet you. What would he first say to you, and what would be your response?
MA: Deseronto would surely ask me, "So, you're a professor of literature, huh? What difference do you really make?" My response would be, "I study the dead. You just spread the body parts."
OMN: Phantom Effect is categorized as a horror novel. What would you tell a mystery-suspense-thriller fan who might be considering reading it?
MA: Without getting too technical, my response would be that most stories regardless of "genre" contain elements of the horrific, they are just dressed up a bit differently. I would add that one of the techniques I used in building the structure of the piece contains a significant aspect of the "mystery process," in the form of a doubled sort of dramatic irony. By definition, the former term means that we know what the characters do not, yet Phantom Effect doubles this back on the reader in the sense that the "funhouse of flashbacks" Deseronto is subjected to leaves both the reader and character in a glorious state of disequilibrium and dark discovery together. What better mystery is there than that?
OMN: When starting a new book, which do you consider first: the characters or the storyline?
MA: The storyline, certainly.
OMN: If the storyline comes first, at what point do you consider characters?
MA: Most experts would tell you character first. Always. For me, I cannot move even the slightest bit forward until I at least have a clue as to what the broad "A" to "B" is going to be. Conversely, that does not mean that I outline a novel. I do not. Some authors outline each chapter, but for me, that takes away spontaneity and discovery. I like to have a general idea of the plot structure and then let the characters grow and build the story around them as they go. I never use biographies for the same reason. I find them limiting no matter how detailed and broad the concept mapping might initially be.
OMN: Where do you most often find yourself writing?
MA: I have an office on the second floor of our small house. I write in silence, usually early in the morning when everyone else in the world is asleep.
OMN: How do you go about researching the plot points of your stories? Did you come across any particularly challenging topic for Phantom Effect?
MA: Most of my fact-checking comes from the Internet if my experience isn't precise. In fact, I admire writers that worked in the pre-online era, because they didn't have the world at their fingertips so to speak. That being said, sometimes I do have to consult an expert, as things posted might not cut it. I am usually in this kind of scenario when writing a scene of violence. I am not afraid to get a hold of nurses I have taught in college to ask what would bleed where and how in a particular situation. As far as the Internet goes, I am usually online most when I need to describe women's hair and clothing, as my experience is so limited in terms of the respective styles and name brands.
The most challenging topic I had to research for Phantom Effect was the wardrobe and all the accessories of my female lead Marissa Madison, as she was (is) so into fashion. The most exciting topic for me to research for Phantom Effect included some of the Lenape traditions my serial killer put into practice.
OMN: What are some of your outside interests? And have any of these found their way into your books?
MA: I was a professional musician back in the 80s in a metal band that played clubs in Philadelphia and New Jersey. I have always loved hard rock and metal, and recently started a review series called "Goblet of Shock" which offers serious commentary on horror and new bands that matter. The column appears on the site/blog of horror authors Tamara Thorne and Alistair Cross, and has featured videos, pics, and analysis of some exceptional new talent. I have featured Ravenscroft, The Bloody Jug Band, Forever Still, Amerakin Overdose, and Saint Diablo. My latest article concerned "Heaven the Axe" and the ultra-talented Phoebe Pinnock, from Melbourne Australia. This is all relevant to Phantom Effect because my female lead Marissa Madison is/was involved in the music industry in a big way, in fact, music is a major plot issue and theme in the entire latter half of the novel.
OMN: What is the best advice — and harshest criticism — you've received as an author? And what might you say to aspiring writers?
MA: The best advice I got was also the harshest criticism, and it was ultimately helpful actually. My first novel Alice Walks in its original form came close, but was an inevitable "no," with a number of literary agencies. One such agent was nice enough to tell me that I over-wrote many portions of the piece that otherwise had great potential. I took that to heart and went back to the manuscript, next removing fifty pages of text, and not all in the same place! Soon after, I was fortunate enough to have this piece accepted by Centipede Press, who published it as a collector's version in hardcover with exceptional artwork and a retail price of sixty dollars. It was a three hundred piece contract, and I am proud to say that I sold out the run. In terms of my advice to aspiring authors … it is to take advice from others with a grain of salt. Everyone has a vision and agenda, some valid, some not entirely relevant. Don't follow trends. Make decisions and set your own trends.
OMN: What kinds of books did you read when you were young?
MA: As a child I read fantasy stuff like The Lord of the Rings. I discovered Stephen King in my twenties. Both were huge influences.
OMN: Who are some of your favorite authors in related genres?
MA: Mystery — William Lashner. Thriller — Thomas Harris. Horror — Stephen King and new author Matthew Bartlett.
OMN: Create a Top 5 list for us on any topic.
MA: Top 5 Bands all time: The Who, Rush, Cinderella, WASP, and Van Halen.
OMN: What's next for you?
MA: I am ¾ finished my next novel titled Dead Red, a horror novel. And I always look forward to finding the next band to review for "Goblet of Shock".
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Michael Aronovitz has been writing horror fiction for as long as he can remember. Since 2009, along with his two collections and two novels, he has published short stories and critical articles in a variety of magazines. Aronovitz is a Professor of English and lives in Pennsylvania with his wife Kim and their son Max.
For more information about the author, please visit his website at MichaelAronovitz.com and his author page on Goodreads, or find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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Phantom Effect by Michael Aronovitz
Publisher: Night Shade Books
Once the hunter. Now the haunted.
Jonathan Martin Delaware Deseronto is a six-foot-five serial killer with a problem. He's stuck out on I-476 in a heavy November rainstorm with two flat tires and the dead bodies of a cop and a co-ed named Marissa Madison in his trunk. Desperate to get off the highway, he drives his car on its back rims towards Exit 6. The car stalls on the ramp and Deseronto uses the last of its momentum to plunge over the crest of a steep slope and crash into a length of concrete pipe below. The car comes to rest on the edge of a construction site where machines are positioned to tear down an old Motel 6.
For Deseronto, the worst is yet to come. Marissa Madison had been a psychic of sorts while alive, using her ability to assist people in their personal journeys. Now, the ghost of Marissa will utilize her strange gift, trapping Deseronto in the abandoned motel, and forcing him to live the last, fatal week of her own life as a passive passenger in her body …
Soon, Deseronto will experience something truly horrific: the mind-numbing terror of being stalked by himself.
— Phantom Effect by Michael Aronovitz. Click here to take a Look Inside the book.
