Stuart James - Gripping and Twisty Psychological Thrillers

Stuart James is the author of the worldwide number 1 best-selling thriller, Turn The Other Way, and International Book Award Winner for The House On Rectory Lane. Apartment Six was a number 1 new release for a month. Stranded was released on October 19th, 2020 on Amazon. As our Author of the Day, he tells us all about this book.

Please give us a short introduction to what Stranded is about.

So, Stranded is about a family on their way to the airport, avoiding the main roads and choosing the quiet country lanes of Surrey on their way to Gatwick airport. They meet a guy, standing in the middle of the road who diverts them along another route. They find a coach, and upon investigation, see the passengers strapped to their seats. Then a discarded phone rings from the dashboard.

What inspired you to write this story? Was there something in particular that made you want to tackle this?

The idea came to my head and I just had to act on it. I love the scenario when you’re in the middle of nowhere and something strange happens, I love horror movies and wanted to make, Stranded as scary as possible. A family trapped in the woods with a psychopath on the loose.

Tell us more about Ben. What makes him tick?

Ben is a real family man. He would do anything for his wife and daughter. When he finds the coach, he has to help. That’s what drives him. He needs to help the passengers and also protect his family at the same time.

I think the antagonist was probably the most challenging to write. I wanted to show how evil he could be but also make people feel sorry for him at the same time.

The book contains quite a couple of twists. Did you plan it all out before you started writing, or did it just "happen" along the way?

Oh, thank you. I planned some of the twists before I wrote the story and then added more along the way.

Besides writing, what other secret skills do you have?

I sang in a band for over 20 years and wrote many songs. I won a singing competition a few years back live on TV. I’m also a keen amateur magician and run a podcast where we interview bestselling authors, discuss horror movies, urban legends, ghost stories and creepy pastas.

Readers say you had them at the edge of their seats. How did you pull this off?

Aw. That’s very kind. I’ve always loved horror, ghost stories and anything creepy. It’s an obsession. I guess that’s how I managed to scare readers. I know what to put in scenes and how to frighten people. Ha ha.

Why horror/psychological thriller? What drew you to the genre?

I love reading and watching thrillers/horror ever since and early age so it was only right that I went into this genre.

Tell us more about the cover and how it came about.

Well, the story is mostly set in the woods. I wanted a cover to draw people in, spooky lights, trees, shadows etc. I went with the cover of Stranded because it adds a little mystery without giving anything away.

How do you manage to create such a terrifying atmosphere and maintain it throughout the story?

Wow. Thank you for the compliment. I guess it’s like my personality lol. I’m always on the go, I can never sit down and I’m always excitable. I wanted this to show in my work. I always have to be doing something, so I did this in the story. I think it reflects my personality.

When starting on a new book, what is the first thing you do?

I get an idea first. Then develop the idea by adding plots, characters and lots of scares. Then I start to write and get it all down on the computer.

Do you have any interesting writing habits? What is an average writing day like for you?

So, I write for around 4 hours a day. I like to sometimes listen to music, I love jazz. And lots of tea or coffee.

What are you working on right now?

So at the moment I’m almost finished my next thriller called, Creeper. It’s a husband and wife team who make documentaries. They move to an old farmhouse in the UK and get to hear the rumours about Creeper. A possibly urban legend. Someone who watched the residents from outside their homes years ago and could also be responsible for missing women. As they investigate further, they realize Creeper could be very much real. And still out there.

Where can our readers discover more of your work or interact with you?

I have a website. stuartjamesthrillers.com where you can also sign up to my newsletter. I’m on Twitter. @StuartJames73. My Facebook page is StuartJamesauthor and that’s also my Instagram.

I promise to get back to everyone. I will always respond if someone says hello or reads my work. It absolutely makes my day.