The author commentary for Spectral Advocate continues with a look at the strange paranormal angle used in the book. Here is your warning for spoilers!
Diving into the paranormal
The DSA was designed to handle scientific anomalies. That has always been the basis of the series, and when I look to build a new book that is where I start. With Spectral Advocate, I wanted to upend the board to do something completely different.
Why? A few reasons, really.
The first was discussed last week when talking about Cal Cooper and the potential spinoff available to tell his tale. I didn’t want to work on a second series dealing with something the DSA should be handling. It needed to be unique to justify its existence.
Another reason was to take the series out of its comfort zone. Tossing characters into new situations is fun and exciting. It creates a level of tension that maybe you haven’t been able to generate or builds a new layer into the character.
That was the angle I took with Ben being thrown into this ghost hunt/murder mystery. He is a cop at heart, using logic to handle problems. How can he do any of that when dealing with the dead? Tossing Ben into the deep end of a new world was an absolute selling point to me for that very reason. Seeing how he had to justify actions taken by the dead made the book for me.
The final and best reason? I really like ghost stories. Which is strange, since scary movies frighten the hell out of me and I can’t watch them. But something about that world speaks to me. I really hope to dive deeper into it with Cal someday.
Was it too much?
I always worry about this. True, the final decisions are mine to make, but I am always looking at the series from a reader’s perspective. Was the paranormal nature of the story too far from the beaten path? Absolutely. Was that the point of the book for Ben and for Cal? Absolutely.
Ben’s choice over all others.
It came down to Ben, as it should. He could have walked away and let the police handle things. He could have told Cal to get the hell away from him. Instead, he looked to solve the murder of a woman who was spying on him. That really helped define Ben for me. His drive for answers despite knowing NOTHING about anything (seriously, ever) makes him so relatable. He simply tries to help because he can.
The truth about the title
I love the title. It might be the best one I’ve ever managed to come up with. Was it always Spectral Advocate?
Nope.
It was… WAIT FOR IT…
Ghosts.
Super original, right? So glad I took another stab at it.
