Call From The Grave

Next Tuesday my first published short story, Call From The Grave, will be available to most of the world on Amazon and a few other book sites. So in preparation, I thought I would give a little background as to what the story is about, how I came up with it, and what it was like to write. First off, the pitch...

Tessa Sterling is a necromancer having a bad night. She's kidnapped and confronted by the most powerful gangster in Boston, then ordered to resurrect his most ruthless contract killer. When those she cares about are threatened, Tessa has no choice but to comply.

But the spirit she raises quickly uncovers the truth about his death, and his rage is insatiable. Hell is about to break loose, and Tessa is the only one who can put the spirit back in his grave, if he doesn't put her in one first...

The original concept– a necromancer raising an assassin– was always there. I was thinking about necromancers and dangerous spirits, and what could be more dangerous than an undead assassin with anger management problems? At first I thought about a different setting. For some reason, all the gangsters I pictured were dressed like they'd just come out of the 1920's. I tried out the idea of Tessa being a poor girl from that era and dragged unwillingly into the crime life, finding out that her mother had been murdered by the very people she was working for. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I wasn't able to figure out the setting and descriptions. Plus, there was a little too much melodrama, even for me. So I went with a more modern setting, and it flowed a lot better.

The funnest part for me was deciding on how Tessa's gift work, what she needed to do physically and spiritually to summon a spirit from the grave. I think I came up with a really unique concept, and maybe that was part of the reason Call From The Grave was selected for the Toil, Trouble, and Temptation series by Mocha Memoirs Press.

I had a great time writing Call From The Grave. It's a fun little story that I think embodies a lot of my style. The more I think about it, the more proud I am, and I can't wait to see how the final product is received. As soon as it's released and I have the links, they'll be everywhere, but until then you'll just have to wait with bated breath. I know I am.

Amy