What is Uninvited?
Uninvited is my upcoming novel. It’s a psychological thriller that examines issues like domestic abuse, mental health and addiction, through the filter of vampire fiction.
You say that this book deals with some serious issues, through the filter of vampire fiction. What do you mean by that?
Well, being inspired by some of my own experiences, I find it’s easier to make a statement and get others to think about their own issues, by using the filter of fictional storytelling to make them think about those things themselves. If I just wanted to be a professional mouthpiece, I could just stand on my own soapbox and shout my opinions. I could make books and videos and say this is right, this is wrong, that person is right, that one’s wrong, this is what is wrong with the world and so on, but I find that people really aren’t interested in that. I know I’m not and I don’t think it really does that much to sway people’s opinions. I think reasonable people tune that kind of stuff out. I think if you walk up to someone and say “Hey, you’re mentally ill” or “You have an addiction, get help!” they are often equally unimpressed and not receptive. They could get downright hostile. In contrast, people feel much more safe and comfortable with entertainment because they know it’s not real and they let their guard down. It’s that moment when a good writer can present a character or characters with real-life issues that the audience can relate to and come to their own thoughts and conclusions about those issues. You allow the audience the chance to see your point of view and the statement you’re trying to make without beating them over the head with it or being confrontational.
You’ve also said this book, though obviously fictional, is inspired by your own life. Would you be willing to share with us what parts of the story were real and which were not?
Well, let me emphasize that the majority of it is fictionalized, including the vampire, which I do not believe are real. There is a core of personal experience that the story was built on. In the story, Darius, the protagonist, was married to Allison, the antagonist. She is a clinical sociopath who lies, leads double lives, uses psychological torture, is self-destructive and unfaithful. They divorce and years later she re-enters Darius life, apparently well, only to soon quickly reveal that she is still mentally ill. She has manipulated her way back into his life, not only to torture him again, but since they last met she has become a literal undead vampire. Now she is upping the stakes. His suffering is no longer enough, she wants to take his very life as well. Where that comes from is my own experience in a former relationship. In real life, I was in a relationship with someone who was mentally ill and needed serious help. I tried to help and fix this person which taught me the hard lesson that you simply can’t do that for anyone who doesn’t want it for themselves. It was frightening and it resulted in a split and psychiatric counselling for both of us. It was through that counselling that a professional confided in me that my ex fit the definition of a clinical sociopath and that I was in fact lucky to be alive because I challenged their methodologies and exposed their lies and secrets. I do consider myself a survivor of that experience. I know that many people out there deal with similar experiences and struggle with opposing feelings of love and self-preservation. First hand experience showed me that resources out there that deal with mental health are often inadequate, if available at all. This is not meant to vilify the mentally ill in any way. While the character of Allison is clearly the villain of the story, in real life I do understand that the person she is based on is not evil, but mentally ill and in need of help. In this case, treatment is a journey they must want and pursue on their own, for me to protect myself, literally to protect my own life, if that makes sense.
Why did you choose to have “Uninvited” released on Valentine’s Day?
Cynicism. Is that an adequate answer? To put it another way, Uninvited is a story of absolutely everything that can go wrong with love in the horrifyingly worst ways. It’s very much an anti-love story. Since I often write a lot of humor when I’m not writing horror, I just couldn’t resist the irony of releasing an anti-love story on Valentine’s.
Where can readers pre-order or buy your book?
The digital version is currently available for pre-order on Amazon for Kindle readers, just try searching “Uninvited” and my last name, “Gagnon” together. The digital version will also soon be available for pre-order on iTunes, Nook, Kobo and all major digital channels. The softcover and hardcover editions will also be coming soon for pre-order on Amazon and will be available through all major online and brick and mortar book retailers. Book retailers will be able to order the book from Ingram Distribution. You can always find out more about Uninvited and the rest of my work, when pre-orders go live and when print copies are shipping by visiting my website, www.gagnonwrites.com
