What’s your one line pitch or teaser for the book? Grab a reader’s attention with one line.
The Haunting of Black River Forest is a horror adventure short story in which adventurers struggle to survive on the land of a cold-blooded psychopath who enjoys slashing humans.
Tell readers a little about your main character or characters?
The main characters Mia and Oliver are not only lovers, but they are also best friends and partners in adventure. This, readers will find out in the start of the story. Mia and Oliver are adventure lovers. They enjoy hiking on any day of any season.
Oliver and Mia have heard a rumor about adventurers missing and the psychopath wandering in the Black River Forest. Yet, they still make their way to the forest, believing it’s just the rumors.
However, when horror dangles over their heads, they must escape before they could lose their lives.
Where do you like to write? Do you have an office or writing nook?
I wish to have an office to write when I sit in my bedroom to write a story. :)
However, when I write sitting on a table outside a restaurant or under the tree in a park, I feel attached to the nature. This is the time, my energy flows much better than any other place. I find myself more innovative and happier as I get so many good ideas to write an intriguing story.
So, overall, I’d say I like to write anywhere outside the house.
What is one of your best marketing tips for other authors?
The Revenge, first book in Horror Stories Series. I published this book in October 2015. The Fear Is Back, second book in Horror Stories Series, published this book in February 2016. Even in 2017, 2018, and 2019, I published some other books. From 2015 to 2019, I sold only about 15 copies or maybe max 40 copies.
I unpublished all these books around January 2020. I published Tribulation, first book in Cops Planet Series, in June 2020. Then I republished The Revenge, and The Fear Is Back, the first two books in Horror Stories Series. And now, The Haunting of Black River Forest in December 2021. In this one year, I learned, it’s essential to have a good book cover and a blurb that could help you sell more books. Not only that, the stories must be edited, and also, they should be error-free. Your stories also must have strong characters and the world audience may fall in love with. Besides this, stay active on social media and connect with the readers. Sometimes, for some reason, you can’t reply to everyone, but try your best to reply to most of the people who speaks kind words about you and your work, the ones who support you.
Specifically talking about the marketing tips for other authors, I’d like to recommend adding a few sections at the end of the book: About the author, list of already published book(s) by the author, coming soon book(s) from the author, and social media links.
Also, giveaways, Amazon ads, and social media ads could be helpful to gain an exposure.
What websites or tools have you found that offer the best results?
Goodreads giveaway and the blog tours have helped me reach more readers. I’m so thankful to the hosts of blog tours. My heartful thanks also goes to the participants of the blog tours who help me spread the news of my work and allow me a chance to reach the readers in wild.
Any advice for aspiring writers?
For aspiring writers, I’d like to say believe in yourself. Many times, you will feel you are not worthy. No one listens to your voice. Yet. Remember only one thing. You are writing a story worth telling, and people out there are waiting to read your story full of lovable characters, enticing plot, and suspenseful twists. And maybe the world full of magic, or crime, or horror. Whatever it is, someone is eagerly waiting for your story. So. Once you start writing, keep writing. And then, don’t stop until your script turns into the book and hits the bookshelves.
Thank you, Serena, for the interview. Also, thanks to everyone else for reading this post.
I wish you all a prosperous new year. And happy writing and reading!
-Jaydeep
Jaydeep Shah
Genre: Horror
Publisher: Jaydeep Shah
Date of Publication: 12/14/2021
ISBN: 978-1-7349826-3-3
ASIN: B08V4ZY7QY
Number of pages: 86
Word Count: 8611
Cover Artist: Jaydeep Shah
Tagline: A spine-chilling story in which adventurers struggle to survive on the land of a cold-blooded psychopath who enjoys slashing humans.
Book Description:
A forest of blood and corpses. The land of a cold-blooded psychopath.
In Black River Forest, it’s best not to wander too far off the beaten track. There’s no telling what you might find.
Mia and Oliver have long wanted to explore the forest, and one cold, rainy October day, a week before their fifth anniversary of the day they met, they finally make the trip.
But they’ve heard the rumors as well. The haunting. A psychopath hidden somewhere amidst the towering trees. Too many missing. Too few answers.
It’s only rumors, though. Stories. And stories can’t hurt you. Yet as Mia and Oliver venture deeper into the Black River Forest, they’ll soon discover that there’s more haunting this quiet woodland than hikers and bears.
The psychopath is very real. And he’s excited to meet them.
From Jaydeep Shah, author of Tribulation, the first book of the Cops Planet series, “The Haunting of Black River Forest” is a bloody, spine-chilling story best read with the lights on.
Excerpt 2:
After walking for three or four miles, the trio hadn’t found a way out of the forest.
Their hearts were beating in fear and their legs were tired from walking.
“When will we find the way out of this creepy forest, man?” asked Mia, her arm linked with Oliver’s.
“I wish we hadn’t come here,” said Oliver. “But we have no choice except to keep trying to find the path.”
“I just hope we get to the right path before . . . he finds us,” said Jany.
“That’s what I’ve been praying to God for this whole time,” said Oliver. “I don’t want to encounter him.”
“Right. I just want to escape,” said Mia. “However, if we do meet him, and if he tries to block our path, I will kill him with my axe.”
“You must be kidding!” said Jany. “Please don’t say that again. I’ve seen enough horror.”
“What did I say wrong?” said Mia. “If he finds us, we must fight him and kill him. Otherwise, he will kill us.”
Walking, walking, and walking. Eventually, the trio reached a divide in the path. Following Mia, they took the left.
The trio walked for one more mile, until they saw something that stopped them in their tracks.
Skeletons. Hanging on almost all the trees ahead, as far as their eyes could see. Not one, not five, not ten, but at least a hundred skeletons, swinging on the trees in the breeze.
Jany gaped at them, her eyes filling with tears.
Oliver felt a chill furling through his body.
And Mia stood completely petrified; somewhere inside her, a voice said: My heart may stop beating if I let the horror possess my senses.
About the Author:
Jaydeep Shah is an avid traveler and the author of gripping horror, thriller, and romance stories. As a bachelor’s degree holder in Creative Writing, he aims to entertain as many as people he can with his stories. He is best known for Tribulation, the first book in the “Cops Planet” series.
In addition to those books, The Shape-Shifting Serpents’ Choice, Jaydeep’s first young adult flash fiction written under his pen name, JD Shah, is published online by Scarlet Leaf Review in their July 2019 issue. Currently, he’s endeavoring to write a debut young adult fantasy novel while working on a sequel to his first apocalyptic thriller, Havoc.
When Shah is not writing, he reads books, tries new restaurants, and goes on adventures.
Website: https://www.jaydeepshah.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/imjaydeepshah
Newsletter Signup: https://www.jaydeepshah.com/newsletter
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/jaydeepshah
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imjaydeepshah/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imjaydeepshah
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/jaydeepshah
I enjoyed the interview and the excerpt and The Haunting of Black River Forest and it sounds like a thrilling read! Thanks for sharing it with me and have a fantastic weekend!
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