JD Phillips is a writer of dark fiction as well as the creator/owner of BonesnStitches. She is both self-published and published through presses such as WTF Books and Angelic Knight Press. This is the first time she’s worked on a novel with a ghost.
Evel: JD, what can you tell us about yourself?
JD: I am the creator/owner of BonesnStitches on Etsy. I sell photo prints, hand-sewn pillows, and my novels there.
On the paranormal front – I don’t ghost hunt professionally but you could say I’ve always been haunted.
Evel: How many books have you written?
JD: I’m really not even sure. I have drawers full of novels I wrote and stashed away that may or may not ever see the light of day. I’ve published 11 so far.
Evel: Wow! Are they all influenced by paranormal phenomena?
JD: Pretty much, yeah. Some more than others.
Evel: What was your first encounter with the paranormal that really got your attention?
JD: The house I grew up in was a giant hot spot. I’ve been told I used to run out of my room as soon as I could walk talking about spooky things I’d seen no child that age would normally think to mention. One of the first things I remember (from about age 5 or so) is a creepy red light that used to fill the entire room and toys moving on their own. To this day I still hate anything mechanical.
Evel: Tell us about your novel Touching Spirits: Contact.
JD: At its heart Touching Spirits is the story about a newly made ghost (Killian) trying to figure out what to do with his afterlife. The first book focuses a lot on ghost hunting from his POV as he tries to make contact with a fake hunter who wants nothing to do with him.
It’s also a sort of love letter to what I love about the field and genre as well as other things that have influenced my work over the years.
Evel: Could you tell us about a few personal paranormal experiences you had that inspired Touching Spirits?
JD: Everything in my life helped the story take shape. The things I know to be true, the things I question, the things I find ridiculous or interesting. The fact it’s from a spectral POV allows room to play a bit and definitely changes the dynamic but some scenes (one involving a ghost app, for instance, or EVP work) is straight from my real life.
Funny enough myself and two other people all experienced sudden strange activity (me while writing, the others after they’d read the book) such as the EVP posted on the book page that we hadn’t been experiencing before. It seems I may have at least one spook I can count as a fan.
Evel: Can you tell us about where and how you caught that EVP?
JD: I wasn’t there when it was captured, actually. I’d been talking with a fellow writer (Walter Conley) about whether he could act out the EVPs in a scene from my book for a promo trailer. Not long after I sent him the text he sat down to record a completely unrelated song and found he’d caught a real one. He also heard someone plucking at his guitar string from across the room when he was home alone after that.
The interesting thing is Killian is a musician in the story so it’s a pretty cool coincidence (if you believe there are such things as coincidence). We like to say it was Killi’s spirit coming through.
Evel: For people who are really into the strange and supernatural, what do you hope their takeaway would be from Touching Spirits?
JD: I think some of the funniest lines come from Killian reacting to the hunters’ process but I imagine there’s truth to what he says. Spooks have feelings just like the rest of us and they’re not afraid to blow up whatever electronics you have on hand if you happen to rub them the wrong way.
Dusty, the fake hunter, would also tell you to take things seriously if you decide to start opening doors. Don’t go looking in the dark unless you’re okay with the dark looking inside you.
So be respectful, don’t talk down to the ghosties, and most importantly don’t offer help unless you’re really truly prepared to give it because you may just end up with a loud mouthed Welshman who’ll make your life a living hell until you do.
Evel: Agreed! Where can people learn more about you and buy your books?
JD: All book and buying info can be found on the book’s page: https://www.facebook.com/Touching-Spirits-1662305970683517/
They can find me at:
or
@jd_author on Twitter
Lightning Round
(one word answers or so)
Evel: Where is the scariest place you’ve ever been?
JD: The woods around my parents’ house.
Evel: If you could have a ghostly visitation from anyone through history, who would you want it to be?
JD: Oscar Wilde.
Evel: Do you own any ghost cats?
JD: I figured out one came with my house not long after I’d moved in. Everyone’s seen or heard it at one time or another. My old cat used to play and chase after it.
Evel: Thank you for your time!
PARAHOLICS® 