Author Guest Post: Jason Beymer

The Writer’s Itch

I started writing Nether as a tribute to my eight-pound miniature dachshund. The character of Pearl would be exactly like my dog with two exceptions: the ability to speak and a hankering for human flesh. My main character, Burklin, would be a sad-sack loser with his soul trapped inside this canine’s wee body. These two characters formed Nether’s core, and the story would blossom around them.

I’m a pantser when it comes to plot, which means I don’t begin a novel knowing my destination; I let the characters dictate that. As I wrote Nether I kept getting “mind itches.” Writers call them “what ifs?” As in, “Ooh, what if Burklin had to clean up after a homicidal teenage demon?” and “Ooh, what if Burklin’s ex-wife was a shapeshifter?” My brain never stopped itching. After writing a scene in which Burklin disposed of a dead body and it came back to life, my brain itched something fierce. Dead body…back to life…itch…itch…Pop! out came the zombie idea. And yes, I heart zombies. I heart them a lot.

Don’t get me wrong; I edited the manuscript hundreds of times before submitting it to a publisher. Not all of my itches worked within the parameters of the story (ie. A gas station heist in which Pearl and the zombie try to steal a gallon of Unleaded). That’s what beta readers and the internal editor are for. In the end, I’m extremely happy with the product.
I hope you’ll give it a read! Here’s the blurb:

One suburban night. One stubborn corpse. One golden opportunity.

Burklin had it all: a spacious two-story house, a shapeshifting wife, a wide open future. That is, until his father ripped out his soul and trapped it inside an opinionated dachshund. Now he’s lost everything, leaving him a slave on mop-up duty for a homicidal teenage demon. His father is sleeping with his ex, the possessed dachshund won’t stop talking, and the cleanup jobs keep getting messier. Burklin would give anything to have his life back–even if it means turning against his manipulative father and destroying their chance of winning the Nether’s Demon Lord Sweepstakes.

Opportunity knocks with a dead woman’s hand. When the demon’s latest victim won’t stay dead, the rules of life and death change. Freedom lies within Burklin’s reach, but to get it he’ll have to defy his father, the ex-wife he still loves, and the Nether itself.

Just how far is he willing to go?

Links:

Nether: http://www.beerandtv.com/nether

Website: http://www.beerandtv.com

Twitter: @beerandtv

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jasonbeymer

Email: jason@beerandtv.com