#BadMoonRising: Circumstances of Childhood by John W. Howell #supernatural #suspense

On By Teri PolenIn Bad Moon Rising

You might know today’s author from his John Cannon thriller trilogy – but did you know he also writes in other genres?  I’ve read Circumstances of Childhood, and it overflows with themes of family, love, forgiveness, and justice – with some supernatural twists.  Read below to learn how the movie Ghostbusters might have taken a different path if he’d been in the cast.  Welcome John W. Howell!

Would you rather be a vampire or a werewolf?

I think I would rather be a Vampire. When I think of werewolves, the first thing that comes to mind is hair. I mean, hair everywhere. I can almost feel the itch now. When I think of Vampires, an individual savoir-faire image pops into my head. “Ah yes, my darling. You have such a beautiful neck.” None of that scrabbling down the street like a cur dog. No. First a classic martini and then a sensual bite. That’s more, my style.

Would you rather spend a night in The Overlook Hotel with Jack Torrance or be in the high school gym during prom with Carrie? 

I have to say that the prospect of spending time with Jack Torrance and Shelly Duvall in the Overlook Hotel is very compelling. Just think of having the opportunity of wandering around with no tourists and being able to trade writer notes with Jack. I imagine kicking back in front of the fireplace with a delicious bourbon and Shelly Duvall would just about be a perfect evening. Of course, Jack is a little intense, but that is half his charm. Let me tell you that boy can write. He does a self-literary portrait to die for. Yes, speaking of dying I think having a lock for the door would be helpful as well.

Would you rather be part of the X-Files team or Ghostbusters? 

Hands down, Ghostbusters. The opportunity to get to hang out with Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, and Harold Ramis would be too good to pass up. I can imagine cracking jokes with Bill Murray and talking over old times on the Caddyshack set. Don’t even get me started on how much I would enjoy just looking at Sigourney Weaver. If she asks me, “Are you a God?” I would say, “Hell, yes. Want to have dinner?” I would also take the opportunity to pitch Dan Aykroyd on a possible Blue Brothers does My GRL movie.

How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have? 

I only have one unpublished manuscript. It is about 120,000 words and is about an agent of the worldwide consortium who goes rogue. He is doing his best to disrupt economic and political circumstances and is being tracked by the consortium’s best bounty hunter. I had the chance to print it off for editing, and after reading fifty pages, I decided it was one of the worst things I had read. It is quite hefty and now is in the garage ready to be used as a doorstop if needed. I have one partly finished manuscript about Ned Tranes, the Port Aransas police chief. (He was a character in the John Cannon Trilogy.) It seems a group of terrorists had encoded some destruction plans on photos that were stored on a smartphone. One of the terrorists was at the beach, and unknown to him, the phone fell into the sand. A couple of tourists turned the phone in to Ned Tranes, and now the terrorists want it back. Ned’s wife had been nabbed, and he is expecting a call for a trade. That’s where I left it.

What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters of the opposite sex? 

The most challenging thing is to accurately reflect feelings about individual actions in the various scenes. For example, a male character would shrug his shoulders in certain situations where a female would want to take action. It is tough to put oneself into the shoes of the opposite sex. The ‘write what you know’ situation is entirely out the window. Emotions and reactions have to be realistic, and the writer can’t pull from previous experience to develop those character traits. It takes a ton of research to know how an individual of the opposite sex would react to several situations. It is also difficult to write love scenes from the POV of the opposite sex. Sure, you could write what you have observed during your own love scenes, but will that be an accurate reflection of the general population? The best way to find out is input from members of the opposite sex.

What are you working on now?

I am finishing my sixth novel about a couple named Samantha and James who have died. James in a car accident as an adult and Samantha by a kidnapper in the first grade. The two used to be good friends in school until Sam disappeared. Sam has been appointed by God to help James find his eternal home. James reunites with Sam after his accident and is not aware that he has crossed over. It is now up to Sam to help him understand his new dimension and to find a place where he would like to spend eternity. The two visit several sites in many periods until they come across Lucifer. He is very anxious to have James join his team and makes a proposition that has as an incentive, the continuation of the human race. The question is, will James take the deal or try to figure out a solution to the possibility of human extension without jeopardizing his immortal soul.

When a former pro football star and broadcaster, now a Wall Street maven is accused of insider trading, will he be able to prove his innocence and expose those who are guilty?

Greg and his boyhood pal dreamed of big success in professional football and then later in business. Greg was the only one to live the dream. Now the founder of an investment fund Greg is faced with a routine audit finding by the SEC. The audit points to irregularities and all the tracks lead to Greg. The justice department hits him with an indictment of 23 counts of fraud, money laundering, and insider trading. His firm goes bust, and Greg is on his own.

His best friend knows he is innocent but has been ordered under penalty of eternal damnation not to help.

If you enjoy stories of riches to rags, redemption, brotherly love, and a little of the paranormal, Circumstance of Childhood will keep you riveted.

Purchase Link

Amazon

Bio

John began his writing as a full-time occupation after an extensive business career. His specialty is thriller fiction novels, but John also writes poetry and short stories.  His first book, My GRL, introduces the exciting adventures of the book’s central character, John J. Cannon. The second Cannon novel, His Revenge, continues the adventure, while the final book in the trilogy, Our Justice, launched in September 2016. The fourth, Circumstances of Childhood a family life story published October 1st, 2017. The fifth book, The Contract is written with Gwen Plano and made available in June of 2018. All books are on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions. The paperback versions are available in the Indie Lector store

John lives in Lakeway Texas with his wife and their spoiled rescue pets.

Social Media

Blog Fiction Favorites, http://johnwhowell.com/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/john.howell.98229241

Twitter –https://www.twitter.com/HowellWave

Authors db –http://www.authorsdb.com/authors-directory/6604-john-w-howell

LinkedIn –http://www.linkedin.com/pub/john-w-howell/48/b59/462/

Goodreads –https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7751796.John_W_Howell

61 thoughts on “#BadMoonRising: Circumstances of Childhood by John W. Howell #supernatural #suspense”

  2. John’s clever humor really shines through in his answers. I especially loved his answer about the Overlook hotel and Jack Torrance. 🙂

    I’ve read Circumstances of Childhood and it’s a great story. I’m looking forward to his newest as well. Very compelling description!

    Liked by 3 people

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      3. They were guests on my blog a year or more ago. In fact, I recently did a “would you rather” guest post featuring Pam Wight and I asked John if Lucy and Twiggy should play, Here’s his response: That would be fun. Would you rather have kibble handed you in your bowl or hunt your own meat?
        LOL!

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

  11. What a fantastic interview!! John, I love the reasoning you gave for preferring to be a Vampire over a Werewolf. 🙂 Definitely much classier. I can’t wait for the new novel. It has intrigued me from the beginning!! I’ll be waiting in line for it. Teri, thanks for having John over. He is a super guest!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. I have a Bill Murray story. A business associate and I were entering the Rendez Vous bar in NYC just as Bill Murray was leaving. I said Hi to Bill and he said, Hi John. There was no other discussion until we got to the bar. My associate then asked, “Do you know who that was?” I said, “Of course. We used to work together.” He couldn’t stop talking about that for years. I never told him that the “Hi John” was probably meant for the guy behind me. Bill Murray didn’t know me from Adam.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  17. Pingback: Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF | Fiction Favorites

  19. Teri, your questions — and John your answers made for a fabulous read. What fun for my Friday morning coffee! You know I’m a fan of a “dirty martini”… So now every time I have one I’ll think of, “First a classic martini and then a sensual bite.” LOL.
    John, I *really* liked your description of the Ned Tranes story. Maybe you’d rather have your head in other parts of the world, now that you’ve moved away from Port Aransas, but I hope you’ll finish that one. Always looking forward to anything you write. Hugs on the wing.

    Liked by 2 people

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