Award-winning science fiction author Jade Kerrion has released her newest novel, Eternal Night. Now she has ventured into another genre, a world of Vampires, and Jade describes her new thriller this way:

Alone for a millennium, since a human murdered her beloved consort, Ashra, the immortal icrathari queen, rules over Aeternae Noctis, the domed city of eternal night. Her loneliness appears to be at an end when her consort’s soul is reborn in a human, Jaden Hunter, but their reunion will not be easy.

Icrathari are born, not made. If Ashra infuses Jaden with her immortal blood, he will be a vampire, a lesser creature of the night, a blood-drinker rather than a soul-drinker.

Furthermore, Jaden is sworn to protect his half-sister, five-year-old Khiarra. She is the child of prophecy, destined to end the eternal night and the dominion of the Night Terrors—the icrathari and the vampires.

As Ashra struggles to sustain her crumbling kingdom in the face of enemies without and treachery within, Jaden fights to defend his sister and unravel a greater mystery: what is the city of eternal night, and how did it come to be?

We took the opportunity to interview Jade about her journey as an author and about the writing of Eternal Night.

CP. When did you start writing, and was there a significant event that prompted you to do so?

J.K. I started at the age of thirteen when my school essays were returned to me with a bunch of “A”s scrawled over the top. Teenagers are impressionable. Being much more impressionable than most, and believing that my teachers knew what they were doing, I figured I was destined to be a writer. It’s only taken me tens of thousands of hours of work since then to be halfway decent at writing (and I’m still learning each day), but one has to start somewhere. 

CP: What inspired you to write Eternal Night?

JK: We all have assumptions that anchor the foundations of our belief system. Some of us even have fears (perhaps some of them irrational) that consume us.

What if those assumptions are wrong? What if the fears are unjustified? How quickly can you change your perspective?

Eternal Night was written along the premise that the horrors and terrors that have traditionally plagued humanity can be quite different when viewed from a different perspective. It’s all a matter of point of view.

CP: Why did you use vampires in your novel?

JK: I’ll confess that when I first came up with the concept of the novel that would eventually become Eternal Night, I spent a long time debating the use of vampires in my novel. Vampires have had their time in the spotlight, and I was certain that others, including myself, were getting tired of them.

On the other hand, vampires are among the most recognizable of humanity’s original terrors. They embody both the quiet horror of things that go bump in the night, and our innate fear of dying in a slash of fangs and spray of blood. (At least that was before Stephenie Meyer made vampires sparkle instead of die in daylight.) Regardless, it made sense for me to go back to one of humanity’s original terrors if I wanted to turn the concept on its head.

CP:  What do you enjoy the most about writing?

JK: The creative process. I write the movie that I see in my mind. It’s amazing to see the words take shape on paper and realize that it’s bringing to life something that had previously only existed for me. My readers have likened my novels to action movies, anime, and graphic novels—that’s a huge compliment. That tells me I actually succeeded in sharing with them the movie in my mind. 

CP: What was the hardest part about writing your book?

JK: The hardest part was stopping. After multiple rounds of self-editing, several weeks of working with my editor, and several rounds of proofreading, I had to put the book away and say “done.” I think it is entirely possible to edit forever, but at some point, you have to stop and send the book out into the world.

CP: Where do you get the inspiration to write?

JK: I think I’m past the stage of needing inspiration; writing is more of a compulsion now. In general, I have a compulsive personality; people like me should never get exposed to alcohol, cigarettes, or recreational drugs—we’re easy prey. Years ago, computer gaming and writing used to go hand-in-hand for me. My characters from my computer games inspired my writing. Since then, however, my characters have taken on a life of their own and thus, I have been freed to happily obsess about them without needing the occasional computer gaming boost to sustain them.

CP: Who is your favorite author and why?

JK: Neil Gaiman is pure genius in his storytelling ability.

CP: What do you like to do when you are not writing? What is your ultimate luxury?

JK: I love reading, and read widely across genres. The ultimate luxury would be to do nothing! However, I’ve realized that I don’t have the right personality type to do nothing. For example, sunbathing on a lounge chair in front of a swimming pool is agony for me (and for the people watching me.) I twitch, I sit up, switch positions, twitch some more. That said, I would love to spend several hours at a spa, getting pampered from head to toe. Maybe, sometime during those few hours, I’d learn to relax for a few minutes.

CPL Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

JK: If you enjoy paranormal fantasy, science fiction, or just a great action-adventure with a hint of romance, I hope you’ll consider reading Eternal Night. I love to hear from readers, so feel free to drop me a note via any of my social media links.

About ETERNAL NIGHT:

“What makes Kerrion’s writing so compelling is the beautifully flawed characters that find themselves in unexpected relationships…these kind of character level conflicts make Kerrion’s writing so deliciously addictive.”—Noor A Jahangir, Author of The Changeling King

“Everything you want in a great story. Love, intrigue, action, betrayal, and understanding.”—Ch’kara Silverwolf, Author of Daughter of Light and Dark

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Paperbacks available at Amazon / Amazon UK / Barnes & Noble / Book Depository