Happy Wednesday, everyone! Today, I am absolutely thrilled to welcome New York Times bestselling author Ryan Douglass to the blog for an exclusive author interview. Ryan is stopping by to chat all about his gripping new YA horror/thriller, Night of Madness. I don’t usually read much horror, but since this one is also a fast-paced thriller with a highly compelling main character, I was hooked from the start!
Today, Ryan is giving us a peek behind the scenes of his writing process, sharing how he brilliantly balances horror and suspense, and discussing his journey as a seasoned author. with a fantastic book giveaway! Read on to see our full conversation, enjoy the book blurb, and leave a comment below to enter to win a copy of this chilling new release.
Here’s a blurb from Goodreads:
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Teen
influencers compete in a horror movie–themed overnight competition, only
to realize the real test is staying alive in this chilling, blood-soaked horror
novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The
Taking of Jake Livingston and the production company behind Clown
in a Cornfield.
Mara is a horror buff whose only fond memories
of her dad are bonding over movies by Jack Stanley—the producer of
the eighties. Stanley’s campy slasher movies may have kept Mara’s fraught
parental relationship on life support and gained a cult following, but the man
himself has faded from the public eye…until he announces a contest centered
around Asylum, his most terrifying film. Five teen influencers will
be invited to spend the night on the fully constructed set; whoever sticks it
out until morning wins a hundred thousand dollars.
Stuck in a dead-end job, Mara seriously needs
that cash. She may not be a famous influencer, but there has to be a way to
manufacture an online presence that will capture Stanley’s attention. With the
help of her brother and best friend, Mara finds some creative solutions to her
dilemma and lands herself onto the roster of the lucky chosen few by way of her
engaging authenticity.
When Mara and the other contestants arrive on
set, it’s a horror fan’s dream being immersed in the asylum setting, but as the
night wears on, they realize the danger is more than movie magic… They’re not
there to win or lose but to live or die. As Mara fights to survive, she
discovers an inner ruthlessness she didn’t know she had. Just how far will she
go to see the sunrise—and will she still recognize herself by the end?
IWSG Post
We are also celebrating the Insecure Writer’s Support Group (IWSG) post day.
Posting: The first Wednesday is officially Insecure Writer's Support Group Day.
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
The awesome co-hosts this month are: Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Liza at Middle Passages, JH Moncrieff, Jemima Pett!
Optional Question: Many people are calling for writers who use AI to disclose it. Most who employ ghostwriters do not admit it - do you think authors who use ghostwriters should have to disclose that, too?
I’m going to skip the question this month. I’m sorry that some of you may have had trouble accessing Literary Rambles. Alex let me know about the problem last month. Since then, I’ve been brave and changed Literary Rambles to a secure site by myself, with Google’s help. The link is https://literaryrambles.com instead of http://literaryrambles.com.
That made me feel really brave, and I just finally installed Google Analytics all by myself, again with Google’s help. Now I’m trying some new features so that Google sees and recommends Literary Rambles more as a help to writers on their journeys to publication. I’m also hoping these changes will help make my author interview posts more visible, because I feel that with shifts in blog popularity, it’s harder for me to support the authors I feature.
Finally, I'm really sorry, but it may take me time this month to visit your blog. I just recovered from a bad case of the flu and need to go visit a dear friend in hospice at a nursing home today. I also suddenly lost my dear nephew two days. I hope you'll understand if I get to your blog late or don't get to your blog this month. And the best way you can support me today is to support the author I'm featuring today.
Author Interview With Ryan Douglass
1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer.
I had a natural love of storytelling even as a toddler. I would always want to read or hear a story before bed, so after a certain age, I just started writing my own so my grandma wouldn’t have to keep coming up with them and my mom wouldn’t have to keep buying more books. As I grew up, I just kept writing to make sense of my experiences. I studied theatre in college, and I think that experience shaped how I handle character. I’m still discovering the writer I am, and having fun on the journey.
2. Where did you get the idea for Night of Madness?
I wanted to write a horror story about performance and the way people consume other people’s suffering as entertainment. I was thinking about the ridiculous emphasis we put on social media, and the blurry line between watching something horrible and participating in it. The basic premise came from the idea of a group of young influencers being offered an absurd amount of money to spend the night in an abandoned asylum. From there, I asked myself what kind of person would sign up for this, and what kind of person would run it. So, you get big personalities mixed with old-school slasher energy, and a sense that things could go completely off the rails at any moment.
Writing Process
3. Yes, we do put way too much emphasis on social media. Did you plot out this story, or were you a pantser? Why do you think this process works for you?
I had the major beats, character arcs, reveals, and ending before I started, but discovered the texture of the actual story while writing. Sometimes the things I planned to be scary aren’t scary once they hit the page or a character starts behaving in a way I didn’t anticipate and that becomes more interesting than what I had planned. I need enough structure to keep myself from wandering too much, but enough freedom to enjoy the process.
4. Night of Madness is both a horror and thriller story. How did you weave both aspects into your story and make them work to complement each other?
For me, the thriller element is about momentum and solving clues, while the horror element is about fear. The thriller asks, “What is going to happen next?” Horror asks, “What happens when you realize you’re doomed?”
So, characters are constantly learning new information about the situation they’re in while simultaneously losing control of it. The more they understand about the place and each other, the worse things become. I also wanted the book to have the feeling of a game where you’re trying to figure out the rules while sensing that the odds are stacked against you.
5. That’s a great way to frame the difference between the two. Mara, your main character, finds a ruthlessness in herself that sounds like she needs to survive and live. How did you balance this side of her with other parts of her character so that she would be a likable teen that readers want to root for?
I think because the situation requires Mara to fight for her life, she’ll naturally make decisions that are selfish, violent, or frightening. At the same time, I wanted Mara to have empathy and humor and relationships that reminded us she’s an ordinary, relatable person who wants things beyond simply surviving the night. I think that contrast is what makes her compelling, because ruthlessness doesn’t erase her humanity. It’s actually an expression of how desperately she wants to keep living so she can save the people she cares about.
Road to Publication
6.
This is your third book. What was your road to publishing your first book, The
Taking of Jake Livingston, like?
It was a
long process that kind of surprised me. I wrote Jake Livingston in
college while I was figuring out if being an author was a realistic career path
for me, so I wasn’t even sure if it would be published, because I was pitching
various books at the time. The concept was popular while querying, and we sold
it in a few months. Then I had the experience of realizing publishing does not
make you into a career author after one book. Once it published, I felt weirdly
lost, in wondering how to pull it off again. My debut taught me how to work
with publishers which is great experience, because I know how it works now.
Lately I’ve been figuring out for myself much exposure I want to the industry
stuff outside of writing. To be honest, I prefer to be a recluse, and mostly
private, and to let my work speak for itself.
7. I think many writers would prefer a quiet, solitary life too. How has submitting manuscripts and getting publishing contracts changed since you were a debut author? Do you have any tips on this for other authors hoping to sell more manuscripts after their debut book?
I understand the more exploitative aspects of the business better now. When I was a debut, I was hopeful about enjoying my time in publishing. Now I treat it as more of a job and I know there are lots of things to keep my distance from. That may sound dark, but I do think it’s worth it to be prepared for what it means to business with big corporations, especially for people who have a lot of creative passion, as authors do. I’m less interested in trying to convince a market that a book is valuable than polishing my own distinct, creative instincts, and drawing those out. If I’m constantly chasing what I think publishers want, I can end up writing a soulless version of my work that makes me lose passion for the craft. There are others whose main goal is to satisfy publisher demand and make money, so sometimes it works.
My advice for anyone would be to develop mastery of your craft. Know what you want out of the business, including what you want your visuals to be for your covers. Don’t assume that the people who work with you naturally will give that to you. And don’t let rejection convince you that your work is not valuable. A career is longer than one book and this industry is ever-changing, with everyone looking at everyone’s paper to see what can be done, and what’s up next. Just be you as brilliantly and vibrantly as possible.
Book Marketing
8. How are you celebrating the release of Night of Madness?
It feels like a lot of logistics and making sure I show up for things on time, so I’m trying to actually be present for it and be grateful to everyone who helped bring my third book into the world. With what happened between 2022-2025, and how my career was kind of in this slow-moving place, and how Black authors are being sidelined, that part feels pretty miraculous to me.
9. How are you planning to promote it in the coming months? Has your approach to promoting your books changed over time? IF so, how?
My approach to promotion has not changed much, but I am more intentional about collaborating directly with readers. I promote my work with the capacity that I have, but I have to set boundaries with how much work I’m doing outside of writing, which is my real job. I don’t think authors should have to turn themselves into content creators in order for their books to be seen. Social media is useful, but I’m interested in tailoring promo to specific outlets and focusing on reader outreach, so I can build a creative practice that exists beyond constantly shouting “buy my book” into a void. For Night of Madness, I’m excited about the conversations around the book, because I haven’t had conversations with the horror community in years. Campy horror is such a fun genre for reactions.
10. It sounds like you have a good balance and focus on what’s most important: writing. What are you working on now?
I’m working on several adult projects because I’m so excited to move into that market.
I’m interested right now in an American Gothic story with family dynamics that’s looking at an underrepresented part of history, and exploring religious trauma. I’m also working on a soft sci-fi project that focuses on achieving personal freedom when you’re behind bars. I’m finishing up another Night of Madness story, so I’m very much still in that world, seeing what I can draw out about the pressures that the digital age puts on young people. But beyond that, I’m trying to allow myself to move at a comfortable pace. Three books in, I don’t feel like I need to constantly prove that I can write a novel anymore, or that people will want to read it. Now I’m much more interested in building a life around my creativity that feels less like asking for permission, and more like setting myself free.
Thanks for sharing all your advice, Ryan. You can find Ryan at ryandouglasswriter.com and on Instagram.
🎉 ENTER THE LITERARY RAMBLES NIGHT OF MADNESS BOOK GIVEAWAY! 🎉
Want to win Night of Madness? Thanks to the publisher for supplying a
book for this book giveaway contest.
How to Enter:
- Leave a Comment: Drop a comment below by October 17th with your email
address. To protect your privacy from spam bots, please write your email
address using the "name [at] gmail [dot] com" format.
- Bluesky Bonus: If you follow me on Bluesky, mention your handle in your comment
for an extra entry!
- Sharing Bonus: If you share about this contest on your own social media sites or
blog, let me know in the comments for an extra entry.
- Author Bonus: If you
follow Ryan Douglass on social media, let me know in your comment for an
extra entry!
- Blog Follower Bonus:
If you follow Literary Rambles via
Blogger or email subscription, let me know in the comments for an extra entry.
🌍 Eligibility: The book giveaway is U.S. only.
Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops
- Monday, October 12th: Guest post by Shifa Saltagi and a giveaway of her MG Sisters
Alone
- Wednesday, October 14th: Agent spotlight interview with Jenny Lewis and a query
critique giveaway
- Friday, October 16th: Participating in the Silly Pumpkins Giveaway Hop
- Monday, October 19th: Interview with Kate O’Shaughnessy and a giveaway of her MG Brittle
Magic
- Wednesday, October 21st: Agent spotlight interview with Cate Hart and a query
critique giveaway
- Monday, October 25th: Interview with Jackie Garcia Morales and a giveaway of her MG Pesky Rules
I hope to see you on Monday!
