My friends. I will admit, The Corroding took a lot out of me to deliver. It was described, in the most flattering sense, as a doorstopper by the renowned reviewers at Kirkus Reviews. And is it ever. Was it an ambitious endeavor for an author’s second ever published novel at 614 print pages? Probably. Could I have put it on the backburner and instead, written a much shorter, less complex story that ties up Daniel Hallowell’s tribulations in Ashford? You bet your ass I could’ve. Well then, was it worth writing such an epic? Yes, yes it absolutely was.
On a personal level, The Corroding is a story I needed to get out of my head and down onto paper. Much of its underlying messaging is comprised of the kind of stuff that isn’t meant to ping-pong around the isolated brain of an individual forever.
On a professional level, The Corroding has grown into the literary gift that keeps on giving. It’s sold far more copies in less than a year than Three Days in Ashford has in five. It has received praise across the industry, including an elusive starred review from Kirkus.
To me, best of all, the messaging I set out to convey isn’t getting lost. I’ve received so many messages from readers wanting to express to me that:
“The Corroding is so much more than just a horror novel.”
Which, quite simply, represents the single greatest type of validation I could possibly ask for as a writer.
I’ve never set out to write “a horror novel,” nor will I ever. I have and will continue leveraging the horror, paranormal, and science fiction genres to deliver good stories. Stories where things like humor, love, conquest, adventure, action, humanity, amongst many others, still have a place. You’re never going to get The Evil Dead out of Ty Tracey. But you might get a variation of it that actually explains what the fuck is going on (beyond someone found the wrong book and read it for ten seconds), with characters that are more human-being than mere cannon fodder for ghosts and zombies and . . . donuts?
What’s next?
The Corroding wave is yet to crest.
For those yet to read the Corroding, and those who dislike reading lengthy books in the traditional fashion, and those who just want to experience it again through a different format, the audiobook is well into production. It is being voiced by the great Kaleigh Kirby and I’ve heard about a third of it thus far. I’ll just say this: Kaleigh’s reading of it manages to scare the shit out of me and I wrote the damned thing.
There are also some exciting accolades and announcements over the near horizon for The Corroding. As always, we will be loud and proud about all of them the moment they’re announced.
There is no rest for the wicked.
I’ve chosen my next novel to write, and it is in the process of being outlined.
Blackened Time is officially in the works!
It will be a standalone horror / sci-fi mind-and-time-bending work of fiction that transcends anything I’ve previously written. It will exist in the same universe as Three Days in Ashford and The Corroding but tell an origin tale for all humanity uniquely its own.
“How badly do you want the answers to who we are and where we come from? What are you willing to risk? Such answers only exist in the nightmare realm, and through the blackened time.”
As always, I will keep you updated on the progress.
Once more unto the breach, my friends. Once more.
To all of you who have been clamoring for the sequel to Three Days in Ashford. I have come to several conclusions on that front that might interest you.
Firstly, it will be a two-part series. The sequel will provide closure to all the questions left open at the end of the first book. I had originally kicked around the idea of a trilogy, but it’s been five years since the original, and a trilogy spanning fifteen years is in nobody’s interest.
Secondly, I’ve figured out how to get Daniel Hallowell back into Ashford. Which has been, by far, the trickiest mental blocker in the way of me plotting out the rest of the story. For those who have read the original, you know that Ashford is far from a simple town to access. And can only be accessed through some pretty special circumstances. So, finding a way to get Daniel back there in a fashion that’s true and fair to what the town actually is, has for years challenged the full extent of my creative faculties.
Thirdly, the second and final book of the series will be entitled:
“Of Fear and Infinity – Book 2 of The Ashford Series.”
The story will again be told through Daniel’s first-person point of view, with narratives in orbit of his told through various perspectives. It’s far from the easiest means to convey a story, but it is the bed I’ve made. I will begin writing it immediately following the completion of the draft writing process for Blackened Time. The goal is for Of Fear and Infinity, and Blackened Time to release near simultaneously.
A big thank you to each and every one of you who have been alongside me for this entire journey. I had no idea what I was doing or how good anything I wrote was when I published Three Days in Ashford five years ago. But I quickly discovered a vast community of people willing to champion my writing far and wide.
I never thought I would receive messages at midnight from a woman in Scotland describing my work as indistinguishable from Stephen King. I never expected a woman in Spain to mail me a masterpiece of artwork depicting the melonheads from Ashford.
I certainly never expected to crack the top 100 across several genres on Amazon’s Best Sellers rankings. I never expected the most formidable voices across the literary industry to receive and celebrate my writing so positively.
None of this is possible without each of you along for this ride with me. A million thanks, and as long as you’re willing to keep reading my books, I will keep writing them.
—Ty
