We are very excited to sit and down and talk with Brian Warner. Brian’s debut novel, The Ghost Writer, was published December 2024. Deadly When Disturbed has received tremendous praise from reviewers. We had a chance to review the novel recently, and it was a thriller ride!
Thriller Magazine: The Ghost Writer blends horror, metafiction, and literary mystery in a really unique way. What inspired you to tell a story that plays so heavily with narrative layers and stories within stories?
The Ghost Writer is an homage to the great horror works of Stephen King that I eagerly consumed as a teenager, but it is also an exploration of the question of how someone can be so prolific and create such a vast, interconnected universe. The novel asks, what if that universe already existed and the author tapped into it by creating a fictional version of himself? It then asks, what would happen if that fictional author found out about the real version, and realized they were being exploited? As with any good King novel, such a situation quickly spirals out of control, and chaos ensues.
TM: This being your first novel, what was the most surprising or challenging part of the writing and publishing process for you?
I’ve tried to write a novel before where I spent considerable time plotting out every detail and it resulted in the idea becoming lost in the process and fizzling out. For this one, I let the story develop organically and it led me to places I never would have thought to take it. I also found myself taking inspiration from unusual sources when I would hit a writer’s block, for instance one of my favorite parts of the book is unashamedly lifted from Spaceballs because the movie happened to be on TV at the time and the scene that was on fit perfectly with what I needed. By self-publishing, I was also able to add in a considerable number of illustrations that I feel elevate the immersion of the reader that a traditional publisher most likely wouldn’t have taken on, especially for a debut novel.
TM: One of the standout aspects of the book is how realistically and sensitively Patrick, a child on the autism spectrum, is portrayed. Can you talk about your approach to writing his character?
Patrick is heavily based on my son, who is also on the autism spectrum. I wanted to portray how someone with Patrick’s condition impacts the family dynamic, not only from the burden and struggle it can put on those around them in dealing with the outbursts and difficulty fitting in with society’s expectations, but also how it can cause someone who is neurotypical to alter their perspective of the world. The main character, John Sterling, who is Patrick’s father, has struggled with accepting his son’s diagnosis and how that has negatively impacted his own career, but by the end of the story he has become less selfish and realizes that family is more important than a job.
TM: The novel feels like a love letter to classic horror while also pushing into new territory. Who are some of your biggest influences, both inside and outside the horror genre?
Stephen King, obviously, but specifically the Dark Tower series. The Gunslinger was the first of his novels that I read, and what made me want to be not only a writer but also an artist. I loved the illustrations from Michael Whelan that truly brought the story to life. The illustrations in The Ghost Writer, which are presented as the book covers of the fictional horror author Martin Knight, are based on several of his paintings along with several other well-known King book covers. There are also references to other horror writers that I admire, such as Clive Barker and Fritz Leiber (better known for his fantasy work, but he could spin a good horror tale). The eBook versions also have a special Easter Egg reference to one of the most underrated horror movies of the ’90s from Roman Polanski.
TM: The ending leaves readers with lingering questions and a sense of unease. Without giving too much away, did you always know how the story would end, or did it evolve as you wrote it?
There were two things I knew I wanted to do with the ending, the first was tie it in with the Wizard of Oz theme that sort of underlies the novel (tell me that’s not a horror movie with those flying monkeys and murderous witches). The second was to pull off a reference to one of the most infamous and bizarre TV series endings that also features a child with autism and a snow globe. Beyond that, the story pretty much evolved into the ending on its own, or maybe I should say endings.