Carolyne Topdjian is the author of The Hitman’s Daughter, out in Winter 2022 from Agora/Polis Books. She has published in PRISM International, Dreamers Magazine and Firewords Quarterly and is a professor in the Faculty of Media and Creative Arts at Humber College in Toronto. A three-time Pitch Wars mentor, she lives in a 114-year-old haunted house.
Website: https://www.carolynetopdjian.com
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/TopdjianC
FB:
https://www.facebook.com/TopdjianC
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21374056.Carolyne_Topdjian
How
many hours a day do you write?
Good question! To be honest, I’m not sure about hours; rather, I tend to set daily goals by word count. When I draft a new novel, I write methodically at a tortoise’s pace, 1K a day, seven days a week. I’ve learned the hard way: I don’t cope well as the hare with sprints and breaks. I also don’t believe in restrictions like “don’t edit as you go.” The creative process is not a “one-size fits all.” I say, if it works for you, break the rule!
How do
you choose which stories you will write?
I’m most drawn to write stories that move me emotionally. As a novelist of gothic fiction, I gravitate toward fusions of mystery with horror, psychological suspense, and surrealist fiction. I’m also invested in themes of belonging, in part due to my background as an Armenian of the diaspora and Lebanese-Canadian. I’ll often write stories that explore existential questions—moments when people are caught in dark states of transition, contradiction, and flux. Ultimately, I think all of these experiences and influences come together when deciding my next project.
What is
the most difficult part of your artistic process?
So many aspects of writing are hard! In terms of my artistic process, I can sometimes get impatient with drafting a project from ground zero. But the most difficult part is probably the uncertainty of writing. Publishing is an uphill battle, full of rejection and doubt. It’s very much about wearing your heart on your sleeve. That can be both extremely rewarding and terrifying at the same time.
Five
years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?
I have goals to always be growing as a writer, be it in one year or five years from now. I realize that is not terribly specific! For context: I’m an existentialist, and history has taught me not to get too hung up on “time.” Half my life has been struggling to figure out “what to be” and “how to get there.” Now as an author publishing my debut novel in my forties, I don’t have a concrete vision apart from hope and faith. Five years from now, I wish to be writing more stories, and better stories.
How
many unpublished and half-finished books do you have?
At this exact moment in time, I have four unpublished, complete manuscripts saved on my computer. I have no half-finished novels, (unless you count those from my youth); however, I do have countless half-written and incomplete short stories.
Was
there a person who encouraged you to write?
I’ve had so many inspirational and
supportive people who’ve helped me get to where I am today: family, critique
partners, mentors, other authors... I’ve also had unsupportive people, and they too, have pushed me harder. So rather
than list a single person that influenced my writing, I’ll share an origin
story that encouraged my reading…
When I was thirteen, I was into
witchcraft. At the bookstore one day, a paperback novel with a blood-red and
black cover caught my eye. Its title, in smeared cursive font, read “Ouija.”
Even better—a book about séances and ghosts! I excitedly purchased it with the
coins I’d saved up. But it turned out, that book had nothing to do with ghosts.
In fact, its title was Cujo. Yet it
didn’t disappoint. I went on to devour entire shelves of Stephen King, and his novels
remain an inspiration to me today.
The Hitman's Daughter
The Chateau du Ciel was once the destination for the
rich and famous to play, drink and ski—complete with a private railway to
shuttle those desiring extra privacy—now, however, the guests are few and far
between. The New Year’s Eve party was supposed to hoist the rundown hotel back
to its former status, until a massive blizzard hits, trapping the guests who’ve
come to celebrate the grand hotel’s last hurrah. The circumstances might even
be romantic, if the hotel wasn't reputed to be haunted.
When hotel employee
Mave Michael finds the resident artist dead, and shortly thereafter hotel
security finds Mave alone with the body, the reputation that Mave has fought
long and hard to outrun comes back to haunt her. You see, her father is a
notorious hitman who is serving multiple life sentences in prison. She has
changed her name and location dozens of times, but he somehow manages to track
her down—even sending her a postcard on the eve of her birthday, January 1st.
She’s the perfect choice to frame for murder, and now the number one suspect.
Mave can no longer deny the lessons in survival her father taught her, and
calls on that and her uncanny sixth-sense in “finding” lost objects to navigate
the maze of the hotel. To save herself, she not only has to stop running from
her own past, she must unearth the history of the hotel, its elite guests and
buried secrets—one deadly sin at a time.
An homage to classic gothic horror, that proves that
the ghosts of family and classism are alive and well.
Buy link for The Hitman’s Daughter: http://www.polisbooks.com/books/the-hitmans-daughter/
Blurbs for The Hitman’s Daughter:
“A fast-paced haunting novel of survival.” —Library Journal, Starred Review
“Topdjian’s debut thriller is intense with foreboding and an eerie sense of place. The past and present perspectives captivate the reader and connect brilliantly to reveal a shocking conclusion. Fans of Jen Williams, Karin Slaughter, and Alex North will enjoy this one!” —Booklist
“Carolyne Topdjian's The Hitman’s Daughter nails every classic gothic horror trope in the most elegant of ways, drawing us into a ghostly suspense story with exquisite imagery, lush language and a cast of characters in the tradition of the best whodunits. Sumptuous, sinister, and seductive, I was both charmed and haunted.” —Emily Carpenter, author of Burying the Honeysuckle Girls and The Weight of Lies
“A tense and atmospheric gothic mystery with lots of unexpected twists. Topdjian brings the Château du Ciel to life, with its haunted library, the twisting labyrinth of tunnels beneath it, and the suspicious cast of residents and guests whose pasts are intertwined with the hotel's dark history.” —Allison Buccola, author of Catch Her When She Falls
"Suspenseful,
haunting and intricate, Topdjian masterfully delivers in this atmospheric debut
that will have you on the edge of your seat."—Karen Winn, author of Our Little World
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