Interview with MN Bennet, author of CRESCENTVILLE HAUNTING

 

I am so excited to introduce our interview participant today: MN Bennet (he/him). Bennet is the author of upcoming fantasy romance, CRESCENTVILLE HAUNTING which comes out on March 27th. This was such a good interview where we talked about this book and a bit about his experience with writing and releasing this book.

Read on to find out his answers on what else he's got in store for the future, how he started writing, a bit on his worldbuilding, and what it's been like releasing his debut book. As always links to his socials and a link to preorder the book will be included at the end of the interview. Hope you enjoy! Consider subscribing to my blog if you want to be updated when I post more interviews.      

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How did you first get started with writing?

With fanfiction but way before I knew what fanfiction was. I was maybe seven and I had a Gargoyles animated series interactive video/boardgame. It got lost because of moving around, so I wanted to recreate it. Except I couldn't remember all the rules, so I wrote new ones and storylines and built a three-story board out of construction paper. I had so much fun I started writing my Dragon Ball Z + Sailor Moon crossover movie script.
It was AMAZING. The fight scenes were possibly some of my best work. From what I remember they were blocking cues of [punch, kick, kick, punch, punch, punch, energy ball] on repeat. No lie. There was nothing other than punch, kick, energy ball because DBZ fights moved so fast that's obviously all the movie producers would need to work with when they acquired my script. It was 64 pages and I think about 20 of those pages were my very detailed fight scenes. This continued for a few years, exploring with characters from stories I loved until I decided to try my hand at original characters in worlds I'd created.

I'm gonna be completely honest, I now want to know everything about the game you recreated. I am invested! I also love that you wrote a script and that it was 64 PAGES!!! That is absolutely amazing! I definitely get why that led to you trying it with original characters.
Do you have a writing schedule? If so, what does it look like?

Chaotic. My routine isn't daily. I admire those who draft daily but I need to replenish the well. Sometimes that involves reading, gaming, binge watching something, plotting, editing, beta reading, or just resting. All of it counts toward writing because it keeps me happy and functioning when I get ready to write. I do aim for regular writing schedules though, whether that is evenings after work or during my days off (weekends). Sometimes I'll sprint with other writers which is lovely. We'll do X minutes on, then have breaks to decompress and chat. It's wonderful. You can chat, brainstorm, join breakout rooms if people aren't in drafting mode and need to work with others on things like blurbs/queries, plot problems, or general venting.

That's amazing! I also greatly appreciate your honesty about the chaotic schedule you have at times. All of those things are so important to help make sure you can continue to write! Also, I love the idea of sprinting and chatting with other writers. Genius!
Where did you get the idea for this book?

This came from an old story draft from when I was much younger that was focused on the seven deadly sins. Who doesn't love the seven deadly? Well, I dusted off the lore I'd written which wasn't as detailed as I like my worldbuilding now, so I tinkered with things until I stumbled onto Logan's character. I generally have a world or plot idea before I have the characters.

Ooh, nice! Bringing back something you wrote years ago and playing with it until it meets your current standards, great!
Did you have to do any world-building for this book?

Oh yes. I often have multiple worldbuilding docs. Rules of the world: How Vices and Sins work. Which paranormal creatures are Vices, Sins, or Hauntings. How Vices become Sins. How humans become Hauntings. What the heck is a Saint and why are they so scary? Paranormal factions. Human factions.
I'll also keep a loose history of the world index (nothing too detailed but enough to understand and add context when necessary). And my favorite-character docs to track my cast of characters which I think is as important as worldbuilding. I want to make sure I know all the characters in the story. I'll often write backstories, goals, desires, personality and appearance, and sometimes snippets of scenes that don't always make it into the story but are a blast to write.

I'm impressed. As much as I love fantasy/paranormal books, I can't do that much worldbuilding. I think I'd lose my mind just trying to. I am very impressed! I love character docs!! The characters, especially side characters, are so very important to make a book and world feel alive. Keeping track of them is an amazing idea.
I really love how the book starts off. Definitely wasn't what I was expecting but it was an interesting introduction. Is there any reason why it started that way? With that scene?

I wanted something humorous that also offered some tension between Logan and Henry. It was such an awkward scene to jump right into that I think it revealed a lot about Logan and Henry's personalities right away. I also wanted something that showed readers in this world everyone is aware of paranormal beings, and certain places-like Crescentville-that is NOT okay in human eyes.

It's a great beginning! I think it works really well to convey what you wanted it to! I was certainly hooked once I read it.
I believe this is your debut book. What made you want to publish/release a book?

I've written a few books before Crescentville Haunting. Some good, some terrible, but I really believed in this story. I couldn't let go of Logan's story, his plot, or all the amazing characters who helped shape this wonderful world. This was the last book I truly invested lots of querying time while pursuing traditional publishing. I had a few close calls with some agents and editors which was probably why I kept coming back to Crescentville Haunting even after shelving it and working on my next project.
I finally sat down with myself, decided shelving stories was boxing away the biggest joy I found in creating them, and realized I would have to be my own champion moving forward. Especially if I wanted to hold onto the happiness writing brings me. Traditional is wonderful, but it's not the only path to share books with readers. There are shelved projects I don't think I'll ever dust off, but I really wanted to share Logan's journey in surviving the Crone, exploring his feelings for Henry, and finally finding and accepting himself.

Wow! Just wow! I don't think that could have been worded better. I am so glad that you hung on to this story and that you decided to self-publish it. I absolutely love your wording for why you wanted to not shelve the story.
What's your experience been like with publishing this book?

Stressful, exciting, and exhausting. I'm worried putting my work out there independently, knowing I have to be my biggest and loudest champion. But I very much believe in this story and the others I've been working on. When I decided to go into self-publishing, I wanted to take the time to really learn what I was in for. I'd "looked" into it off and on over the years, but always as a backup plan.
It wasn't until early 2022 that I stopped looking at self-publishing as a backup plan and started seeing it as a real and viable option to share my work with others. Once I'd found an editor who could help me make Crescentville Haunting its best version, I knew I was *mostly* ready for this exciting journey of self-publication. I then spent the year preparing, learning as much as I could, and going into 2023 as prepared as possible. Still lots to learn and navigate along the way, but I'm eager for the releases I've got planned.

Fair! That's how I view the publishing process from the outside. I'm glad that you're eager about this release and future releases too, even with the stress and worry. I hope your books find their readers!
Where did the title of this book come from?

I struggled so much with this title, going back and forth with things. I finally settled on Crescentville Haunting because the city is integral to the story and hauntings are pivotal to the world. Hauntings, the creatures, and the fact Logan spends the majority of the book being haunted by the Crone.

Very solid reasoning! Makes a whole lot of sense! Plus it's just a really good title.
Can you describe this book in 5 words or less?

Accepting yourself takes true strength.

Ooh, yes!!
I took a look at your website and saw a couple of other books mentioned. What can you tell me about those books/stories?

I'm SO excited to start screaming about Dorian's story. It's an adult fantasy series with the first releasing this summer (news coming soon). It's about a telepathic witch who teaches at an academy to help license young witches to professionally cast their magic. Dorian is a total grump but a secret softie.
Wally and Bez are the MCs in the third book I'm planning to release in 2023, later in the fall. It's an adult fantasy told in dual (duel?-they are enemies to lovers.) POV. It'll center around an anxious mage and a snarky devil. Lots of humor, fighting, mayhem, and steam in this story.

I am obsessed with both of these books! Just all the yeses!! ALso, duel! Ha, great! Definitely needs to be advertised as a duel-POV book.
I look forward to watching you continue to write and release books! I wish you the absolute best for your release of CRESCENTVILLE HAUNTING but also for your future releases as well.

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You can find MN Bennet on his website, Instagram, and Twitter.

You can preorder MN Bennet's book from Amazon.

If you can't buy his books but you still want to read them, consider requesting them to your local library or suggesting them on Overdrive!