Back in August 2024 I had a silent release for my latest novel, Welcome to Hollow Wood. This book has been 12 years in the making and I honestly can’t quite believe that it’s finally out.
Growing up I was always hooked on movies I was probably far too sheltered to be watching at the time — like SCREAM, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and a variety of other teen thrillers and suspense films. During my school years you would always find me in the library devouring anything and everything by R. L. Stine, too. I think that’s where my inspiration for not only this story but most of my writing stems … Good characters and irresistible twists, red-herrings, and reveals.
This story first begun somewhere around 2012 when one of my university assignments for Creative Writing was to create the first six chapters of a novel. Whilst most of my classmates wrote deep, poetic romances and historical fiction, I was writing about teens and murder. At the time I couldn’t understand why they weren’t … It was so much fun!
Unfortunately, disaster struck when my laptop died and my hard drive failed to restore the file. I was devastated. All that hard work vanished, never to be retrieved. I thought about re-writing it all, but the idea of starting over and not capturing what I had upset me. I decided to put it to bed. However, over the years the characters wouldn’t stop running through my mind and in November 2021 I decided to add Hollow Wood to my list of work to complete by the end of 2024.
In some ways this story does connect to others in the Sim Alec Sansford Universe (I really need to come up with a better name for it than that!). Hollow Wood is first mentioned in my debut novel, Welcome to Denver Falls, where it is the neighbouring town. In that book the there is a baseball scene where the Denver Dholes go up against the Hollow Wood Hawks.
Book two, which I’m working on currently, also makes reference to a character featured in my series Fortune’s Well. However, despite links to these series Hollow Wood is not paranormal.
The book is currently being made into an audio version, narrated by the talented Amy McGhee. The process has been so much fun and it has been fantastic hearing Amy bring the characters to life. I was recently asked why, as a British author, I selected an American narrator for my book. The truth is I wanted to capture the essence of those 90s and 00s teen thrillers I admired so much growing up. There’s something about the American influence that brings back that sense of nostalgia for me.
The audiobook should be available by March 2025, and I cannot wait for you to hear it!
BLURB:
That’s the question on everyone’s lips.
Everyone apart from Weaver Lawrence, Eliot Chase, Noah Castello and Beth Sinclair, the only ones that know the truth. At least that’s what they think.
Little do they know someone else was there that night in the woods two years ago, and they’re thirsty for revenge.
On the surface, their town of Hollow Wood seems like the perfect vacation destination. Quaint countryside, large estates, wealthy residents with perfect lives and perfect smiles.
But with senior year coming to an end and exams looming;for these four estranged friends, this year’s going to be an absolute KILLER…
READ ON FOR A SNEAK PEEK!
The plan was simple. The friends were to meet up at the quad for the first time in what felt like forever. Despite being the unofficial ringleader, Weaver couldn’t help but feel nervous at the prospect of having the old posse back together. Not only was there the obvious, immediate threat, but also things between them hadn’t exactly ended on great terms.
Beth and Eliot practically hated each other; Noah was too fucking stubborn to give into his feelings; and as for Weaver, he’d thrown himself into sports to distract himself from the truth. His life was changing, falling apart around him, and he’d sooner stick his head in the sand than face the reality of it all.
He paced anxiously across the grass, ignoring the signage that threatened suspension to any students caught damaging the flowerbeds. He couldn’t care less, not right now. Besides, it was after hours and there was nobody there to report him.
Moments later he saw a set of headlights pulling into the parking lot. It was Noah. He hopped down from the drivers seat and pulled a set of crutches from the back. Weaver felt a pang of guilt. He’d completely forgotten to consider when he’d made the call if Noah would be up to it. After all, what he was about to propose was no easy expedition.
“This better be good.” Noah said as he reached him. “These bad boys will keep me going for now but if you’re going to keep us here all night I’ll grab the chair.” He gave Weaver a wink, letting him know he really didn’t mind. Today was a good day for Noah Castello, but his mobility was so sporadic you never could tell when he’d take a turn for the worst.
Weaver didn’t get a chance to reply, before he even opened his mouth to speak two figures emerged from the other side of the quadrangle. One tall, and dressed in a crisp, clean sweater. The other, short and brooding.
“What did we miss?” Eliot asked as they approached. Weaver couldn’t help but notice the two girls were linking arms. A cursory glance at Noah proved that he’d noticed the unusual affection between the two as well. Whatever Eliot had told Beth about what was going on must have really sunk in.
“Nothing, Noah just got here too.” Weaver informed them, then gestured toward a bench by the fountain. They all took their places exactly as they would have back in the day. Girls on one side, boys on the other. It was exactly how Kelsea had instructed. Back then Beth suspected it was her way of keeping everybody in check. Plus Kelsea absolutely loved having Eliot sit opposite Noah so she could watch her squirm as she flirted with him, and reached over and played with his hair.
“So, you all know why we’re here,” Weaver begun.
“Threats. Stalker. Yeah, sure,” Noah added. “But what exactly are we going to do about it?”
Eliot and Beth looked up in anticipation. Weaver felt his brow begin to sweat, he wasn’t sure if what he was about to say was a good idea or not. But he knew doing something was better than doing nothing at all.
“We go back to the hiking trails.” He announced.
“What the fuck?” Eliot’s head practically exploded off her tiny body. “Why would we do that?”
“Well,” Weaver cleared his throat. “I was thinking, whoever is doing this must have been there that night. Maybe we’ll find something.”
“After two years?” Beth practically laughed in his face. “Seriously?”
“Well.” Weaver shrugged.
“Might not be such a bad idea.” Noah chimed in. He was staring down at his phone with his brow furrowed. He turned the screen to face them. “Looks like I finally got my first stalker gram.”
Sure enough there it was, a photo of a long, rusted metal pipe. A photo that would mean nothing to anyone else, but the Hollow Wood four knew exactly what it was. And exactly what it meant. Beside Beth, Eliot stiffened. It even seemed for a moment that all of the colour drained from her perfect face.
“So, what does this mean?” Beth asked on behalf of everyone.
“It means that whoever is doing this has been up there recently.” Weaver explained. “Even more reason for us to go.”
“I don’t think I can.” Eliot said. Her eyes flicked across at Noah who was looking back at her slightly offended. After all, if he could bear to go back there, surely she should too. Surely they all should.
“We have to.” Beth said, and Weaver couldn’t help but be a little surprised at how easily she’d agreed.
“So it’s decided then?” Noah asked. Then after a moment of silence he lifted his hand out into the centre. Slowly but surely the others placed theirs on top, Eliot being the most reluctant. “Road trip,” Noah cheered, as the group made their way across the lot to Beth’s car…
© Copyright 2024, Sim Alec Sansford.
If you’d like to grab a copy, click here to dive in to the world of Hollow Wood. I warn you though, you may not come out alive.
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