After I completed Jeffery, I sat here in front of a computer that holds more than twenty books I have written, all in different stages of completion. So many thoughts and possibilities going through my mind, wondering where I wanted to take things next. Jeffery was an unexpected book. It was never supposed to be written, and was certainly never intended to be my debut novel. Now, my first book was supposed to be something completely different, but I knew as I looked at it that it was nothing more than a one shot deal. It had nothing to do with the horror fiction, that find myself entangled with. I felt that if I took on that book, it would have to be long after I had established myself as a horror novelist.




With so many ideas floating around in my head, it was hard for me to decide what book I was going to do next, and what book might be worth the effort. Then it dawned on me. When I posted a portion of the prolog to "Jeffery Smiles" on the face book fan page, I got some comments about it expressing an interest in that particular story. The story of a young psychiatrist, fresh out of college and starting a new job at the famed Danvers state hospital. The horrors that he would witness and the things that he would see. I must say that having had my own experience within the walls of Danvers state hospital, I find myself rather drawn to the story.

When I was a child, my mother worked at the facility in the administration building, and I had spent many times visiting here there. Later in life, after it had closed, and before it was foolishly made into condominiums, I was lucky enough to participate in a paranormal investigation of the property, where I had uncovered startling evidence of intelligent spiritual activity. Yes, with all of this in mind, I think the answer is very clear. The story of the "Castle on the hill" is a story that simply must be told.