Author, playwright and producer Russell Mardell has been knocking out the chills with his latest novel, The Knock-Knock Man (RedDoor Press). The story is one that is sure to please readers of traditional ghost stories, yet there is definitely something different about Mardell’s approach to the paranormal.
In this latest release, Mardell takes readers on a journey following central character, police officer Ali Davenport as she navigates the loss of her close friend and colleague. To top it off, she has to unravel the mystery of the legendary Knock-Knock Man, an almost mythical figure that is being blamed for local deaths that are occurring. It’s a story of not only the ghosts of the dead, but those that we carry around in our own minds – of our own traumas and deep rooted issues.
Mardell has released several novels over recent years, including Cold Calling and Bleeker Hill. Deeply impressed with his storytelling style, I invited Mardell to discuss his latest release and what inspired the spooky elements of the tale…
From what I’ve seen online, The Knock-Knock Man has been received really well by readers and reviewers. That must be a good feeling after all the work you’ve put in?
It’s always a relief when the first good review comes in! I always felt that this book would be a tricky beast when it came to reviews due to it being a mash up of genres, that maybe it might not be enough of one genre or the other for some reviewers, and it would be true to say that has happened in some cases, but thankfully not as much as I feared! It’s also a slow burn of a story, much more about character and atmosphere than action, and that’s never going to be to all tastes, so to see reviewers invest in it and enjoy the ride is a real thrill.
Can you tell us what inspired the story?
I had originally wanted to write a fairly traditional haunted house story, but to try and find a slightly different slant to it, so began writing about a night security guard in a disused building – it would have essentially been what became Ernie’s story in the novel – and it was meant to be the basis for a short film but it soon grew beyond that and the story became more complex. I had also wanted to write a story about an obsessed detective, someone chasing the seemingly impossible and to go deep on the emotional fallout of that, so in the end the two stories came together quite naturally. Books like Falling Angel and The Pledge were big inspirations, and I think a detective mystery and the supernatural work quite well together, the hardest part was getting the balance right between the two.
Was it a long process from start to completion? What were some of the challenges of writing the story for you?
The writing of the novel wasn’t particularly long, but the road to publication certainly was! I started the novel whilst studying with Curtis Brown Creative in 2017, so that was a terrific opportunity to workshop pieces of the book, and see how it held up. It was invaluable in helping shape the book. After that the submission process to agents and then publishers took a very long time. I had some serious interest from one particular agent who suggested an overhaul of the climax, and whilst I debated for a while over it (the original ending was very different, and much bleaker) it became very clear that they were spot on. So, redrafting the book to include the new ending took another four months. Structurally the book hasn’t really changed from when I began, but there was an awful lot of fine tuning, tweaking and tightening up. The hardest parts were finding the balance between the genres, trying not to overwhelm either side, and also working on Ali’s character.
Author Russell Mardell
Your central character felt extremely authentic to me. I really felt for Ali Davenport. Was this something you gave a lot of thought and planning to?
That’s great to hear, thank you. Ali was hard work! Which, for anyone who has read the book, is quite apt. It’s her story, she’s in every scene, and she’s a deeply damaged and brittle human, so to make her real and truthful, and yet not alienate the reader was a very challenging aspect of the book. Essentially, if you don’t like the character, you’re probably not going to like the book. It was important that, with the flashback scenes, I showed who she was before these awful events happened, so the reader could see what was a front, and what was real. I wanted to go deep in her character and not shy away from anything. Her story, like that of The Knock-Knock Man, is slowly revealed through the book too and, hopefully, it becomes not just a story about uncovering the truth, but one of redemption too. I’m immensely fond of Ali, and I hope we get to see her again.
I found The Knock-Knock Man to be very creepy in all the best ways. Are you a big horror fan yourself?
Yes, very much. It’s my favourite genre. Like a lot of writers my age, I was reading Stephen King at far too young an age, and he became the gateway to so much more. I was a little obsessed with reading about people’s real life ghost stories as a child, and even now I’m a complete sucker for it. It’s endlessly fascinating to me. I also spent many years working in video shops growing up, and horror films tended to become my comfort watch, as weird as that might sound! I still get excited these days when I watch a horror film or read a novel that scares me.
Can you tell us what your own favourite horror books and films are?
Well I was lucky enough to have cover endorsements from two of my favourite writers in the genre – Stephen Volk and Lucie McKnight Hardy. Lucie’s debut novel, Water Shall Refuse Them, blew my mind. I thought it was exquisite. I’m a pretty slow reader unfortunately, but I devoured that novel. Stephen, of course, is a legend of the genre. I first met him many years ago just after Ghostwatch came out, so that was a memorable moment! A terrific writer, his short story collections, whilst not all horror, are wonderful.
I’m particularly drawn to ghost stories, and adore Michelle Paver’s novels Thin Air and Dark Matter, she’s an extraordinary writer. I love folk horror too and I think Andrew Michael Hurley is doing some wonderful work in that world. I’m slowly working my way through Adam Nevill’s novels, and in terms of consistency he tends to be in a league of his own, for me. Horror is so subjective, but I find that no writer can get under my skin so easily. Adam has created nightmares that have lingered with me, and with No One Gets Out Alive, has written the book that has unsettled me the most. Incredible talent.
As for horror films I will give pretty much any and all a watch, though I will always gravitate towards supernatural films. I always like a slow burner, something that creeps up on you and is more concerned with atmosphere than jump scares, films like Session 9, Don’t Look Now, The Haunting (the original) The Changeling, Rosemary’s Baby and The Exorcist. I grew up obsessed with John Carpenter films, so I frequently return to them, his run of films from the mid-seventies to the mid-eighties is hard to surpass. I may be the only person in the world that thinks it, but my favourite of his is The Fog.
Are you working on anything at the moment?
I have tentative plans for another book featuring Ali and Will, but who knows? I’ve a few ideas at the moment, just need to wait and see which one forges ahead.
Finally, where can readers find out more about you & your work?
I have a website – www.russellmardell.co.uk and I’m on Twitter @russellmardell. You can purchase signed copies of The Knock-Knock Man from The Rocketship Bookshop here – www.rocketshipbookshop.co.uk/product/the-knock-knock-man-signed-by-the-author/
