Ask the Author: Erica Ferencik
Answered Questions (14)
Erica Ferencik
Hi Jane: Thank you so much!:) But please note: this is not a series. I only write stand-alones. I'm thrilled you enjoyed the book, and so flattered you wrote to me. Be well, Erica
Erica Ferencik
Hi Jane: Thanks so much for your kind words!:) I wasn't planning on a sequel - my books are stand-alones, but hey, anything is possible, you know? This is one book I continued writing in my head even after I'd finished actually writing it....so maybe you're onto something...:) Thanks again, Erica
Erica Ferencik
Hi Debbie: Thanks so much! I'm assuming you read "Into the Jungle"? That came out in May..I am working on a new book now, but it probably won't be out till late 2020...have you checked out my earlier novel, "Repeaters"?
Best,
Erica
Best,
Erica
Erica Ferencik
Jillian THANK YOU!!! All translations are up to my publisher, Simon & Schuster, but I will certainly ask and get back to you. Meanwhile, thanks for spreading the word about the book:) - Erica
Erica Ferencik
Oh man, now you're making me think!:) Plot was one thing: I knew basically what I wanted to happen in the story, but at the same time I wanted the action to arise from character, as much as possible. I came at the "problem" of creating real-feeling characters in two steps: one: I had to create four very different people, each with their own dreams, fears, past, and so on. The old backstory creation thing, which feels tedious but pays off in the end. Then, as I was writing the story, I had to "inhabit" each character and try to feel my way into: how would they react, second by second, line by line, sometimes word by word, to each other and what is going on in the story? Queue countless hours of me staring into space...Re: modern-day-alienation, like so many of us, I think my atennae pick up on that every day, so that came pretty naturally.:)
Erica Ferencik
Hi Todd: First of all, thank you for your beautiful and insightful review of the book! My inspiration came from a friend of mine who actually lived much of this story - she, like Lily, was a foster kid who made her way to Bolivia, fell in love with a local man and followed him to his remote jungle village. She was 16 at the time and didn't come back to the states until she was 26. I conducted countless interviews with her and many other jungle experts, read books, watched movies, and spent a month in the Peruvian rainforest as research. Now, moving on to the next part of your question: my life as a comedian:)! Well, I'm 60, so that's a lot of years to do a lot of things, so from 25-25 I did standup in the Boston area. I was a frustrated novelist and screenwriter, in reality, so this was an outlet for me, but in the end, it just wasn't something I wanted to devote my life to. And actually, comedians are very dark people: try to think of a joke that's funny without a dark side: it's not easy:)
Erica Ferencik
Hi Carol:
Okay, perfect, please send me your mailing address:).
South America was amazing...I was doing research in the Peruvian Amazon for my next novel.
Tx
Erica
Okay, perfect, please send me your mailing address:).
South America was amazing...I was doing research in the Peruvian Amazon for my next novel.
Tx
Erica
Erica Ferencik
Hi Carol: First of all, I am VERY sorry for this late response. I have been traveling in South America with little/no access to email.
Have you received the book since you wrote? If not, I will arrange to have one sent to you.
All best,
Erica
Have you received the book since you wrote? If not, I will arrange to have one sent to you.
All best,
Erica
Erica Ferencik
Hi Steve: First of all, thank you for your kind words! I have thought of writing a prequel and a sequel, but right now I'm hard at work on my next book, which is a survival thriller that takes place in the Peruvian rainforest. But who knows, maybe that's something to think about in the future! Thanks again for taking the time to write to me,
Best
Erica
Best
Erica
Erica Ferencik
Aww, thank you Hillary!! What a totally sweet comment, one I needed on this crazy rainy day. And, to answer your question: you're welcome!:)
Erica Ferencik
Hi Lucy:
No worries! What is your mailing address? I will get going on this:).
All best,
Erica
No worries! What is your mailing address? I will get going on this:).
All best,
Erica
Erica Ferencik
Hi Carrie:
Well, thank you!!! You absolutely made my day. I am writing another thriller: this one takes place in the Peruvian rainforest, and will be released in late 2018. More on that soon...:)
Happy reading!
Erica
Well, thank you!!! You absolutely made my day. I am writing another thriller: this one takes place in the Peruvian rainforest, and will be released in late 2018. More on that soon...:)
Happy reading!
Erica
Erica Ferencik
Hi Kat:
Thanks so much for your kind note!
There were two inspirations for the book:
One:
I read and fell in love with James Dickey’s 1970 novel Deliverance. Most people have seen the movie – cue the banjos! – but I’m not sure the book has gotten the love it deserves.
Dickey was a poet, but he also wrote this fabulous, propulsive, first person novel about four male friends who go white-water rafting in the Georgia wilderness. The story was utterly terrifying to me; I was struck by this series of bad decisions that led to disaster.
Two:
The summer before I started the book I was hiking in the White Mountains with a few friends and we got lost. We had all depended Lucy to map out the day; she was the one who had the most experience, the one we were convinced knew what she was doing. Turned out, Lucy had done some did pretty shabby planning.
The idea was to get to the hut – maybe it was Carter Notch or Zealand – by around five to get cleaned up and grab a bunk before they serve dinner at 5:30. But we were still hiking at 7:30; thank God it was summer so it was still light, but we had some older people with us, specifically a very tall, teetery gentleman in his seventies lugging this ginormous pack, and I thought we are going to have to carry this guy…we ran out of water and food, and one of the women had such bad cramps in her legs we had to stop and massage her muscles just so she could unbend her legs. The wind had picked up and the temperature dropped like a stone, and we were up past the tree line scrambling over huge boulders, completely exhausted and scared…anyway we made it to the hut with just this shred of light left, barely able to see our hands in front of us to find that they had been organizing a search party there. They were all suited up. I’ll never forget the looks on their faces when we stumbled in the door…talk about food tasting good, talk about a cot feeling like the Four Seasons…we had been so close to spending the night on the mountain, alone.
These two experiences really planted the idea for The River at Night in my head, until I felt I just had to write it!:)
Thanks so much for your kind note!
There were two inspirations for the book:
One:
I read and fell in love with James Dickey’s 1970 novel Deliverance. Most people have seen the movie – cue the banjos! – but I’m not sure the book has gotten the love it deserves.
Dickey was a poet, but he also wrote this fabulous, propulsive, first person novel about four male friends who go white-water rafting in the Georgia wilderness. The story was utterly terrifying to me; I was struck by this series of bad decisions that led to disaster.
Two:
The summer before I started the book I was hiking in the White Mountains with a few friends and we got lost. We had all depended Lucy to map out the day; she was the one who had the most experience, the one we were convinced knew what she was doing. Turned out, Lucy had done some did pretty shabby planning.
The idea was to get to the hut – maybe it was Carter Notch or Zealand – by around five to get cleaned up and grab a bunk before they serve dinner at 5:30. But we were still hiking at 7:30; thank God it was summer so it was still light, but we had some older people with us, specifically a very tall, teetery gentleman in his seventies lugging this ginormous pack, and I thought we are going to have to carry this guy…we ran out of water and food, and one of the women had such bad cramps in her legs we had to stop and massage her muscles just so she could unbend her legs. The wind had picked up and the temperature dropped like a stone, and we were up past the tree line scrambling over huge boulders, completely exhausted and scared…anyway we made it to the hut with just this shred of light left, barely able to see our hands in front of us to find that they had been organizing a search party there. They were all suited up. I’ll never forget the looks on their faces when we stumbled in the door…talk about food tasting good, talk about a cot feeling like the Four Seasons…we had been so close to spending the night on the mountain, alone.
These two experiences really planted the idea for The River at Night in my head, until I felt I just had to write it!:)
Erica Ferencik
Aww, Betsy, thanks!! I'm so happy I kept you up for a few nights, but hoping that you've made up for it by now:). Have a fab weekend!
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