The Dark Side: Marie Harte

The Dark Side aims to shed light on that deep, dark, mysterious side of an author, a face that she rarely, if ever, shows to the public. What secret is she hiding behind that enigmatic smile on her official photo (if any)? what juicy tidbit is she keeping from the world? What are some of the things that she liked, things we would never know, because it's not part of her bio?

Today, we have with us MARIE HARTE, author of JULIAN'S JEOPARDY, who regaled us in a previous post with some fun facts about her book and an exclusive excerpt.

Remember, think dark, dark, dark...

Do you believe in ghosts and supernatural phenomenon? Have you ever had a close encounter? Do tell us about it.
Yes, I do. There are too many unexplained phenomena in the world to discount life after death. I've never seen a ghost, but I've had plenty of instances of deja vu, and one really weird instance of what felt like someone looming over me while I lay in bed. Alone.

Have you played the Ouija Board? What was your experience?
I have. I had one as a kid. It never did much, mostly because my girl friends and I were too busy pushing it all over the place. And honestly, I couldn't get serious about it in the Parker Brothers game box. But I do believe contacting the spirits is possible. Just not for with something found in the game aisle at the store.

Imagine that for some reason, your lights suddenly went out! What would be the first thing you’d do or say?

"Crap. Where did I put the matches so I can light this *&^^%$$ candle?" Then I'd light the candle and go back to reading a book.

What television series featuring dark themes did you enjoy the most? Why?
I absolutely love the televisions show Supernatural. The dark theme of family is one I love the most. Surprisingly, it's not the monsters or the evil that the brothers work through each week that keeps me tuning in. It's the tough dynamic of family under pressure from things natural and supernatural that makes the show so great.

What dark-themed books do you enjoy and would recommend? Why?
For scary stuff that'll make you shiver, I recommend Clive Barker's Books of Blood, anything by H.P. Lovecraft, Robert McCammon's earlier works. I like Dean Koontz's earlier writing too, because he takes the everyday and turns it upside-down. Twilight Zone-ish, if I can use that description. I also like Christine Feehan's Carpathians, Lara Adrian's vampires--both romance, and Kim Harrison's books, which are actually urban fantasy, not romance.

Lightning Round.

white or dark chocolate : white
milk or coffee : coffee
night or day : night
coke or 7-up : Coke
New York cheesecake or black forest cake : NY Cheesecake, of course :)
vampire or werewolf : werewolf
football game or candlelit dinner : football game
ebook or print : ebook
spring or autumn : autumn
sweet or salty : sweet
kitten or puppy : kitten
cook or take-out : take-out

Marie Harte's JULIAN'S JEOPARDY is now available at Loose Id (ebook). This title is also included in the list of giveaways for our ongoing contest.

Marie Harte's other titles:

Namesake
Foxy Lady