Interview With Award-Winning Horror Author Caytlyn Brooke

  

  

 

1.     What is your upcoming book, Will The Devil Help Me Now?, about — and who is it written for? Will the Devil Help Me Now? is a gothic historical fiction thriller set in 1649 Scotland about the dangers of mob mentality that dominated the witch persecution era. Everyone knows the story of Salem, however Scotland’s history is far worse. Thousands of women were killed over the 175 year “witch plague.” This story is about two sisters who stand accused, but rather than wasting their breath pleading their innocence, they use their knowledge of botany to poison and corrupt the town’s water and food supplies to destroy as many people as possible. This story is for anyone who has ever been manipulated into silence—sometimes you can’t kill them with kindness, sometimes you just need to kill them.

 

2.     What do you hope readers will get out of reading your book? We are living in a very tense political climate right now where both sides believe that they are unequivocally right. This is nothing new, however rather than agreeing to disagree and moving forward civilly, many people adopt a sense of moral superiority along with their views and deem anyone who disagrees as a bad person, thereby justifying any violence that may befall them, because “they deserve it.” My hope with this novel is to shed light on the hypocrisy, to detail the dangers of mob mentality and the abandonment of critical thinking. I also hope to bring awareness to the innocent women unjustly burned and murdered all those centuries ago.

 

3.     How did you decide on your book’s title and cover design? While I was on an Outlander tour in Scotland, our tour guide realized that I was an author interested in the witch plague history. He played an album for me by an incredible band, Heal & Harrow. Their songs instantly transport you to the Scottish Highlands and are sung in English and Gaelic. What was unique though, they commissioned a story in which real letters and journal entries were used from accused women from the 17^th century and wove them into their lyrics. One of the songs, titled, Lilias, there is a line that says, “So if I am a witch, will the Devil help me now?” The song itself confronts the hypocrisy of the claims of witchcraft, and it stuck with me the entire trip. I reached out to the band members and asked if I could entitle my book, Will the Devil Help Me Now? and expand on the images their songs rendered and they said yes! For the cover, I wanted to evoke a journal to parallel the letters as well.

 

4. What inspired you to write this book? All of my books feature the theme of women empowerment. Coupled with violence against women during this time, it lit a fire in me. Not only were women the majority of the population accused and killed, but even before, men had developed inventions and punishments to silence women or make them more docile. The scold’s bridle, which is an iron mask with a tongue depressor made to make the woman wearer drool excessively, is one such invention I feature in the book. If that weren’t humiliating enough, they would also tie a bell around her neck to encourage a larger audience. It’s degrading and inhumane, so I wrote two women who embraced their fate and showed men just how dangerous they could truly be.

 

5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers – other than run!? Write what you love and what inspires you. So many authors chase trends and throw in popular tropes to try and appeal to the newest audience. Yet, most of the time, their stories and worlds and characters feel forced and shallow. With the explosion of Booktok, trends come and go so fast that by the time you’ve finished writing to market, the landscape has already shifted, and you’re left with a book no one wants to read because a certain trope was so overdone. Write a quality story you are proud of and your readers will find you.

 

6. What trends in the book world do you see -- and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading? In the last two years alone, genres such as Romantasy, Thrillers, and Spicy Romance have erupted in popularity. As mentioned above, Booktok is a massive driving force behind this and if authors are lucky enough to go viral, their career will take off. I’ve seen a large shift toward publishers choosing books with desirable “vibes.” I feel as if the quality of many trad published books are declining, because publishers simply want to capitalize on whatever is popular and produce it as fast as they can. That, complete with special editions featuring sprayed edges, foil covers, and professional narration, make books seem more like a decorative product. No longer are stories written to linger with readers and make them ruminate. Instead, it feels like a race to consume as many best-sellers as possible so readers can check the box and tell their followers on social media. I hope it slows down and success is determined not by how many followers the author has, but by the quality of their writing.

 

7. Were there experiences in your personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book?  Two other themes in this book are the bond between sisters and the power of motherhood. My sister is my very best friend and two years ago, I almost lost her in a near-fatal car crash. Having such a close relationship with her helped develop the sisters’ bond in the novel because it challenges the saying, I would do anything for her. She understands me in a way no one else does and I believe loving her made the characters more genuine. I am also a mother of two and much to my husband’s chagrin, the children in the book do not fair well. Ever since I realized I was pregnant with my first, intrusive thoughts linger in the back of my mind every time we leave the house. As parents, all we want to do is protect our children, but what happens if we can’t? Having my own kids helped put me into the main character’s mind set and truly step into her shoes.

 

8. How would you describe your writing style? Which writers or books is your writing similar to? My writing style has been on an evolving journey. When I first started writing, I tried to be as descriptive as possible and heavily favored action scenes. When I was in England, I picked up numerous books by UK authors and fell in love with their prose. I was mesmerized by their restraint, their vivid yet lean descriptions. I learned that less is more and with this book in particular, I challenged myself to edit my flowery nature and tighten my writing and become more concise. Madeline Miller is one of my favorite authors, as well as Virginia Feito. I hope to emulate their beautiful and powerful voices.

 

9.       What challenges did you overcome in the writing of this book? Operating restraint regarding description was a big challenge, but I enjoyed pushing myself. I also had to do a lot of research to ensure the book’s historical accuracy, my editor Sam Parrish was amazing in this regard. My Google search history probably put me on a watch list because every day I was researching plant toxicity, which flowers were the most lethal, and the process of bodily decomposition after a fatal poisoning. The book, Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright was an invaluable resource.

 

10. If people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours?

This is an imposing question for an introvert! I would tell a reader to pick up my book if they’re looking for something unexpected. I write very off-market, dark stories dredged up from a vulnerable corner deep inside myself. My books are not easy reads. They often discuss uncomfortable topics and situations, however, I believe that if we want to inspire true change, we first need to be able to read about them in a safe, fictitious venue to imagine ourselves in someone else’s shoes. My books are meant to be introspective and that’s often difficult for many readers. If you’re looking for an intense read that will stick with you, I hope you’ll give me a shot.

 

About The Author: Caytlyn Brooke is an award-winning author who loves writing stories where no character is safe. After majoring in Psychology at UAlbany with a special focus on fear response, she specializes in turning the mundane and routine into something frightening to keep readers on their toes. Caytlyn writes across a variety of genres and enjoys the freedom of not being creatively confined. She lives in the Soaring Capitol of America with her husband, two children, and a chonky orange cat. For more information, please see: https://caytlynbrooke.wixsite.com/booksbycaytlyn

 

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About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over 6,200,000 page views. With 5,600+ posts over the past 15 years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs  by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2026.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully) and (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/10-things-my-dog-taught-me-about-marketing-books). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, three times at BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association, Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, five times at Morgan James Publishing Red Carpet, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum