We chat with author Dan Hanks about The Way Up Is Death, which is a SFF thriller where a mysterious, otherworldly tower appears in the sky above the UK with a single word emblazoned above its doorway… ascend.
Hi, Dan! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! I’m Dan Hanks, a writer and editor, currently living in the beautiful Peak District in the UK. I’m the author of two published books, Captain Moxley and the Embers of the Empire, and Swashbucklers, with a third out this month called The Way Up Is Death!
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I’d always loved books, TV shows and movies for as long as I can remember existing. I consider myself fortunate growing up during the eighties, in an era of some really fun and fresh on-screen storytelling. And I guess because of all the action figures we had, I got to act out my own stories through play, which, thinking about it, might be where my love of stories really started? I also read a lot too, though, and have very fond memories of being squirreled away at the local library reading anything from Tintin to Stephen King’s Cujo and Alan Dean Foster’s Alien novelisation (at way too young an age).
My first attempt to write a story was a woeful mashup of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and The Empire Strikes Back, which my teacher wasn’t impressed with because it was literally just me pinching the mine cart chase and throwing the Hoth monster in there. I couldn’t quite grasp the concept of using other stories for inspiration versus actually stealing them. So I didn’t really feel enthused about writing again for a while. Then, much later, in my early twenties, the LOTR movies were coming out and I decided to read the books – and loved them – and that’s when the writing bug hit me properly and I decided to try writing my own.
Funnily enough, my Dad is a writer, so it was probably in the genes, and just took a while to make its appearance with me.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: The Enchanted Wood by Enid Blyton, a book I still have today and cherish immensely.
- The one that made you want to become an author: I guess it was the Lord of the Rings, because that’s when I decided to try to write a book of my own.
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: Oh this is a good question! I suppose I think about IT quite a lot. There is so much about that book that I love, and so many elements and feelings I aspire to be able to capture in my own work, that I often return to it (IT) in my head when thinking about telling stories. Stephen King is a master.
Your latest novel, The Way Up is Death, is out January 14th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
LOST in an otherworldly tower.
What can readers expect?
It’s a story about thirteen strangers who are plucked from their lives and thrown into a terrifying situation, having to climb a mysterious tower that one day appears in the skies over England. Is it a reality TV show? Is it the Rapture? Nobody knows. The only instruction they are given is to ASCEND. And so they must… no matter the cost.
It’s got a little of that 1970’s disaster movie aspect to it, but I was a huge fan of LOST and wanted to have that emotional draw, with sympathetic (or not) characters that really don’t want to be here, but are going to do what they can to figure things out and get through it. Sometimes with the help of others. Sometimes not so much.
Where did the inspiration for The Way Up is Death come from?
I saw an image of a citadel in the sky and immediately had the idea for a short story about how our society would react to seeing a weird, mysterious tower appear in the skies over England. I wrote it in about ten minutes and that became the prologue. And then I really wanted to throw an ensemble cast into this setting to see what would happen and have the reader be along for the ride, with nobody really understanding why we were here and having to figure it out as you went – while trying to survive.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
There’s a cast of thirteen, and I have soft spots for several of them, but I really enjoyed writing the celebrity children’s author Dirk, because I hate everything he stands for. I poured a lot of what I think are society’s current ills into his character, and I gave him perhaps the most distinct voice in the cast, so he became quite fascinating to write. I think when you create a character that is so diametrically opposite to you, there is a lot of material to explore and that in itself makes it thoroughly enjoyable!
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
Working with such a huge cast of characters and having them be present in every scene was my biggest challenge. Just trying to make sure you give everyone a bit of page time, don’t forget anybody along the way (honestly, it’s easily done), make them distinct enough so you remember them, but don’t let them take the shine off the main POV storylines, that was really tricky. I got through it by swearing and crying a lot during revisions and making mental promises to myself that all my future books will be single character adventures.
What’s next for you?
I’m currently in the early stages of a joint writing project with my partner, Noelle Salazar, so that’s going to be a huge amount of fun as it’s a completely new genre for us both! However, I think my next new ‘me’ project will be adapting a horror TV pilot I wrote – featuring ghosts and Greek mythology – into a novel. Oh, and for those who’ve read my previous books, I also have some sequels to finish writing!
I’ve been (ghost) writing a project for the last four and a half years and that comes to an end in 2025, so I’m looking forward to focusing more fully on my own stories again.
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up in 2025?
I really can’t wait to read Clay McLeod Chapman’s Wake Up and Open Your Eyes (also out this month). However, I’ll also give a shoutout for Khan Wong’s Down in the Sea of Angels, which is out in April, and I’ve read it and it’s AMAZING, so you don’t want to miss that.
