Okay, friends, it’s time for the spoilers! edition of #Ask Me Anything about The Professor of Eventide. 

This is the first time I’ve done a spoilery Q&A about one of my books, but I’ve had some questions that require divulging more specific information. 

As an author, I feel strongly that readers should make their own connections and consider their own interpretations when they read a book. Having said that, I’ve found that some readers want to know what an author was thinking, why characters made the choices that they did, why things played out in a certain way, and some want to know an author’s reasons and rationales. Since some readers are asking, I decided that others might like to know the answers as well. 

Be well warned, friends. The rest of the post contains spoilers! If you haven’t yet read The Professor of Eventide and don’t like spoilers, stop reading here. 

Last warning. 

Spoilers ahead! 

* * * * *

1. At what point in the novel did Jonathan realize that Rhys was the mastermind behind everything? Was Jonathan ever lying to the reader, or was he simply withholding information? 

Jonathan is telling the story after the fact, so when he tells it to us, he knows everything. However, he’s telling the story so the reader can follow his thought process as he experienced his unfortunate term at Eventide College. As a result, he withholds telling us things until he’s at the point in the story where it happened. 

Jonathan is clear that he’s very good at lying to himself. He’s very good at ignoring what he doesn’t want to see. Part of it was willfully ignoring events around him, but part of it was a faulty memory. How much of his forgetfulness was chosen and how much was legitimate? I don’t think even Jonathan knows the answer to that. Yes, there are times when he’s withholding information, but it isn’t for the purpose of being deliberately obtuse. He’s telling the story the way it happened to him so that readers can see, step by step, how he finally realized (and accepted) the past that he was trying to hide from and the fact that Rhys was still, after all that time, determined to make Jonathan pay for a slight that Jonathan didn’t intend as a slight. 

2. How much of Jonathan’s past did you know before you started writing? Did Jonathan always have to be a vampire, or did that develop later? Why make Jonathan a vampire instead of another kind of supernatural being?

I knew everything about Jonathan’s past, and in fact I’ve known them for years. Since The Professor of Eventide was published on April 7, 2026, I’ve been expecting one very specific question from my long time readers. It’s something so obvious (at least to me) and I was certain my long-time readers would catch onto it. So far, as I’m writing this post, not one person has asked the question. Not one! I’m not going to answer a question that hasn’t been asked, but if you’re one of my long-time readers and something has caught your attention about The Professor of Eventide, well, that’s all I’ll say for now… 

Now back to The Professor of Eventide. 

To answer the questions that were asked, yes, Jonathan was always a vampire for reasons that I’m currently leaving unsaid. Yes, this is the #spoilers edition, but at the same time I can’t give up all of the book’s secrets! The reason he’s a vampire and not a werewolf or a faery, say, goes along with what I’m currently leaving unsaid. But yes, he was always a paranormal man. 

3. What does Jonathan fear most by the end of the novel?

This is actually a great question from Stephanie in Houston, TX. Thanks Stephanie! By the end of the novel, Jonathan is pretty weary. He’s afraid that he’ll never have the opportunity to stop wandering from place to place and he’ll never be able to settle down and simply exist. 

4. When did you decide on the ending?

I always know the ending before I start writing a book. For some reason, that’s the first thing I know for sure about a story. I knew that Jonathan would be leaving Eventide College at the end of  the story before I wrote my first word. 

5. Why did you choose not to explain every mystery?

I’m a big fan of readers making their own interpretations. Why do people act the way they do? Why do they turn on each other when the heat is on? What are their motivations? The truth is, we can’t truly know what other people are thinking, and sometimes all we can do is guess at their motivations. I’d prefer for readers to make their own judgments about some of the situations rather than being spoon-fed what to think by me. 

6. What’s the biggest clue readers usually miss?

I’ve received a few messages from readers saying they were completely surprised by the fact that Jonathan is a vampire. Honestly, their surprise surprised me. Clues about his preternatural condition begin on the first page of the book. In fact, it’s in the title. Yes, Eventide is the college, but it’s also the time of day when the entire story takes place. He’s only out at night. He’s worried about how people perceive him. He only touches people when he’s wearing gloves at the Eventide Ball. They’re light touches, the clues, I know, but my concern was that if I came right out and said, “Hey! Jonathan is a vampire!” people would see it only as a “vampire novel” and make judgments about it according to their expectations of what a vampire novel should be rather than judging the story on its own terms. Also, it was fun for me to reveal that fact little by little. 

We know for certain that something is up as soon as Maeve gives Jonathan a psychic reading in his office. From their conversations afterwards, we can guess that there’s something about Jonathan…some secret he’s hiding, and Maeve knows what it is. Two readers have contacted me to say that they noticed how Maeve stops calling him Professor Ferrars after that reading in the classroom and begins to call him simply “Professor.” That’s reading with sharp eyes, friends. That’s right. The reason she stops calling him Professor Ferrars is because after the reading she knows that’s not his real name.

The clues to Jonathan’s true nature are there (“If I could have seen myself in the mirror, I would have laughed” is one example. Why wouldn’t a normal man be able to see himself in a mirror?) but the reasons they make sense don’t come together until the end. 

7. How does your version of vampires differ from traditional vampire stories? Why did you choose a more literary approach to vampires? Which vampire novels most influenced your interpretation? How long has Jonathan lived?

The vampire lore that most influenced my interpretation was largely Dracula with a bit of True Blood thrown in. I read a wonderful book called Vampire Forensics by Mark Collins Jenkins that gave me some interesting ideas. Mainly, though, my interpretation came from my imagination. The reason I didn’t want The Professor of Eventide to be seen as a vampire book is because I think some readers equate all vampire stories with paranormal romances with ripped, shirtless vampires fighting demons with machine guns, and that’s not at all what this book is. I chose a more restrained approach because, well, see #2. 

8. Does Jonathan see himself as a monster? 

Another great question from Ann. Thanks Ann! Jonathan understands that others will see him as a monster, which is why he keeps his secret close. And he does worry that he could easily display monstrous traits, and he does worry that his many years of living have wrecked havoc on his memory. He spends the entire book worried that he’s lingering at the edge of madness, and the book ends with him literally at the brink of an abyss. He’s deliberately choosing his humanity, but it’s a struggle. 

Yet another reason I didn’t want to make The Professor of Eventide a “vampire novel” is because the story really isn’t about vampires. Yes, Rhys is a vampire like Jonathan, and his anger is prompted by the fact that Jonathan refused to turn him, but the story is really a study of memory and revenge. The vampire angle is important, but it’s not the point. It’s a psychological literary mystery. What is going on in Jonathan’s head while madness surrounds him? That’s the question at the heart of the story. 

9. Which character surprised you while writing?

Maeve. She was originally just supposed to be a student in Jonathan’s class. As I went deeper into the writing process she evolved into this really cool character who has her own touch of magic and is wise beyond her years. In many ways, I’d argue that Maeve is braver than Jonathan throughout the story because she’s doing a better job trying to figure out who the murderer is. She’s much more proactive than Jonathan is. Besides Jonathan, Maeve is my favorite character in The Professor of Eventide. 

10. Which character changed the most from your original outline?

Rhys Grimshaw. He didn’t even exist in the first couple of drafts. As I was writing, I realized that I needed an opponent worthy of Jonathan, so the opponent should be paranormal too. Why would Rhys want to cause such damage to Jonathan and the people around him? Working through that was one of the biggest challenges of writing this book, and I love the Poe-style showdown between Rhys and Jonathan at the end of the story. I had never written a showdown scene like that before and I have to admit it was pretty fun. I don’t think it’s a surprise that Jonathan survives because he’s telling the story, but I think seeing how it played out is good fun.

11. Were any characters inspired by real people?

I don’t write about real people I’m personally acquainted with in my fiction. I prefer for my characters to come from my imagination. There are some people who know me, who shall remain nameless, who insist that they see elements of themselves in some of my characters. Hey, that character is based on me! It’s funny, because it’s usually the not-so-nice characters people believe are based on themselves. I think that says more about how they see themselves than about what I’ve written. Just saying. 

Having said that, obviously Poe is Poe. I’ve never met him so I didn’t have a problem showing him as a fictional character. I spent months copying out passages from his stories and nonfiction in an attempt to try to catch his voice. The scenes with Edgar Allan Poe were some of the most fun for me to write. 

12. Who was the hardest character to write?

Jonathan. I knew Jonathan’s voice, and I understand him inside out, but the way he tells the tale has to match the intention of the story. Since he’s the narrator, if his narration doesn’t work then the whole house of cards collapses. It took a few running leaps to help him with his narration, but we figured it out. 

13. How did you decide that the murders were going to be in the style of Poe’s stories?

This is one of the things about writing fiction that I absolutely love. The idea evolved naturally as I was working my way through the story. Originally, I was going to have Jonathan and his students study Dickens that fateful term. If you’ve been following me for any amount of time, you know that Dickens is my favorite author. Then, even before I started on the first draft, I realized that Edgar Allan Poe’s work would be a better choice for this Gothic story I wanted to tell. Poe is the master of American Gothic, right? And then, as I began writing, I thought…what if the murderer knows that 1. Jonathan knew Poe, and 2. Jonathan is teaching the Poe seminar that term and 3. wants to make it look like Jonathan is the murderer, and so decided to murder in the style of Poe’s stories? It adds an extra element of interest to the story. It’s not hard to find such inspiration when you’re reading a lot of Poe!

That was a lot of fun! I have other questions that I’ve received, but I didn’t want to make this post too long, so I’ll do another #Ask Me Anything about The Professor of Eventide in the future. If you’d like to contribute a question, you can send it through the Contact link. 

And if you want to ask The Question, go right ahead.

(Hint: there’s a clue or two right here on my website…)

A TPOE FYI…

The Professor of Eventide will be on sale for $1.99 beginning Tuesday, September 15, at all major online retailers.