Liz Butcher Interview - Never, Never

Photo Content from Liz Butcher

Liz Butcher resides in Australia, with her husband, daughter, and their two cats. She’s a self-confessed nerd with a BA in psychology and an insatiable fascination for learning. Liz was previously the former Executive Assistant at the Horror Tree, which is a mainstream resource for authors and has published a number of short stories in anthologies including her own collection, After Dark, in 2018. Fates Fury was her debut novel and LeRoux Manor, her stunning new novel set for release, September, 2020.

        

  

Greatest thing you learned at school?

I think there are two big lessons that have always stuck with me. One was from my Ancient History teacher, who said you can argue any point or opinion you want—just make sure you can back it up. The second was my Art teacher who said the ability to accept and utilise constructive criticism will enable you to make your work better than you imagined.

Why is storytelling so important for all of us?

I think there are a number of reasons. From passing on memories and life lessons, to escapism and an outlet for our imaginations.

Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published.

Hearing such wonderful feedback from readers. That makes me so happy.

Tell us your latest news.

My latest release, Never, Never launched last month and reached number six in its category on Amazon which was fantastic! I’m currently working on several ghostwriting projects and my first series as well as planning another novel.

Can you tell us when you started, NEVER, NEVER, how that came about?

I started writing it a couple of years ago and it was originally a concept for a short story. Yet as I developed it, I knew it had to be a full length novel. I loved taking the fairytale Peter Pan and merging it with mythology and horror and bringing it forward into the modern world. What’s not creepy about an entity that lures children from their bedroom windows in the middle of the night?

What do you hope for readers to be thinking when they read your novel?

What is going on? Haha! I love trying to keep the readers guessing as to what’s happening and why.

What part of Wendy did you enjoy writing the most?

I enjoyed taking the Disney version of the character and turning her into an intelligent and capable adult who’s determined and loyal, but also haunted by her past. I think my version of Wendy is quite complex and readers will want to back her.

If you could introduce one of your characters to any character from another book, who would it be and why?

I think Wendy from Never, Never and Ava from Fates’ Fury would get along for sure! They’re both strong, independent women but there’s so much more to them than meets the eye.

What was the single worst distraction that kept you from writing this book?

Work! I was still at my day job at this point, so the only real writing time I got was an hour or so each morning before I started work.

What is your most memorable travel experience?

As an army brat I’m fortunate that I’ve experienced so much of Australia, but I think my favourite was when we drove cross-country from Canberra to Perth and we stopped at The Great Australian Bite and I was shocked staring down the sheer cliffs. I was used to beaches along the coast line and this looked like an enormous monster had taken a giant bite out of the continent.

Best date you've ever had?

The night my now husband proposed to me. He took me to our favourite restaurant and the proposed to me with a piece of string which he’d fashioned into a make-shift ring that he tied around my finger.

Choose a unique item from your wallet and explain why you carry it around.

I don’t really have a wallet anymore because everything is in my little phone case – so the most interesting thing is a Spotlight card so it’s always on hand for when I need a discount on all the wool I buy!

What is the weirdest thing you have seen in someone else’s home?

I used to work with the elderly and used to come across some interesting cultural practices that I’d never seen before. I had a couple of dutch clients who covered their dining tables in decorative rugs which I always thought odd!

What was a time in your life when you were really scared?

When I was a child I used to wake up hearing voices whispering and I could never wake anyone up. It used to terrify me and I’d turn all the lights on and wait until the sun started coming up before I could back to sleep.

Where did you go on your first airplane ride?

When I was a toddler. We flew from Sydney to Brisbane to visit family.

First Heartbreak? 

Hard to say? Looking back on heartache when I was young seems different to heartache when you’re older.

Which incident in your life that totally changed the way you think today? 

That’s a tricky one! I’m not sure, though I always strive to keep an open mind and consider all perspectives.

TEN FAVORITE READS EVER

• 1. The Giving Tree – Shel Silverstein
• 2. The Thief of Always – Clive Barker
• 3. The Faraway Tree Series – Enid Blyton
• 4. The Key and the Fountain – John Pinkney
• 5. The Harry Potter Series – J.K. Rowling
• 6. The Great Gatsby – F.Scott Fitzgerald
• 7. The Vampire Chronicles – Anne Rice
• 8. Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte
• 9. Pet Cemetery – Stephen King
• 10. Picnic at Hanging Rock – Joan Lindsay

Meet the Characters

Wendy Darling – A 30-year-old detective who is feisty, independent and dedicated. She’s haunted by her abduction when she was fifteen by Pan. She’s close to her two brothers, Michael and John, though doesn’t spend much time at the family home due to the memories. Her family are really the only people close to her.

Pan – a vindictive and cruel entity who is obsessed with Wendy and has spent the past twenty years trying to find her again. He’ll stop at nothing to make sure she joins him in Neverland for all eternity.

Lilly Piccani – Wendy’s long-time partner. Beautiful and mysterious, as much as she loves Wendy, she struggles to deal with the rapidly unfolding secrets.

Jane Darling – Wendy’s daughter. Intelligent and warm, she is Wendy’s one true happiness. She supports her mother as the skeletons come out of the family closet despite the consequences.

Nanna – No blood relation, Nanna has been with the Darling family since Wendy’s father was a boy. Now suffering from dementia, she resided in the Darling Manor, the place she’s called home for decades. Moments of lucidity lead Wendy to suspect Nanna knows far more about what’s happening than she says.

Rosalie Fryair – the teenage daughter of the recently appointed Lord Mayor who vanishes from her room in the middle of the night.

Rupert Roberts – The lead detective on the Fryair case who Wendy partners with. He’s handsome and charming, though Wendy finds him annoying initially. And many more!

More than 20 years after her abduction at the hands of the elusive Pan, Wendy Darling is all grown up and a successful detective. But when a local girl vanishes in the middle of the night, her past comes rushing back.Grieving the death of her mother, Detective Darling wants nothing more than to throw herself back into work. When the Lord Mayor's daughter, Rosalie, vanishes, she insists on taking the case, triggering memories of her own past abduction. For years, Wendy struggled with her nonsensical memories of her captor, who she only knows as Pan. Yet the more she uncovers about Rosalie's disappearance, the more Wendy is convinced her worst nightmare has come true-Pan's back. Her fears are confirmed when the girl suddenly reappears and Wendy realises she's walked straight into Pan's trap...

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