Travel can inspire creativity in many different ways. For writer Tracy Hewitt Meyer, a visit to an especially fascinating place — an abandoned “lunatic asylum” — created such a spark of imagination that it eventually resulted in an engaging new book called Generation Annihilation (BHC Press, October 10th, 2023).
The book, a young adult psychological thriller, is a delightful, fast-paced story about a troubled seventeen-year-old named Shaun who finds more than he bargained for when he comes across an abandoned asylum.
In this exclusive interview, Hewitt Meyer shares her inspiration for the story, and how travel — even “dark tourism” — can open our minds.
I understand that part of your inspiration came from a visit you paid to a former insane asylum in West Virginia. What made you decide to visit that facility, and what about it inspired you to create such a compelling story?
The decision to visit the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in Weston, West Virginia, came after watching a television show about the most haunted places in America. Of course, this asylum popped up, as it does on many most haunted lists, and my interest was piqued. I gathered a group of friends and family and went on the first of four tours I’d take of this asylum. The decision to visit was that simple, yet that impactful.
There was something about the awe-inspiring architecture of the building, and the morbid yet fascinating history of treatment that altered the chemicals inside my brain. Throw in the paranormal aspect, and this asylum became a living entity in my mind and absolutely the best setting for a young adult thriller.
Setting the novel in an abandoned lunatic asylum should immediately conjure up thoughts/feelings of violence, terror, and despair in most readers, even if it’s on the subconscious level. This novel is a thriller, and being set in the asylum sends a powerful message to the reader. This character is not safe. You are not safe.
What additional research did you do about mental health and this type of facility to better prepare yourself to make this story so engaging and realistic?
I did a significant amount of research on the lobotomy—not only the instruments and method of this procedure but also the history. As for the facility, I drew heavily on my memories from the tours, not only of the physical building but also of the facility’s history.
As a mental health therapist, I have an innate interest in human behavior. Therefore, creating the characters’ motivations was relatively easy to do and required little research, only a creative mind and an understanding of human behavior.
Without giving away too much of the plot, how would you describe Shaun and his psychological evolution in the book?
I loved creating Shaun, because on the surface he can seem one dimensional and shallow. Just below the surface, though, dwells a complex teenager who is doing his best to make sense of a world that makes no sense to him. He lives in fight mode and that doesn’t serve him. But that same fight mode is what helps him survive. As the novel evolves, he has to learn to understand how his actions have gotten him to where he is, and has to take accountability for that.
Young adult fiction often explores the coming-of-age theme. Doing so in the format of a psychological thriller makes it especially interesting. Why do you think thrillers work so well in the YA segment?
Thrillers are fast-paced and action-packed, which makes it an alluring genre for teens because a good thriller can hold interest. You can still have the characters grow and develop but it’s secondary to the life-or-death events that are unfolding on the page.
Coming of age in a thriller is more like a boxing ring than a slow ride down the river in a paddle boat, and I personally love that.
Without giving away spoilers, what types of challenges, obstacles and ambiance did you find to be crucial for creating the ideal storyline for Shaun?
This novel vacillates between the extremes of life and death, and it does so from the very first page. This type of story ups the ante, for the characters and for the reader, and doesn’t relent. At some point we ask how much more can the character (and reader) take.
With the threat of life and death always hovering, it makes Shaun’s decisions and actions all the more consequential. How he manages to survive is crucial to his story development, as well as his growth as a character.
Young adult fiction can often have a significant impact on its readers. What do you hope readers will take away from your novel, especially in terms of its themes or messages?
There is always a reason people do what they do.
Understanding this can create space for empathy for others. So often we react off baseline assumptions about others, and this can create friction, can ruin relationships, can cause distress. Realizing that there is always a motivation, deeper than what we see or assume another’s motivation is, can increase empathy. That doesn’t mean poor behavior should be excused or that our boundaries should be altered. Just that people are complex, and there is so much more to people than what we see.
Another message is that there are consequences to our actions, even if we feel justified in those actions. Think before you act. Shaun learns this the hard way.
Writing a young adult thriller requires a delicate balance between suspense and relatability. How did you approach crafting a story that resonates with teenagers while maintaining the thrilling aspect?
I just simply told the story, and tried not to be too verbose. Too much backstory, or too much info-dumping, can pull the reader, especially a young adult reader, out of the suspense. Keeping it simple and straightforward, always moving forward, helps strike that balance. Readers need to have empathy for the characters, but in a thriller, too much backstory can pull the reader out of the story. I tried to weave it in succinctly and directly to not take away from the action.
Your book is an excellent example of how travel — namely your tour of the former asylum — can feed the imagination and inspire us to create new stories. Has travel often played a role like that for you?
Travel is important to me because I write by seeing places and characters in my mind’s eye. It is a struggle for me to create something from nothing. I need a seed, something to spark an idea, and then I can grow that into a full-length novel. If I can’t visualize the setting, and truly see, not only the big picture but the nuances as well, then I have no grounding for the story. Traveling and seeing places in real life is invaluable in planting seeds in my mind’s eye.
For me, travel has been especially important when it comes to creating the setting of a novel. Setting sets the tone of a story, anchors it, forms a launching pad from where the story begins. I have to see a setting in my mind’s eye first and foremost, and can then create the story from there. I can draw inspiration from television shows or movies, but visiting in-person has the most impact.
Do you have any tips for others about how to keep your eyes, ears and mind open when you travel in order to find creative inspiration?
It’s important to state that travel doesn’t have to be to far-off lands or to abandoned asylums to find inspiration. Travel can be to Target, Starbucks, or the gas station.
Inspiration can come from anywhere as long as you learn to look for it. How do you do that? Step away from the ego and thoughts about the self. Become quiet. Become still. And just see. Look outward. Look around—not only at the broad picture, but the details—whether it be details of the setting or of human mannerisms. Quiet the mind and soon that space will be filled with ideas.
If you can afford to travel, use these same techniques to absorb as much as possible. The devil is in the details, so to speak, and the details are where authentic and captivating stories come to life.
Get your copy of Generation Annihilation by clicking here!