In the Spotlight Former Johnstown resident publishes first supernatural thriller

Oct. 29—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — In her debut novel, Erin E. Adams tackles the idea that not all monsters lurk in the dark.

The former Johnstown resident's supernatural thriller "Jackal" was released Oct. 4 by Penguin Random House.

The multilayered story brings twists and turns while offering commentary on racism and classism.

"I really love urban legends, or just legends in general, and how they relate to society," said Adams, now of New York City.

"Urban legends are the stories we tell ourselves in order to comprehend a more complicated issue or problem, and I love that. I also love fiction, mystery, horror and thrillers, so I wanted to make my own urban legend of what it was like for me growing up in Johnstown."

She said she lived in Johns-town during her formative years, her mother still lives in town, and she used it as the setting of the story.

'Very complicated'

"East Coast versions of the Rust Belt are not accurate, and there was this moment of hearing my friends in my circles in New York talking about Pennsylvania and me saying, 'That is not how it is,' " Adams said.

"It's actually very complicated, and the feelings, history and wounds run really deep, where everybody is hurting and everybody is justified. All of that went into the stew of making this book."

The "Jackal" synopsis reads:

Liz Rocher is coming home ... reluctantly. As a Black woman, Liz doesn't exactly have fond memories of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a predominantly white town. But her best friend is getting married, so she braces herself for a weekend of awkward, passive-aggressive reunions.

Liz has grown, though; she can handle whatever awaits her.

But on the day of the wedding, somewhere between dancing and dessert, the couple's daughter, Caroline, disappears — and the only thing left behind is a piece of white fabric covered in blood. As a frantic search begins, with the police combing the trees for Caroline, Liz is the only one who notices a pattern: A summer night. A missing girl. A party in the woods. She's seen this before.

Keisha Woodson, the other Black girl in Liz's high school, walked into the woods with a mysterious man and was later found with her chest cavity ripped open and her heart removed.

Liz shudders at the thought that it could have been her, and now, with Caroline missing, it can't be a coincidence.

As Liz starts to dig through the town's history, she uncovers a horrifying secret about the place she once called home. Children have been going missing in these woods for years. All of them Black. All of them girls.

With the evil in the forest creeping closer, Liz knows what she must do: find Caroline, or be entirely consumed by the darkness.

Adams said she started writing the book in late 2018.

"I work in the performing arts industry, and in 2020, because of the pandemic, I was furloughed, so that's when I really pushed through and finished the book," Adams said.

"I came to Johnstown when I was furloughed and wrote the vast majority of it there."

'Very long process'

She said she applied for a writing mentorship called Pitch Wars, and through the program, she revised the book over the course of three months.

"I had early readers," Adams said. "I revised it again with my agent, and then finally sold it to a publishing house. I did four revisions with my editor, and that's not counting looking at grammar and typos and final pass pages for voice and making sure everything is set up in the way you want it. It's a very long process."

Adams said when writing the book, she did research on urban and Appalachian legends and how they were crafted.

"I looked through missing Black girls in the national database for inspiration," she said.

"When it came to Johnstown history, I read 'The Johnstown Flood' by David McCullough, and I looked at photographs and maps of the flood. Johns-town Area Heritage Association's web page of resources was instrumental. I also used the research by Cody McDevitt, who wrote about the banishment in Johnstown in the 1920s."

Adams said she's delighted and surprised to see with whom the book resonates.

"It's a wide range of people," she said.

Adams is working on her second novel, a domestic thriller.

The book is slated for a late 2023 release.

Adams, who received a bachelor's degree with honors in literary arts from Brown University, a master of fine arts in acting from The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program and her master of fine arts in dramatic writing from NYU Tisch School of the Arts, also is a playwright and actor.

For more information on Adams and to purchase the book, visit www.erineadams.com.