From horror to romance: Local releases new novel

He went on to study Advanced Acting for Screen and Media at the New York Film Academy Australia.

His latest book, I Kept My Promise, was released a few weeks ago and is his first romance and full-length novel ― he uses the money he makes from his books to fund his films.

“I was a kid when I was just mesmerised by the world of film craft,” he said.

“I loved how all these characters were immersed in their worlds and I wanted to be part of that and understand what it’s like to be an actor.

“When I started acting for film, it occurred to me how difficult the craft was and how rewarding it is just to be able to transform yourself from your everyday life into this spectacular world.”

Chris’s first film, gritty vampiric horror The Cold Ones, was intended as a show reel, but his film lecturers encouraged him to submit it to festivals ― it went on to win multiple awards and was later adapted into a short novel.

Chris said he was inspired to expand the story because there was more to explore with the characters.

“The difference between media, film and novelisation is film, you see from a viewer's perspective, whereas reading a novel feels more personal, and you can really understand the way they think,” he said.

“I don’t feel overly comfortable writing romance because it’s light-hearted, and I’m used to writing a lot of horror, blood and gore, but this one is very grounded in real life,” he said.

Written while Chris was working at Cobram Cinema, the novel draws on his experiences of returning to the town after university.

“I just wanted to see what sort of stories can be told in a rural town,” he said.

“Just observing people from afar, living their own lives ... how some people perceive some people’s lives as small, but it’s such a big deal for them.”

The novel follows Tyson, a young man who has travelled from place to place and views the world through a dark lens.

He meets Clementine, whose optimistic outlook changes his perspective on life.

“She drags him out of this dark perspective into a beautiful way to see all the smallest things in life,” Chris said.

A section of the novel draws on Chris’s experiences of Cobram and its close-knit community.

“It's a community where people look out for other people, everyone knows everyone and they will do anything to help each other out,” he said.

“What I really want to convey to young readers is to actually go out there, see the community ... how you can create opportunities for yourself and what the town can offer you.”

Chris said he was “super excited” to have I Kept My Promise alongside The Cold Ones on the shelf at his former school, Cobram Secondary College.

“It is a full circle moment, particularly because in this story Tyson revisits the places that made his life what it is and one of those places was the school he attended, which I implied as Cobram Secondary,” he said.

“Having it for young readers to read is such a rewarding thing.”

Chris said many of the characters in the novel were inspired by women in his life, including former teachers, managers, friends and his mum.

He also thanked the cover artist, Drsika Koppla (known as BLOXXOMS), for capturing the essence of the characters.

While nothing is set in stone, Chris is looking to adapt I Kept My Promise into a film and is also planning to explore detective stories next.

I Kept My Promise is available to purchase on Amazon.