IN Tan Jit Seng's world, facts take a back seat to imagination. "I don't have to be defined by facts," he says with a mischievous grin, pausing to dig into a plate of roast duck rice.
Around us, the clatter of cutlery, the smoky scent of roasted meat and the chatter of busy diners fill the air. It's an amusingly ordinary setting for a conversation about ghosts, ghouls and things that go bump in the night.
But as Tan talks, it's easy to see how his mind works; he's the kind of storyteller who can turn the simplest scene into something extraordinary. "Reality is fine," he adds with a shrug, "but imagination is where the real fun begins". Suddenly, even the cosy little restaurant seems like the perfect place for a ghost story.
"But it's not all just imagination," Tan tells me, leaning in as if about to share a secret. "I once dreamt of a lady in a white cheongsam, typing away on a typewriter." His words hang in the air, and for a moment, the lively restaurant feels charged with an unexpected chill.
The clatter of plates and hum of voices fade into the background as my mind drifts to the eerie parallels in his latest work, Horror He Wrote: The Ladies Under the Bridge.
In the story, a ghostly figure known as "White Lotus" becomes a ghostwriter, haunting her typewriter with unfinished tales. Suddenly, it's hard to shake the feeling that Tan's dream wasn't just a dream, and that maybe, just maybe, there's something spectral about the busy eatery around us. Goosebumps, anyone?
"Maybe Chong Pai Lian, the 'White Lotus', isn't just a figment of your imagination?" I suggest, half-joking, though the thought sends a shiver down my spine. Tan shakes his head and laughs.
"That would be creepy, man!" he exclaims, though the glint in his eyes suggests the idea doesn't entirely displease him. After all, for a writer like Tan, blurring the line between fiction and reality might just be part of the fun.
RIVETING PLOT
And fun is exactly what you get in Horror He Wrote, despite its ghoulish premise and heart-pounding plot. The story kicks off with an attempted suicide by Ernest Maxwell Graves, a failed writer from a once-renowned literary lineage.
Graves is spectacularly bad at writing, and after enduring repeated failures and the humiliation of critics tearing his latest book to shreds, he decides to end it all. But just as despair takes over, a ghost intervenes — offering not just salvation, but a deal: she will ghostwrite his stories. It's a deliciously dark twist that sets the stage for a tale filled with eerie bargains and unexpected turns.
Chong Pai Lian, or White Lotus, is no ordinary ghost — she's driven by a desperate need for vengeance. Her sister was brutally murdered by Adrian Holmes, an author who committed the perfect crime by replicating the plot of a thriller Chong had once ghostwritten for him.
Overcome with grief and betrayal, Chong took her own life, but her story doesn't end there. As a restless spirit, she finds Graves and offers him a chilling bargain: she'll pen him a guaranteed bestseller, IF he helps her expose Holmes and seek justice. It's a sinister pact that intertwines revenge, ambition and the supernatural in a gripping tale.
Amidst warring ghosts, brutal tortures in the depths of hell, a vengeful wife and a whirlwind of eccentric characters, Horror He Wrote somehow manages to weave in a thread of dark comedy.
The sharp, ironic humour punctuates the macabre, adding an unexpected levity that keeps the story from sinking too deeply into its grim themes. This balance of the eerie and the absurd gives the tale a unique edge, making it as entertaining as it is chilling.
PLAN B
The effortless flow of Tan's writing, infused with tongue-in-cheek humour, is a natural extension of his years as an award-winning creative director at an advertising agency. "Thirty years of copywriting does that," the 56-year-old quips with a wry smile, before adding: "I never set out to be a writer. I struggled with it, but years of honing my craft eventually made it easier."
The Johorian elaborates: "I realised copywriting and storytelling are two very different beasts. With copywriting, you have to be succinct, get straight to the point. But storytelling? The longer, the better!"
He chuckles, clearly relishing the difference. "I started writing because I thought it would be fun to play with more words. Plus, it gives you the freedom to explain things in depth and really get inside the heads of your characters. It's a whole different kind of creativity, and I love it."
Tan's writing journey began as the co-creator of Malaysia's first English comic book, Heroines of Darkness, and as a children's book author. He later ventured into the realm of short stories with Get Spooked: Terrifying Tales Untold, a compilation that showcased his flair for the eerie.
In 2022, Tan delved deeper into the supernatural with Abandoned Gods, inspired by the haunting sight of an abandoned altar under a tree. The eerie concept birthed a gripping tale that captivated readers. A year later, he cemented his reputation as a master of dark storytelling with Horror, He Wrote.
"Writing is my Plan B after my advertising career," he says with a self-deprecating smile. "Everyone needs a Plan B in life. I may be a struggling writer now, but who knows? Maybe one day, I'll hit the jackpot."
I can't shake the feeling that it's only a matter of time before Tan's macabre tales receive the recognition they deserve. It's the same kind of feeling that sends a shiver down your spine, not unlike the goosebumps you get despite the lively hum of the bustling restaurant we're sitting in.
Who knows when that moment will come? Perhaps the lady in the white cheongsam from Tan's dreams holds the answer. Until then, his boundless imagination will continue to flow, weaving its way unfettered into the pages of his hauntingly captivating stories.
Horror, he wrote: The ladies under the bridge
AUTHOR: Tan Jit Seng
PUBLISHER: Penguin Random House SEA
212 pages
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