Interview with Paul DeBlassie III, author of 'The Unholy'
PAUL DeBLASSIE III, PhD, is a psychologist and writer living in his
native New Mexico. A member of the
Depth Psychology Alliance, the Transpersonal Psychology Association, and the
International Association for Relational Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy, he
has for over thirty years treated survivors of the dark side of religion.
His latest book is the
psychological/paranormal thriller, The
Unholy.
About the Book:
A young curandera, a medicine woman, intent
on uncovering the secrets of her past is forced into a life-and-death battle
against an evil Archbishop. Set in the mystic land of Aztlan, The Unholy is a novel of destiny as healer and
slayer. Native lore of dreams and visions, shape changing, and natural magic
work to spin a neo-gothic web in which sadness and mystery lure the
unsuspecting into a twilight realm of discovery and decision.
Thank you for this interview, Paul. I get the
impression that The Unholy is a book only you could write, because of
the setting, and because of your own background. Let's start with the setting.
Tell me about Aztlan.
Aztlan is the mythopoeic realm of the mestizos
(mixed bloods of southwestern United States). I am mestizo. Aztlan is New
Mexico, especially the region of
Albuquerque (southern Aztlan) and Santa Fe (northern Aztlan) and extends to the
four corners area. Spirits, dreams, visions, and natural magic are woven
seamlessly into everyday life.
Your protagonist, Claire Sanchez, is a curandera, a
term which roughly translates as "Medicine Woman." What exactly is a
curandera? What led you to choose this occupation for your heroine?
A curandera
is a healer. She spoke to me as the story evolved, told me who she was and told
me of her struggle to find herself. The path of a healer is fraught with
danger. She dramatizes the life of so many women and men seeking to face their
fears, find themselves, and walk the path of healing, natural magic, and life.
The central message of The
Unholy is Religion Kills. It is made explicit at the end of the tale. News
media broadcast Religion Kills as they describe the battle between the evil
Archbishop and the young curandera.
You live in New Mexico, in the general area where
the novel is set. How has this affected the writing of The Unholy? How
important was your knowledge of the places and people and culture? What kinds
of personal knowledge did you draw on as you crafted your characters and setting?
New Mexico is Aztlan. My lineage reaches back for over three-hundred years in
Aztlan, a long line of medicine people, healers. I live here, breathe its air, am sheltered
under the canopy of its turquoise sky. The Unholy and the natural magic of the
medicine women, forces of darkness and light, exist side by side in the daily,
mythopoeic realm of Aztlan. I live here. It is my homeland.
How has your training and experience as a
psychologist impacted your writing in general?
For over thirty years I have
treated survivors of the dark side of religion. I chose to write a novel about
this human drama. Stories cut to the chase. I’ve written three other books in
psychology and spirituality, but there is nothing like stirring the imagination
via story to set the mind working and the heart healing.
I know you've had some specific experiences in your
role as a psychologist that led to your decision to write this book. Tell me
about that.
Religion can be both terrifying and damaging. I help people to heal
from the dark side of religion. Decades of such experience led me to write this
book and the ones that will follow. Each phantasmagoric story, much like The
Unholy, plumbs the dark and light sides of human nature and spiritual
experience.
The cover image for The Unholy is striking and
haunting, and it's not just some random stock photo. Tell me about that
picture.
It is the Devil’s Throne, an
actual site between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. The evil archbishop performs
atrocities there. The land has been contaminated by evil, women desecrated, the
air itself befouled. It is the Devil’s Throne in the realm of Azltan!
Thank you for hosting The Unholy!
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