Published September 5, 2023 by Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C.

Souls shrouded in darkness…

On her own in England, Vicki trains at a prestigious fencing school. Face marred by a birthmark, she’s suspicious of Nicholas’ attention. A dinner date reveals his genuine interest and they begin to connect. Nicholas is attractive and she wonders why he’s so shy and reclusive.

Then one evening she happens upon him changing into a lycan. Every werewolf legend is challenged by the gentle, fearful creature before her. Vickie accepts his secret, but Nicholas knows he’s an unpredictable beast. Can they trust love enough to overcome their physical challenges?

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A professional speaker and author, L. Diane Wolfe conducts seminars, offers book formatting, and author consultation. She’s the senior editor at Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C. and contributes to the Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

Published March 24, 2023 by Wicked House Publishing

When Ryne Burdette inherits his family's old hunting cabin deep in the Yukon wilderness, he wants to say no. Nothing much is left in that place except for unpleasant memories and the smoke of old burns. But after a tragic year, he sees a weekend trip to the cabin with his best friends as a way to recuperate and begin again.

But there is something strange about these woods. As a winter storm moves in, the animals begin acting strangely, and the natural laws of the wilderness seem to fall apart. Then, the soft voices start whispering through the trees. Something is watching them.

As the storm gets worse and the woods get darker, the three friends must dive into the darkest waters of the Burdette family lineage. Because the horrible truth is deep, resting in the shadowed places no one wants to look.

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The setting: An old hunting lodge in the woods with a freak blizzard bearing down on the area. The characters: Best friends, all carrying some form of trauma. The takeaway: The Broken Places is isolation folk horror done right.

It begins with one of the three, Ryne, recalling an odd occurrence from his childhood when he, his father, and his uncle made a trip to the cabin. Then, adult Ryne and two of his childhood friends, Shawn and Noah, are on the road heading toward that same isolated cabin from Ryne's past. The trip is full of memories, both good and bad, family history, and the bond of brotherhood. Sounds great, right? While initially a slow-burn horror, once the scare wheel starts turning, it's all speed ahead. 

The Broken Places' main strength is its character development. The three friends all have some type of trauma that they are carrying with them into this place. While Ryne's is the main focus, Noah and Shawn have their own emotional backstories, but their tight bond of friendship is strong and has kept them together across the years. Rather than only getting one viewpoint throughout the occurrences, you get to step into the lives of each of them in turn. The varying perspective could confuse and delay the story but, in this case, only adds more poignancy to what's occurring.

This debut novel by Blaine Daigle couldn't get into my head fast enough. This is not just a horror story; It's a tale about loss, grief, and depression. A perfectly atmospheric folk terror to haunt you long after you've finished the last page. 

Published  March 2, 2023

Droves of the rich and beautiful have invaded the small town of Brawlton, forcing out the many generations of good-natured, wholesome townspeople. On the outside, these new inhabitants seem to have it all, but they soon learn that there is more to life than Botox, silicone, and spreading rumors while sipping on over-priced martinis.

There is something lurking in the woods, and it is hungry for blood.

"With an intriguing, nihilistic depiction of the upper class that few authors outside of Bret Easton Ellis are capable of, Matt Micheli weaves a haunting tale of extravagance, betrayal, and bloodshed." - Patrick C. Harrison III, author of Grandpappy and 100% Match

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What attracted you to the genre(s) you write in?

That's a tough question. I've always liked movies and books with edge, some dark or supernatural element. Maybe because I'm a fairly happy person in real life.

What part of writing do you consider a chore?

I enjoy all aspects of writing, creating, editing, polishing. My least favorite part of the whole process is waiting for potential acceptances/rejections. Writing: good. Waiting: bad.

Where were you when you first thought "I need to write this story?"

The idea for The White (my new novella) came about while taking time off to care for my wife who had just received a life-changing diagnosis. The diagnosis came by phone, after hours, since the doctor did not want to wait till the next day to deliver the news; there was no time to wait. The diagnosis came out of nowhere which I believe was the catalyst for the idea of the book which involves a freak, unexpected snowstorm, that alters the lives of everyone in this particular family. I'm happy to say that my wife is cancer-free and on the tail end of her treatments which is more than anyone could've asked for. Unfortunately for the characters in the book, there are no treatments for what they are about to encounter.

Did publishing your first book change your process of writing?

My first book was an absolute trainwreck, published by a now-bankrupt publisher. I tried way too hard to sound like authors I liked and was arrogant and resistant to feedback or editing suggestions. The book still haunts me today. My processes haven't changed much, other than I now write with more humility and knowledge of the craft. 

What's your favorite "bad review" that you've gotten?  

I once received a review where the reviewer said they had never hated a character more in their life, and that the protagonist was the worst POS character to ever grace the pages of a book (I don't recall all the words, but they went on for a while). I could sense their utter anger and hatred while writing the review, I'm sure pounding on the keys as they typed... Not every character in fiction or real life is likeable. I'm just happy the book evoked such an emotional response. I prefer angry reviews over the "just-okay" reviews.

What comes first for you - the plot or the characters?

It depends. Sometimes I start with an opening line. Sometimes I start with a situation. Sometimes I start with a character and go in blindly. All depends on the story at hand.

Do you have any writing superstitions?

No. But now I'm wondering if I should...?

Is there a word you find yourself using too often when writing?

I find I use the word "looked" quite a bit, because I use a lot of action within dialogue. Nothing the editing process can't handle:)

A lot of authors have a soundtrack while writing. Are there any songs you had on repeat? 

My 2 go-to soundtracks on Pandora are: "This Will Destroy You" Radio & "Timecop 1983" Radio. These 2 stations seem to provide what I need for different moods/scenes. All instrumental, dark, non-distracting.

Do you have a favorite line that you've written? What is it and why do you like it?

Right now, it's got to be: "Hell has finally frozen over." This is the first line of The White, and what spawned the idea for the entire novelette.

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Kill the ego. You aren't a great writer right now, but you are capable of being a great writer if you allow yourself to improve.

What advice would you like to pass on to aspiring writers that is unconventional but true?

Same as above. Kill the ego. You aren't great right now, but you are capable of becoming great if you allow yourself to improve.

Do you have a WIP? If so, can you tell us anything about it?

I'm wrapping up my 2nd novella (titled SCRATCHED) as we speak, shooting for a March release. I don't want to give too much away, but it is basically "The Real Housewives of OC" getting brutalized by a goat-blood sucking cryptid. The story is full of vanity, Botox, silicone, scandal, sex, gentrification, blood, and gore.

Which of your characters was your favorite to write and why?

I love all of them. Writing Margo's character (The White) was fun because she is so vile yet relatable, but also redeemable. Another character that really got to the emotions, is Michael (who you'll meet this Summer in Two Minutes with the Devil) who was loosely based on a childhood friend of mine. A little rough around the edges but a kid you can't help but pull for.

Would you and your main character get along?

Some, yes. Others, hell no.

Killing off characters your readers love - Risky or necessary?

I never think of it like that. I just do what is right by the story. I am a believer that some kind of emotional triggering is necessary for a story/book/movie to be worthwhile, but that usually comes naturally.

Did any of your characters surprise you while you were writing?

Yes. Margo--despite knowing her personality--just kept raising the bar.

Which animal (real or fictional) would you say is your spirit animal and why?

I don't know if I have a spirit animal, but I would say I admire Husky dogs. We rescued one and he is the most stress and carefree, sweetest animal I've ever known. His name is Togo. We could all be a little more like Togo (besides the counter-surfing and gnawing and overall destructive behavior when left alone too long).

Would you rather live in a haunted mansion or a cottage surrounded by fairytale creatures?

A cottage. Give me pine trees and fairies. You can have the bloody walls and ghosts.

What would you say is your weirdest writing quirk?

Don't think I have one. I'm way too cool to be quirky:)

You wake up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. What was it?

Beaming beamed up through my ceiling by aliens. This has been a recurring nightmare that hits every couple of years. 

What cliched tattoo would your main character have?

Strangely enough, I have a lot of tattoos but haven't written any tatted characters.

What movie completely scarred you as a child?

Gremlins still gets me. The pool scene. F that.

What's the strangest thing a fan (or other author)  has said to you?

I can't think of anything in particular, probably because besides my Mom, I don't have many fans. Kidding. I'm glabally adored.

If animals could talk, which one would be the rudest?

Probably that damned possum that walks across my fence each night, stirring up my dogs.

Your main character is at the hardware store. What do they buy?

You wouldn't find Dan (protagonist of The White) at a hardware store which is part of the problem. 

What are your SM links? Can we follow you and pretend we're besties? 

Hell yes. Please do.

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Matt Micheli is a horror and dark-fiction writer out of New Braunfels, TX, author of The White (D&T Publishing). He has several fiction and non-fiction pieces featured in various magazines and anthologies. A loving husband and father to a daughter and Husky dogs, he spends his days dabbling in domestication and his nights in Tequila, always searching for the next great story. The White will be followed by his second novella Scratched to be released in March of 2023 and his third titled Two Minutes with the Devil which is scheduled for release in June of 2023 by D&T Publishing.

Look for his interview series NEW BLOOD: The Rebirth of Indie Horror at The Horror Tree where he has candid conversations with folks making a splash in the indie horror writing world. Nothing is off limits.

Published February 7, 2023 by Tor Nightfire

Eric Ross is on the run from a mysterious past with his two daughters in tow. Having left his wife, his house, his whole life behind in Maryland, he’s desperate for money–it’s not easy to find safe work when you can’t provide references, you can’t stay in one place for long, and you’re paranoid that your past is creeping back up on you.

When he comes across the strange ad for the Masson House in Degener, Texas, Eric thinks they may have finally caught a lucky break. The Masson property, notorious for being one of the most haunted places in Texas, needs a caretaker of sorts. The owner is looking for proof of paranormal activity. All they need to do is stay in the house and keep a detailed record of everything that happens there. Provided the house’s horrors don’t drive them all mad, like the caretakers before them.

The job calls to Eric, not just because there’s a huge payout if they can make it through, but because he wants to explore the secrets of the spite house. If it is indeed haunted, maybe it’ll help him understand the uncanny power that clings to his family, driving them from town to town, making them afraid to stop running. A terrifying Gothic thriller about grief and death and the depths of a father’s love, Johnny Compton’s The Spite House is a stunning debut by a horror master in the making.

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Eric and his two daughters, eighteen-year-old Dess, and seven-year-old Stacy are on the run.  His youngest daughter has been counseled to run and to hide if he says so. What trouble could they possibly be in? Has he stolen away his kids without custody? Was it an unsafe home life? One thing is for sure, he is a father looking for a safe spot for them to land after the transient life they've been forced to endure. After seeing an opening for a position at Masson House in Degener, Texas advertising a tidy sum of money, Eric packs up his girls and drives to apply. The rules given to Eric by the very wealthy Eunice are simple; live in the house and report anything that happens. What trouble the trio is in is left as a mystery until close to the end. 

Spite houses, if you are unfamiliar with the term, are houses that are built in the way of something else, like a neighbor's view, or as part of a land disagreement. (My personal favorite is The Equality House in Topeka, Kansas built across the street from Westboro Baptist Church and painted in the pride flag colors.) The Masson House is weird, both in architecture and history and I applaud Compton for choosing such an unusual setting, diverting the typically dark and stormy haunted house tropes. 

While I loved that it held its secrets tight until almost the very end, I wanted more from The Spite House. I enjoyed the characters and the mystery of both their past and that of the spite house, but it felt like it was forgetting something. For a house billed as one of the most haunted in the state, there wasn't the gothic atmospheric dread and buildup that I expected. The characters themselves were excellent and I was invested in their story but the jumping timelines didn't do any favors to my drifting attention span. It often felt like an info dump with more tell than show. While the origin story of the house was crucial to the ending, the deviation from the characters I was already invested in stalled the read for me at times. When a book leaves so many questions unanswered in the beginning, I expected an ending showering all the information out in a downpour. However, there were still a lot of questions that didn't feel answered after the last page. 

I did experience this one via audiobook and must say Adam Lazarre-White was the perfect narrator for the job. Johnny Compton's writing could drift a bit on the tedious side with the multiple viewpoints and numerous timelines. The narration brought vibrancy to the characters that might not have been there otherwise. 

 

The Two-Dollar Hustle by Heather and S.D. Vassall

Pirating an author’s manuscript is what I refer to as a two-dollar hustle. You steal someone’s work, sell it, collect your profits, and call it a day. Career pirates will sell their ‘booty’ through other sites quickly; that way they make money, not only from their first upload—that will most likely be taken down within sixty days—but through those secondary sources which might never be removed.

It’s not sexy or glamorous, and it doesn’t provide large sums of money like a big heist, but unlike a heist, it’s a low risk enterprise. And, best of all, it likely provides a steady stream of cash. One two-dollar hustle might not bring in big bucks, but a few hundred of them and the pirate has sustainable income flowing in. Most pirates are career criminals They’ll set up 100 two-dollar hustles over the course of a weekend. Even better for the pirate is the fact that their income is tax-free.

It’s hard to protect a manuscript from being pirated. What makes it worse is the large corporations make piracy easier. They tend to have loose policies and multiple departments that don’t communicate with each other. It’s common to get bounced back and forth between departments till you finally reach someone who can finally get the situation resolved. We spent the last week sending email after email, talking to reps from different departments, filling out forms, and the process is still ongoing.

It's disheartening that there’s so much piracy taking place in the book industry. The pirates aren’t going to quit. They’ve found their niche and they’re going to stay there. And the ones running their two-dollar hustles aren’t really worried about what might happen to them. They’re good at their business, and they tend to remain anonymous, even when their acts are discovered. The worst that generally happens to them is their pirated book gets taken down. They aren’t worried about legal actions or punishment; corporations and law enforcement agencies generally aren’t going to devote much energy, time or resources towards tracking down and punishing someone doing a two-dollar hustle.

We, as authors and publishers have to keep trudging forward. We have to keep writing and

publishing. We have to stay diligent in our best efforts to protect our work. It’s hard, and it can be disheartening, but we have to keep moving forward. The only way we’ll have any success against piracy is to keep striving. It takes patience. And tenacity—remember that word!

Our emotions have run the gamut this week from shock to fear to disbelief and finally to rage. How dare someone do this to one of our authors! How dare someone do it to us! We’ve spent twenty plus hours talking to four different departments at Amazon, filing copyright  infringement claims, searching for other pirated copies online, updating readers, and working with our publicist and lawyer. We’ve talked to other publishers and authors. We’ve agonized over how to protect our other authors and the next two upcoming book launches. It was exhausting. But we’re not giving up; we’ve got loads of tenacity (if you only remember one thing from this article, remember that word!).

We’ve put together a survival list for publishers, for if and when they get plundered by pirates. 

Many thanks to Andrew at Dark Lit Press for the tips he provided.

What you’ll need to survive piracy:

• Coffee. Don’t skip this step.
• Open communication with the author and/or artist. Remember that the theft effects you
• both, but for them this is bigger than that. This is a violation.
• Make sure your whole team knows, including your publicist, bookkeeper, and lawyer.
• Continually update your team.
• The contract between the author and publisher.
• The contract between the cover artist and the publisher or author.
• Screenshot of where you got the ISBN (be sure to get your own ISBN).
• Screenshot of any other dashboards where you have the book published.
• A cease-and-desist letter from your lawyer.
• The tenacity (don’t forget this word) to keep calling and keep submitting forms over and over again.
• A sense of humor.
• A support group. Reach out to other publishers, editors, and authors you know. Gather as many tips as you can.
• The tenacity (there it is again!) to keep calling and keep submitting forms over and over again.
• Learn to channel your rage and frustration into perseverance.
• Patience.
• Sleep.
• Exercise and/or meditation of some kind. Self-care is key if you’re going to keep fighting.
• The tenacity to keep calling and keep submitting forms over and over again (we’re tenacious in our attempts to make sure you remember tenacity!).

We hope other writers and presses don’t have to deal with their work being pirated. Unfortunately, as common as piracy is, most of you will have to deal with it at some point. Just remember—if and when it happens—not to lose heart or give up. Be patient, be tenacious (we can’t stress that enough!), and keep moving forward. It’s all we can do.

Ad astra per aspera!

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Welcome back to another round of the Scaredy Cat Reading Challenge. 

If this is your first time here, be sure to look here for the original post. Rules are simple. One book, one square. Fill in the board by the end of 2023. That's only 2-ish books a month. 

This challenge is also on StoryGraph if you want to play along there. 

Are you ready for my picks? 

 

Vampire - The Thirst byFlint Maxwell

Female Author - The Insatiable Hunger of Trees by Samantha Eaton

Dark Fantasy - Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone

Body Horror

Gothic - A Multitude of Dreams by Mara Rutherford

#1 in Series - Crazy as a Loon by Hailey Edwards

    Paranormal - The Spite House by Johnny Compton

    Brand New

    Novella - Even Though I Knew the End by CL Polk

Indie Author

Witch

BIPOC Author - The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro

    Eco-horror - The Ghost Eaters by Clay McLeod Chapman 

Western - Lone Women by Victor Lavalle

Werewolf - Creature by Flint Maxwell

Holiday

    Monster - Churn the Soil by Steve Stred

YA

Comedy - Suckerville by Chris Sorenson

    When Animals Attack - The Broken Places by Blaine Daigle

    

Dark Fairytale - Nightwood: All Fairy Tales Were History Once

Isolation

Aquatic - Sacculina by Philip Fracassi

Anthology/Collection

LGBTQ+ Author - The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

Demon  

Published September 17, 2015 by Inklings Publishing

In Twisted Reveries, suspense author Meg Hafdahl introduces us to thirteen unforgettable women. They include a grieving mother, a librarian living on the edge of fantasy, and a pyromaniac motel manager. In all thirteen spine-tingling tales these women are faced with their deepest fears, as they are forced to become the hero or villain of their own story. The Rochester Post Bulletin describes, "Everything is not as it seems in the short, 'Twilight Zone' like tales Hafdahl writes." Packed with twists and intrigue, Twisted Reveries will satisfy fans of horror, suspense, and captivating female protagonists. As Amanda walks home alone in the eerie town of Willoughby, she is unsettled by a malevolent stalker in close pursuit, who is somehow familiar... Louise is kidnapped off a snowy, rural road when she is distracted by A Flash of Orange. When a twist of fate allows her escape, her true horrifying test begins... A group of strangers, including fearful Kelly, are trapped in the infusion ward of a hospital, and something hungry is targeting their weaknesses. Will Kelly dig deep and find her Guts? When Hannah Goes Home she brings her fiancee to the squalid reality of her childhood. But she is determined to keep one, awful truth from surfacing... Immerse yourself in the dark, pulse-pounding landscapes of Twisted Reveries: Thirteen Tales of the Macabre.

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Twisted Reveries II

Twisted Reveries III: More Tales of the Macabre

The Haunted House in Horror Literature

by meg hafdahl

With the recent success of Grady Hendrix’s (My Best Friend’s Exorcism, The Final Girl Support Group) newest novel, How To Sell A Haunted House, I naturally started thinking about this well-loved trope of a house bursting with ghosts. It’s also been on my mind as my co-author and I have been crossing the USA, documenting haunted places for our travel book coming in 2024. I don’t need to tell you that haunted houses are abundantly used as settings in the horror genre, and they share many similarities. You know; the drafty rooms, mysterious corridors, spider-webbed attics, and, most vital of all, the ghosts. These are often apparitions of the former owners, often people who were murdered or died with the always popular “unfinished business.” They can be invisible, or maybe show themselves, dressed in the clothes of their era.  The haunted house is certainly not a new idea, like the boogeyman himself, it is borne of our natural, human fears. Home is where we should feel safe. No matter the indignities of life outside, we should all have a safe place in which to retreat. When this is disturbed, it immediately brings horror to the characters, and their readers. 

My favorite haunted house story is Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. I’m not alone, as it has inspired many films and works, as recently as Mike Flanagan’s Netflix series. Written at a time when women were grappling with their place in the home (on the cusp of the sixties) Jackson uses the conventions of a haunted house to point to the destruction of the female in forced domesticity. Home, to Jackson, is inherently female, as well as maternal. When Stephen King created ghosts in The Shining (okay a hotel, but close enough) he used the tropes of the haunted house to further a story about a man haunted by his own past, as well as his ever-present addiction. And we know Edgar Allan Poe meditated on the nature of guilt and grief through some of the first American haunted dwellings. Perhaps what makes a haunted house so prolific in horror literature, is that it is an enticing template on which authors can inject their own fears. Isn’t that what we do when we enter a Halloween haunted house? As we traverse the slim corridors and actors jump out at us, we are individually dreading all the things that could happen. For some its our fear of something crawling on our neck, for others it’s a bloodthirsty ghost of that person we killed! Oops! 

As a horror fiction writer I am not immune to this trope. Ghosts creeping around houses are just plain scary, it’s something as humans we’ve collectively agreed gives us goosebumps. It also delves into what little we know about an afterlife. In my novel Daughters of Darkness, I introduced a ghost who speaks to a child through an air vent. This juxtaposition of the scary and the mundane is another aspect, I think, that makes haunted houses so appealing. 

    Books are not the only reason we share a collective understanding of the haunted house. They are alive and well in films from every decade, like the Vincent Price starring The House on Haunted Hill in 1959 to the vividly gothic Crimson Peak in 2015. Let us not forget the chairs moving in formation in Poltergeist, and that clown toy hiding in the shadows that still gives me nightmares…

    However you like your haunted house there’s one for you.

    Here’s some recommendations of some of my favorites if want to explore some haunted houses on your own (what could go wrong?) 

Books: The Good House by Tananarive Due, Hell House by Richard Matheson, The Hacienda by Isabel Canas, Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

Movies: The Grudge, The Changeling, 1408, The Others, The Innocents

Horror and suspense author Meg Hafdahl is the creator of numerous stories and books. Her fiction has appeared in anthologies such as Eve’s Requiem: Tales of Women, Mystery and Horror and Eclectically Criminal. Her work has been produced for audio by The Wicked Library and The Lift, and she is the author of two popular short story collections including Twisted Reveries: Thirteen Tales of the Macabre. Meg is also the author of the two novels; Daughters of Darkness and Her Dark Inheritance called “an intricate tale of betrayal, murder, and small town intrigue” by Horror Addicts and “every bit as page turning as any King novel” by RW Magazine. Meg, also the co-host of the podcast Horror Rewind and co-author of The Science of Monsters, The Science of Women in Horror, The Science of Stephen King and upcoming The Science of Serial Killers, lives in the snowy bluffs of Minnesota.

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About the Book 

Young couple Ally and Lauren move to the small town of Wyndhamton in southwest England to open a café together with the help Ally’s old friend Kev. With his own life going nowhere, his mother Daphne made him a proposition. Once owner of a shop on the high street, she wants them to have success again but to get it they must agree to include her former business partner Lydia. Daphne soon becomes a daily fixture offering advice and wisdom in the café as business starts to take off.

Kev called in some friends to help renovate the café with the promise of jobs but as the days pass, they disappear one by one. Lauren spends more time training with the mysterious Lydia in the disused shops behind the carved doors on the high street…

With a history of witch trials centuries ago, superstition and fear survive and is quietly apparent on the high street and in the ways of the people. Shopkeepers of the high street start to witness the familiar sight of years ago by their homes at night of the macabre tall figure which waits for offerings as the folklore recalls. Kev too sees this woman of the shadows with her tortured souls by her side as she visits after midnight with her silent threat of what will be taken should she not be respected…

As Lauren is gone from the café after an emotional confrontation with Ally, she leans on Kev. Daphne has a desire to find something deep inside the café which may secure her renewed success and control over the dangerous forces she has woken on the high street…

What does Kev see outside his window late at night? What are those disturbing sounds out in the garden after midnight he hears and cannot ignore? The local legends of witches seeking revenge he used to mock and hope for with his friends, may prove to be something far too real…

For Daphne to return to success on high street and Kev to be with Ally like before what are they prepared to lose or encounter? How many must suffer or make an offering to the witch?

The local legends and lore of vengeful witches to be heeded and bargained with must be remembered and respected but to Ally it sounds so ridiculous…

What would you offer a witch to save a life?

What lies behind the carved doors of the disused shops of the high street?

Rattle the bones, the witch comes home…

Read now

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Where were you when you first thought "I need to write this story?"

Having written my second full length horror novel and been submitting it to publishers for around twelve months as covid and lockdowns arrived I decided to try out writing a few short novellas and self-publishing them as many other authors were doing so and I figured I could put them out to readers sooner and on a regular basis once completed. 

Did publishing your first book change your process of writing?

Since my first couple of books were published, I suppose I have over time I have learned to prepare notes and use time more efficiently with first drafts through to final draft though each book of project is different. 

What's your favorite "bad review" that you've gotten?  

I'm not sure any stand out specifically but possibly some comments about being derivative or not having that special something to keep the reviewer turning the pages to the end. But no one book appeals to everyone. 

What comes first for you - the plot or the characters?

More often the plot but this is something I've considered over time, and I have built up a collection of notepads and files with many characters and plots to pick from and play around with or build upon should the desire be there. Sometimes a special or unique character does seem to form in one's mind as if from nowhere as does the initial seed of a plot.

Do you have any writing superstitions?

I don't think so, but I suppose I have my routines and like to have notepads, pens, laptop in a certain place, take breaks at possible the same times. 

Is there a word you find yourself using too often when writing?

There probably are a few or phrases also and that is something which is an irritant at the back of one's mind. I try to be aware of this, add in some different phrases, descriptions, nouns and more especially with character dialogue.  

A lot of authors have a soundtrack while writing. Are there any songs you had on repeat? 

Sometimes I might find myself listening to a particular band and their back catalogue while working on a draft.  With my previous horror novel I was listening to goth metal band Paradise Lost a lot. Quite often if writing horror I put on the Hellraiser score soundtracks, Twin Peaks music and other David Lynch soundtracks but also bands ranging from Depeche Mode, Johnny Cash, Mastodon, Faith No More to Bjork, Beatles, Public Enemy and more. 

Do you have a favorite line that you've written? What is it and why do you like it?

That's hard for me to say objectively. I often find myself proud of particular chapters or how a character or plot has been developed through a story.

What is something about the genre that annoys you?

There are cliches in every kind of genre but when you easily see what seems like a story written with little imagination or a premise which initially seemed to suggest a great story tragically wasted or only slightly opened up but not nearly enough. 

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Don't dwell too much on the first draft, on sentences or phrases, just get it down without thinking too much about it. Have courage and believe in what you are are doing.  

What advice would you like to pass on to aspiring writers that is unconventional but true?

Don't try to emulate or follow trending in fiction. It might seem like the thing to do but it will probably be better to follow your own instincts and get your own strange but intriguing ideas down on the page and ultimately more satisfying. 

Do you have a WIP? If so, can you tell us anything about it?

I have a number of notepads full of many ideas, concepts, characters and projects waiting to be explored. I have one final novella from the covid/lockdown times which I hope to publish early next year and after that I have possibly half a dozen or so fiction work which I've been waiting to get right into. They may be less straight forward in terms of genre and horror, slightly more surreal or fantastical possibly. 

Which of your characters was your favorite to write and why?

Often it can be the lead character, but I have found myself finding interest especially recently in final drafts with some of the supporting characters as I try to give them more dimensions or have them be useful to the story and realistic. 

Would you and your main character get along?

At this point after writing a few books and more short stories maybe less so but that may be a good thing. Early on as a writer there can be that tendency to find the lead character may be too much like yourself or an imagined better version of the author. More often now my main characters are possibly less like me but still fascinating individuals. I am possibly less like Ally from my new book as she is a little loud and headstrong and maybe more like Lauren who is more introverted and thoughtful. 

Killing off characters your readers love - Risky or necessary?

It all comes down to the plot. I've looked back over some of my fiction, especially the horror work and sometimes think more characters should have died as it is horror fiction, but it should come down to events in the plot not simply to have bodies and bloody spilled left, right and centre. 

Did any of your characters surprise you while you were writing?

Possibly in The Woken Bones I became gradually more surprised by Kev, his mother Daphne and Gina who I developed more toward the final draft, and they revealed themselves and how they were useful to the plot or unique in their own ways toward the end of writing. 

You've watched a movie 50 times and you still aren't tired of it. What movie is it?

Hellraiser. 

Which animal (real or fictional) would you say is your spirit animal and why?

A fish, simply because I had many of them as a child and teenager. They are quiet most of the time but often calm and graceful. 

Would you rather live in a haunted mansion or a cottage surrounded by fairytale creatures?

Probably haunted mansion even if that turned out to be a very bad decision, I probably could not resist. 

What would you say is your weirdest writing quirk?

I usually write long hand in notepads for the first draft at least and sometimes find myself doing some calligraphy over names and chapter headings or notes in the margins. 

Using only emojis, sum up your book.

👀🤢😢🤷‍♀️🤢👍

You've just gone Trick or Treating. What do you hope is in your bag? 

What do you pawn off on your kids/SO/random stranger?

I would be very happy with some funsize snickers but pawn off mini eclairs chews or toffee sweets. 

What is in your internet search history (researching for your book) that you would want someone to wipe if you were under suspicion from the police?

With the new book things like witch trials, torture devices and things like that which I suppose would make police raise some eyebrows. 

You wake up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. What was it?

The places I know and are familiar to me burning and melting around me as I have no voice and seem to be shrinking while everyone else runs through the streets tall like crazed giants. No idea what that means. Ask Freud. 

What cliched tattoo would your main character have?

Tribal dragon with nun-chucks. 

What movie completely scarred you as a child?

I saw many 'video nasties' growing up in the late eighties but sometimes it was the more bizarre or strange and trashy ones which left a mark. Scenes from Dario Argento's Phenomena some of the A Nightmare on Elmstreet movies did leave a lasting impression.  

What's the strangest thing a fan (or other author)  has said to you?

At a convention promoting my first horror novel I plucked up the courage to say hello to an author I admired a lot. We had a chat and the author they led me to meet another couple of authors to ask they if they thought I resembled a very famous author. It was strange but it was also a compliment. 

If animals could talk, which one would be the rudest?

How about a lion, they're kind of arrogant and full of themselves. 

Your main character is at the hardware store. What do they buy?

Cigarettes, a rock music magazine, a lottery scratch card and some popping rock candy. 

Which of the Golden Girls is your personality most like?

I'd like to say Dorothy but probably Rose. But that's not a bad thing right? 

If you were bitten and changed, would you want it to be by a vampire or a werewolf?

Probably a vampire as I'm a tragic romantic and couldn't resist the possibility of living for a few hundred years. 

You're riding through the desert on a horse with no name. What are you going to call it?

Clouseau 

What are your SM links? Can we follow you and pretend we're besties? 

If twitter continues, I'm there as @Parsonsfiction but also Instagram as parsonsfictions, mastodon as parsonsfiction. Facebook under James E Parsons

 

From working in animation/film production, moved to writing screenplays and onto fiction. Have had two science fiction books published, debut horror novel in 2018 and back in 2022 with horror novella and new horror novel. 

Published March 23, 2023 by Brigids Gate Press, LLC

A family's relocation looked like a chance to relax and regroup—but as they settle into their new home, teenage Kimmie Barnes’ special senses make her the target of something primordial, evil, and utterly malign.

Darkness…

Golden Oaks, California is a sleepy town on the shores of Oro Lake,

and the residents have no idea what horrors lurk below the glittering waters.

Beneath the waves…

One by one, as people begin to disappear,

the once quiet town is soon in the grips of a waking nightmare.

An unimaginable horror consuming everything before it.

Hungry…

All while echoes of an ancient evil spread out like malignant spider webs,

like dead hands reaching, grasping…

SEETHING…

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Making A Setting Feel Real (Even If It’s Not) by ben Monroe

When I wrote The Seething, one of the things I really wanted to do was make the small town setting of Oro Lake, California seem real. While the town is completely a figment of my imagination (though inspired by a few real towns), I felt it was vital to the story to make it seem like a real place, like somewhere readers could visit. Somewhere that felt like it had existed in that place for a long time, and had a history of its own, and that The Seething was perhaps only one of the stories taking place there. As the characters are traveling there, I gave pretty specific directions about their drive, noting the highway numbers, side streets, road signs, etc. Of course, it was all completely made up.

This is something I often consider when writing any of my stories, honestly. Most of what I write is set in the modern world, rather than a strange fantasy kingdom, or a science fiction galaxy far, far away. And while it might seem relatively easy to create a sense of place in the familiar confines of the here and now, there’s still a bit of thinking that must be done to get that feeling across to the reader.

In order to create the sense of a real place, I think are the three key elements to include in a setting: Names, Backstories, and Connections.

Name Everything You Can

This is pretty simple, but really helps to sell a setting as real. Characters don’t just drive along the road looking for a place to eat. They drive down “Hawford Lane, on the way to Farley’s Diner.” Any time you have the opportunity to give something a name, do it (and for goodness sake, make a note of it somewhere so you don’t forget!). This is especially helpful when making up locations for your story. Naming streets, stores, buildings, etc., gives the reader a sense that they’re reading about real places.

And don’t just reserve this for places; naming objects also helps. Don’t be generic if you can get away with it. Tell the readers that the maniac is chasing the teenagers with a Stihl chainsaw, or a Craftsman hammer. 

What Happened Here Before?

This is the Backstory of a place I mentioned earlier. Not every named location in a story needs to have a fully-detailed backstory. But whenever possible, enough of them should have anecdotes applied to them that the reader gets the sense that the setting has been around for a while. People might remember stories about a thing that happened in a specific place, even if it’s not immediately relevant to the overall plot of the story. 

Maybe the movie theater in town used to be a bingo parlor 50 years ago, and some of the older folks in town have fond memories of it. Or the grocery store changed owners recently, and people still sometimes call it by the original name. Or maybe just something as simple as a character mentioning having a fond or funny memory of a specific place (“It’s down past the liquor store on East 14th. You remember? The one where Frank tripped that one time when we was kids, and dumped a slushee all down the front of his shirt.”)

Make Some Connections

Connecting places to each other via characters or character dialogue is another way to make your setting feel like a real place. In The Seething, I have a scene where a character is talking to a waitress at the Get Up & Go Diner downtown. He’s asking about somewhere in town to get his phone repaired, and she happened to know that the local hardware store recently hired a guy to do small tech repairs.

In making this simple connection I was able to move the plot forward, as well as reinforce the feeling of a small town atmosphere. The “everybody knows everyone” sort of feeling I was going for in the setting.

One last thing...

I also like to blend real-world elements and the fabrications together. There’s a lot of stuff about Oro Lake (and the nearby town of Golden Oaks) which was completely made up. But I connected some of those elements to real world things like Roosevelt’s WPA projects, which readers will recognize. Thus blending the real with the false I blurred the lines between the two, helping to make the town seem like a real place.

Ben Monroe has spent most of his life in Northern California, where he lives in the East Bay Area with his wife and two children. He is the author of In the Belly of the Beast and Other Tales of Cthulhu Wars, The Seething (coming in 2023 from Brigids Gate

Press), the graphic novel Planet Apocalypse, and short stories in several anthologies.

His latest story “the Patchwork Man” appears in Blood In the Soil, Terror On the Wind from Brigids Gate Press. You can find more information about him and his work at www.benmonroe.com.

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