Dark Dimensions #13

An Interview with deathofcool

Interviewed by DonnaSharples

As a YA Horror writer, what have been your Horror influences?

While I've read a ton of horror, both YA and adult, my biggest influence actually doesn't come out of either camp. I simply write the types of stories that I desperately wished existed when I was a preteen/teen, which was long before the current young adult boom. (Yes, I'm old.) That said, I really respect authors such as Scott Westerfeld (Peeps) and Richelle Mead (the Vampire Academy series) who utilize actual science and historical folklore for their horror/dark fantasy stories. That's something that I also try to do in my own work, because I'm obsessed with linking the real world with the supernatural in new (and hopefully interesting) ways. I usually start with a popular monster archetype and then finesse it into something fresh - keeping some timeworn traits while jettisoning others. I also like to take YA genre clichés and twist them relentlessly in order to keep readers on their toes. Aside from those YA writers I've already mentioned, I definitely appreciate the work of Darren Shan (The Demonata series), Suzanne Collins (Hunger Games) and Daniel Kraus (Rotters, Scowler), because they've really helped open the doors for darker, bleaker and more violent teen titles, and that's huge.   

Funny you should mention Darren Shan; I’ve just finished reading ZOM-B. I love how he tackles issues that teens/pre-teens face on a daily basis. As you say, you like to link in archetypal monsters, have you ever ‘ripped scenes from the headlines’ into your stories?

Not from newspaper headlines per se - not intentionally anyway - but I do get many ideas from the science documentaries I watch and reference books on human history/evolution and folklore. For instance, for Letters From New York (the direct sequel to my novel Bleeder), I ended up doing a lot of research into the human brain, both to explain the structural changes that take place in the brains of the Nosferatu after they transition into full-blooded vampires and how an extended bout of sleep deprivation may affect our heroine physically and psychologically.

I do appreciate it when an author does their background checks, it makes me, (the reader) much more appreciative of the story. As a horror writer, what are your favourite aspects of writing in the genre?

It's definitely two-fold. Firstly, I've had a lifelong love of horror and monsters. I'm endlessly fascinated by the juxtaposition of, and the war between, light and dark, and the many shades of grey that can be found within that perpetual conflict. Monsters and other fantastical creatures and situations allow me, as a writer, to explore that in compelling and dramatic ways. Two, nothing is more thrilling to me personally than devising entire worlds and histories in my head. Bleeder was originally supposed to be a standalone book, but the deeper I went into the folkloric and magical elements of the world and story, the more it outgrew the confines of a single volume. I often joke that I only think in trilogies. And the reality is that genre stories make great epic sagas.

I have to say Bleeder has really intrigued me and I’ve started to read it. It has more than surprised me, it has had me on the edge of my seat and I had to force myself to put it down, otherwise I would have quite easily read the evening away. (Highly recommend reading). What was your first taste of horror literature? 

I was initially introduced to monsters/aliens by watching episodes of Doctor Who with my mom after kindergarten, which imbued me with a curiosity about the weird and the macabre from a very young age. (Luckily, I was never the type of kid who had nightmares after watching or reading something scary, in fact I revelled in that stuff.) The first time I encountered ghosts and other beasties in a book was a year or two later when my mom acquired a volume of Eastern folklore, ghost stories and legends called Tales of the Uncanny (Hamlyn, 1976). After that my interest in horror and the supernatural skyrocketed and I've been 100% hooked on the genre ever since.

Aah a fellow Whovian too.  Now what would you say about the differences of writing horror to other genres?

All fiction is about inspiring an emotional response in the reader; the differences between the genres largely come down to which emotions one seeks to invoke. In writing horror, I am trying to build suspense, dread, unease and hopefully a few quality gross-outs that will leap off the page and become real for the reader. That's not to say that horror can't also draw forth other emotions - and the best horror stories certainly do - but as far as writing genres go, it's all about what reader reaction you are primarily after. This is why books such as Twilight, while they utilize monsters and other genre elements, are not really horror, because their aim isn't to disturb or unsettle, it's something else entirely.

Have you ever used dreams, childhood experiences or nightmares as subject matter?

Absolutely. I think every writer does to a certain extent; it goes back to that whole "write what you know" thing, even if you are telling fantastical stories, as it helps bring an added sense of reality to one's fiction, if done well. That said, unless you are, say, my best friend, you are unlikely to pick up on which parts are loosely based on something I dreamed, encountered or experienced and which are pure imagination, because these things typically come out as subtle story flavouring or in the tale's larger themes. I have no interest in writing as a form of wish fulfilment, and by this, I mean I don't want to be any of my characters. I'm certainly not writing vampire fare so I can cast myself within the pages and live out some personal fantasy. Rather, I want to tell challenging, unconventional stories that take my audience on a thrill ride and, perhaps, leave them with a thing or two to think about at the end. Though, that said, you aren't going to get any heavy-handed moralizing in my work either - I prefer to give each of my readers the opportunity to take their own unique things away from my stories, and what those things are will largely depend on their own lives and life experiences. I see my job first and foremost as an entertainer.

Can you tell us more about Bleeder and what you’re currently working on?

It's always hard to talk about Bleeder without regurgitating the book's summary or giving away spoilers (which I'm seriously allergic to). In short, it's a violent and occasionally gory coming-of-age horror/urban fantasy story concerning vampires and sorcery. It's purposely set up to sound cliché - a fifteen-year-old girl is kidnapped by the king of a subterranean enclave of Nosferatu because he believes that consuming her blood will grant him additional powers, the ability to walk unharmed in daylight among them - because a lot of the fun for me is in drawing in readers with very specific expectations (that they've gained from reading all that bandwagon YA stuff that's super similar) and then repeatedly pulling the rug out from under their feet, to the point that hopefully by the latter half of the book they have no idea where I'm taking it. 

Bleeder is a tale of a young woman, Mills, figuring out who she is and learning to take charge of her own survival, while also confronting the harsh reality that dealing with familial politics and expectations is often complicated and ugly business. These ideas are further explored by the book's main male character, Keel, but from a completely different angle and societal viewpoint, as he undergoes his own personal journey of growth and discovery. Of course, a lot of banging of heads and ideologies ensues as the two characters are forced to try to see the world through each other's eyes and opposing beliefs.

Right now, I'm serializing the direct sequel to Bleeder, Letters From New York, on Wattpad. I try to post a chapter each Monday, but sometimes I get a bit derailed by life. This new novella picks up a few months after the end of Bleeder and is mainly focused on our heroine Mills' re-integration to human society and how she continues to be affected by the remaining vestiges of her interactions with the Nosferatu, which cannot be shed or forgotten so easily. I'm afraid to go into too many details here because they'd likely all be spoileriffic.

This fall, I will begin serializing Ruler [Blood Magic, Book 2], the full-length sequel that continues the story of both main characters, but focuses slightly more heavily on the Nosferatu side of the equation. If you've already read Bleeder, you should know what I'm talking about and who the "Ruler" in the book's title refers to. ;)   

Thank you so much for talking with us. And readers take a peek at Bleeder, it is sure to keep you on your toes.