Interview held by Sonar4 Magazine and was released in thier magazine.

Thank you for taking the time to talk to Sonar4. Your interview will be placed in the Fall issue that will be published in Sept of 09. You will be sent  a Pdf copy of the issue to your email. Below are the interview questions.

1. This question was probably asked of you before, but why Horror?

Why horror? Good question. It is often asked. I think the reason why horror grips me and I write it is because of the excitement the genre brings. The tension of the hunt. The kill is not important -- everything else is paramount.  I fell in love with the genre at the tender age of eight. I watched The Omen, secretly in my room. It blew me away. The tension, fear, worked on all levels, even at a young age. From there I hunted horror at the library and bookstores. Then I discovered: The Manitou. Back then I bought books based on the cover. Along came the 80's and a boom in horror. My favourite decade. The fun, the excitement, the horror.

 

2. In your view has the Horror genre changed?

Basically, I don't think it has. The only thing that has changed is the way the genre is presented. There was a decline in horror over the past decade. I don't think it is as bad as doomsayers claim. Horror sells, but under the guise of fantasy, suspense, thriller or SF. David Wellington's 13 Bullets I discovered in the fantasy section.

There are a lot of remakes of horror movies these days. I guess taking the chance on a non formula work is dicey, and I don't blame the publishers and movie producers for fearing change, or taking a chance. The return on a book for a publisher is real low and they have large overheads. Some writers I've met bitch about getting between 8 - 10 percent and little or no advertising, without understanding the publishing business and the reality they need to promote their book.  Some get through: The Big Fish -- Requiem for a dream -- Gamebox 1.0 -- Perfect creature -- Underworld series (read the books, they rock. Movies were average) and several others. I think Saw fits in there as well.


 3. You are the owner and creator of a group called 'Masters of Horror'. What is this group about and where can readers find it?

Masters of Horror Writing is a ning group I created on the back of a community site I hand built called Site4Writers. I wanted a place for all horror writers, professional or beginner, to gather and hook up, help each other and generally have fun and mix with like-minded folk.

I started Stie4writers for the same reasons after I couldn't find a place for writers to group together. Naturally, after I started building and advertising, I found Gather and a host of others. The downside of these BIG places was exactly that -- they were too big. Too many people. How could you know if the advice you were getting was good information or not. It's like the blind leading the blind. 13 years ago, I fell into that hole. And when you learn one way of doing things, it is hard to change.

The group is always open all members of the horror / dark fantasy writing / publishing community. It has everything a writer needs: blogs, forums, groups, links, the works and it is located: http://horrorwriters.ning.com/

I have found that the horror writing community is a breed separated from other mainstream genres, and we usually stick together and are willing to help one another when possible. There are a lot of writers out there needing personality adjustments and some are pricks to people they don't know, or don't like. You won't get that at Masters of Horror Writing. We are friendly and helpful to anyone who asks.

4. What is your favorite part of the Horror genre?

The tension.
Discovering new writers.
Finding awesome movies.

5. Where can readers find some of your work?

Black Bed Sheet Press in USA has taken on two of my novels and will be releaseing them this year.

The Last church

The Game (title subject to change)

They will be available at all the usual places.

Unfortunately, all my books are out of print. 

6. Any current projects in the works for now or the future?

I am currently editing / rewriting a Cthulhu novel. I have rewritten the mythos and brought it into the future. Heaps of Lovecraft fans are going to want to lynch me. It is the most violent book I have written, graphically and well as mentally.  It's really quite exciting.

You're welcome. It was fun answering these questions.