Title: Heroin in the Magic Now

Author: Terry M. West

Release date: First published August 27, 2014, re-released January 31st, 2022

Huge thanks to Terry M. West for reaching out and sending me a digital copy to review.

I have to admit, the title of this one perplexed me. No matter what way I read it, it just didn’t click in my brain. The synopsis is intriguing on it’s own. A washed-up, heroin-addicted director of seedy porn, Gary Hack struggles to find meaning in life and bounces from gig to gig to fund his habit.

I wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting myself into, but I went in with as open of a mind as I could. Terry had mentioned that it gets dark, so I was excited to see what level of brutality we’d be getting.

What I liked: West introduces us to Hack early on, finding out that his addiction, occupation and absentee nature has forced his family away from him. The world is a different place now. Night Things walk among us and are fighting to have equal rights as humans. This includes Zombies, Ghoul’s, Werewolves, Vampires and many more oddities. From this, a new adult film niche has sprouted involving humans and this creatures, as well as creature on creature.

Hack finds himself at a crossroads. West does a fantastic job of showcasing this aging, out-of-shape addict struggling with his own morality, his ethical boundaries and just what he’ll ultimately do to fund his habit. Where is his line and when he finds it, how far is he willing to push it further to keep the cash flow coming.

The story does have some graphic moments, but I found them far tamer than I was expecting. It might be because I was so focused and on board with Hack’s character arc that I simply wasn’t as engaged with the filming and explicit parts as much as if I was purely reading to read extreme moments.

The ending definitely sets up for further entries in this story, but also closes a lot of the storylines introduced throughout.

What I didn’t like: For me, personally, I’m simply not a huge fan of humanized creatures like what is within. I did like the story line with Kat and her humanity vs monster aspect and I wish it had continued on as it was very compelling, but the parts about filming and pushing the boundaries and ‘who cares about these monsters’ moments wasn’t as big of a draw for me as a reader. It kind of felt a bit like when Tru Blood went off the rails and started to introduce a bunch of the other creatures in further seasons.

Why you should buy this: At it’s heart, ‘Heroin in the Magic Now’ is a dark, introspective look at a man struggling with his place in the world, when everything he loves has left him and the only thing he has left to fill that void is his habit. This one flows nicely and the pacing is pitch perfect. Definitely one to keep an eye on, especially if you love stories with a variety of creatures.

4/5

Cryptids. Spies. Suspense. Apocalyptic.

Those four words accurate sum-up what you’ll find in today’s guests first three releases.

I connected with L.J. a while back when I was fortunate enough to appear on a Podcast with him, David Sodergren and Cameron Roubique. L.J. keeps upping the ante with each release and I’m excited to see what we get next!

Please, welcome L.J.!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

LJ: Currently, I write at night after my 3 year old falls asleep. I don’t ever give myself a word count to hit. Some nights I’ll get a couple hundred words, others I’ll get 3-4k. It all depends on how thin that veil is between the real world and the world I’m writing about each night. The more immersed I am, the quicker those words flow.

Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?

LJ: David Sodergren- I’m a huge fan of his work, and would love to chat with him about his books over a few glasses of scotch. Plus he seems rather knowledgeable about islands.

My best friend, Cameron Roubique. He’s one of the funniest people I know and would keep the entertainment level high.

Ross Jeffery- I’d love an opportunity to meet him in person one of these days. Just the nicest guy and one hell of a writer.

I think that’d be a fun group.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

LJ: Woodhaven came out July 30th. It’s an anxiety-inducing survival horror novella about a father and daughter doing their best to adapt to life in their family cabin following a violent government overthrow. It’s a a home invasion meets siege story that ramps up to a 100 on page one and never slows down. My goal was to make it feel as close to experiencing a 90 minute thriller film in prose form as possible, and I think I accomplished that.

Steve: Bonus Question! You receive an invitation in the mail from one of these two people. The invitation invites you to have dinner and spend the night in their home. Do you accept the invitation from Victor Frankenstein or Dracula and why?

LJ: I’d accept Victor’s offer. I wouldn’t survive a night in Dracula’s castle. Mosquitos love me, so I’d assume I’d be a delicacy for Vampires. With Frankenstein, death wouldn’t be certain, plus I’d love to see that laboratory.

Great choice!

Thank you so much L.J. for doing this!

Keep up with his work by checking the links!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/L-J-Dougherty/e/B09QNJJ42P

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LJ_Dougherty

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/l.j.dougherty/

Another fun one today with an author who continues to deliver brutal and poignant stories! Bridgett is supportive, kind and always encouraging!

Please, do welcome Bridgett!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

BN: I am a very undisciplined writer, in that I don’t write at specific times, I don’t typically have a word count goal, and I don’t write every day. I’ve found when I try to implement these things, it really stifles the creative process for me—which isn’t a great thing when you’re on a deadline.  I have to be inspired to write; otherwise, I just sit and stare at the screen.

In other words, I’m naughty.

Steve: You end up at an estate sale and discover an unpublished manuscript from an author you love. Do you keep it just for yourself or do you share it with the world?

BN: I would take that sucker home and share it with a few of my closest author friends, just so we could giggle maniacally at conventions and say in singsong-y voices, “We know something that you don’t know!”

In other words, I’m immature.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

BN: My debut collection, A BOUQUET OF VISCERA, was published in March. It’s a fairly extreme, very dark, revenge-filled set of eight stories. Jeff Strand, Bram Stoker Award winner, said my story, “Jinx” was a ‘Jack Ketchum level kick in the gut.’” Another reviewer said about “Jinx” – “I found it both disturbing and repugnant. And that’s really saying something after reading AMERICAN PSYCHO. After finishing it, I really considered tossing this book and giving it a horrible review…”

In other words, my book makes landfills look boujie.

Steve: Bonus Question! You wake up in a comic book. What is your comic book character and what is your superpower?

BN: My name would be Pugantula! I’d lure evil people/creatures into my web with my adorable snorts and squishy face. Hiking my leg and peeing on them is a must. Then, of course, being half tarantula, I’d bite into them with my fangs, kill them with my venom, and dissolve their flesh so I could eat and digest them. But you got that I was super cute, right?

In other words, you really shouldn’t trust me.

Lol! Excellent choice!

Thank you so much for doing this Bridgett!

To find more of her work, please do follow the links!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Bridgett-Nelson/e/B08D36NFNP/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bnelsonauthor

Website: https://www.bridgettnelson.com/

Don’t you love it when an author suddenly lands in front of your eye balls with an amazing piece of fiction? Such was the case with today’s amazing guest, Naben Ruthnum. Michael Kelly, from Undertow Publications had kindly sent me an advanced digital copy of ‘Helpmeet,’ Naben’s upcoming release. When I got it, I devoured it and was blown away! Since it’s release, folks have been raving about it and naturally, I knew I needed to convince Naben to do a 3Q’s – and he has! Naben is known for writing both under his pseudonym Nathan Ripley as well as under his own name!

Please welcome Naben!

(Steve’s note – Naben indicated he currently is in the process of getting new author photos done and requested I simply use the cover of Helpmeet in place of an author photo)

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

NR: This one’s very project-dependent. Just now I’m in the edit / rewrite of a young readers book I have coming out next year, so most of my writing time this month is just about getting through X numbers of chapters a day as I approach the deadline. I’d guess I’m writing about 1000 new words a day and deleting a bit less than that! When I’m working on a new manuscript, I try to hit a weekly word count, not a daily one.

Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?

NR: Going to be boring and stick to friends—Kris Bertin, author of the Hobtown comics, Sam Wiebe, author of the Dave Wakeland novels, and Patrick Tarr, showrunner and TV writer. They’re all great at getting their work done, so there’d be some discipline, but also they are not annoying writer-types so it would be a fun hang.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

NR: Latest release is Helpmeet, a novella with Undertow Publications. What it has going for it is that it’s short, and that I rooted the style in the 19th century ghost fiction that I love while exploring the extremes of body horror and love, strongly inspired by Cronenberg and Barker.

Thank you so much, Naben!

To check out more of his work, follow the links!

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NabenRuthnum

Does my guest need an introduction? Sure, why not? Otherwise it would be kind of weird if it just started and you were all like “who the heck is this today?” Although I doubt it.

Award winning author. Awesome person. Super supportive. Always encouraging. And conjurer of severe brutality!

Please do welcome EV!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
EV: Oh, how I wish I had a great answer for this. My writing time looks like I am some sort of broke addict searching my couch for enough coins to get a little fix for the day. I dream about a time in the future where I have a set schedule, a place where I always go to write, or even a word count goal. But my writing life is currently supported by my day job: Obstetrics physician. And if you’ve ever met a baby, you know they don’t care about anyone’s schedule or to-do list. They are very greedy and narcissistic like that! (I love babies by the way, this is a terrible joke and I hope I did not offend any of you babies out there) So, for now, I grab every day off, every moment between patients, and time when I probably should be doing things like dishes, laundry, sleep, brushing my hair, etc and I write. I may single-handedly be keeping the Post-It Note stocks high as I carry them around in my scrubs and jacket for anytime an idea strikes.
Bottom line for budding writers: Do not emulate this style unless you like spending money on a therapist to deal with your massive guilt complexes and insomnia.

Steve: You end up at an estate sale and discover an unpublished manuscript from an author you love. Do you keep it just for yourself or do you share it with the world?
EV: I am the worst secret keeper when it comes to gift giving so if I have something I know someone else would love, it’s super hard for me not to give it to them immediately. I would share that sucker in a heartbeat. Plus, in these times, art of every kind is the one thing we can all cling to for joy, I’d never hoard joy like that.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
EV: My newest work Three Days in The Pink Tower is a novella very near and dear to me. It’s a piece of auto-fiction based on a kidnapping and sexual assault I endured at the age of seventeen. I’ve thought about telling the story for a long time but didn’t know how I wanted to present it. Plus, in a world full of #metoo, it seemed almost grandiose of me to assume my story was somehow more important than anyone else’s. I wanted to tell it because it had been eating away at me for thirty years but at the same time, I was so tired of it too.
But I realized that as a fiction writer, I could tell the story any way I wanted. And as I wrote, as I wove in the Tarot mythology, I started to feel this sort of power. I was not the frightened girl in the story, I was the High Priestess guiding her through it. It was, after all, MY story. A story forced upon me but still mine and I could do whatever I wanted to my characters; I could end it however I wanted. That was when I realized the importance of sharing my trauma in this way. I wanted to present it as both a piece of art created from trauma but also as a sort of manual on how to take your story back, how to take the pain someone else gave you and wield it as a superpower. I wanted to inspire others to do that. It’s a tough read, I know. And it’s probably not for everyone, but I do hope those who do read it, find not just darkness but the light of inspiration as well.
Also, I have a short story in the soon-to-be-released anthology Into The Forest: Tales of The Baba Yaga by Black Spot Books. My story is called “Stork Bites” and it explores a horrifying option for women in a world where safe, medical abortions are illegal.

Steve: Bonus Question! You wake up in a comic book. What is your comic book character and what is your super power?
EV: Okay, I’m going for super weird because flying and mind reading would probably get old quickly. I’ve had this character in mind for awhile, and coming from a medical background I think this is what I would choose. Born without fingernails or fingerprints, our heroine discovers the ability to slide her hands into the flesh (basically between the cells so when she takes it back out, no wound, no blood loss) of other living creatures—think the creepy priest from Temple of Doom—and remove whatever—organs, tumors, bullets, etc. You could go evil and become the highest-ranking person in the black-market organ trade or you could save lives everyday by removing all sorts of foreign objects, masses, infections.
I don’t know, this sounds crazy as I write it. But I’m sticking with it. I’m a horror writer after all.

Oh wow! That’s intense! Sounds like a Barker Cenobite waiting to come to screen!

Thank you so much, EV!
To find more of her work, check the links!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/EV-Knight/e/B083WPHXSD

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EVKnightAuthor

Fun one today friends! Jason Parent is a horror vet, having seen the highs and lows that come with writing dark fiction. Throughout it all, he’s continued to churn out some really great reads, while also being super supportive to so many of his colleagues.

Please, do welcome Jason!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
Jason: I suppose I suffer from writer’s bulimia… I binge and purge. I’m sure some of my tougher critics would say I vomit out work, lol. But I have no set schedule. I generally work long hours at another job… and also work another job on top of that… and have a not-so-healthy video game addiction… so when I get breaks, I tend to lock myself away until I can finish a first draft. This works well with shorter works: I tell the whole story at once, so continuity is never an issue. Lately, I am having difficulty finding time for novels, so it may be a bit before I release another. I also have to “feel” it – I know some writers suggest writing day in and day out even if uninspired, but if my heart’s not in it, what comes out is vomitus, or at least vomitous.

Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?
Jason: I’ve actually thought about doing this, either open invitation or invite only, though I doubt anyone would take me up on it that isn’t already a friend. I am moving into a house that I would love to share with others – perfect amenities for a relaxing getaway (and necessary for a wound tight person like me). The problem is that I am so introverted and socially awkward, I’d probably just come off as creepy if I tried, so I don’t bother.
Assuming this question is asking for the writer’s dream team you, first up would be Robert McCammon. I was hoping to meet him at a Borderlands Bootcamp during Covid, but… Covid. While others praise Swan Song and Boy’s Life (the latter being my preference of the two), my favorite series of all time is his Matthew Corbett series, in which he raises a middle finger to genre boundaries, much in the way I try to (with much less success).
Next would be Jack Ketchum. I started attending writerly things just a bit too late to meet the man, as he regularly attended events I now go to. So much raw talent and honed skill – Ketchum could make you bleed with the stroke of his pen. Red still leaves me wounded.
Finally, and I will cheat a bit here, but the old Bad Apples anthology crew. These folks saw something in my writing at a time I might have otherwise given it up. So whatever my writing career is in all its successes and failures, I owe its existence in part to them. And I gained a few real friends along the way.
But hell, I genuinely want to support other writers and writing in general. All non-Ds are welcome, including you, Steve! And Bruce Campbell! He’s welcome too (he’s got at least one book…).

(FINALLY SOMEONE CHOOSES ME!!!! 🙂 )

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
Jason: On October 7th, Crystal Lake released its third volume in its Dark Tide anthology series. For those not familiar with Dark Tide, Crystal Lake has collected novellas from three authors for each volume that are linked both in subject matter and also – to varying degrees – in actual content. The theme of our volume (written with the fabulous Kevin Lucia and Jeremy Bates) is Halloween, and all stories take place in Kevin’s already existing Clifton Heights universe. I had a lot of fun cameoing characters, cross-referencing events, and planting Easter eggs for the most attentive readers. But my story itself, about two college students who pledge a fraternity, is one of the most brutal and personally difficult stories I’ve ever written. It contains material (with warning) that some readers may find triggering, but at the same time, it is also one of the most powerful stories I’ve written to date.

Steve: Bonus Question! You receive an invitation in the mail from one of these two people. The invitation invites you to have dinner and spend the night in their home. Do you accept the invitation from Victor Frankenstein or Dracula and why?
Jason: I’d take my chances with Dracula. I’d give up daylight (and survive off animal blood) for the superpowers of a vampire. Most likely, he’s just turn me into Renfield, but hey… no risk, no reward. And the reward is great – I’d have an excuse to wear puffy shirts and tight leather pants across centuries. Yeah, I’d be that kind of vampire.

Great decision!

Thanks again Jason for doing this!
To find all of his work, please do check the links!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jason-Parent/e/B008XMAMBY

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorJasParent

Title: The Branding Ax

Author: Justin Fulkerson

Release date: August 13th, 2022

One thing I’ve always worked hard to do, is try and give some support to those who are looking to get some reviews and get some eyes on their work. Now, I’m not saying I’m anybody to anyone, I’m admitted a small fish in a massive, massive, massive pond – BUT – if I read and review one book and somebody sees that and buys that book – that’s a win and I’ve accomplished my goal.

Since officially re-opening to review requests for novels and novellas, I’ve had a few come through, but when Justin Fulkerson reached out and asked if I’d like to review any of his books, I read their synopsis and of all of them, the one that I was really intrigued by was  ‘The Branding Ax.’ It ticked those three boxes I need ticked – an evil, forests and survival. I mean, come on, how could you not be intrigued by a book that includes all of those things!

What I liked: The story follows a grandpa and grandson as they go into the woods to camp. The grandpa, Earl, is in the early-ish stages of dementia, which is used well when things hit the fan. Seeking vengeance on a company logging the forest, Earl sets off some explosives to destroy their operation.

It’s from here the we see the grandson, Dominic, encounter two of the overnight loggers as he flees from an evil that has infected his grandpa. Survival becomes their only option as they try and remain one step ahead of their attacker, but also remain hidden from the evil itself in the forest.

I enjoyed how we get some of the back story and how things came to be and how Earl ultimately became the Earl at the start of the story. The flashbacks were well done and didn’t interrupt the flow of the story telling at all.

The ending was well done and gave us a fitting and logical conclusion. I like when stories like this end in this way because it makes it a solid ending and one that gives the readers what they want.

What I didn’t like: I wasn’t overly keen on the two secondary characters from the logging site. Their backstory didn’t add much other than an odd tension that I personally didn’t think flowed with the story. As well, after they see the transformed Earl chasing them, they still appeared to not completely believe Dominic’s story and treated him oddly.

Why you should buy this: If those three box ticks also tick your boxes for a book, then definitely get on this. This one hums along and gives us another fun entry with mythological elements in the ‘survive-in-the-woods’ story list!

4/5

I love, love, love seeing people share their good news, and lately on Twitter, it seems that every time I pop onto Twitter, I see today’s guest announcing another story acceptance and it makes me so happy!

Ai is not only a super talented author, super supportive person, but she’s also a fellow Canuck, which bumps her cool factor up by about 197%. Apologies to my non-Canuck friends. But it’s true.

Please, welcome Ai today!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

Ai: My writing time is absolutely chaotic I must say. It ranges anywhere from 0 hours to 12 hours a day. Usually, I’m doing a lot of planning in my head for my stories/long form, so the actual writing doesn’t take nearly as long in comparison! I think I’m the type of person who doesn’t thrive well on routine, so I don’t end up writing at the same time each day—sometimes I try to, but it doesn’t always work out. Recently, I’ve been trying for 2-5k every other day to give myself time to reflect on what I’ve written and where I need to go next with a piece of work. I’m doing a lot of research for my first novel lately, so my word count has been relatively low!

Steve: You end up at an estate sale and discover an unpublished manuscript from an author you love. Do you keep it just for yourself or do you share it with the world?

Ai: Share it with the world! I think all fans of an author would love to see it as much as I would. Though if it was a trunk story, I’m not sure if the author would want me to share it. I don’t think I’d want the trunk stories I have now to float about. But then again, I think those remind of how far I’ve come, and how far I still need to go.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

Ai: My most recent release is actually a story I wrote when I first started submitting to journals and magazines and began taking craft more seriously. Since then, it has seen 85+ rejections and 7+ drafts. I’d say if anything, people should read it because it’s a reminder of the subjectivity and difficulties of publishing, but also how every story, no matter how many times they have rejected, have a home—we just need to find it.

Steve: Bonus Question! You wake up in a comic book. What is your comic book character and what is your superpower?

Ai: To pause time so I can catch up on my TBR list, my emails, and my writing!

Ohhhhh, damn. That’s a great one!

Thank you so much, Ai for doing this!

To discover more of her work, follow the links!

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AiJiang_

Website: https://aijiangauthor.wordpress.com/

I can’t even describe how honored I am to have today’s guest here. Since I started my writing journey/career, very few people have been as amazingly supportive as Crystal O’Leary-Davidson! She’s always congratulating everyone on their successes, even as she continues crushing it and when I reached out to ask if she’d be on, I was elated when she agreed!

Please, do welcome Crystal!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
Crystal: I’m always writing, but when I write and how much varies every day depending on the time I have. By day (and many nights) I’m an English professor. So often an academic project—a conference paper or article has an external deadline. For my creative work, unless there’s an external submission deadline, I have to create those deadlines for myself.
I wish I were more of a detailed outliner. I’m working on that. Naturally I’m a slow recursive writer, revising as I go, figuring out my writing as I revise, whether it’s short stories, an academic essay, or a novel chapter.
The only place I’m fast is flash fiction, and at the moment, it’s my favorite form, trying to tell a story as quickly and tightly as possible.

Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?
Crystal: One the best things about being a writer is getting to know other writers, being inspired by them, and becoming close friends. The second most challenging thing for me is balancing my creative writing life with my academic and scholarly writing. With that in mind, as hard as this is to do, of all the great writers I know (or want to know) I’d pick two wonderful writers who I only get to see once a year at StokerCon: Lisa Kroger and Melanie R. Anderson. Lisa and Melanie are the authors of the Stoker- and Locus-award winning Monster, She Wrote: The Women Who Pioneered Horror and Speculative Fiction (2019, Quirk Books) and the forthcoming, Toil and Trouble: A Women’s History of the Occult (Oct. 25, 2022, Quirk). Both are fantastic academic scholars and nonfiction writers, and they both host two podcasts (Monster She Wrote and The Know Fear Cast). Lisa is also a talented fiction and screenwriter. So basically, they do everything! Most of the time when we do get together, we talk about balancing the writing life, so that’s what we’d do on the island—talk about writing over mixed tropical drinks. Since I met Lisa and Mel through my husband, the novelist Andy Davidson, and he is part of that StokerCon hang, obviously he’s invited too.

Now I totally want to do this IRL!

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
Crystal: My latest release is a flash fiction piece, “A Good Mother,” that will be published in the Halloween issue of tiny frights. The story peels back the surface of a life lived on social media, so nothing against socials, but it is a cautionary tale to not accept everything we see presented online as truth. We are all messy. Some are just scarier than others in their secret mess.

Issues

Steve: Bonus Question! You receive an invitation in the mail from one of these two people. The invitation invites you to have dinner and spend the night in their home. Do you accept the invitation from Victor Frankenstein or Dracula and why?
Crystal: Definitely Victor Frankenstein. We can trade research tips and talk about balancing that academic and creative life!

Excellent choice! Thank you so much for doing this Crystal!

Check the links to stay up to date with her writing!

Twitter: https://twitter.com/colearydavidson

Today’s guest is a writer who is always supportive and encouraging to a wide range of authors. He’s written some really bleak, dark work and continues to put pen to paper on his writing journey!

Please, do welcome Isaac today!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

Isaac: Once upon a time, I tried to follow the Stephen King routine: read and write for eight hours a day and strive for up to 2,500 words. Because I have a full-time job and other responsibilities, that quickly became an impossible goal. I generally reserve 8 p.m. through midnight for my writing time these days. I’ll do all my reading, research, and writing at that time. On a good night, I’ll produce somewhere around 1,500 words.

That said, I don’t write creatively every single day. That’s another impossible goal for me, given my lifestyle and circumstances. I think the “you have to write every day even if it’s shit” advice is a bridge too far. It’s too easy to punish myself for not meeting a goal like that, regardless of what life throws in my way. Instead of adapting Stephen King’s goals for myself, I decided to set reasonable ones for who I am and what I do. That way, I can celebrate small wins and still hold myself accountable.

Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?

Isaac: Alive or dead? I’ll assume alive. It would be difficult to invite anyone because I’m an incredibly solitary soul. I’d ensure we all have our separate writing rooms and only meet for meals, to stream a movie, or to talk shop. I’d go with somebody like Danger Slater because I figure he’d be a great icebreaker. Gemma Amor would be a good addition for some mystery and depth, especially after we’ve all been drinking and our conversations inevitably turn inward. The third would need to be someone with a long career who could occasionally remind us why we’re all there. Maybe a Stephen King or a Joe Lansdale, or a John Bloom.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

Isaac: Hell Spring is my new novel. I released it on Sept. 21, 2022. It’s a horror story, but at its core, it leans literary and historical. It’s set in rural Tennessee in 1955. Eight everyday small-town folks are trapped by flood waters in their local general store with a shame-hungry demon who takes the shape of Marilyn Monroe. They must battle their guilt and shame as well as the monster and the rising waters to survive the night.

Why should someone read it? It’s possible that they shouldn’t! I won’t pretend that my stuff is for everyone. It’s not even for every horror fan. That said, I think Hell Spring shares important messages about toxic shame in a time and culture that, in some ways, thrives on sameness and judgment. Aside from that, there’s also the frank terror of extreme weather. We’ve seen a lot of that lately in the news.

Steve: Bonus Question! You receive an invitation in the mail from one of these two people. The invitation invites you to have dinner and spend the night in their home. Do you accept the invitation from Victor Frankenstein or Dracula and why?

Isaac: Dracula because there’s a greater chance I will survive the evening in some form, even if it’s not strictly human. Or strictly alive. I think Dr. Frankenstein would be more likely to slaughter me for parts.

Excellent thought-process behind that one! Thank you so much, Isaac!

To find more of his work, check the links!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Isaac-Thorne/e/B00CF4B3UU/

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Website: https://isaacthorne.contactin.bio/