Grendel Press

The Roots of Horror: Influences and Inspirations

What experiences and influences have shaped you as a writer in the dark fantasy and horror genres?

Horror is my first home, both in terms of writing and enjoying! I am a massive horror fan for films and books. I grew up with a lot of Stephen King, Ramsey Campbell, and Clive Barker. I also read a lot of darker female writers – I had the mandatory obsession with Angela Carter and Daphne du Maurier – but I have always liked the contrast in how horror is presented on both sides.

I began to expand more into fantasy a bit later, probably into my late teens, and I was obsessed with Gothic influences as well. To some point, it’s hard not to be in the UK. We’re so steeped in gothic by nature of where we are, and growing up on an island also has very spooky elements to it. I always joke that The Wicker Man hits different when you grew up on an island, but it’s so true!

I was also a very gothic-leaning teen, reading a lot of traditional gothic books – Dracula, obviously, but also a lot of Wilde and I low-key obsessed with Pablo Neruda’s poetry and Les Fleurs du Mal by Charles Baudelaire (the translations for both, alas).

Crafting Stories in Darkness: A Unique Approach

How do you approach storytelling in these genres compared to others?

I approach horror and dark fantasy in similar but slightly different ways. The main contrast is that I don’t think horror should flinch from showing the worst parts of something happening, as long as it’s serving the story and not simply being voyeuristic. But if we’re going off into the dark areas, I want to be able to linger in them so the reader’s eyes can acclimatise to the dark and they can see just how wrong something is going!”

In relation to dark fantasy, I really like being able to play with fantasy themes but delve into the darker aspects of those in a way that more traditional fantasy doesn’t tend to. While there’s a lot of grimdark writers such as Anna Smith Spark who do similar, I don’t want to go full nihilism in my stories. I much prefer the intertwining of survival and hope and terrible deeds.