On Writing:
What piece of advice would you offer to a novice writer who has received a large number of rejections?
Rejections are part of writing- a huge part. You will develop a thick skin, and while some rejections inevitably sting, keep calm and carry on, as the Brits say. Sometimes the editor who rejected you may have accepted the story an hour earlier or later, sometimes it’s really just the wrong place to send to and another attempt will be successful. Sometimes there’s no rhyme or reason to it, and we as authors must keep writing and keep submitting. Throw everything you have into the void, and you will eventually start to see acceptances and success!
It’s said that writers need to read, a lot. Is this true and why (or why not)? What are you currently reading?
I couldn’t agree more! Reading is essential, and not just our preferred genres- I read a lot of classics as well as popular books (Grisham, Clancy etc- but I draw the line at Harlequin-type romance). Think of novels as textbooks. If they’re published, they’re worth reading and learning from! You’ll learn what the masses want!
On Horror:
Do you prefer splatter or psychological horror in your own writing? What about in books you read or on film?
Personally, I prefer psychological horror. As a horror writer, I understand that every story must have a minimum of peril, and fear of grievous bodily harm or worse. Otherwise it’s not quite horror. However, to me, gore isn’t necessary. Almost every story I’ve written has at least one death or a very close call, and sometimes in very unfortunate ways. But I always try to keep the actual splatter to a minimum. Just my own taste, and gore can be effective; read The Cipher by Kathe Koja for a masterclass in how blood and guts can be both frightening and amazingly well crafted!
What horror author or director inspires you the most? If you could ask that person one question, what would it be?
My favorite horror author would be H.P. Lovecraft. I have always loved his work and feel that in a lot of ways it’s aged incredibly well, while in others it hasn’t. I firmly believe in separating the art from the artist, however, and I thoroughly enjoy his fantastic tales! Since so many of his horrors come from either the depths of space or even beyond, I would ask him what he thinks of our modern understanding of the universe- especially the views from the Hubble, and now the James Webb telescopes!
Hot Seat Question:
Pick an antagonist from one of your stories. It can be from In the Failing Light or another story. Tell us a little about who you’re picking. Does your antagonist have a favorite comfort food? What is it?
I have an as-yet-unpublished short story called Curley’s Bar. The antagonist in the tale doesn’t give his name, but he does have an affinity for red wine. He savors it as he sits at the bar in his tidy suit and with his steel-grey hair, speaking with the owner of the establishment. As he gets up to leave, having finished his wine, the owner notices that the rim of the wineglass has melted. The tale begins with the line “I met the Devil in Curley’s Bar”, and through the 3500-ish words, it’s up to the reader to determine who that really was!
Story Specific:
I recall that during edits of In the Failing Light, we’d discussed whether we should go historically accurate using “hydrophobia” versus the more modern term, “rabies”. This is just a smidge of research that goes into writing period pieces—and you executed this story so well. Very stylistic, with pages of Wharton’s journal missing. Without giving the whole plot away, how much research went into writing this piece? What suggestions would you offer up and coming writers about historical research? What was something interesting you discovered while researching this piece you didn’t know?
Strangely, I didn’t research much for this piece, despite its historical (1871) setting. I read a lot of fiction set roughly in this time period, and I’ve picked up a lot of the speech patterns and “lingo” through reading. I did look up a few minor things for this and for other older timeframe stories, such as “what model of car would the police drive in 1893” and “history of telephone service in North America 1910”. I love the older times for horror; now, everything is at our fingertips, GPS always knows where we are, and AI is confusing what is real. I appreciate a time when a mystery wasn’t solved by Google and when someone could just disappear in the woods.
In your bio you mention having quite a few pets and that while they are not creepy, they sometimes inspire ideas that are? Did your pets inspire anything in In the Failing Light? If so, what? If not, can you tell us a little about a piece where they offered some inspiration?
I have a dog, cats, and guinea pigs. Each of the pets, other than the guineas, have appeared as characters in various stories. The first novel I wrote was actually inspired by the loss of my dog, my very best friend, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. Writing about her was intensely therapeutic, and the other pets all appeared in that novel. It’s unpublished, because I can’t handle rejection on her story.
The specific reference in my bio was for my cat Artemis, who directly inspired my first published story The Bug In The Lamp. She was hunting a fly inside a lampshade and I thought, “Hmm… a bug in a lamp, sounds almost like a Lovecraft title!” Two of our other cats will appear in what will hopefully be my first published novel, Still Pond, because cats ‘walk with one foot in the afterlife’. The cats named Tao and Little Fish live with us, under their original names.
More About Nathan Poole Shannon
I’m a huge music lover of nearly all styles. I stay away from free jazz and modern hip hop, but I love everything from country to punk to bluegrass to metal to zydeco! One of my favorite quotes comes from a song, ‘You Must Be Out Of Your Mind’ by the band The Magnetic Fields- “I want you crawling back to me, down on your knees, yeah/ Like an appendectomy, sans anesthesia!” Blissful.
I’m in the final stages of completing my novel Still Pond to the point of querying agents. It’s a long process and I’m not even into the hardest part yet… but if I can suggest anything for folks on the same path, WRITE. Keep at it. Ray Bradbury wrote every single day, like his life depended on it, and he created a masterful body of work. Follow his example, I know I do! Even a few minutes, a few words, are better than none. Hopefully Still Pond will be in your hot little hands soon, but we’ll see!
I also have an upcoming publication that I’m quite proud of, and you will have lots of time to save your pennies to buy a copy- July 31, 2027 (!) an issue of a publication named Lovecraftiana hits the market, featuring a story by me called The Sar. I’m a huge Lovecraft fan and I’m excited that this will forever create a (very tenuous yet real) link between H.P. and me. Also watch for upcoming tales featured in Thresholds Anthology by GossamerWight, Short Reads by Black Hare Press, Schlock! Webzine and Dark Vigil- Annihilate Anthology.