Phil Hickes’ short story “The Beautiful Dead” will appear in the Gothic Blue Book: The Revenge Edition this month.

1. Vampires or Zombies? Which do you prefer in fiction?
Vampires, as long as we’re talking about Salem’s Lot and 30 Days of Night type vampires. Not the ones with floppy hair.

2. Haunted House or Haunted Mental Asylum? If you had to spend the night in one to write about your experience which would you chose, and why?
I’ll go for Haunted House as I quite like the idea of prowling creaking corridors with a candle and nightcap. I don’t want to end up in a straitjacket while some demented doctor attaches electrodes to my crown jewels.

3. Have you ever read a book or a fictional story that frightened you so much you had to put it down at least once while you were reading? If so, what was it? What frightened you?
Naomi’s Room by Jonathan Aycliffe. It’s brilliantly written. It’s about the father of a girl who’s abducted and murdered, and as well as the supernatural element, there’s a horrible bleakness associated with the guilt and grief felt by the parent. I’d also include a non-fiction account of the Fred & Rose West murders at Cromwell St. The things they did. I had to take regular breaks from that. Real life is always scarier.

4. Why do you enjoy writing Gothic/Literary horror/horror/paranormal fiction? Or just, why do you enjoy writing in general?
I grew up opposite a crumbling Victorian churchyard, which may have something to do with it. My Dad’s a vicar and we lived right on top of it. I was a bit like the kid in Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, although I never spoke to any of the inhabitants. From reading Pan Horror Books and Dennis Wheatley as a kid, to having black hair and listening to Bauhaus and The Sisters of Mercy as a teenager, I’ve always been interested in the Gothic and supernatural. I suspect the obsession is the result of an as yet undiscovered gene.

5. What other projects do you have in the works?
I’m desperately trying to finish my first book. It’s hard, trying to find the time with a demanding day job, making it good, rewriting etc. It’s aimed at a younger audience. It’s set in the fictional town of Malreward, which is where my story in The Gothic Blue Book is also based. My own little Lovecraftian universe. Naturally there are lots of dark and sinister goings-on.

Phil Hickes was deported from England for stealing a load of bread and a gentleman’s silk ‘andkerchief, Phil Hickes currently resides in a New Zealand penal colony where he works as an advertising copywriter. In his spare-time he enjoys prowling the foggy streets in a hansom cab, with top hat, frock coat and surgical bag, laughing maniacally for no apparent reason. You can find other most excellent scribblings by said author on Amazon by searching ‘Phil Hickes’ and read his bland but well intentioned tweets @hickesy

M.N. Hanson’s short story “Slender Man” will appear in the Gothic Blue Book: The Revenge Edition this month.

1. Vampires or Zombies? Which do you prefer in fiction?
Zombies. While Vampires are sexier, they’re so played out. Zombies are way more fun.

2. Haunted House or Haunted Mental Asylum? If you had to spend the night in one to write about your experience which would you chose, and why?
Depends on how old each one is. I like a little history with my frights. But if they’re from the same era, I’d go with mental asylum. The size and lack of familiarity makes it way more exciting.

3. Have you ever read a book or a fictional story that frightened you so much you had to put it down at least once while you were reading? If so, what was it? What frightened you?
H.P. Lovecraft has written many stories that made me dig out my old teddy bear before bed time. “The Rats in the Walls” still makes my skin crawl.

4. Why do you enjoy writing Gothic/Literary horror/horror/paranormal fiction? Or just, why do you enjoy writing in general?
I enjoy writing in general, but I started out writing horror/gothic/paranormal when I was a kid. For me, it’s enjoying an old past time, like playing Pac-Man or building with Legos.

5. What other projects do you have in the works?
I’m currently working on a series of short stories, which is nearly complete, called “Going Down.” They are generally set in Chicago, and most of them are centered around young female characters with feminist themes. I have a novella in the works, which looks like it might turn into a novel, about a girl growing up on an island that doesn’t exist in an alternate reality in which magic is practical and war is a business (that latter part should be one of the most familiar things about the story). Finally, a handful of sci-fi and horror stories that have been sitting in my laptop for a couple of years have inspired me to put together a collection of stories based on the fantastic. So far, it’s just called “Very Strange Things,” but I gave it that title purely to amuse myself.

M. N. HANSON is a recent graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s master program in writing. Previously published in Burningword, The Reading, and Gothic Blue Book I, our author is also a filmmaker, sound wizard, and painter of things that cannot be. Please visit http://mnhanson.com/ to complain.

Tara Cleves’ short story “The B&B Owner” will appear in the Gothic Blue Book: The Revenge Edition this month.

1. Vampires or Zombies? Which do you prefer in fiction?
Vampires. Zombies if they make me LOL.

2. Haunted House or Haunted Mental Asylum? If you had to spend the night in one to write about your experience which would you chose, and why?
Haunted house is my choice for a night’s stay. Especially if it’s a bed and breakfast.

3. Have you ever read a book or a fictional story that frightened you so much you had to put it down at least once while you were reading? If so, what was it? What frightened you?
When I was a little girl, I got scared reading Where the Red Fern Grows. I screamed for my dad when the axe cut through Rubin’s tummy. Of late, David G. Barnett’s Tales of the Fallen has a funny, disturbing demon. I took to reading the book in the safe light of day and the comfort of bunny slippers.

4. Why do you enjoy writing Gothic/Literary horror/horror/paranormal fiction? Or just, why do you enjoy writing in general?
I enjoy reading Gothic and literary horror fiction, the dark build-up to a real or imagined understated scare. I found it super fun to try writing along those lines.

5. What other projects do you have in the works?
I’m working on a short story called “The Butterfly Gardener.” With this one, I thought I’d explore the obsession and challenge of a hobby versus the passion and pleasure it’s meant to bring.

TARA CLEVES is a 28-year resident of the Sunshine State. Though she loves the sun, the Florida moon equally enchants her. Librarian by day, Tara spends her evenings editing children’s books and writing fiction, her weekends on the water with her husband, and sunny afternoons and moonlit evenings in her butterfly garden. Her published works include a dreary romantic poem some years ago, a novel The Guardian of Baine Manor, and now, “The B&B Owner,” her first published short story.