C. J. Dotson (she / her) is a generally cheerful but easily unnerved horror lover. She is also the author of the forthcoming “chilling, paranoia-inducing” (Jonathan Maberry, New York Times bestselling author of Cave 13) horror novel THE CUT, as well short horror fiction appearing in such publications as Found 2: More Stories of Found Footage Horror from Vermillion 2 One Press and 99 Tiny Terrors from Pulse Publishing, among others.

When she is not writing, her favorite pastime is to read a book over a meal or a snack (a preference which leads to difficulty, occasionally, if the book she’s reading while she’s trying to eat is particularly gory or gruesome).

C. J. lives in upstate New York, in a poorly-lighted cabin full of far too many bugs and spiders. Aside from the insects and arachnids, she also shares her home with her husband, their nine-year-old son and five-year-old daughter, three cats named Noodles, Jupiter, and Pebble, their puppy Cooper who was named after Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks (pictures of the pets are included at the end of every issue of her newsletter, C. J. Dotson’s Dreadful Dispatch), and over the summer and holidays the family is joined by C. J.’s teenage stepson.

In her limited spare time, C. J. enjoys participating in hobbies to which she brings much more enthusiasm than skill. For example, she dabbles in occasional forays into amateur embroidery. After her kids’ bedtimes she can often be found playing video games, particularly Stardew Valley and a handful of roguelikes (and she loves watching her husband play very story-driven games that she’s better off experiencing as a spectator, like the Remedy Connected Universe games). She also likes drawing with charcoal and painting with acrylics. And when she has time and an excuse, she has a love-hate relationship with baking and decorating cakes.

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Elizabeth J. Brown grew up in the sprawling countryside of Kent, England, amidst cobbled streets and castle ruins. It was here that she cultivated a quintessentially British obsession for tea and cake. But caffeine and calories aside, her real passion is writing supernatural horror. Her current series, Brimstone Chorus, immerses readers in a world where demons, witches, and other nightmarish creatures reign supreme. Her debut novel, The Laughing Policeman, sets the stage for a chilling journey filled with blood debts, dark magic, and spine-tingling twists that explore the darker side of human nature where inner demons can be just as terrifying as the external ones.

A child of the 1980s, Elizabeth was captivated by the darker side of pop culture. While other children were entranced by Button Moon and The Magic Roundabout, she found herself spellbound by horror classics like Poltergeist—pressing her nose up against the TV, to get a closer look at the eerie girl trapped inside the screen (though, to be fair, she never missed an episode of Mr. Spoon’s space adventures either). It was this early love for the strange and supernatural that sparked her imagination and set her on the path to writing tales of horror.

When she’s not conjuring up new dark and twisted stories at her laptop, or spending time with her family, Elizabeth is usually lost in the pages of a book or graphic novel. She’s an unabashed Wolverine fan and credits him for her love of anti-heroes and morally grey characters.

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I’m not sure where I’ve been hiding that I have never read anything by Nuzo Onoh before but I am amazed at what I found! Her latest work, Where the Dead Brides Gather, is rich in African culture and families with secrets as well as a whole entourage of dead brides looking to get married. Told from the point of view of an 11 year old girl who becomes possessed it is a unique story with a mythology all it’s own. Bata is forced to grow up before she wants to so she can save living brides from the dead brides and keep her family together. The dead brides all died before they could be married. They wish to be married more than anything and will do anything to possess a living bride as she takes her vows.

I was lucky enough to be able to interview this horror icon about her new novel.

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How often do you get to sit down with a fellow author who’s lived in Edgar Allan Poe’s basement? Naturally, I was thrilled to interview Matthew Mercier and, perhaps after the interview’s wrapped, he’ll take me mushroom hunting–an adventure that is totally on my bucket list!

Matthew Mercier (he/him) is a writer and storyteller living in the haunted Hudson Valley, the beautiful home of Rip Van Winkle, Ichabod Crane & The Headless Horseman, the historical ghosts of the Underground Railroad, and what the horror community should now, in his opinion, affectionally call “Langan Country”, as a tribute to the work of horror master John Langan.

Before building a home with his wife in a lovely piece of fairy tale forest, he worked as a tour guide at the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut, (where he grew up), ran a youth hostel in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was slimed as a salmon packer in Naknek, Alaska, provided showers for homeless men on the Bowery, and proudly served three years as head docent and caretaker for the Edgar Allan Poe Cottage in The Bronx, an experience that became the basis for his debut novel Poe & I, published by Crystal Lake Publishing on July 19th, 2024.

He now spends his days writing, cooking, playing with his cats Ursula and Bombadil, and hunting for mushrooms after a good rainstorm. He is a mycological evangelical since fungi are the future and are of great benefit to humanity and ecosystems. And yes, he knows the poisonous ones that will kill you.

On a more pragmatic note, he earned an MFA from Hunter College where he taught writing and children’s literature. His work has appeared in various magazines such as Creative Nonfiction, The Fairy Tale Review, Shotgun Honey, and Mystery Tribune.

He’s performed stories live on stage with The Moth, and he’s been heard on NPR’s The Moth Radio Hour, as well The Story Collider, RISK and The Truth podcasts. He’s also been awarded the Leon B. Burstein scholarship from the New York chapter of the Mystery Writers of America, and a residency from the Saltonstall Foundation.

Currently, he is writing and producing radio dramas for Radio Free Rhinecliff in Rhinecliff, NY.

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An Interview With Rick Hipson on A Reviewer’s Guide to Writing Book Reviews

Rick Hipson is a seasoned book reviewer whose reviews have graced the pages of great magazines such as Rue Morgue and Cemetery Dance as well as countless other presses both large and small. He’s had his fingers on the pulse of good horror for decades and is sharing his hard won knowledge for others that might care to travel a similar path.

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Interview with award-winning horror author, Deborah Sheldon

by Robyn O’Sullivan

When I think of Deborah Sheldon as an author, the term sui generis comes to mind; her work is in a class of its own. Unafraid to plumb the depths of human experience in all its extremes, Sheldon’s writing often breaks through the accepted genre frameworks. Her latest novel is released by the American small press, Undertaker Books. Bodily Harm is a gripping crime thriller shot through with psychological horror. A daunting read, the plot pivots on what is, sadly, a not-uncommon event. Curious to know what may lie behind a book of this nature, I sat down with Deborah to ask a few questions.

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Horror Tree Q&A: Kim Newman: Anno Yuletide and the Modern Gothic

By Paul StJohn Mackintosh

Kim Newman is an award-winning writer, critic, journalist and broadcaster who lives in London. He has won many awards, including the Bram Stoker, International Horror Guild, Prix Ozone, British Fantasy and British Science Fiction Awards, and been nominated for the Hugo, World Fantasy, and James Herbert Awards. Horror Tree readers will probably know him best for his Anno Dracula vampiric alternative history series, but he has written many other horror and speculative fiction novels and short stories, as well as numerous non-fiction books on popular culture, film, and television.

Kim has just released A Christmas Ghost Story, all about horror fans’ second favourite holiday – Christmas. “A nightmarish tale of a haunted Christmas set deep in the British countryside,” A Christmas Ghost Story looks to be a dark and sinister subversion of seasonal tropes. We thought this would be a good occasion to contact Kim and see where this work fits into his substantial oeuvre, and his sensibility.

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Do you know how much I miss the beach? So I jumped at the chance to interview Nick Roberts at his favourite beach (okay, I would say undisclosed, but you all know we’re not actually meeting up in person, right?). Still, I can dream of the day I’ll return to a marine environment. But enough about that…let’s take a deep dive into this wonderful interview!

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