Gord Rollo On ‘Creatures of the Night’, Writing, And More!

by · Published · Updated

Some of you might know Gord Rollo from his novels such as The Jigsaw Man, Strange Magic or Crowley’s Window. His latest is in a short story collection with Simon Clark and Kevin J. Kennedy in Creatures of the Night (Dark Tide 17). If you aren’t familiar with Gord Rollo and his writing I recommend you start!

JG: Hi Gord! Thanks for getting back with me. I know you must be busy so I really appreciate your time.

GR: No problem. It’s nice to meet you.

JG: I loved the twist you put on your story, Beneath Still Waters! As a huge Creature From the Black Lagoon fan I thought it was brilliant! Did you write this specifically for the collection?

GR: Thank you. Yes, I wrote this specifically for this collection. I’d had the basic idea for a really long time, and had wanted to write this as a full length novel for many years. I just hadn’t gotten around to doing it yet. Once Kevin and Simon started discussing some ideas for the theme of our collection, I knew right away this was the right spot for Beneath Still Waters to finally come to life.

JG: How did you get involved with the project? Do you think you would do it again?

GR: I was asked by Kevin Kennedy to be involved. I’d been writing stories for him to be included in many of the anthologies he’s published over the last several years, and I’ve known and respected Simon Clark for years, from back in our Leisure Book days. So when Kevin contacted me to ask if I’d be interested in joining him and Simon, it was a no brainer for me to say, “Count me in”. The other interesting part to me ending up in the Dark Tide Series is that I’ve wanted to work with Joe at Crystal Lake Publishing for a heck of a long time, so this project let me cross that wish off my bucket list too.

JG: Why a collection of vampire stories?

GR: No real reason other than we all loved old school monsters and wanted to try something different than had previously been covered in the Dark Tide Series. Vampires are a wonderful example of a classic monster but in recent decades they have become less horrific than we all thought they should be. I have nothing against The Twilight series, or Buffy, or True Blood, or any of the other newer versions of sparkly/romantic vampires — and honestly wish I had written all of them — but Kevin, Simon, and I strongly felt that if we were going to write about Vampires, we wanted to focus on the vicious, nasty, horrific versions of them. We discussed several other options for our theme, but it always came back to vampires. Thus, CREATURES OF THE NIGHT: Vicious Vampire Tales was born.

JG: What would be your dream collection (either topic- Cthulhu, werewolves, ghosts, etc- or group of authors or something else)?

GR: I’m a huge fan of Lovecraft and I’d love to dive more into that type of horror. I love horror that has a quiet, building dread.

JG: How did you get into writing?

GR: I’ve been writing stories since back in grade school. My father wrote poetry and western fiction as a hobby, and his love of reading and writing was passed along to me at an early age. I could read before I went to school, and basically I’ve been writing ever since. Horror and dark fantasy have always been the genres that interest me most, although I do write some crime, comedy, mystery, and western fiction as well.

JG: What would you be doing if you weren’t in the writing business? Honestly I think I’d either be an archaeologist or marine biologist.

GR: Funny you should say that, because Marine Biology was definitely what I wanted to pursue right up until I went to college. I’ve always loved the sea, and have been fascinated by the creatures that inhabit the water.

JG: What is your proudest moment in your writing career?

GR: The proudest moment I can remember is seeing my novel, THE JIGSAW MAN, in a real bookstore for the first time. I’d published a lot of small press stories and books, but to see one of my novels actually getting stocked on the big chain bookstore shelves really made me feel like I had accomplished something special. My secret dream is to one day walk into a Movie Theater and sit down to watch a movie that has been made from one of my books. Fingers still crossed on that one.

JG: What book should everyone read at least once? Why? It can be one of yours or someone else’s.

GR: A book in the horror genre, I’d say Jack Ketchum’s, The Girl Next Door. It’s brutal but magnificent.
A book in the sci-fi genre, I’d say Gene O’Neill’s, The Burden Of Indigo. It’s epic, controversial, and brilliantly written.
A book of mine, I’d say, The Jigsaw Man. It’s violent but really makes the reader think. I’d love to see it reach a wider audience.

JG: What is one fun fact about you?

GR: Just one? I’m all kinds of fun!!!! Okay, let’s go with I’m an advanced scuba diver, certified in not only open water diving, but also underwater navigation, deep diving, and diving at night. Scuba Diving was part of my plan to be a Marine Biologist, but now I at least get to use some of that knowledge in my writing. There is a lot of scuba diving in my novella in this collection.

JG: And the all important what do you have coming out next?

RG: Several things. I’m expanding an old novella of mine called “The Dark Side of Heaven” into a full length novel. It’s a dark fantasy/horror that is nearly complete. Hopefully it will see the light of day this fall or winter. Likewise, I will be releasing a dark fantasy novella called “Only The Thunder Knows” in that same timeframe. Perhaps the most exciting thing I am working on is a collection of short stories all set within the same insane asylum. I’ve written several stories in the past set in “Ashbury Creek Asylum for the Criminally Insane” and I’m in the process of writing several more. I’ve already completed a new novella that will be the showpiece of the collection, so I’m hoping to have the entire collection completed by the end of the year. We’ll have to see how it goes.

JG: Again, I really appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions. Have a great day!

GR: You too. All my best,

You can find just about all of Gord’s work anywhere you find books but you can also connect with him on Facebook or X formerly known as Twitter).

You may also like...