Hush, It’s Interview Time With Leigh Kenny!

Hush, It’s Interview Time With Leigh Kenny!

By Melody E. McIntyre

 

Leigh Kenny is a horror writer who lives in Ireland with her family. She is the author of two books, Cursed and Hush, My Darling, as well as several short stories. Cursed is a possession story described as The Grudge meets Drag Me to Hell. Hush, My Darling is an Irish horror thriller perfect for fans of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I have read Hush, My Darling and enjoyed it even as it frightened me. Kenny’s writing is gripping and her villains are repugnant, but engaging. She is also a finalist for two awards in Instagram, Author of the Year and her novel, Cursed, is up for Horror of the Year. I was recently given the opportunity to interview her and get to know her a little better.


Melody E. McIntyre: Please introduce yourself. Tell us about your background, how you came to writing and horror. 

 

Leigh Kenny: I’m Leigh. I’m a mother of two boys and was born and raised in Ireland. I wasn’t a huge horror fan as a child or even a teenager, but I always adored the written word. Somehow, though, everything I wrote seemed to lean towards the darker side of humanity. My first finished piece was a poem about the time my dog got hit by a car. When I look back at it, it clearly fell under grief horror. I’d love to find a copy of that poem to see how far I’ve come! I began to suffer with my mental health in my late teens and stumbled into horror. I found it cathartic. It was a bunch of hypothetical situations where it was safe to feel scared because nothing could happen to me. Sometimes there was justice, sometimes there was only death, but there was always a conclusion. Horror became my happy place in a weird paradoxical sort of way. It was inevitable that my love for writing and my love of horror would eventually collide, and here we are!

MM: You have two books out, Cursed and Hush, My Darling. In Cursed, the monster is a demon, while in Hush, My Darling, the monsters are humans. Can you speak about your experiences writing speculative vs. non-speculative horror? Was one more difficult for you than the other? Or more interesting?

 

LK: I generally never considered the merits of one over the other. I never decide what to write. The ideas come to me, I allow them to marinate, and while some fizzle away to nothing, others take shape and a narrative builds, so I write. I think I tend to lean towards human monsters personally because the real world is always more frightening and there is no such animal quite as terrifying as humans themselves. I’m still a sucker for a pulpy, trashy fast-paced supernatural story, though, especially if it’s laden with literary jump scares.

MM: In the author’s note for Hush, My Darling, you talk about using your platform to write about strong, female characters. Are there any particular female characters in literature, movies, television, etc, that specifically inspire you? Any favourites? And what about these characters calls to you?

 

LK: I have no particular favourites within the literary or screen world. Everyone loves a good final girl though, don’t they? In real life, I’m inspired mostly by people around me. My mother is one of the strongest people I know and definitely one of my biggest inspirations. I’ve also recently come to have a huge admiration for Mata Hari. I was diagnosed recently as having a phobia of death. It can be quite crippling at times and leads me to display avoidant behaviours. I read about the famous exotic dancer turned spy, Mata Hari, who is said to have faced down the French firing squad with a cigarette in her hand a nonchalance on her face. That is true bravery in my eyes. To be so utterly assured of the person you are and life you have lead that you can stare death in the face and be unmoved by it. 

MM: In the author’s note, you also mention the Vanishing Triangle and the real women who disappeared there. What is the Vanishing Triangle and what about those stories spoke to you in particular? How did you balance your desire to honour the stories of the real women without exploiting their tragedies?

 

LK: The Vanishing Triangle is the media-dubbed name for an area in Ireland quite close to where I live where many, many disappearances have occurred. Some are the result of foul play and some are the result of tragic circumstances, but all have left answers for the families of the women who vanished. Parents have passed on, not knowing what happened to their daughters. The pain those families must endure is awful. I had originally intended on the book being more graphic but after researching these women, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I believe my research also led to an altered outcome for the main character. I named some survivors at the end after those women in my own attempt to create closure. They deserve to live on in someone’s story.

MM: What is your overall writing process like? How often do you write? What is your favourite (and least favourite) aspect of writing?

 

LK: My process is chaotic. I have a young son with additional needs so by the time free time opens in my schedule, I’m usually too tired to write. I tend to be very last minute. The pressure of deadlines seems to spur me on. I like to write in silence because the narrative plays out like a movie in my head, so I need the peace to allow the words to keep up with what is happening in my mind. I’m a pure pantser so I rarely outline. The end product is usually as much of a surprise to me as it is to my readers! The initial idea stage is probably my favourite. It’s hard not to be excited by fresh ideas and a world of possibilities. The marketing aspect and the modern requirement to have a constant social media presence to remain relevant is easily my least favourite part. It’s very tiring, and very mentally draining.

MM: In your author bio, you cite Ronald Malfi, Kealan Patrick Burke, and Stephen King as your favourite authors and sources of inspiration. What is it about these authors that inspires you? What are your favourite books by them?

 

LK: King is probably an inspiration to many horror authors. He was one of the first I read, and he continues to help push horror into the mainstream. It’s hard to nail down a favourite book by him. Currently, it’s 11.22.63 because he so seamlessly weaves multiple genres together. Ask me next week and that answer will have changed! Malfi’s writing is pure gold. The man could write about brown paint drying and I’d probably read it. My favourite of his is probably Bone White. It’s so unsettling and atmospheric. And it has a scene that was one of the first to make me jump while reading! And Kealan is a fellow Irish native. It excited me to find his work and know that it was possible to be from such a small, disconnected island and still carve a niche for yourself within the horror community. He continues to be one of my biggest inspirations. His book Kin is one of my all-time favourites and was a huge inspiration behind Hush, My Darling. 

MM: Your bio also describes you as a “voracious reader” and this shows on your Goodreads profile. You have written 201 reviews on Goodreads. What do you enjoy about writing reviews? Do you write reviews anywhere else? Do you have any favourite books you’ve reviewed that you would like to recommend?

 

LK: I probably don’t write as many reviews as I did before I started writing. I definitely don’t write long reviews anymore. I just don’t have the time! Goodreads is my go-to for reviews mostly because it’s also where I keep track of what I’ve read. I also post some of my reviews to book groups on social media, especially if it’s an arc review. I know how difficult it can be to be seen in such a saturated market so if my review can draw even one reader to a new author or book, I consider that a win. As far as recommendations go, I will always recommend Jeff Long’s The Descent. It’s one of my favourite books! Another I recommend very frequently is Jason Arnopp’s The Last Days of Jack Sparks. It’s somehow fun and creepy at the same time and the ending is executed mind-blowingly well.

MM: I see that you are a finalist for two awards on Instagram – Author of the Year and Cursed is up for Horror of the Year – congratulations! Can you tell us a bit about these awards? What is the process for being nominated? And how excited are you?

 

LK: I’m definitely excited. The awards had a submission period for readers to nominate their favourites in a bunch of categories. The authors and books with the most nominations in each category were then shortlisted and people are encouraged to vote until later this month. Awards, both online and in-person, are absolutely alien to me. I don’t think I even won anything at school sports day as a child, so it would be fun to win. I don’t put much focus on awards at the same time though. To me, the wins come from reader interaction and feedback. 

MM: What are you working on now? What is next for you?

 

LK: I’m currently working on a companion story for Hush, My Darling. It will be included in the hardcover edition which I’m hoping will be released before Halloween. Urban Legends: Three Tales of Terror, which features stories from myself, Nick Roberts and Dan Franklin, is set for release in 2025 by Crystal Lake Publishing. And I’ll be getting to work on a sequel to Cursed with a view to releasing in late 2025. I hope to attend a couple of in-person events next year in both the UK and US. I’d love to find a suitable event closer to home but alas it doesn’t seem likely. Despite being the home of both Bram Stoker AND Halloween, there doesn’t appear to be much appetite for horror in modern Ireland.

MM: Where can we find you and your work?

 

LK: I’m a techphobe so no website as of yet but I hope to sort that out in the coming months. In the meantime, I can be found on Facebook and Instagram at Leigh Kenny Writes. My work is available on Amazon, B&N, Waterstones and most reputable sites that sell books. 

https://linktr.ee/leighkenny 

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