Today for Supernatural Friday, I interviewed one of the two editors of Southern Haunts: Devils in the Darkness, who is a author in his own right too and with a story included in the anthology. Welcome Alexander S. Brown.
1. Can you tell the readers of my blog the
motivation behind the Southern Haunts anthologies?
Each book has
a different motivation. Volume 1:
Spirits that Walk Among Us was inspired by southern and southwestern ghost
stories. Volume 2: Devils in the
Darkness regards demonic southern and southwestern based folklore. The upcoming Volume 3: Magic in the Moonlight
will be based on witches, voodoo, hoodoo, etc of the south and southwest.
2. Talk about the first anthology.
With Southern
Haunts: Spirits that Walk Among Us, J.L. Mulvihill and I were in Hot Springs,
AR signing books. After we participated
in a ghost tour, we kicked back to enjoy some spirits at a nearby pub. We discussed the tour and our belief in the paranormal. We also felt that southerns have some great
stories to tell regarding the supernatural realm. It was at that moment we
decided to round up a group of authors and have them write about non fictional
locations with fictional characters.
3. Why devils and demons this time?
Southern Haunts 2: Devils in the Darkness
was inspired differently. J.L. Mulvihill
was unable to contribute as greatly to the sequel due to multiple writing
projects on her plate. So I pulled in
our beta reader, Louise Myers, who is now also co-editing the upcoming Southern
Haunts 3: Magic in the Moonlight.
Louise and I met while she had been a sous
chef at a haunted bed and breakfast. I
met her by going there to edit and write pre Southern Haunts. As I would sit at the bar she would bring me
appetizers and in time, small talk brought us closer together.
When I told her that Devils in the
Darkness was coming into play, I explained I would like for the second book to
be demon related. I explained I felt we
had much more folklore and history to work with besides ghost. It was a mutual agreement that volume two
stay true to the original volume except focusing on demonic entities.
4.
Since you write too, how would
you describe the genre in which you do most of your writing?
Adult horror is my main
focus and I write steampunk on the side.
With my Detective Hess stories, although the main subject is steampunk,
I don’t shy away from supernatural or horror elements.
I have started writing
about a new character named Hester, she can be found in the Capes and Clockwork
anthology released by Dark Oak Press.
This anthology regards steampunk superheros. Although the first story follows the
superhero formula, I plan to have the stories blend with horror elements. My goal for this is more so the superhero
horror genre, which was glorified in the Swamp Thing series.
5.
What other genre would you like
to write in?
You could say I already write in this genre
since I write horror and this subject is an element of horror. I would eventually like to write
mystery/suspense. I doubt I would craft
this as a slasher or splatterpunk, but we’ll see how it fleshes out.
6.
Where do your ideas come from?
Everywhere and not all of my inspirations
come from something horror inspired. My
main inspiration comes from dreams, I have always been a big daydreamer, it
comes with the territory of ADD.
Although books, movies, the news, and music brings a great deal of my
inspiration, I am mostly inspired by character.
I can sit down to eat and wonder, What
has the person across from me done? What
are they going through? What have they
survived? What have they influenced?
7.
Have you always wanted to be a
writer?
I have. I started taking my writing seriously
in high school. I took a creative
writing class to kick start my creative juices.
I think being a writer is in my blood.
I grew up in a family full of storytellers and story lovers. It was only a matter of time before I put pen
to the spoken word.
8.
Have you ever been on a
paranormal investigation? If not, would you like to? Where would you start
first?
I have been on three
paranormal investigations and the chance of encountering a demonic entity is
slim. The spirits I have met in these
outings to antebellum homes have been friendly or confused, none have been
vengeful. Also, my house is haunted. It’s very common for me to interact with the
spirits who reside with me. Form the
investigations we have performed at my own home, the spirits who visit are not
earthbound and they claim that they are just stopping by. The spirits who do visit tend to have their
own antics that allows me to identify them.
So far there are two children, my grandfather, and my aunt who come
around.
9.
Tell us the first scary story
or novel or legend that frightened you.
As a kid I had a pretty
thick skin. The first movie I ever saw
that truly frightened me was Candyman.
The first book I read that kept me up all night was Gerald’s Game by
Stephen King.
10.
Tell us where Southern Haunt:
Devils in the Darkness can be found for sale
Both volumes of Southern Haunts can be ordered from
any bookstore or purchased online in paperback or ebook.
11.
Tell us where people can keep in touch about Southern Haunts?
Join our Facebook fan page. We share images and interact with questions
regarding the paranormal.
About Alexander:
Alexander S. Brown is a Mississippi author who was published in
2008 with his first book, Traumatized. Reviews for this short story collection were
so favorable that it has been released as a special edition by Pro Se
Publishing. Brown is currently one of
the co-editors/coordinators with the Southern
Haunts Anthologies published by Seventh Star Press. His horror novel, Syrenthia Falls is
represented by Dark Oak Press. He is
also the author of multiple young adult steampunk stories found in the Dreams of Steam Anthologies and the
anthologies, Clockwork Spells and Magical
Bells, and Capes and Clockworks. Some of his more extreme work can be found
in the short story anthology, Luna’s
Children.
About Alexander:
