Matt and I have been following each other on Twitter for months now, and I'm fortunate enough to have a signed copy of his book Baggage*, a collaboration with Simon Paul Wilson, in my TBR pile! He's got his hands in all sorts of cookie jars: full length novels, short story collections, podcasting, and even book cover design!
Most importantly, near and dear to me, he also understands the struggles of having an anxious dog! ;)
I started a dive into his newest volume of Horrors Untold (Vol. 5)*, and I absolutely got a kick out of his holiday tales! I can't wait to dig into more of his stories, and you'll be seeing his name pop up in my Evil Evals, *muahahaha*!
1. You have your hands in so many different creative mediums – what are some of your current projects, and is there one outlet in particular that’s near and dear to you?
First of all I want to thank you for including me in your interviews! Currently, I am wrapping up edits on IT CAME FROM THE SEA which is a cosmic-horror novella perfect for summertime reading. I also have a couple book cover commissions I am working on as well as some logos for publishing imprints and such.
I love writing! But, with that love comes a caveat. I have often thought of walking away from the craft numerous times. The old demon on my back telling me I’m not good enough or I’ll never make it in this career path. Despite that, I’m still here because, when I think about leaving it behind, I realize how much I’ll miss it. It’s a huge part of me and no matter how many times I may quarrel with it, I love it to death!
2. What sub-genre of horror is the most terrifying to you? Which is the least?
That’s a very good question. I’ve dipped my toes in a series of sub-genres when writing my shorts for the HORRORS UNTOLD series. I would have to say the one that made me question my effectiveness with it was “crime fiction.” I’ve done two shorts written as a crime suspense and I always worry that I’m making it too obvious and readers will guess the ending long before I get them there.
3. What was it like to collaborate on writing a novel? (I’ve always had this hilarious mental image of people taking turns writing pages, not going to lie.)
My first collaboration was with Simon Paul Wilson on BAGGAGE. That was such a fun experience, and I can’t wait to work with him again! We traded off writing chapters and each of us had a main character that focused on with a handful of side characters as well. I’m currently in the works on several other collaborations as well, with great folks like: Laurel Hightower, Alex Bailey, Somer Canon, and Mary Sangiovanni. I honestly love working on projects with other writers. It breathes new life into your work and, for a new writer, it’s a great learning experience as well.
4. Was there a particular monster that scared the hell out of you as a kid?
Funny enough, it was Godzilla! I loved watching Godzilla movies when I was a kid. I probably watched them so much that my parents wanted to throw the VHS tapes away. Still, even though I was a huge fan of the Big-G, I would have nightmares of him attacking my little town. He’d be looking for me and no matter how fast I’d run, I could never get away. I had those nightmares for a very long time, but still watched the movies with fondness. The nightmares finally ended one night when the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles beat up Godzilla.
5. Do you prefer writing full length works, or short stories?
It’s hard to choose, honestly. I cut my teeth writing short stories and produced six books from those works, but longer fiction allows for much more room to evolve. I also think it teaches you the importance of planning ahead. I’m what writers would refer to as a pantser. I don’t usually outline my stories, but with longer fiction, I find that it forces me to on occasion. I know I didn’t really give this a straight answer, so for that reason I’ll say I love them equally.
6. How did you find your way into the horror community?
I wanted to write for a very long time. THE DEMON IN THE GLASS was my first ever stab at writing a book and the original draft of that is floating around the internet somewhere. I’ve since then revised it for the printed version. Years and years passed after that and I eventually crossed paths with Brian Keene when I was working at a local comic book store (shout out to COMIX CONNECTION!) and the owners knew Brian and introduced me to him. I appeared on his podcast THE HORROR SHOW WITH BRIAN KEENE a couple of times and eventually became a full-time member. During my time on the show, Brian and Mary mentored my writing behind the scenes and I released what would be my debut short story collection EDGE OF TWILIGHT.
7. What would your dream project be?
I don’t know if it would ever happen, due to us having different writing styles, but I always wanted to write a book with Brian. Some other folks I’d love to work with would be Stephen Kozeniewski and Wile Young. Art wise, I would love to get a job designing covers for Cemetery Dance and Thunderstorm books. I’d also love to write a book within the Silent Hill universe.
Now my probably never going to happen in a million years would be to work with Stephen King.
8. With your Horrors Untold Volume 5, there are a couple of holiday stories – which holiday (other than Halloween of course) do you think would be the most fun to give a horror makeover?
Hmm, I think we should try and get some of the more obscure holidays in there and give them a shot. Ya know, everyone has done Christmas to death, Thanksgiving, Mother’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Valentine’s Day etc. What about Boxing Day or Leif Erikson Day? Did you know that January 31sst is National Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day? Why doesn’t that have a horror story?
9. What is the first horror movie you remember watching, and does it still hit the same way when you watch it as an adult?
The first horror movie I watched was Friday the 13th Part 9: Jason goes to Hell. I remember I was in elementary school at the time, and I watched it with a bunch of friends at a sleepover birthday party. Back then, I had no idea what I was in for because my folks didn’t allow me to watch R-rated films or anything too scary. I remember hiding my face behind a pillow when scary parts came up, but eventually I made myself watch it without cowering. That’s when my love of horror started. Today, I laugh when I rewatch that movie and, even though it’s not particularly good, I freaking love it because of that memory.
10. What is a type of horror that just absolutely grosses you out?
I can’t do extreme horror all that much. Some of it that I’ve read was well done and not produced for the sole purpose of being as extreme and disgusting as possible. I have a fairly high tolerance, but when torturing children and babies comes into the mix, I can’t continue reading.
If anyone is interested in my reading any of my books, you can find them on Amazon. Just search for Matt Wildasin and they will pop right up! Also, while you’re there, please give my author page a follow. Oh and one last thing speaking of following, please give me a follow on Twitter as well: @Matt_Wildasin
Again, I would like to Tasha for including me in this interview and I hope this won’t be the last time we work together on something! Also, a big thank you to anyone who took the time out of their day to read this interview!
As he mentioned above, find Matt at:
Twitter: @Matt_Wildasin
Amazon: Matt Wildasin
*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.