At the beginning of May, I read an intense thriller by horror author Tom Deady.
WEEKEND GETAWAY is a captivating novella, published by Grinning Skull Press, about a grandfather remembering a terrifying experience from his younger days. After his wife's death, he wonders if he will be able to keep his life-changing secret from his family any longer. In this novella, not everyone gets away, and those who do pay a high price.
After being traumatized by events in Deady's cabin, I felt it was only fair to drag him into the Lair...
Your first novel, HAVEN, won the 2016 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel. Do you consider this the beginning of your writing career or do you have another achievement you consider your first step as an established horror author?
The entire HAVEN experience for me will always be special. It was a long journey writing the book, finding a home for it, and finally seeing it in print. There were several milestones along the way that I think combined to define my first step as a writer. Typing “The End” after nearly fifteen years of on-and-off writing was the first. Getting the incredible blurb from Stewart O’Nan came next, and I believe that blurb is what caught the eye of Brian Freeman at Cemetery Dance to prompt him to request the full manuscript. Receiving the note from Richard Chizmar that he was sending a contract for a limited-edition hardcover and ebook was probably the moment when I finally started believing in my writing. But winning the Stoker, that is something I never expected. It still feels surreal.
Why horror? Was there something in particular which influenced you to choose this genre?
I wish I had a cool answer for this, but I really don’t. My older brothers were into the Hardy Boys and that’s what got me hooked on reading. Those books, along with the Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series fueled my imagination as a child. I was always drawn to the ones that had some sort of supernatural element…even if it turned out to be old man Johnson in a rubber mask at the end. When I was eleven or twelve, I picked up a book from the wire rack at Woolworth’s – it had an all black cover with a single red drop of blood. It was, of course, King’s ‘Salem’s Lot. After that, there was no turning back.
Where did the idea for Weekend Getaway come from? Is the story based on a phobia or personal experience?
Many of my stories contain pieces of me or my experiences, and Weekend Getaway is no exception. The idea came from a weekend I spent in Maine several years ago. It’s basically the scene from the book: a pick-up truck was behind me at a red light, and the guys were being rowdy and I could see they were drinking. They ended up passing me and I never saw them again, but one thought never left me: what if they follow me? It stuck with me for a long time until it needed to get out.
Your novella reminded me of movies such as Funny Games or What Keeps You Alive. Do you think it’s possible for horror books to win over fans of horror films or do you feel a competitive pressure from movies in the same genre?
I think it’s difficult to win fans over from a different medium. Some people are readers, some are moviegoers. I do think they can feed each other, though. Very often you’ll see a hit movie drive the book to the best-seller list. I don’t think it’s the book winning over fans of the movie, more like the movie opening the eyes of readers who may not have been familiar with the source material. I think the two can help each other find new fans. I don’t view it as a competition.
When people complain about the violence in horror stories, do you think they have a valid concern or do you think they’re just afraid to confront their own fears?
I think it depends on the complaint. I have a problem with gratuitous violence that only exists for the sake of grossing out the reader. Many horror themes rely on violence to tell a story, but it doesn’t have to be over-the-top. I believe some of the most powerful horror stories are the ones where the violence happens “off screen.” Look at The Haunting of Hill House or The Turn of the Screw. Two classics that really don’t have any violence, but people are still talking about them and making new films based on them. More modern examples are Josh Malerman’s Bird Box and Paul Tremblay’s Cabin at the End of the World. Weekend Getaway is probably the darkest and most violent thing I’ve written to date, but I don’t feel that I went too far with it.
What do you consider the most important elements of entertaining writing?
For me, it’s stories that create empathy for the characters. If I don’t care about at least one of the characters, I find it hard to care what’s happening to them in a story. That can apply for both the protagonist and antagonist. Sometimes, the desire to see the bad guy defeated is as compelling as the desire to see the good guy succeed. It’s all about the characters.
Where can readers find out more about your work?
I would love for everyone to visit my website, www.tomdeady.com. There are links to my books, any guest posts or interviews I’ve done, and all my social media information. I also do a monthly newsletter that usually includes some sort of contest or book giveaway. All of my work is on Amazon and Audible as well.
What are your plans for 2019? Will you be making any convention appearances?
It’s going to be a busy year for me. I have a short story coming out in the folk horror anthology Would But Time Await, as well as a novella (currently untitled) to be published late summer. I’m also working on a very cool non-fiction project that I’ll have more news on later this year.
As far as appearances, I just got back from my fourth StokerCon and it was incredible. I’ll be at Scare-a-Con in Framingham, MA the first weekend in June, Necon in July, and Scares That Care and the Freaks, Antiques and Uniques Convention at the historic Hawthorne Hotel in Salem, MA, both in August. October will be packed with appearances, too. Details can be found at www.tomdeady.com.
Big thanks to Tom Deady for spending some time in the Lair!
If you haven't read Weekend Getaway, be sure to add it to your reading list!
As always,
AstraDaemon
