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the web-zine with a sense of (warped)
humor
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Suzanne Donahue
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1. Tell us about yourself Well, let’s see. I’m thirty-one years old, but approach life as if I were ten. I think politicians and William Faulkner novels are evil. I drink way too much coffee and spend an enormous amount of time wishing I could win the lottery. And I have been told more than once that being a horror writer basically means I’ve sold my soul to Satan. There’s nothing quite like living in a truly enlightened area of the world. 2. How long have you been interested in writing: I started writing horror stories in fourth grade after reading THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW and seeing the film version of CARRIE. I was one of the few kids who actually hated recess, so I got permission from my teacher to stay inside during that time and write. To this day, I still have many of those old childhood "masterpieces," and keeping praying that my ability to create plots and characters has improved at least a little bit since then. 3. What was your first sale and to which magazine: I sold my first story "The Looker" in 1995 to a horror magazine here in the U.S. called HAUNTS. As luck would have it, Ellen Datlow at THE YEAR’S BEST FANTASY & HORROR also saw the piece, and listed it among her Honorable Mention picks for the year. 4. What sort of writer am I: I do my first drafts with pen and paper and occasionally candlelight. Once I’ve written in some notes for revision, I type the stories onto my computer and edit from there. So I suppose you could say I’m old-fashioned at the outset and modern at the finish. 5: Who is better, Angel or Buffy: Angel, of course! The only thing better than a monster without a soul is a monster with a soul tormented for eternity. Angel has been both. Definitely the coolest vampire around. I want to be just like Angel when I finally grow up. 6: What advice would you give other aspiring writers: Never, ever give up on your writing. Selling a story isn’t easy. But if you want to succeed, you have to fight hard. Rejection letters will come. Some will be helpful. Some will be rude. That’s the nature of the marketplace, for better or worse. But if you keep submitting even when you want to quit, and if you keep trying to improve your writing from story to story, your persistence will pay off. Case in point: I wanted to major in creative writing in college, but the director of the program wouldn’t let me into any of the classes because he felt horror wasn’t "real literature" and that therefore I wasn’t a "real writer." Instead of listening and surrendering, I spent the four years in my dormitory writing up a virtual horror storm. Well, years later I’ve sold over 125 short stories in the field, and I have only one message for that stuffy old professor: go...have a lovely, lovely day. 7: Internet vs. printed word: I am worried about the death of the printed word. People seem to be leaping into this new technology so fast—out with the old, in with the new, all that sort of thing. And in my mind, computers will never quite be able to replicate the joy of curling up on the couch with your favorite dog-earred book or magazine. Still, I think there can be room for both mediums if the world is willing to slow down and consider that option. Certainly, the internet allows for a much larger audience. Electronic literature can reach people and places that might never have seen it before. Expanding the number of horror readers out there is definitely a plus. So in this regard, I think online projects are a wonderful thing. But for me, the even bigger problem involves economics. Truth be told, lots of other people are being left behind by technology. Not long ago, the only tools you needed to be a writer were a pen and paper, and the only tools you needed to be a reader were your eyes. But now many publishing houses are demanding that people have expensive computer equipment in order to submit manuscripts or download literature. That’s great if you’ve got the money and can afford the hardware/software. But I know a lot of folks who aren’t so lucky, and they’re feeling angry and excluded. As far as I’m concerned, people should never, ever have to feel excluded from creativity. So there’s a lot of work to do in this area. 8: Writers who inspire me: Obviously, Stephen King’s work gave me a wonderful introduction to the field. His short stories and novels were my creative lifeblood for many years, and I will always be grateful for that. More recently, some of the other authors who have influenced me are Michael Marshall Smith, Jack Finney, Ray Bradbury, Gary Braunbeck, Bentley Little, David Silva, and Ramsey Campbell. These gentlemen are brilliant writers, and constantly inspire me to work harder on each new project. 9: Terry Pratchett: Alas, I’m afraid I’m not familiar with Terry’s work. 10: Character in Seinfeld: I would definitely be Kramer. In this age of political correctness, I guess you could say I’m coordination-challenged. So it’s always nice to see a character who falls down and knocks things over more often than I do. 11: London: God, yes! I was in London about twelve years ago and absolutely loved it! I’ve even thought about moving across the pond, as they say. But that wonderfully dry British humor would have me laughing so hard all the time I’m not sure I would get much of anything else done. 12: The Blair Witch Project: A total class movie. This "witch story without the witch" forces people to exercise a too-often atrophying muscle—the imagination—and that is a great, great thing. There’s something to be said for the fear created by not knowing exactly what kind of threat you’re dealing with. But once the monster (or politician) appears, you can start figuring out ways to get rid of it, and the consequent sense of control can diminish a lot of the terror. 13: My writing process: I guess you could say I’m obsessive-compulsive when it comes to my writing. I usually get my story ideas in strange places, like in the shower or supermarket. And once the idea comes, I absolutely must start working on it right away. Otherwise, I can’t sleep. I don’t use outlines—I go right to the first draft. Generally, I’ll do three or four drafts of a story in the span of a few days. Then, just to check everything, I’ll read the story out loud. Perhaps that sounds strange, but I enjoy seeing how the language flows. I like my writing to be melodic. Of course, my neighbors hear me doing this from time to time and think I’ve gone completely around the bend. Little do they know that happened years ago and I’m not coming back... 14: Would I want be a full-time romance novelist: Horror is the name of the game for me. So even if it meant I could write full-time instead of going to my day job, I would never compromise by doing only romance novels. Quite frankly, all those heaving breasts and gargantuan loins would be a bit much for me. But mostly I’d be unable to resist the temptation to have some sort of creature enter the love scenes and bite both the characters’ heads off. 15: What does the future hold for me: Stories, stories, and more stories. Writing is my passion, and I can’t imagine a time when I wouldn’t be immersed in new projects. I’d love to have a short story collection published in the near future, and I’m working toward that goal. In the meantime, I am also editing a small press tribute anthology to honor Jack Finney’s novel THE BODY SNATCHERS, and this experience is an absolute thrill. Perhaps I will edit other anthologies as time goes on. But most of all, I just hope to continue improving my writing and creating stories that people like to read. Nothing else would please me more. Suzanne Donahue Thank you to Suzanne for taking the time to answer our questions. Suzanne’s short story, ‘One of those Days’ appearred in our Halloween special. Check out The Steel Caves for another Short story coming very soon |
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