This panel was moderated by Princess Weekes (The MarySue) and featured the following authors: Rachel Harrison (Such Sharp Teeth) [https://www.rachel-harrison.com/], Eric LaRocca (Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke) [https://ericlarocca.com/], Clay McLeod Chapman (Ghost Eaters) [https://claymcleodchapman.com/], Katrina Monroe (They Drown our Daughters) [https://katrinamonroe.com/], and Vincent Tirado [https://www.v-e-tirado.com/] (Burn Down, Rise Up).
I was very excited to see that a panel featuring Horror novels and writers would be taking place at New York Comic Con in 2022. Especially when it featured two writers (Rachel Harrison & Clay McLeod Chapman) whose work I’ve enjoyed in the past. The panel got rolling fairly quickly with questions from moderator Princess Weekes.
First Horror Scene to Scare You
Vincent Tirado: It Chapter 1, why is a clown in a sewer?
Katrina Monroe: Her dad does Horror movie make up, loves scaring children. Her dad took her to a re-release of The Exorcist when she was young and the crab-walk scene scared her. Katrina’s brother was convinced he was possessed and they even contacted a priest.
Rachel Harrison: Who Framed Roger Rabbit. 1st Horror movie to scare her was The Blair Witch Project, she was 11 and just moved to a house in a wooded area.
Clay McLeod Chapman: The trailer for The Stuff, treats the move about evil ice cream like a PSA
Eric LaRocca: The Creature for the Black Lagoon, he imagined hearing the webbed feet walking towards his room at night.
When writing a tense scene, when do you pull back, hen do you indulge?
Katrina Monroe: She has the opposite problem, her editor always asks to add a little more.
Vincent Tirado: Editor says to tone down the gore very often
Eric LaRocca: Big gore fan, loves Clive Barker, Poppy Z. Brite, Kathe Koja. Editors usually ask him to walk it back, maybe no genital mutilation. Tasteful is always important. Barker did it well, wrote beautifully about such bad things.
Clay McLeod Chapman: Spirits in the background that aren’t important to the narrative, spirits living in the negative space. For Ghost Eaters, he cranked it up.
Rachel Harrison: Story, what is the tone, what is her mood?
What are Constant Misconceptions about Horror?
Clay McLeod Chapman: Film is leading the charge in the masses, books have been doing “elevated” for a while. Horror is NOT seasonal.
Katrina Monroe: Queer characters can be heroes, they don’t have to die first and don’t have to exist just to be “other.”
Eric LaRocca: So much diversity in Horror, especially indie / small presses. Horror has always been queen.
When crafting your story, do story with monster or protagonist?
Vincent Tirado: Always monsters first, because they are so much fun. After that who are the people interacting with the monster.
Katrina Monroe: Starts with place, place is a character for her. She said the monster always comes way too late.
Rachel Harrison: Concept first, but with Such Sharp Teeth, she thought “Ooh, a lady werewolf.”
Clay McLeod Chapman: The monster first, exploring the darker corners of the monster
Eric LaRocca: Depends on the project, but usually the character. He likes to write character studies. Clay asks Eric about Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke. Eric wanted to explore the toxicity of the relationship, and how important effective communication is.
If you could be the lead in any horror novel, yours and someone else’s
Katrina Monroe: She would want to live in the world of Cackle by Rachel Harrison
Eric LaRocca: He would live in the world of What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher
Clay McLeod Chapman: House of Leaves
Vincent Tirado: The Dead and the Dark
Rachel Harrison: The protagonist in Malignant
If You Could Best Friend, Marry, Kill: Michael Myers, Pinhead The Nun
Vincent Tirado: Michael Myers is ride or die, you can’t keep him down. Best Friends F with Pinhead, but no body horror on and Kill the Nun
Katrina Monroe: Horror Buddy, Smile Girl
Rachel Harrison: Horror Bestie: Freddy Krueger
Clay McLeod Chapman: Horror Buddy: Pinhead
Eric LaRocca: Horror Bestie: Pinhead
Audience Q&A
One Horror You Movie Saw once, you’ll never watch again too scary
Vincent Tirado: The Poughkeepsie Tapes
Katrina Monroe: Dead Silent/P>
Rachel Harrison: Insidious, she felt deeply unsettled and left midway through on a first date
Clay McLeod Chapman: Wes Craven’s Last House on the Left. He felt unclean and complicit. Hereditary made him feel anxious
Eric LaRocca: A Serbian horror film
What do you think of the attention to real life Serial Killers (dramatizations like Dahmer)
Vincent Tirado: True Crime Tik Toks. No respect to the victims. Not enough critical thinking to why it is enjoyed
Katrina Monroe: Stems from true crime obsession. We are voyeurs for terrible things. Serial Killers shouldn’t be romanticized
Eric LaRocca: Monster with Charlize works because it is from the Point of View of the killer’s significant other
Clay McLeod Chapman: There’s a moment when he watches true crime, he asks himself what is he trying to unpack. My Friend Dahmer works, because it is not glorifying Dahmer
Rachel Harrison: There’s a difference between investigating “how could someone do this” vs the exploitation. We love horror because it is a safe place
Good Horror Podcasts?
Rachel Harrison: Talking Scared
Vincent Tirado: Magnus Archives, Welcome to Night Vale, Overbrook
Katrina Monroe: Radiolab, Supernatural with Ashley Flowers
Clay McLeod Chapman: Monkey paw is partnering with Spotify to produce “Quiet Part Loud”
Eric LaRocca: Talking Scared
This was such a fun panel, the writers seemed to mesh together quite well and I walked away from the panel wanting to read books by each writer. Well, I’ve already read Clay McLeod Chapman and Rachel Harrison, but now I want to read Katrina Monroe, Vincent Tirado, and Eric LaRocca.
