We here at GLAHW have met so many amazing and talented people out in the big wide world (you know, OFF the internets) and thought it was high-time we introduced them to you. Who knows? You may end up discovering a favorite new artist, photographer, writer, or all-around awesome human. This time around, we will pulled some strings and maybe promised a bad kid or two so we could talk to Krampus.
GLAHW: How long have you been writing? When did you get started?
I’ve been writing for at least a couple hundred years now. It started with the lists, but then doesn’t it always? At first it was just the straight Naughty/Nice list. Well, that’s not entirely true. There are gradations of naughty, some just get the switch, some the whip, others…well, that’s where the writing started. That’s where the creativity started.
GLAHW: Why did you choose the horror genre?
Actually, I originally started writing romances… Ha, no I’m just kidding. It was a natural extension of the material I was already working on. It just sort of blossomed from there.
GLAHW: Were you inspired by a person or event to begin your writing career?
Not one person, but hundreds, thousands of them. All of those bad little boys and girls.
GLAHW: Are you a Plotter or Pantser?
Definitely a Plotter. I’m an obsessive list maker. I can’t even begin to think about going out without my To Do list.
GLAHW: Have you ever had an encounter with the supernatural?
Really? You’re asking this of the dude with goat hooves?
GLAHW: Are you superstitious? Why or why not?
Surprising no. I believe in common sense. You don’t walk under a ladder not because you fear bad luck, but because you don’t want anything to fall on your head. You don’t break a mirror because those glass slivers can get into your blood stream and kill you.
GLAHW: Do you keep a journal every day?
Every year I tell myself that I’m going to start journaling every day and every year around April I realize that I haven’t written anything in the journal for a week and a half. I have a huge collection of very attractive books that are 3/4 empty.
GLAHW: What do you prefer to write – short stories, poetry, novels, scripts, etc.?
So far I have stuck to just the small stuff — short stories and the occasional poem. I’d love to write a novel, but I always peter (ha, see what I did there?) out around the mid point. Despite my outward appearance, I have a huge case of imposter syndrome when it comes to writing. Part of it may be the homeland. There are a lot of great writers that I end up comparing myself to unfavorably.
GLAHW: What truly scares you?
The usual stuff. Dying alone. Having people forget about you. Evergreen stakes. I guess my biggest existential fear is losing my edge — having people reinvent and reinvent me until I’m nothing but a watered down version of myself.
And spiders. Ugh.
GLAHW: What sort of hobbies are you into?
When I’m not busy with duties, I like to spend time outdoors. Camping, hiking, sledding. I love being up in the mountains.
GLAHW: Do you read outside of the horror genre? If so, what else have you read?
I read a lot of biographies. Every once and a while I will go on a tear where I read nothing but philosophy, but it usually doesn’t last long.
GLAHW: Do you use a pseudonym?
I’m known by lots of other names. Knecht Ruprecht, Certa, Perchten, Black Peter, Schmutzli, Pelznickel, and Klaubauf. I wrote some Peanuts slash fiction under one pseudonym, but I’m not going to tell you what it is. I’ll let you decide if I’m kidding.
GLAHW: What do you think makes a good story?
I’m a sucker for a good morality tale, but the characters have to be believable. It’s no fun if everyone in the story is just a cardboard cut out. I don’t think that people are born good or evil. I think it all boils down to the decisions that they make.
GLAHW: As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
Funny I should answer that right after talking about people not being predestined to a fate. There was always a certain set of expectations regarding what I was and what I would be, so I didn’t spend a lot of time dwelling on alternate possibilities.
That being said, I always thought that being an astronaut would be cool.
GLAHW: Are you spiritual?
Dude, seriously?
GLAHW: What are your influences?
Family. My brother is a big inspiration.
GLAHW: What are you reading right now?
The Return by Nicolas Sparks has been on my nightstand for a fortnight, but I just can’t get into it.
GLAHW: What else do you want your readers to know? Consider here your likes and dislikes, your interests, your favorite ways to unwind — whatever comes to mind.
There are only a few weeks left. Stay good if you don’t what the birch branch!