Have you always enjoyed writing fiction?
I was always interested in different stories and spooky shows when I was growing up. When I was young, my parents were very careful with what media they allowed me to consume. I found that got me going to write my own stories. I was creating stories and making up different narratives as a form of entertainment. Storytelling was one of those big things for me growing up. All through middle school, I would be writing at lunchtime or with a group of friends in the library. That’s pretty much all I did. In high school, I kind of got out of it. I didn’t write again until adulthood. When the pandemic hit, you couldn’t go anywhere. You couldn’t see your friends. We were even limited in the family we could see. So, I consumed pretty much everything on Netflix. I was working from home but my husband wasn’t at the time, so I was alone quite a bit during work hours. I found my imagination had no outlet, and I had a lot of time to think, so I got back into writing short stories. That spiraled into books and writing anything I could, keeping my imagination going.
Over the years, have there been authors that have got you more interested in writing?
My favourite movie growing up was The Ruins. It really got me into Scott Smith’s writing when I was sixteen. Scott Smith hasn’t written a lot of books, but The Ruins and A Simple Plan were phenomenally written for how I enjoy reading a story. I really love his writing. He was very expressive about how the inner dialog of the character and how different psychological attributes affect how a story progresses. Adam Nevill is also a huge inspiration to me. I’ve read pretty much all of his books, but Last Days and No One Gets Out Alive were really well done.
He also has a couple of short story compilations that are a horror story without any people involved. All you see is the aftermath of these different events, but there’s no character that’s leading it, except the setting. I think that’s really cool. That’s always stood out to me. I don’t necessarily think I write exactly like either of them, because everyone has their own voice, but I really try to strive to bring those two styles into my writing.
Your first novella, Island of the Unclaimed, was released earlier this year. How did it feel to get that first copy in your hands?
It was crazy. It was a long time in the works, about two-and-a-half years from being picked up to being published. When I was holding the book and looking at it, I was like, Is this actually real? Am I awake right now? It was really amazing. It makes me want to get more books written. The novella’s path was actually a little bit unique, because it changed hands with publishers. It was published by Hedone Books, but it was originally picked up by DarkLit Press.
Do you intend to write more using these characters, or are you working on other projects?
I might expand this story. I would like to add some extra chapters to the end, but I don’t think it would go beyond that. I don’t think the characters will move on to other stories. I’m working on a book now that is very different. It’s still in the horror genre, but it has a little bit of fantasy mixed in with a lot of Celtic folklore. So, it’s a very different book that’s set in modern day versus a historically set pirate horror story.
What got you interested in the horror genre?
It’s just been something I’ve always loved. I grew up on Goosebumps (R.L. Stine), and that just spiraled into liking horror. My mom doesn’t like scary stuff, so she would have to endure watching it with me. I always found it a little humorous that it made her uncomfortable, because it would scare her. When I was younger, not much would scare me in terms of movies. So, I thought it was funny.
Was the pirate aspect of your story fuelled by any particular books or movies?
That comes directly from Pirates of the Caribbean. When I was younger, I had an obsession with Johnny Depp and the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. I remember in Grade 5, my mom had to have a talk with me about not wearing my pirate outfit to school, because I wanted to be a pirate. The historical stuff from that time always interested me. It was just so different. A life at sea that was unruly and crazy with different adventures was always interesting to me.
Another one of your passions is photography. Are there certain subjects you enjoy photographing? What do you enjoy most about snapping photos?
Photography is another passion I have had since I was young. More recently I have been focused on taking close ups of the forest floor. I have always been particularly interested in nature. Especially mushrooms and moss. Their appearances can vary so greatly and even be different for individuals in the same family. It’s like living artwork plastered across rocks, trees and the forest floor. That’s a big part of why I enjoy getting out and taking photos, but also because I just love being outside in general. Hiking is another hobby that is refreshing for me, so combining the two allows me another outlet to recharge and connect with the world again instead of getting stuck inside the internet permanently.
What are some of your future goals as an author?
My current goal is to try to get my next book secured to be published. It’s already probably close to 40,000 words, and I’m about halfway done. So, it’s going to be quite a bit bigger than the novella. I would love to get in with one of the big mainstream publishers, but that’s a lot harder to do. So, I’m probably going to seek out an agent over the next little while, and hope that I get a book deal with someone.
Some people get writer’s block, and they have to find ways to combat it. Do you find it’s difficult to manage your time so you can get in front of the computer and write?
Most of my writer’s block is directly linked to my day job, because I work in supply chains with operations in a big corporate business, and it can be really demanding and really high stress. Sometimes I come home and have nothing left to give, and I just need to have that decompress time. Lately, it’s been a little bit harder to find writing time. But I usually try to combat that by reading, which will help sometimes. You don’t have to think as much when you’re reading, because you don’t need to make up the words for the next sentence. But I find sometimes I’ll read something easy, like a romance book or something a little bit fluffy to get me back into that creative headspace, so I can get back to writing. Sometimes just thinking about my story, thinking about the plot and where I want it to go without the intent of writing helps a lot, too.
A lot of writers are naturally introverted people. They want people to read their books, but they don’t want to talk to people about them. Is this a challenge for you?
I’m very introverted, so it’s definitely a struggle. I find the worst part is just selling yourself and being like, “I wrote this book, and you’ll love it. Read it!” I don’t want to talk about myself. It’s like when someone asks you to do an introduction. That’s like a special kind of torture for introverts. I’m really just writing books that I would want to read, and if that picks up some readers, then that’s amazing.
To read more about Alyson Hasson and her fiction, visit: www.alysonhasson.com.
