This month - Naching T. Kassa
Interviewer: Aigner Loren Wilson (she/her) is a double Ignyte Finalist for best novelette and best critic. She is a senior fiction editor for Strange Horizons, and her writing has appeared in F&SF, Lightspeed Magazine, Monstrous Futures, and more. You can follow her on her website, newsletter, or on Facebook.
Horror Author: Naching T. Kassa is a wife, mother, and writer. She’s created short stories, novellas, poems, and co-created three children. She resides in Eastern Washington State with her husband, Dan Kassa. Naching is a member of the Horror Writers Association, Mystery Writers of America, The Sound of the Baskervilles, The ACD Society, The Crew of the Barque Lone Star, The Beacon Society and the Sherlock Holmes Society of London. She works in Talent Relations at Crystal Lake Publishing and was a recipient of the 2022 HWA Diversity Grant.
This interview is a part of the HWA Seattle Member Blog Interview Series. HWA Seattle members who would like to be interviewed for the blog, reach out here.
Aigner Loren Wilson: You write a lot in the Sherlock world and there are a lot of similarities in mystery and horror writing. What is it about the world and atmosphere of Sherlock Holmes that intrigues you so much?
Naching T. Kassa: I think it’s that mixture of horror and mystery that intrigues me so much. Many of Sherlock Holmes’ cases border on the bizarre and the unusual. He would be the first to tell you that “No ghosts need apply,” but many of his cases are frightening. There are disembodied ears, people buried alive, creatures outside the bedroom window, women accused of being vampires, nighttime vigils, frightening beasts—all kinds of strange things.
ALW: When it comes to your horror poetry writing, who are some of your influences?
NTK: Poe is probably my greatest influence. There’s such depth and melancholy in his style. It just bleeds through between the words.
ALW: How did you get started working for Crystal Lake?
NTK: I was browsing a horror site that advertised remote jobs with indie publishers. I saw two publishers asking for interns and Joe Mynhardt was one of them. He needed an intern to read slush and do other odd jobs for Crystal Lake. (This was in 2018, just after I had my youngest son.) I applied by email and Joe asked for my resume. Luckily, I had been mentored by Rena Mason (through the HWA) and had been working with HorrorAddicts.net at the time, so I had some experience. Joe hired me and I started that week. It’s one of the best decisions I have ever made.
ALW: What was your first foray into horror writing? Was it as a writer, editor, or fan?
NTK: It was definitely as a writer. The first story I wrote was accepted and published in a British anthology. I’m really grateful to Kevin Bufton. He’s the one who gave me my start.
ALW: If a reader was unfamiliar with your work, what’s the story you’d suggest they start with?
NTK: For the horror fans, I’d recommend “The Butcher of Hemming Street,” featured in Occult Detective Magazine #10. It’s a fun, horror/comedy, and though some of my stuff is pretty dark, I like to venture into the lighter side of horror. For the Sherlock Holmes fans, I would recommend “A Study in Eldritch,” from The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories Vol. XXXIX.
ALW: Do you have any upcoming releases or projects you’re working on that you’d like to talk about?
NTK: Yes, I have a novella coming out! It’s called, “The Riddle of the Red Tower,” and it’ll be featured in Dark Tide 11: Sherlock Holmes and the Arcana of Madness, along with stories by John Linwood Grant and Angela Yuriko Smith. This will be the 18th Sherlock Holmes story I’ve had published.
ALW: What are you reading, watching, or playing right now?
NTK: At the moment, I’m reading Sherlock Holmes and Count Dracula by Christian Klaver, playing Texas Chainsaw Massacre on X Box, and waiting to watch Stephen King’s The Boogeyman.
To stay up to date on Naching T. Kassa, you can follow or find her here:
· Website
Thanks for reading. I hope you’ve found a new author or a deeper love for an author you already know.