Pull up the black satin sheets over your eyes and prepare to have your pajamas scared off of you. Get Jack’d drags Adriana Noir onto the dark hayride. Adriana hails from a tiny corner of Hell located in small town in N.E. Ohio. But for the time being, she exists only in the Jackverse. Let’s have at her!
JW: Pat Benetar once sang “Hell is for children”. I’m not sure I agree with that sentiment, but I will give her this – to me, Hell would be a room filled with screaming, misbehaving children accompanied by Cher and Celine Dion.
But we’re not talking about my own personal Hell – we’re talking about our collective Hell, or at least the dark happenings that threaten to rip asunder the false reality we all perceive to be life.
I swear I have a point. Or not… I can’t help myself, your stare has me transfixed. Okay… focus, focus.
We write about things most people don’t want to think about. A world where darkness prevails and fear is both King and Queen. That puts us in a special place among writers – we write out of passion, knowing our chosen genre isn’t the most popular. We also know that same genre delivers us the most fanatical fans out there.
One of the many things I adore about horror (and the fans of horror) is that how well the media crosses borders. Movies, novels, music, art, fashion – it all seems to be some delightful amalgam born out of the deliciously twisted.
AN: My apologies. It took me a minute to stop smirking smiling, and to adjust to the sudden brightness up here. Thank you for having me, Jack. Pardon the stare. It’s a bit of a defense mechanism and how I try to lure my minions in. Call it a little soul searching, if you will…
I agree to an extent. A room full of screaming and misbehaved children is a special kind of torture. I’ve been there a time or two and believe me I was frantically looking for a way to escape. *laughs*
As for horror, it really was my first true love. I was raised on it. I can remember sitting with my mom and watching such fine delights like Night of the Living Dead when I was knee-high to a grasshopper. From that moment on, I was hooked and would rent or read whatever I could get my greedy little hands on. It may not be the largest or most popular genre out there, but I agree—the fans and people are the best. I think there’s a popular misconception about the kind of people that enjoy indulging on the more horrific aspects the imagination can conjure. It’s been my experience that a more awesome and down-to-earth crowd you could not hope to meet. We’re really like one big, dysfunctional family. Perhaps with a capital D. 😉 I certainly don’t write what I do with any expectation of fame or fortune. I don’t want fame, and while some money would be nice, I do what I do simply for the love of it all.
JW: Ah you are so right. If one is on the outside looking in, they might find a gathering of horror fans a bit of a freak show. But looking from the inside out, you know these people are more often than not just down-to-earth human beings who happen to enjoy lofting their freak flag up on high every now and then. I’ve been to conventions where it seemed as much a glam show as it was a collection of all things fright. It’s lovely, it’s exciting, it’s a thing to behold. But when you talk to those gathered, you soon understand the beauty extends far deeper than the leather, vinyl, and fishnets.
And I agree, writing horror is like teaching – you do it for the love of it. Every once in a while I toy with the idea of diving into the murky waters of a different genre. I know me too well and realize no matter what I wrote, darkness would find its way in. I’ve even contemplated evolving the Fringe Killer series into a more paranormal investigator series. It may happen. I just think there are still so many readers out there who are purists and think “If I’m reading a crime thriller, it better hold to these particular standards set out by the traditional publishers.
Me? I can’t follow that logic. Outside of physics, reality doesn’t adhere to specific “standards”. Reality is often relative. Rule were meant to be broken and I will spend the rest of my life in the pursuit of breaking as many of them as possible (while staying within the limits of the law of course).
AN: Yay! Fly those freak flags proud! I’ve never had the pleasure of going to a horror convention per say. I did get to meet Kane Hodder once at one of those haunted fairgrounds, though. That was super cool. I trekked away after getting a bone-crushing hug and an autographed Jason mask. It’s still one of my most prized possessions today. I’d definitely like to go to a convention sometime though. They sound like a blast.
For me the whole genre thing is one of the hardest parts about writing and sharing it with the public. I don’t like to feel boxed in. Everyone is always talking about platforms, and not alienating your readership. While that’s something I would never want to do…I dabble in a very wide variety of fiction. I’m talking everything from serial killers to downright angelic beings, and even the occasional historical romance or two. I even have a story about the Holocaust lurking about. Don’t get me wrong, that is horror, probably in one of the truest forms, but it’s not what readers of the genre expect.
Turning the Fringe Killer into a paranormal investigator series has merit! Why can’t authors and readers sometimes have the best of both worlds? I feel your pain, Jack. I think we really have one of two choices sometimes. Meld the two together into something bizarre, or take on a wide host of pseudonyms…which kind of defeats the purpose. Ugh. My head is starting to throb.
As for rules, hell yeah! Bend them, break them, make them your puppets! I’m all for that “yell rebel yell” mentality. Some of my favorite books, movies, and shows have been ones where they’ve pushed some serious boundaries and shoved that proverbial envelope right over the edge.
JW: I’ve thought about the whole pseudonym thing; but honestly, I am too proud of what I write and want everyone to know it is truly mine. I’ve had people “suggest” I drop the Shero series from my name because it could cause horror fans to look the other way. In my mind that is blasphemy. Shero is dear to me and I have found, most horror fans to be quite open minded and ready for just about anything.
I’m happy to hear you embrace so much. I feel the same way. I have a steampunk series planned and a bunch of other genre-bending ideas in my to be written pile. And although I tend to focus on getting more of my zombie series out than anything, I would never think of dropping the worlds I have crafted. But the I Zombie series comes first – it’s hard not to focus on that series when the fans demand it.
And I’m all about blending genres. It’s one of the things that pulled me away from the lure of traditional publishing. I don’t like to have my creativity held in captivity.
Oh, and some of the “monsters” of horror are always the coolest people. At Scarefest I found R.A. Mihailoff, Tony Todd, Nicholas Vince, Doug Bradly, and Denise Crosby to be some of the most wonderful, charming people I’ve spoken to. They adore their fans and welcome them with open arms.
AN: I’m still trying to understand that. Why drop it? Most of the world knows Dean Koontz as a certain type of author. He has a book out about his dog that has nothing to do with his usual trade. Do I want to read it? Not particularly…but that’s not going to alienate me and turn me away from his other works. Granted the man has a massive fan base and some diehard loyalists that the rest of us would kill for, but still. If you want to read it great. If you don’t, that’s fine too. No one is holding a gun to your head either way.
Steampunk sounds fun, especially as a genre bender. I’ve always loved the visual aspects of those settings. So gritty and dark. Let me know when that one comes out. I have a few of your Zombie books sitting in my Kindle too, waiting for a time when things slow down a bit. I can’t write them to save my life, but it sure is fun to read. Screampark sounds pretty wicked, too. *sighs* So many books, so little time!
I’m a blender, too. I still struggle to place Requiem anywhere fully. It’s got elements of urban-fantasy, paranormal, and horror all sort of swirled together in one wicked stew. My fallen angels and demons are baddies. They’d much rather rip out your spine or lay you open than be your friend. Not that there is anything wrong with the former. It’s just not the vision I had in mind or what I wanted to write. Though Seir is a bit of an oddity…I’m working on book two and still trying to figure his motives out.
Okay, now I’m just getting jealous. I adore the “monsters.” I’m almost always rooting for them to prevail. My empathy levels are warped. I can always see both sides of the coin and if done right, I somehow end up feeling sorry for them. Tony Todd is incredible! I love his movies. He was especially brilliant as the Candy Man, though, and in The Prophecy: Forsaken.
BIO
Adriana hails from a small town in N.E. Ohio where unpredictable weather and inspiring locals abound. When she’s not busy writing, she enjoys recruiting minions (it’s all a plot to take over the world one word at a time) spending time with her family, or sharpening her culinary skills. She’s also been known to lurk on various social media outlets, where she lures unsuspecting followers into her snare.
A self-described typical Gemini, she dabbles in a wide variety of fiction, but harbors a deep love for all things dark and horror. She’s had several short stories published. Her debut novel, Requiem: Book of the Fallen was released in October 2012 and is available in various forms on Amazon.
To find out more about her, her hijinx, or any upcoming projects and releases, please visit www.adriananoir.com
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