 Daniel Braum is the New York based author of the short story collections The Night Marchers and Other Strange Tales (Cemetery Dance E books 2016), The Wish Mechanics: Stories of the Strange and Fantastic (Independent Legions 2017) and the chapbook Yeti Tiger Dragon (Dim Shores 2016). His third collection is forthcoming from Lethe Press. The Serpent’s Shadow is his first novel. He is the editor of the Spirits Unwrapped anthology from Lethe Press (forthcoming October 2019) and the host and founder of the Night Time Logic reading series in New York City. He can be found at www.facebook.com/DanielBraumFiction and https://bloodandstardust.wordpress.com Could you tell the readers a little bit about yourself? DB: I’m an American writer based in New York. I’ve been publishing horror stories for about a decade and a half now. One of my first short stories Across the Darien Gap appeared in Cemetery Dance Magazine back in Issue 54. My work tends to be in the borderlands between genres, though all if it is dark. To get the ball rolling and get everyone relaxed, here is a hopefully lighthearted question to break the ice, which one of your characters would you least like to meet in real life and have them complain at you about they way you treated them in your work. DB: I’ll choose the character Francois, from my short story How to Make Love and Not Turn to Stone which appears in my second short story collection The Wish Mechanics from Independent Legions Publishing. He faces a lot of loss. Other than the horror genre, what else has been a major influence on your writing? DB: A lot of my inspiration comes from the natural world. Nature. Animals. Travel. A lifetime of animal and people watching has provided a multitude of inspiration. Music is also a big influence. In many of my stories music plays a big part. In my short story Music of the Spheres from The Night Marchers, there is a song that might have the power to end the world. In This Is The Sound of Your Dreams Dying from The Wish Mechanics book the two main characters are obsessed with the supernatural properties of music. Also in the Wish Mechanics is a story called An American Ghost in Zurich which is inspired by songs from the bands The School of Seven Bells and The Smashing Pumpkins. The term horror, especially when applied to fiction always carries such heavy connotations. What’s your feeling on the term “horror” and what do you think we can do to break past these assumptions?. DB: In general, I am not certain breaking past anything is needed. Perhaps it could be more widely known that horror is more than any one thing. Horror is such a broad, general term, inclusive of many kinds of stories. There are more opportunities now for people to try horror than there has ever been. We are in a time when there is so much horror and so many kinds of horror out there in popular culture. This is an excellent thing. I’m aware of some horror shows, movies, and books (that while they might not be my taste or preference) that act as a gateway to new comers This is a great thing to see. A lot of good horror movements have arisen as a direct result of the socio/political climate, considering the current state of the world where do you see horror going in the next few years? DB: The exciting thing is that I have no idea! It is such a great time for horror. I can not predict the heights that it is going to go. Shows like Stranger Things and others have captured the mainstream public’s attention. Film studio A-24 is putting out films like The Witch and Hereditary and Midsommar that bring such a high level of artistry and storytelling. Interest in the work of Stephen King is perhaps at an all time high. And of course, there are so many authors working in Independent and Small Presses who are doing fantastic work. I think horror will continue to have something for everyone. I look to publishers such as Cemetery Dance and Lethe Press who put out a wide selection of books and stories both from masters of the genre and exciting new comes just starting out. In the UK, Black Static and Black Shuck Books are publishers I look to for outstanding work. Given the dark, violent and at times grotesque nature of the horror genre why do you think so many people enjoy reading it? DB: As a reader, I find a sense of wonder is often present right there alongside the sense of horror, dread, and those darker elements. My favorite stories are character stories where the human elements take center stage. I love to see the human reactions and human stories as affected by the supernatural. The darkness and supernatural are great catalysts for story. What, if anything, is currently missing from the horror genre? DB: I don’t have a sense that anything is missing. It is an incredible feeling to know that one has a lifetime of reading ahead. My reading list is that long. There is an excitement knowing there is so much great material out there that I have yet to be immersed in. Some things are more common that others. One “monster” I always wanted to see more of are mummies. I always wondered why the portrayals were soley set in Egypt and seemed to follow the same storylines. This inspired me to put together an anthology of mummy stories set in places all around the world. The book is called Spirits Unwrapped and it is coming in October 2019 from Lethe Press. What new and upcoming authors do you think we should take notice of? In film, I’m impressed with Ari Aster’s work. Hereditary and Midsommar are two I’ve enjoyed greatly. Other recent film favorites of mine are It Follows and The Neon Demon. Kelly Link and Karen Russell are two authors that I think horror fans will enjoy. They are both successful writers. Authors such as Joanna Parypinkski, Inna Effress, and Casilda Ferrante are new writers who are doing excellent work. I am excited that I had the opportunity to publish these three authors in the Spirits Unwrapped anthology. What are the books and films that helped to define you as an author? DB: Dreams of Dark and Light by Tanith Lee and The Jaguar Hunter by Lucius shepard are two books that are foundational to me. More recently the work of Robert Aickman and Kelly Link have been influential. I read Lucius Shepard’s work as a teen. Many of his stories are set in Central America, a place I had not yet been. The stories did more than entertain, they transported me to these far away places. I was able in a way to experience these different places and different cultures. My novel The Serpent’s Shadow from Cemetery Dance Publications is set in the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. I hope that the story has the same transporting effect on readers that Lucius Shepard’s writing had on me. Are there any reviews of your work, positive or negative that have stayed with you? DB: I remember one of the first positive reviews. Author and Editor Matthew Cheney reviewed my short story Hurricane Sandrine as part of his review of an issue of the zine Full Unit Hook Up about a decade and a half ago on his blog the Mumpsimus. This review gave me confidence that the slow build and subtle kind of stories I was interested in creating had an audience. For that I am grateful and think I will always remember it. Here is an excerpt from the review. “The strength of Daniel Braum’s writing is the strength that comes from patience, from a writer trusting his audience with a steady, slow pace that allows details to accumulate in the mind so that the story becomes consistently more vivid until it reaches a conclusion that is profound in its subtlety and restraint.” -Matthew Cheney from the Mumpsimus Hurricane Sandrine was reprinted most recently in my short story collection The Night Marchers and Other Strange Tales from Cemetery Dance. What aspects of writing to do you find the most difficult? DB: For me many stories come to life in the editing and re-editing stages, so that is my favorite part. I consider myself a slow writer so getting a story the way I want takes time. Often this can mean postponing other things when I am in the process of writing, especially when writing to a deadline. So I suppose this means I think the time commitment is what I think is the most difficult. Is there one subject you would never write about as an author? DB: I’m not sure that I have a subject I would never write about. I know for certain I am much less interested in writing stories that do not have a supernatural aspect in them ! I am very interested in writing stories that explore the tension as to whether an experience is psychological or supernatural. For stories that have no supernatural experience in them, I don’t see myself writing any of those soon. Writing, is not a static process, how have you developed as a writer over the years? DB: I’ve become a more confident writer. I’ve also become more educated about and immersed in genre. When I first started out I was not very well read in genre fiction nor did I have much awareness of the histories and current states of the different genres, especially horror. On the one hand I do not think that being learned about genre is a prerequisite for writing genre fiction. However for me, once I did start learning and become aware it did bring me a certain confidence that came with feeling like my work had a “home” and was part of a lineage and tradition of stories. This gave me confidence to keep writing the kinds of stories I wanted to write along with a new level of control and ability. What is the best piece of advice you ever received with regards to your writing? DB: If I must pick one I’ll choose “put in the time”. I mentioned that I am a slow writer. No matter what kind of a writer one is, things take time. It is part of the craft. Stories do not write themselves. Part of the path of success is being there in the chair, writing. This advice might seem deceptively simple, but there are so many aspects to achieving this, and I imagine they differ depending on one’s lifestyles and writing goals. For those who haven’t read any of your books, which of your books do you think best represents your work and why? DB: My short story collections The Night Marchers and Other Strange Tales and The Wish Mechanics: Tales of the Strange and Fantastic are both excellent places to start. They were both written over a decade and a half and are fine examples of the kind of stories I write. Can you tell us about your last book, and can you tell us about what you are working on next? DB: My most recent book is called The Serpent’s Shadow. It is my first novel and it is out now from Cemetery Dance Publications as an E Book. In short you could say it is a cosmic horror coming of age story set in Mexico in the 1980s. The book is the story of two teenagers, David and Ann Marie who are caught in the middle of a mystical war between Mexicans and Mayans. A mysterious killer known as The White Lady is murdering tourists in the resort town of Cancun. David and Ann Marie find themselves in the crossfire strange and otherworldly happenings related to the White Lady and Sante Muerte, Saint Death. The book coming out next is my third short story collection which is coming in 2020 from Lethe Press. It is a book of strange tales in the tradition of Robert Aickman. The Serpent's Shadow by Daniel Braum In Cancun 1986, Mayans and Mexicans are fighting each other using strange powers they do not understand. A young American, alive with his first taste of star-crossed love, finds himself caught in the crossfire. Who is the mysterious and deadly White Lady murdering tourists? What strange, otherworldly things wait in the jungle? Will our young hero beware or heed Saint Death’s call? Braum's debut novel delivers a smart, character-driven adventure in the unique and powerful style readers encountered in his story collection, The Night Marchers and Other Strange Tales. Richly depicted Central American settings combine with strange cosmic forces, including a monster large enough to knock the moon out of orbit with a brush of its tail. Enter the jungle where The Serpent’s Shadow looms over the fate of an embattled city and a young man’s dream. "An expertly plotted coming-of-age story where love isn't just blind, but horrific." Sarah Langan. Author of Audrey’s Door. "A chilling apocalyptic brew of myth and murder. Braum immerses the reader in a Mayan paradise torn by spiritual conflict where all roads and rivers lead to a stunning climax.” -Douglas Wynne Author of Black January "The Serpent’s Shadow is a tale that slithers under your skin and grips you until the last sentence." -Michelle Garza, Coauthor of Mayan Blue “The increasing desperation and dread of the characters pulled me in. From the pulsing clubs to the deep cenotes, Braum holds our hands as we dive together into a maze of suspense.” -David Wellington Author of Monster Island   Comments are closed.
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