 After growing up in the Pacific Northwest, Catori Sarmiento’s travels while being a military spouse have often inspired her unique writing style. Although she began writing at an early age, it was not until she began writing poetry during her time as a University of Maryland student that she decided to seriously pursue professional writing. She went on to study writing in a graduate program at National University of San Diego while also living in Tokyo, Japan. Upon graduation, she began writing what would become a first place Cygnus Award winning novel, The Fortune Follies. A year later, her next novel, Carnival Panic was published. She hopes that readers will find intrigue and entertainment in her stories! WEBSITE LINKS www.catorisarmiento.com https://corvusquillpress.com/ https://www.double-dragon-ebooks.com/single.php?ISBN=1-77115-403-9 Could you tell the readers a little bit about yourself? I grew up in Bremerton, Washington, just across the water from Seattle. I married my Air Force husband after High School and since then have gone with him to bases in Italy and Japan. Living overseas has had one of the largest impacts on me and my writing, and I am thankful I had the opportunity. 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. In general, I don’t much like people who act cocksure, so the character who I would least like to meet in real life would be Jax from Carnival Panic. Other than the horror genre, what else has been a major influence on your writing? Travel has been one of the biggest influences on my writing. It allows me to step out of my comfort zone and experience life in a different way. 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? I see horror as what ushers fear in the individual. The subjects can be wide-raging because what instills fear changes depending on perspective. 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? I think we may see more stories with themes of socio-economic inequality and systemic cruelty. Given the dark, violent and at times grotesque nature of the horror genre why do you think so many people enjoy reading it? Reading about horror can be cathartic. It can allow us to explore our fears while exercising a method of control. What, if anything, is currently missing from the horror genre? I think what is missing from the horror genre is diversity. From that, I mean a diversity of authors and of stories. I would like to see a different perspective of horror that expands beyond mere gore. In the past authors were able to write about almost anything with a far lesser degree of the fear of backlash, but this has all changed in recent years. These days authors must be more aware of representation an the depiction of things such as race and gender in their works, how aware are you of these things and what steps have you taken to ensure that your writing can’t be viewed as being offensive to a minority group? While it is true that readers are able to be more vocal about their displeasure in authors mis-representing certain races in their writing, I think that this is a positive evolution in the relationship between authors and readers. An author should be prepared for a backlash against their writing, since once it is made available to others, it ceases to solely belong to the author; an author cannot control how a reader is going to respond to their writing. I think it is less about being viewed as offensive and more about ensuring to be honest my writing. If, for example, an author has in mind to write a story about a culture other than their own, they ought to ensure that they are depicting that culture honestly and accurately. Does horror fiction perpetuate it’s own ghettoization? I think horror fiction can perpetuate ghettoization at times because the genre can be viewed by readers and critics alike as anti-mainstream fiction. Viewing horror in such a way limits the accessibility of the genre. What are the books and films that helped to define you as an author? The Bread Givers by Anzia Yezierska Battle Royale by Koushun Takami Piercing by Ryu Murakami The Vet’s Daughter by Barbara Comyns Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite Xenogears Metropolis The Prestige What new and upcoming authors do you think we should take notice of? Maurice Carlos Ruffin Jonathan Wheatley Are there any reviews of your work, positive or negative that have stayed with you? One review I had that stayed with me was actually a rejection letter. Though the publisher rejected my novel, they had written a critique in which they commended my “beautiful writing” and encouraged me to keep trying. What aspects of writing to do you find the most difficult? I find that editing is the most difficult part because I will agonize over punctuation. In one instance, I was editing a paragraph, having placed a semicolon between two sentences only to delete it two hours later and re-write the entire paragraph. Is there one subject you would never write about as an author? I wouldn’t want to censor my writing, nor should any author. How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning? Names are typically an afterthought. Sometimes I have a name decided for a character in the beginning, but rarely does it stay the same towards the end. I focus more on character traits and plot and the names come later. Writing, is not a static process, how have you developed as a writer over the years? The way I write is heavy on scenes that have no continuity between them, and then piece those together during editing, adding transitions. When I first started writing I tried to do so chronologically and could never make it work. I would say that I’m much better at outlining. What is the best piece of advice you ever received with regards to your writing? From Ruth Scwartz: “To write well, you must feel deeply.” To many writers, the characters they write become like children, who is your favorite child, and who is your least favorite to write for and why? I enjoyed writing the character of Fletch from Carnival Panic. Since she is an anarchist, it was fun to explore her character and motivations. My least favorite character to write for was Catherine from The Fortune Follies simply because she has had so much hardship and disappointment happen in her life. For those who haven’t read any of your books, which of your books do you think best represents your work and why? My first novel, The Fortune Follies. I think this novel presents the interpersonal and political themes that I find the most interesting. Having written it while I lived in Japan, I incorporated much of what I experienced and observed. Do you have a favorite line or passage from your work, and would you like to share it with us? I don’t particularly have a favorite line, since I try not to read my work much after I’m finished. Can you tell us about your last book, and can you tell us about what you are working on next? Carnival Panic is my most recent one, but thus far I have written a total of four novels and am halfway through my fifth. I’m very guarded about my works-in-progress, so what I can tell you about the recent novel I’m working on is that it is a supernatural murder-mystery. If you could erase one horror cliché what would be your choice? Jump scares. What was the last great book you read, and what was the last book that disappointed you? The most recent book that had an impact on me was Kindred by Octavia Butler. The last book that disappointed me was 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. I found certain aspects of the plot meandering. What's the one question you wish you would get asked but never do? And what would be the answer? I honestly don’t have an answer for this. Carnival Panic by Catori Sarmiento Candy makes the PonPon Bunnies sweet. Be careful if they’re angry. And watch out for traps! These are the dangers of competing in the Carnival Panic game show, a ruthless competition that tests the chosen competitors with mental and physical struggles. In order to claim the substantial monetary prize, the winner must solve a series of room puzzles and succeed in entertaining the fickle masses.
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