 Kenzie Jennings is an English professor currently residing and sweltering in the humid tourist hub of central Florida. She has written pieces for a handful of news and entertainment publications and literary magazines throughout the years. Back when she was young and impetuous, she had two screenplays optioned by a couple of production companies, but her screenwriting career ended there, and she hasn’t looked back since. Reception is her debut novel. Could you tell the readers a little bit about yourself? I’m a military brat (and ex-spouse, but that’s another story over bourbon and tears), who, somehow, wound up back in Central Florida, which has always been my place of residence. I’ve been writing since I was eleven. Throughout my younger years, I’d written screenplays, articles, short stories, reviews, (terrible) poetry, comedy sketches, and so on. It wasn’t until the last decade, when I officially reached middle age, when I took my writing career seriously again. I just never thought I’d find more creative satisfaction in writing horror novels of all things. 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. Oh, I think Ansley Boone in Reception would be quite awful to meet in real life. She’s cutting and snarky, sure, so she’d be fun to hang out with for a while, but she has…other problems. (By the way, she insists that “it didn’t happen that way,” and she says she’s planning on suing me for libel. However, I have documentation that says otherwise.) Other than the horror genre, what else has been a major influence on your writing? People and their complex sensibilities—and my own fantasy/daydreaming—have also been major influences in my work. I’ve always been fascinated with the human condition, relationships, interaction, extreme emotions. As a result, my most recent writing has centered around all of that. As for daydreaming, that’s just something that I’ve not been able to shake since I was a kid. 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 hate that “horror” had been given such a bad reputation by both popular culture and religious extremism. “Horror” is necessary. After all, it exposes our very human fears as well as our own curiosities about evil. We need horror a little more mainstreamed, and much more representational, than it has been though. When I go to a bookstore, for instance, and see that the lone horror shelf is dominated with work by Stephen King, there’s a problem there, and while it’s great King has paved the way for horror to be mainstreamed in our culture, it hasn’t really helped in introducing new voices as much. We need to be exposed to more horror by minority authors and filmmakers, and we need to see main characters that represent us all. Once horror becomes accessible to everyone else, and we see that happening in what we’re exposed to, I think “horror” will be taken much more seriously than it has been. 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 see exactly what I indicated with the previous question. There will be a lot more diverse voices and a heck of a lot more representation in horror fiction. What impresses me particularly right now, especially in this tumultuous political climate, is that readers and audiences are paying close attention to horror as a response to it all. It’s always worked in comedy and drama, but it’s now a significant audience demand in horror, too. Given the dark, violent and at times grotesque nature of the horror genre why do you think so many people enjoy reading it? I think people who enjoy horror like reading about what scares them because they can’t understand it…which is a good thing, of course. They like escapism, too, I think. The supposed 1 in 25 of us who have no conscience probably treat horror as a self-help guide or a mirror, but who the hell knows? What, if anything, is currently missing from the horror genre? More diversity and representation. I can’t state this enough. 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? I don’t ever presume to be able to write from a minority’s perspective. I can’t do it, and I don’t wish to attempt it because I feel It Is Not My Place To Do So. For authors who take those sort of risks, that’s fine I suppose, but they’d better make certain they represent accurately and empathetically rather than resorting to stereotypes. (Since I mentioned him, I think it’s one of Stephen King’s worst traits as an author.) As for me, I write with women at the center, because…well…obviously, it isn’t far-reaching. I follow the old standby in that I “write what (I) know.” If I need to enlist the help of a sensitivity beta reader, however, I certainly will. Does horror fiction perpetuate it’s own ghettoization? There’s absolutely no doubt that a cover attracts a potential reader, and personally, I became more interested in reading horror because of those sorts of graphic covers that used to be popular (and are coming back en vogue…thanks, Grady Hendrix). As for causing more harm than good, perhaps, but what sorts of readers does that particular publisher wish to attract at any rate? What new and upcoming authors do you think we should take notice of? Ooo…I like this question because I have a good answer: My fellow newcomer novelist, Wile E. Young, is bringing an old school sensibility back to the genre. His novel, Catfish in the Cradle (Death’s Head Press), is an ode to Universal monsters and bayou mythos, with a genuinely sympathetic protagonist at its center. He has a splatter western novella coming out with Death’s Head Press this year as well as a novel, The Perfectly Fine House, co-written with Steven Kozeniewski published by Grindhouse Press (and I can’t wait to read it!). Another new author of note is poet and fiction author, Mike Ennenbach. His collection, Notches (Death’s Head Press), is hard to describe with a single genre. It’s offbeat, surreal, dark, and sometimes hilarious. There’s something for everyone in it. He has a collection of poetry, UNPOETIC (Potter’s Grove Press) out now, and he also has a splatter western novella coming out from Death’s Head Press. What are the books and films that helped to define you as an author Too many to list. Of note though, currently, Bentley Little’s social horror, Jeff Strand’s Pressure (I’ve been hooked by its character development and simple, effective structure), and a slew of ’80s & ’90s films that are psychosexual thrillers. Are there any reviews of your work, positive or negative that have stayed with you? I’ve had some wonderfully detailed, positive reviews indicating certain things in Reception that had resonated with the readers/reviewers. That gives me ample motivation to always write from the heart (even if it’s a most dreadful heart sometimes). What aspects of writing to do you find the most difficult? Continuity. I have Stickies all over my desktop with page notes and details that I’m sure I’ll forget because I have a terrible memory. Is there one subject you would never write about as an author? You know, I’ve not thought about that. I think all subjects are pretty open, but only if I were to approach them with caution – namely ample research and plenty of beta reader input. 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 quite important, as they need to be memorable. I tend to choose names based on origins and how they sound. Writing, is not a static process, how have you developed as a writer over the years? I’ve become more cognizant of my depression as it relates to my writing over the years. I’ve quit so many times out of mental exhaustion as well. Over the past decade, I’ve had to retrain my brain into allowing myself to rest between bouts of grading papers and teaching. I’m learning now to be more disciplined, writing on weekends when I can, and saving the heavy classwork for the weekdays. It’s tough though, and it’s getting worse as I get older. What is the best piece of advice you ever received with regards to your writing? I’ve received a lot of writing advice off and on throughout the years. One piece that has stuck with me as it’s come from several authors in a variety of genres (and I’m paraphrasing all of them): Don’t be a dick. It’s good advice for life in general, but it’s especially needed as an artist of any sort. Positive people make positive impacts. 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? Clyde Northway, my current protagonist in my splatter western WIP, is both my favorite and least favorite child. She does her own thing, gets ultraviolent, and it’s infuriating, but it’s because she’s been trained to take all sorts of precautions when it comes to encountering new people. For those who haven’t read any of your books, which of your books do you think best represents your work and why? As I’m new to all of this with only one book out at the moment, Reception, obviously. It’s about family relationships, sisterly bonds (of sorts), and human monsters. It’s all what I know pretty well. Well, except for the cannibalism part. Do you have a favorite line or passage from your work, and would you like to share it with us? The entirety of the reception scene in Reception is my favorite because I used a lot of my screenwriting background to craft it. It’s a bit excessive to put here though. Can you tell us about your last book, and can you tell us about what you are working on next? Reception was, obviously, my last book. I’m finishing up Red Station, a splatter western for Death’s Head Press, a project I’ve had quite a tough time working on due to the heavy research involved and work-related delays. It’s a slasher set in the 1870s in what is, presumably, a home station. The villains are very loosely based on the notorious Bloody Benders. That will be out later this year. I’m also halfway done with a psychosexual horror thriller tentatively titled Nice Girl, about a woman who doesn’t take rejection very well. If you could erase one horror cliché what would be your choice? Characters existing solely for the author’s titillation. It happens cross-genres, but I see it more often in horror work. Unless that is a necessary plot device, take it out. What was the last great book you read, and what was the last book that disappointed you? Last disappointment: The Outsider (Stephen King) Last great book (this is the most recent): A Place For Sinners (Aaron Dries) What's the one question you wish you would get asked but never do? And what would be the answer? What is your greatest desire? My answer: All-encompassing, passionate love. Isn’t that part of the human condition? And it’s a common theme in some of what I write. be sure to check out our review of reception by clicking here While her rehab counselor’s advice replays in her mind, Ansley Boone takes on the role of dutiful bridesmaid in her little sister’s wedding at an isolated resort in the middle of hill country, a place where cell reception is virtually nonexistent and everyone else there seems a stranger primed to spring. Tensions are already high between the Boones and their withdrawal suffering eldest, who has since become the family embarrassment, but when the wedding reception takes a vicious turn, Ansley and her sister must work together to fight for survival and escape the resort before the groom’s cannibalistic family adds them to the post wedding menu.   Comments are closed.
|
Archives
May 2023
|
RSS Feed
|
|