HORROR AUTHOR INTERVIEW : CARMILLA VOIEZ

carmilla voiez

Carmilla Voiez is a new voice in the world of horror. While the imagery harks back to the writings of Clive Barker and H P Lovecraft, her voice is uniquely female. Starblood is perhaps the first true female horror story ever written, dealing with both sexual violence and the struggle of a woman trying to make sense of a senseless world.

Carmilla grew up on a varied diet of horror. Her earliest influences as a teenage reader were Graham Masterton, Brian Lumley and Clive Barker mixed with the romance of Hammer Horror and the visceral violence of the first wave of video nasties. Fascinated by the Goth aesthetic and enchanted by threnodies of eighties Goth and post-punk music she evolved into the creature of darkness we find today.

Living in North East Scotland, she finds inspiration in the wildlife, castles and desolate places which surround her. She lives with her two children by the sea.

Her books are both extraordinarily personal and universally challenging. As Jef Withonef of Houston Press once said - "You do not read her books, you survive them."

Signed to Vamptasy Publishing in 2012 three books in the critically acclaimed Starblood Trilogy have been published and she is currently working on a vampire tale. She has also edited and compiled a collection of psychological horror from the best new talent in the world of horror writing "Broken Mirrors, Fractured Minds". Carmilla Voiez is a name to watch.

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STARBLOOD TRILOGY

Could you tell the readers a little bit about yourself?

I am a Goth, a horror writer and an all-round nutcase. J I live in Scotland with my kids and cats and write horror stories from a female point of view, merrily turning tropes on their head and fucking with the gender binary one paragraph at a time. Well it keeps me happy.

Do you prefer the term Horror, Weird Fiction or Dark Fiction?

Horror, but my work has also been described as dark fantasy.

Who are some of your favourite authors?

Clive Barker, Storm Constantine, Sarah Waters, Iain Banks and Haruki Murakami.

What is your all-time favourite horror novel, and film?

Cabal, by Clive Barker and A Clockwork Orange.

If you could erase one horror cliché what would be your choice?

The hapless virginal survivor.

Which fictional character would be you perfect neighbour, and who would be your nightmare neighbour?

Freddy would have to be my nightmare neighbour – I have children. My perfect neighbour… Totoro?

What do you think of the current state of the genre?  

I think it’s getting too tame in many ways. I like to be terrified.

What was the last great book you read, and what was the last book that disappointed you?

I’ve been reading screenplays and graphic novels a lot recently. The last great book I read was Tennesse William’s A Streetcar Named Desire and the one that disappointed me recently, and I found it very disappointing, was Anne Rice’s The Body Thief, graphic novel.

How would you describe your writing style?

Weird, descriptive, visual and challenging.

Are there any reviews of your work, positive or negative that have stayed with you?

Yes I have read some lovely soundbites from a reviewer at Houston Press about my work. The one that makes me smile most is “This aint a book it’s a knife.” About Starblood.

What’s your favourite food?

Sushi

Who would be on the soundtrack to your life story?

P.I.L. Rise

What’s the most important lesson you have learned about writing?

To let the creativity flow unhindered when writing the first draft of anything and worry about editing it later.

What aspects of writing to do you find the most difficult?

I love editing, but I find it very difficult to know when a story is as perfect as it’s going to be. I tend to hold onto them for a while, waiting for the perfect sentence structure to surface.

How do you think you’ve evolved creatively?

My writing has matured and become less self-involved.

What tools do you feel are must-haves for writers?         

Coffee.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received from another author?

Write!

Who is your favourite character from your book and why?

From my books? Probably Freya from the Starblood trilogy, she is very damaged to the point of insanity, but she maintains an intense intelligence and humour that I find endearing.

How about your least favourite character?  What makes them less appealing to you?

Paul, from Starblood, he is creepy, unpleasant, manipulative and has no redeeming feautures, not even loyalty.

Fame, fortune, or respect?

Respect. It’s the easiest one to live with.

What piece of your own work are you most proud of?

The Ballerina and the Revolutionary. It isn’t horror though, it’s magic-realism and a troubling ghost story. That said, I am proud of all my work that has been published. It all says something fresh and new.

And are there any that you would like to forget about?

My poetry, but that remains unpublished.

For those who haven’t read any of you books, what book of yours do you think best represents your work and why?

The Starblood Trilogy, it’s full of rage, violence and Goth music.

Can you tell us about your last book, and can you tell us about what you are working on next?

I’m finishing a vampire tale for release in June called “Basement Beauty”. It’s about the way that vampires view human beings and the way that humans understand beauty.

Next I’m working on a graphic novel for Starblood. I have the perfect artist and we’re working on a script and artwork together.

What's the one question you wish you would get asked but never do?

Can I make your book into a movie?

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For More Information on Carmilla follow the links below

Website

Blog

Facebook

Twitter

Amazon Author Page

Goodreads

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