 Brian Barr is the author of the Carolina Daemonic series, the 3 H’s Trilogy, and the Brutal Bazaar Collection. He has written novels, short stories, and comics. He co-created and co-writes the comic book Empress with Chuck Amadori, which features art by Sullivan Suad and Zilson Costa, colored by Geraldo Filho. Could you tell the readers a little bit about yourself? My name is Brian Barr. I am a speculative fiction author who writes horror, fantasy, and science fiction primarily, though I write in various genres. Why horror? What is appeal of the genre to you as both a fan and as a writer? I grew up on horror. My mom was a Stephen King fan. His books along with Koontz and others were in our home. I also grew up on horror movies. When I was a kid, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark was a huge inspiration as it was the first book that genuine scared me, due to the illustrations. I liked to read and tell ghost stories from as early as I remember, so the genre has always been a strong influence. As LBGTQ+ fan and writer of horror, how did you first become immersed in the genre and found that representation that you could identify was few and far between? Clive Barker was the first queer author I discovered, before I ever questioned or understood my own sexual identity. He was also the first author who made me realize the exact type of horror fiction I learn towards. Clive Barker leans towards fantasy and horror, which was more my speed than the King I grew up on. Even though I love King, Clive was the first author who represented what I wanted to create as an author. The Great and Secret Show changed my life; to read this fantastic dark story that seemed so epic resonated with me. How did you discover authors that wrote about characters that you could relate to? I’ve discovered a lot of work after I became an author myself. Connecting to different writers online and seeing how vast these genres are, even in small presses or with independent creators, has been refreshing. Other than the horror genre, what else has been a major influence on your writing? Life and experience. In a lot of my work, I write what I know, even as a creative speculative author. I mix the weird, dark, and fantastic with reality. I have my Sirens horror triple-feature that touches on police brutality, fatherless homes, and racism. My Carolina Daemonic series touches heavily on queerphobia, racism, the dark history of our country, and various social issues. Various themes that appear in my stories connect with aspects of my life and subject matter that I am familiar with and passionate about. 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 think horror touches on our fears, real terrors or imaginary, and what disturbs us. It can help us confront real monsters and overcome them on a psychological level, or cheer for a protagonist who overcomes their own fears. I like the term horror. I’m sure there are a number of assumptions people may have about horror and I’ve met people who’ll say they don’t like horror. These same individuals will watch a psychological horror or a movie that was different than what they though horror was and like it. I think it’s important to let people know how vast horror is- it isn’t all gore, it isn’t all fictitious monsters (even though I like splatterpunk, gory horror, and monster horror- just using as an example of what people limit horror to), and there are various subgenres within horror that can connect to people, even if they think they don’t like horror. 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 don’t pay a lot of attention to trends and waves since I’m always doing my own thing as an author. Even with Carolina Daemonic, where I incorporate undead creatures, it just worked with the plot- I didn’t follow zombie fiction even when The Walking Dead was at its peak. I’m not sure where an entire genre will go within a few years- I just know that there are various authors who are doing great things with horror like Greg Anderson Elysee, Paula Ashe, Farah Rose Smith, The Sisters of Slaughter (Melissa Lason and Michelle Garza), Rex Hurst, and many other creators who push the genre forward in innovative and creative ways. What are the books and films that helped to define you as an author? The Great and Secret Show by Clive Barker, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, A Clockwork Orange (the book by Anthony Burgess, not the film), The Brothers Karamozov by Dostoyevsky, Otherland by Tad Williams, A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, Alan Moore’s comics, and so many others. In recent years there has been a slow but gradual diversification within the genre, which new LBGTQ+ writers do you think we should be paying attention to? Paula Ashe and Greg Anderson Elysee. How would you describe your writing style? I have two writing styles. Sometimes I write in a very simple and straightforward style, like in my stories The Head and the 3 H’s Trilogy as a whole, even with the occult and weird/cosmic fiction influences. Other works I like to get prosey and dive into thorough world-building, like my first Carolina Daemonic novel and my Serpent King novel. It depends on the work and how deep I want to get, or what works with the story. Are there any reviews of your work, positive or negative that have stayed with you? I have so many positive reviews that stay with me, usually the ones where the reader got what I was going for in my story. The negative ones that stay with me are the ones where a reader completely misinterpreted what I was writing and projected weird personal ideas onto my stories. Rex Hurst has left a lot of positive reviews for my work and I’m always happy when he likes my stuff, since he’s a great author as well. What aspects of writing to do you find the most difficult? I go through periods where I need to take breaks from writing. Those are the most difficult because I love to write and wish I could do it all the time. But I’ve learned when I’m tired or doing too much in other areas, I need to sit back and rest, then let the inspiration naturally come. Are there any subjects that you would never write about? Yes. I have some hard limits to what I won’t write about. Subjects that deal with abuse or that could aid in marginalizing groups of people without finding a solution or helping people overcome those harsh circumstances are off-limits for me. Writing, is not a static process, how have you developed as a writer over the years? In many ways. I’ve learned when to write in a simple fashion and when to get wordy. I’ve learned how to maintain my personal love for writing and to do what I like to connect with the right audiences. I’ve learned how to avoid certain writer circles that do not respect my value as a human being or the value of others, and to avoid being a token for other author circles as well. There’s been a lot of hard but beneficial lessons for me as I’ve grown the past four years that I’ve been an author. What is the best piece of advice you ever received with regards to your writing? To stay true to myself. Getting your worked noticed is one of the hardest things for a writer to achieve, how have you attempted to break through the barriers that are so often in place against LBGTQ+ writers? I support places that support LBGTQ+ authors. Queer Sci Fi is the number one resource, from their website to their Facebook groups. I have never found a more supportive avenue for queer creators, and it’s refreshing to find a queer space that supports authors of all backgrounds as well. Many CIS white male authors use LGBTQ+ characters in their works, what’s the mistake that they make when trying to portray these characters? It’s been a long time since I’ve read a story from a white cis male who tackled queer characters. I would just say no matter who you are, if you’re trying to tackle any type of character that is different from you, try to approach them from a human angle. Avoid stereotypes and understand their drives, emotions, thoughts, and actions from a relatable perspective. Meet other queer people, get a well-rounded view of them as individuals. I have a positive example since I can’t think of any negatives I’ve recently read. Over a decade ago, I read a book by science fiction book by a cis-white author named Steven Harper. The book was called Dreamer and the main character was a gay Aboriginal teen. Dreamer depicted the protagonist in such a real and believable way that I found it easy to identify with him, especially since this was around the same time I was understanding my sexuality. For the character to be move a racial and sexual minority that I could identify with and understand on a personal level did a lot for me. Moving on to getting your work read by unwashed masses, what do you think ins the biggest misconception about LGBTQ+ fiction? I think the biggest misconception is that it is limited to queerness and that is all LGBTQ+ fiction is about. It’s not. It’s as diverse as any other fiction, except it highlights queer characters and creates stories for marginalized people who are often ignored or stereotyped and insulted in other forms of fiction. LGBTQ+ fiction can educate people on just how real LGBTQ+ individuals are, as well as how relatable they can be to anyone, be they straight or not. It breaks a lot of barriers and negative ideas that reinforce hatred and ignorance. There are as number of presses dedicated to LGBTQ+ fiction, do you view these as a good thing, or do you think they help to perpetuate the ongoing exclusion from mainstream presses? It’s a great thing. If those presses did not exist, it wouldn’t magically stop the ongoing exclusion that comes from mainstream presses. Bigotry would still exist. This reminds me a lot of arguments people have against black presses and presses that deal with racial minority groups, that old “Why’s there a BET and not a WET?” mentality. When presses shut black people and minorities out in the Jim Crow era, black people created their own magazines, their own book publishing presses, their own black media. Once Jim Crow ended, should a Vibe or an Essence or a Jet not exist anymore? No, because we don’t live in a perfect world where minorities are granted equal representation in mainstream presses, and those presses still champion underrepresented people. The same thing with LGBTQ+ outlets, Asian outlets, Hispanic and Latino outlets, etc. They exist because even as the world has become more diverse and open to different types of people since the 1950’s or whenever, there is still a lot of exclusion and ignorance in mainstream media. I’m glad presses for LGBTQ+ people exist, and that they get books out that would otherwise get ignored. And here is the million dollar question do you agree with movements like this and things such as Women in Horror Month? If so how would you like to see sites such as Ginger Nuts of Horror tackle diversity? Yes and yes. The most common phrase you hear when people object to active movements to encourage all forms of diversity is “I don’t care about the sexuality, gender, color etc etc of the writer I only care about good stories” what would you like to say to these people? They are enablers of bigotry and just as horrible as bigots. They reinforce the same ideas that limit fiction and the creators of fiction. It is easy to stay blind when you don’t have to deal with the harsh realities other people deal with. It’s easy not to care about things when you don’t have to experience the negatives that others go through. I’ve learned a lot about privileged people in the writing industry who do everything to ignore or devalue conversations about bigotry. I stay away from them. I have no interest in being tokenized by them or reinforcing their ignorance. 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? My favorite character is Susie, a black female goth in the 3rd book of the 3 H’s Trilogy, The Hell. I identify with her a great deal; she shares a lot of my musical interests, experiences, and viewpoints. My least favorite character I’ve written is Tobias in my Carolina Daemonic series, because he represents every aspect of bigotry and privilege that I find destructive to humanity. What piece of your own work are you most proud of? The 3 H’s Trilogy. For those who haven’t read any of your books, which of your books do you think best represents your work and why? The 3 H’s Trilogy and Carolina Daemonic. 3 H’s captures my love for cosmic horror and occult fantasy. Carolina Daemonic is also an occult horror, but deals more with social and political issues in an unapologetic way. Do you have a favorite line or passage from your work, and would you like to share it with us? I love the way that The Head starts. Can you tell us about your last book, and can you tell us about what you are working on next? Carolina Daemonic, Book II: Rebel Hell, will be out next year. It’s a fast-paced occult horror and action story, since I did a lot of the world and history building in the first novel. Next, I’ll be working on Book III: Heritage of Hate. What was the last great book you read, and what was the last book that disappointed you? The last great books I read were David J’s (from Bauhaus) Who Killed Mr. Moonlight, Marilyn Manson’s Long Hard Road Out of Hell, and Kim Gordon’s Girl in a Band. I love music autobiographies. The last book I read that disappointed me was by an author I respect and love, so I don’t want to mention it. What's the one question you wish you would get asked but never do? And what would be the answer? I don’t know. I never thought about that. I usually like the questions I’m asked in interviews, and when I don’t, I usually ignore them and answer the others. I would just be making up something on the spot as far as a question I’d wish for. For more information about Brian and to check out his books please follow these links Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Brian-Barr/e/B010Y0MEJU/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2?qid=1543429036&sr=8-2 Amazon 3 H’s Trilogy: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071GS3GQX/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i53 Amazon Carolina Daemonic- First Novel and Short Story Collection: Novel One (Second Novel, Rebel Hell, Coming in 2019): https://www.amazon.com/Carolina-Daemonic-Confederate-Brian-Barr-ebook/dp/B073XRM44Q/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1543429300&sr=1-2&keywords=Carolina+Daemonic+Brian+Barr Collection: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07B83RGGY/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i119 Brutal Bazaar Collection: https://www.amazon.com/Brian-Barrs-Brutal-Bazaar-Barr-ebook/dp/B076KX69BH/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1543429372&sr=1-1&keywords=Brian+Barr+Brutal+Bazaar    Comments are closed.
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