Vince A. Liaguno and Rena Mason: Editors of the "Other Terrors" Anthology Talk Short Story Writing Tips, Their Love of Horror and Who You Should Be Reading
“Be they of a different culture, a different background, a different sexual orientation or gender identity, a different belief system, or a different skin color, some people simply aren't part of the community's majority--and are perceived as scary.” Other Terrors: An Inclusive Anthology showcases authors from historically excluded backgrounds telling terrifying tales of what it means to be, or merely to seem, "other." Edited by Bram Stoker Award(R) winners Vince A. Liaguno and Rena Mason, this collection offers stories from some of the biggest names in horror as well as some of the hottest up-and-coming talents.
We spoke with Vince and Rena about the process of creating an anthology, why they love horror, tips for writing short fiction and what they learned while working together on this project.
I’d love to know the process of creating an anthology. When you were working on this project, what did your job entail? How did you get involved in creating Other Terrors?
VINCE: Rena and I were first approached by the former President of the Horror Writers Association, Lisa Morton, with the idea of editing a diversity anthology for the organization. Early on, Rena and I decided that we didn’t want to compile a collection of stories written by authors who merely checked off boxes on some pre-determined diversity list. We wanted the theme of the anthology to gel organically with the idea of diverse voices telling stories. We tossed ideas back and forth and came up with the idea of exploring the idea of otherness through the voices of those who’ve come from traditionally marginalized groups—women, people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, writers from a variety of ethnic and cultural backgrounds. We pitched what was originally titled Other Fears to the HWA’s fantastic agent, Alec Shane of Writers House, and he shopped it around. Ultimately, Jaime Levine from the former Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (now part of the HarperCollins family) bought the anthology and—with her amazing team—saw it through to fruition.
RENA: As far as the technical duties of being the anthology’s co-editors, Vince and I worked on the proposal that Alec would pitch to publishers. We wrote inquiry letters to potential authors and author agents who might be interested. Once HMH (now HarperCollins) took on the project, we discussed cover art as well as more authors we wanted to invite to the anthology and then reached out. We also sent out reminders as the deadline drew near. Vince and I read hundreds of HWA members’ submissions and went through three phases of choosing our favorite stories. We wrote and sent out rejection letters after each round that were both form rejection letters and then more personalized ones. Vince and I lightly edited a few stories for clarity. We had such a great lineup, very little was needed, and the work that came in from members was very clean. We wrote the introduction and then sorted out the table of contents. We went through a few phases of edits with the publisher’s editing team. Vince and I discussed promotion with the HarperCollins publicity team. We’ve been doing interviews and sharing everything we can about Other Terrors across our social media profiles, and will continue to spread the word of Other Terrors because we’re beyond thrilled with how everything turned out.
Was there something you learned or perhaps a surprising takeaway from being a part of this anthology?
RENA: I learned so much from working with Vince, who is an anthology editing pro, that I couldn’t list them all. I’m still pinching myself for being so lucky that my first editing gig was with him. He’s been very patient in teaching a rookie and answering my very many questions. I’d have to say that the most surprising takeaway from being a part of this is how much I could relate to every story and how much each one affected in me in some way.
VINCE: Thank you, Rena—that was such a kind thing to say. And the feeling is mutual; she’s been a dream co-editor and we’ve worked smashingly well together on this project. We’re hoping for the chance at a sequel. If that’s not in the cards, we’ll think up something else to work on together.
Back to the question. For me, I think I was genuinely surprised by the myriad forms otherness can take. In some of the stories featured in Other Terrors, the other is easily identifiable but, in some, less so. I think that challenges the reader to consider that the other isn’t just the most obviously different person in the room—that sometimes the otherness can originate in one’s own family or come from a surprising place you wouldn’t normally think of. What I love about the stories in Other Terrors is that some of the contributors completely subvert the idea of otherness…they turn it on its head, twist it like a pretzel. In one of the stories, for example, contributor Annie Neugebauer takes both pregnancy and ageism to contort the idea of otherness into something unexpectedly creepy and menacing.
As readers and editors, what do you look for in a short story? What makes it crackle and pop for you?
VINCE: I look for stories that stick the landing—I need the snap, the crackle, and the pop. So many stories have a fantastic premise that the writer ably develops, the tension escalates, the momentum surges…and then it falls flat in the third act. We see this a lot in modern horror films; I call this phenomenon the “third act fail.” Too many writers sacrifice the logical payoff—the one the reader has earned—for cleverness, some avant-garde machination that surrenders the pacing and tension for some big cerebral moment that brings the story to a crashing thud.
RENA: Like Vince, I’m a sucker for a good ending, especially one that I didn’t see coming. There are a couple stories in Other Terrors that end the way I expected them to but then were ratcheted up a hundred notches at the end if that makes sense.
As writers, what advice do you have for other writers who are working on horror pieces (or short fiction pieces) – maybe a piece of advice that has kept you going or that motivates you?
RENA: Don’t be afraid to put yourself into a story. The stories I’ve written and the stories I’ve read that have that personal touch (after speaking with the authors of stories I’ve enjoyed across many genres and readers who have enjoyed my fiction) seem to have more staying power.
VINCE: Read widely in both the horror genre and other horror-adjacent genres, like mysteries and thrillers, historical and literary fiction as well. I think we’re seeing an explosion of genre blending right now, whether it be mysteries steeped in a strong horror aesthetic—Riley Sager’s novels are an excellent example of this—or horror novels with a strong mystery element or thriller pacing, like Paul Tremblay’s work. Even the blending of romance and paranormal elements continues to be a popular trend, and there is no better example of this than Heather Graham’s enduring Krewe of Hunters series. For short story writers, there’s no better reading than any of Ellen Datlow’s anthologies—especially her themed volumes. Her collections are simply the gold standard of the short story format.
I’d also strongly suggest that writers seek out and read writers with exceptionally strong and unique voices—Stephen Graham Jones, Gemma Files, Josh Malerman, Helen Oyeyemi, Rivers Solomon, Yoko Ogawa, and Sam J. Miller, to name just a handful. Hailey Piper and Eric LaRocca are also two emerging talents with remarkably singular voices.
Reading widely expands your own creative mind. Good writing seeps into your creative center and helps nourish your writing muscles. Think of reading broadly as a multi-vitamin for your own writing.
What do you love most about the genre of horror?
VINCE: I love the genre’s ability to reinvent and refresh itself. Horror has become so marvelously expansive in recent years, its scope and depth growing in new and exciting ways—largely, and interestingly, from the push to make the storytelling more inclusive and diverse. Horror has only benefitted from drawing in writers and filmmakers from more diverse backgrounds. We’re truly living through a sustained golden age of horror right now, one in which the genre has gained credence and respectability.
RENA: I love all the different emotions I can go through with horror, whether I’m reading or watching it. It’s truly the best genre to mash other genres and subgenres into. It’s a genre where any thing or any one, or more can be the monster.
What is your favorite horror film?
RENA: I actually answered this question first. Like so many other horror fans it’s John Carpenter’s The Thing. It’s interesting that my top five are all isolation horror films.
VINCE: For me, hands-down, John Carpenter’s The Fog. I think it’s a cinematic masterclass in the telling of a ghost story. I actually narrowed down my five favorite things about the film for the brilliant website Kindertrauma.
CONTRIBUTORS OF THIS ANTHOLOGY INCLUDE: Tananarive Due, Jennifer McMahon, S.A. Cosby, Stephen Graham Jones, Alma Katsu, Michael Thomas Ford, Ann Dávila Cardinal, Christina Sng, Denise Dumars, Usman T. Malik, Annie Neugebauer, Gabino Iglesias, Hailey Piper, Nathan Carson, Shanna Heath, Tracy Cross, Linda D. Addison, Maxwell I. Gold, Larissa Glasser, Eugen Bacon, Holly Lyn Walrath, Jonathan Lees, M. E. Bronstein, Michael Hanson
VINCE A. LIAGUNO is an award-winning writer, anthologist, and editor and an occasional poet. He is the Bram Stoker Award–winning editor of Unspeakable Horror: From the Shadows of the Closet (Dark Scribe Press, 2008), an anthology of queer horror fiction, which he co-edited with Chad Helder. His debut novel, 2006’s The Literary Six, was a tribute to the slasher films of the ’80s and won an Independent Publisher Award (IPPY) for horror and was named a finalist in Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Awards in the gay/lesbian fiction category. Vince currently resides in the mitten-shaped state of Michigan, where he is a licensed nursing home administrator by day and a writer, anthologist, and pop culture enthusiast by night.
RENA MASON is a three-time Bram Stoker Award–winning author of The Evolutionist and East End Girls, as well as a 2014 Stage 32 / The Blood List Presents: The Search for New Blood Screenwriting Contest quarter finalist. She’s had nearly two dozen short stories, novelettes, and novellas published in various award-winning anthologies and magazines and writes a monthly column, often featuring special guest articles. Her debut novel, The Evolutionist, has been used in creative writing workshops to teach Southeast Asian students how to write minority characters as metaphors. Rena has also helped spearhead the Horror Writers Association’s Diverse Works Inclusion Community that now runs a website feature titled The Seers’ Table, hosting and promoting diverse authors and their works. Born in Nakhon Sawan, Thailand, Rena is an American of Thai-Chinese descent and frequently incorporates Asian characters and mythos into her stories. A retired registered nurse, avid scuba diver, and world traveler, she currently resides on a lakefront in the Great Lakes state of Michigan.
