Interviews Archives - Cemetery Dance Online

Interview: Philip Fracassi on Traps and Specters & the Art of Short Fiction

Cemetery Dance OnlineOctober 30, 2026InterviewsAbby Wolf, Philip FracassiLeave a comment

Philip Fracassi is the USA Today bestselling author of The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre and a Bram Stoker Award and British Fantasy Award nominee. His other novels include A Child Alone With Strangers, Gothic, The Third Rule of Time Travel, Sarafina, and short story collections No One Is Safe!, Beneath a Pale Sky and Behold The Void.

He is also a screenwriter and his feature films have been distributed by Disney Entertainment and Lifetime TV, with several projects in various stages of development. His short story “Altar” has been adapted by film studio A24 for a feature film, as well as his story “Fail Safe,” which is being adapted by Sony Pictures, starring Oscar Winner Brie Larson. You can connect with him on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@philipfracassi).

Fracassi sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss his recently released short story collection Traps and Specters: Stories and the art form of building a collection of diverse short stories that is impactful and well-balanced.Continue Reading

Interview: Kelly McWilliams on American Nightmare, Hidden Figures and Historical Horrors

Cemetery Dance OnlineOctober 15, 2026October 30, 2026InterviewsHaley Newlin, Kelly McWilliamsLeave a comment

Kelly McWilliams is a mixed-race novelist whose work examines white passing, American history, and the uncanny. She is also the author of several acclaimed novels for young adults, including Mirror Girls, a Junior Library Guild Selection. American Nightmare is her adult fiction debut. She lives in Seattle with her family. You can connect with her on Instagram – @kellymmcwilliams.

Kelly McWilliams (photo credit: Bill Mullen)

McWilliams sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss American Nightmare, hidden figure, Walter F. White, and historical horrors. Continue Reading

Interview: Markus Redmond on Blood Rising, Historical Horror, and Vampires

Cemetery Dance OnlineSeptember 11, 2026InterviewsHaley Newlin, Markus RedmondLeave a comment

Markus Redmond is an actor, director, screenwriter, and author of the Blood Saga. Known for his roles on Doogie Howser, MD, NYPD Blue, Murder One, Mad About You, Angel, and Fight Club, he wrote and starred alongside Whoopi Goldberg and Sharon Stone in the indie film If I Had Known I Was a Genius. He wrote, directed, and starred in the Amazon Prime thriller The 6th Degree, and has multiple screenplays in development. You can connect with him on Instagram @markusredmond.

Redmond sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss the recently released second installment in the Blood Saga— Blood Rising—historical horror, vampires, and themes of identity and retribution.Continue Reading

Interview: Del Sandeen on These Walls Remember and Gothic and Historical Horror

Cemetery Dance OnlineAugust 13, 2026August 13, 2026InterviewsDel Sandeen, Haley NewlinLeave a comment

Del Sandeen is the author of This Cursed House and her highly anticipated upcoming release, These Walls Remember. Sandeen is becoming a fan-favorite in the genre, praised for her expertly crafted, unputdownable gothic and historical horror stories. Her work has appeared in FIYAH: Speculative Literary Magazine, Uncanny Magazine, Nightlight Podcast, and Gay Magazine. She can be found on Instagram @DelSandeen.

Sandeen sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss her new gothic and historical horror novel, These Walls Remember, the haunted history of Savannah, Georgia, erasure efforts in U.S. history, and grief horror.

(Interview conducted by Haley Newlin) Continue Reading

Interview: Cynthia Gómez on Muñeca and Gothic Horror

Cemetery Dance OnlineJuly 30, 2026InterviewsCynthia Gomez, Haley NewlinLeave a comment

Cynthia Gómez is the author of the story collection The Nightmare Box and Other Stories, and a Tin House and VONA alumn whose short fiction has published in Fantasy Magazine, Strange Horizons, Pseudopod, Nightmare Magazine, and numerous anthologies.

Gómez’s new release, Muñeca, is a queer, Latine novel set in 1968 Oakland about a working-class witch who sets out to save a bespelled heiress and explores misogyny, racial hierarchy, classism, and the power of female friendship and community.

Book Riot called Muñeca one of the best horror books of 2026 so far. It also appeared on lists such as “15 Books Our Critics Can’t Wait for This Summer” from NPR, and Buzzfeed’s “Best LGBTQ+ Books of 2026.”

Gómez sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss her new gothic horror release, Muñeca, the author’s early experiences reading classic gothic horror, additional influences such as Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Isabel Cañas, and the creepy doll trope. Continue Reading

Night Time Logic with Gwendolyn Kiste

Cemetery Dance OnlineJune 19, 2026June 18, 2026Interviews, Night Time LogicDaniel Braum, Gwendolyn Kiste, Interviews, Night Time LogicLeave a comment

Horror Movies and Haunted Houses, Sea Witches and Ghosts, and Horror Stories as the New Fairy Tales

Night Time Logic is a term for the parts of a story that are felt but not consciously processed. It is also the name of this interview series here at Cemetery Dance online and over on my YouTube channel, where we explore the night time part of stories, the strange and uncanny in horror, dark fiction, and more.

My latest book, Phantom Constellations: Strange Tales and Ghost Stories, out now from Cemetery Dance Publications, is full of subtle, strange, and intentionally ambiguous tales that operate with Night Time Logic.

I recently had a chance to speak with a returning guest to the column and program, Gwendolyn Kiste. Continue Reading

Interview: Neena Viel on I’ll Watch Your Baby and Social Horror

Cemetery Dance OnlineJune 12, 2026InterviewsHaley Newlin, Interviews, Neena VielLeave a comment

Neena Viel is a Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of supernatural and social horror books, including her acclaimed debut Listen to Your Sister and her new release, I’ll Watch Your Baby.

Viel sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss I’ll Watch Your Baby, the author’s love of horror icon and scholar Tananarive Due, looking at horror through a social and historical lens, and crafting fiercely complex characters.Continue Reading

Interview: David Simmons on Fetty on the Switches

Cemetery Dance OnlineJune 4, 2026June 4, 2026InterviewsAdam Allen, David Simmons, InterviewsLeave a comment

David Simmons is a horror writer based in Baltimore, Maryland. Simmons’ work blends graphic, surreal horror with real-life social issues and laugh-out-loud humor.

He is the author of the novel Eradicator, about a woman who works in the maternity ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital but moonlights as a serial killer, and his first short story collection, Fetty on the Switches.

David Simmons author of Fetty on the Switches — David Simmons

Interview: Johanna Van Veen on Bone of My Bone and the Convergence of Religious, Historical, and Folk Horror

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 27, 2026InterviewsHaley Newlin, Interviews, Johanna Van VeenLeave a comment

Johanna Van Veen’s debut Gothic horror novel, My Darling Dreadful Thing, was a Bram Stoker Award nominee, and her sophomore novel, Blood on Her Tongue, became an instant USA Today Bestseller. Both journey into historical settings, as does her latest release, Bone of My Bone, set in Germany during the ruthless Thirty Years’ War. It explores the convergence of three horror subgenres: folk, historical, and religious. As well as the effects of war on everyday people.

Author Johanna Van Veen — Johanna Van Veen

Johanna Van Veen sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss her new release, Bone of My Bone.

Interview: A. Rushby on Slashed Beauties and Feminist Body Horror

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 27, 2026InterviewsA. Rushby, Haley Newlin, Interviews, Slashed BeautiesLeave a comment

A. Rushby (also writing as Allison Rushby and A.J. Rushby) has published more than thirty books. Whether writing for junior and middle grade readers or adults, Rushby is known for her love of all things dark and peculiar. Sometimes she writes about Victorian death photography and installation art. Sometimes it’s haunted houses or kittens who have midnight tea parties.

In Slashed Beauties, Rushby’s adult body and feminist horror novel, she writes about bewitched anatomical wax models, cursed lockets, and women’s never-ending fight for autonomy.

Rushby sat down with Cemetery Dance to discuss, Slashed Beauties, Anatomical Venuses, her favorite feminist/body horror books, and her next release, All Her Beautiful Deaths.

You can connect with her on Instagram @allisonrushbyauthor and at allisonrushby.com

Discussing Reincarnate and the Ugly Side of Heroes with Barry Hoffman

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 15, 2026April 13, 2026InterviewsBarry Hoffman, Interviews, Reincarnate, Rick HipsonLeave a comment

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cover of Reincarnate — My beautiful picture

If you’ve read any of the numerous works written by Barry Hoffman, then you already know there’s a few boxes you can count on checking off when reading him. Ruthless, complex villain with at least a few sympathetic qualities? Check. Spotlighting controversial issues in today’s society that demands the attention they seldom get? Check. A page-turning thriller fueled by relatably flawed main characters committed to the justice they seek despite the risks? Check again.

You can also expect a modest infusion of the supernatural sprinkled throughout Hoffman’s work, which he uses to syphon the inner most thoughts and fears of characters to the surface, adding to the intensity of the already dangerous games they’re forced to play. Reincarnate, published by Cemetery Dance Publications, is a worthy addition to Hoffman’s library of work, and can easily be considered among his best.Continue Reading

Night Time Logic with Jo Kaplan

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 3, 2026March 1, 2026Interviews, Night Time LogicColumns, Daniel Braum, Interviews, Jo Kaplan, Night Time Logic1 Comment

Night Time Logic with Daniel Braum

Music and Horror, Embracing Tropes, and the Midnight Muse

Night Time Logic is the part of a story that is felt but not consciously processed. It is also the name of this interview series here at Cemetery Dance online and over on my YouTube channel where we explore the night time part of stories, the strange and uncanny in horror, dark fiction, and more.

My latest book, Phantom Constellations: Strange Tales and Ghost Stories, out now from Cemetery Dance Publications, is full of these kind of subtle, strange, and intentionally ambiguous tales the operate with Night Time Logic.

Author Jo Kaplan is an author whose work uses Night Time Logic and she is a repeat guest on the Night Time Logic YouTube series. Her latest novel is called The Midnight Muse. I recently had a chance to speak with her about the new book.Continue Reading

Interview: Kristi DeMeester on Dark Sisters

Cemetery Dance OnlineFebruary 17, 2026February 10, 2026InterviewsDark Sisters, Haley Newlin, Interviews, Kristi DeMeesterLeave a comment

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photo of author Kristi DeMeester — Kristi DeMeester

Kristi DeMeester is the author of Dark Sisters, Such a Pretty Smile (which was selected as a Georgia Author of the Year finalist) and Beneath. Her short fiction has appeared in publications such as The Dark, Black Static, multiple volumes of The Year’s Best Horror, Year’s Best Weird Fiction, and in her short fiction collection Everything That’s Underneath. She lives, writes, and makes horror-themed candles in Atlanta, Georgia.

She is represented by Stefanie Lieberman at Janklow & Nesbit Associates. She is at work on her next novel.

DeMeester sat down with Cemetery Dance to talk about her new folk and religious horror novel, Dark Sisters, what it’s like growing up in a mega church, the increasing demand for feminist and pink horror, and book recommendations within the subgenre. Continue Reading

Eclusive Interview/Preview: Vampyre: A Horror Folktale

Cemetery Dance OnlineJanuary 27, 2026January 24, 2026Interviews, The Comic VaultColumns, Danica Davidson, Interviews, Previews, Ricardo Delgado, The Comic Vault, Vampyre A Horror FolktaleLeave a comment

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cover of Vampyre: A Costa Rican Folktale Graphic novelist, writer and Hollywood conceptual artist Ricardo Delgado spoke to Cemetery Dance in 2022 about his Dracula of Transylvania, and now he’s back in that dark world with his new work, Vampyre: A Horror Folktale. It is currently on Kickstarter. Cemetery Dance has exclusive artwork to show, and also caught up with Delgado about Vampyre, its connection to his childhood and previousDracula work, and what else he has going on.Continue Reading

Exclusive Preview/Interview: Weird Tales – “Shambleau”

Cemetery Dance OnlineJanuary 20, 2026January 18, 2026Interviews, The Comic VaultBlake Northcott, Columns, Danica Davidson, Interviews, Previews, The Comic Vault, Weird TalesLeave a comment

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cover of Weird Tales The iconic Weird Tales franchise is getting a graphic novel adaptation from Monstrous Books through Kickstarter. Cemetery Dance has some exclusive artwork to share, and can confirm first and exclusively that one of the stories in it will be “Shambleau” by C.L. Moore, adapted by writer Blake Northcott (best known for her work on Catwoman) and artist George Quadros (best known for his work on Sumerian). Northcott spoke to Cemetery Dance about her work on the comic adaptation of“Shambleau.”Continue Reading

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