Interview with Author Scott Nicholson

Author Scott Nicholson

Author Scott Nicholson

ED- The Eerie Digest has the genuine pleasure to present author Scott Nicholson to all of our readers. Scott, you write stories that our readers can only dream of and you have to be one of the most prolific writers that I have ever interviewed and have written well over fifty stories. What started your interest in writing, and who were some of your earliest influences in doing so?

SN- Hmm, Dr. Seuss really messed with my head, and then I got into comic books. We were poor so we had we to make our own entertainment. The smell of crayons still gives me a thrill, and blank white paper seems like sheer decadence, since as a kid I always had to use scraps to create art and stories.

ED- You are a journalist living in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina and have a deep interest in that area. Please explain some of those interests to our readership.

SN- Well, I just started exploring the local supernatural legends and fictionalizing them. The longer I wrote, the more I became interested in the issues here, especially of change. I live in one of the oldest geographic areas of the world and there are a lot of secrets tucked away in these hollows and valleys.

ED- You are also the Vice-President of The Horror Writer’s Association, active in The Mystery Writers of America, and an International Thriller Writer. These positions must keep you quite busy. Please describe these organizations and your part in them.

SN- Well, that was all in a former life, when I was giving back for what had been given me. I am a bit of a recluse these days, focusing mostly on my readers, though I am always happy to help if anyone asks. Since I am an indie author now, professional trade organizations don’t have much in common with what I do, though I wish them success and happiness.

Liquid Fear Cover

Liquid Fear Book Cover

ED- You have a number of Short Story collections that include ‘Thank You For The Flowers’, ‘Scattered Ashes’, and stories that have appeared in anthologies such as ‘Aegri Somnia’. Please tell us all about these works.

SN- My first collection came out in 2000 through a regional press, then I did the mass-market thrill ride for a while, piling up stories along the way. Somewhere along the line I found myself without a book contract and just assembled all my work into e-book collections. It’s a lot of fun and I’m happy to find something to do with them after all these years.

ED- Starting in 2002 you wrote the novel, The Red Church’, followed by ‘The Harvest’ and ‘The Manor’. What were the themes behind these and the main protagonists in them?

SN- They were basically localized stories, with The Red Church inspired by legends of an actual haunted church near my house. The Harvest, which I’ve re-released as Metabolism: Forever Never Ends, is an allegory of change in the mountains explored via an alien infection. The Manor is also inspired by a local legend, of a historic manor in a national park near here, with art as the focus for the supernatural.

ED- ‘The Home’, ‘The Farm’, and ‘They Hunger’ followed soon after. Please describe these books and their relationship to those that proceeded them.

SN- I moved a bit closer to the thriller genre with later books, with more action, conspiracy, and just a little more violence, though I hope I don’t indulge in gore. Again, these were just inspired by local stories, events, and legends, fictionalized with compelling characters.

ED- After these you wrote the novel, ‘Disintegration’ What was this about and what was the theme behind this work?

SN- That was my life story. I was in bad shape at the time and the novel is kind of bleak, but it became a Kindle bestseller so it spoke to some people. It’s basically a modern retelling of Jacob and Esau from the Book of Genesis, an evil-twin story.

ED-We also understand that you also wrote ‘The Skull Ring’ and by last account you were seeking a publisher for this. Can you give us a sneak-preview of this latest book?

SN- Wow, my website must be way out of date! I published it myself a year ago and it’s sold thousands of copies. I think that was the least real rejection slip I got from a publisher–one day after the book went live as an indie.

ED- Describe one of your earliest works, ‘Vampire Shortstop’ and the award which it won.

SN- That was an early story but one of my best. I just typed it out without thinking about it, and it was partly autobiographical, then it won first in the Writers of the Future contest, which is a great one for newer writers.

ED- You have also been involved with comics and co-wrote several more books. Tell us about this aspect of your writing and some of the other works that you have produced.

SN- I got into comics partly because of my childhood interest and partly because of being curious about the storytelling. I’d written movie scripts so I figured a comic would be similar and would help improve my writing. But the market is down right now and it’s not quite made the full digital leap.

ED- There are a number of other awards that you have been given for your writing. Please tell us about these.

SN-     Gosh, I don’t remember. They don’t interest me much. All that’s just ego stuff packed away in the closet that my kids will have to deal with after I die. Which I hope is many happy years from now!

ED- Scott, you definitely write the stories in the genre that have the greatest interest for our readership. It has been an honor to be able to interview you in The Eerie Digest magazine, and I want to thank you for your time in letting us do so. We hope to learn more about you in the near future and ask that you stay in close contact with us, and our readers.

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