

I would be remiss if I didn’t stop to note that you’ve got a real gift for titles. Moreover, I think that’s where excellent drama and confrontation lie-in the exploitative relationship, in the disintegrating marriage, etc. I think I’m so drawn to this theme because I’m so deeply cynical when it comes to addressing thoughts of love.

For most of the stories collected in The Strange Thing We Become, the tales explore “the shadow side of love” and how easy it is for us to lose ourselves completely when we’re in a relationship with another human being. “The strange thing we become” refers to how we transform, how we mutate when we’re in love. Can you tell us a little bit about what “the strange thing we become” refers to, and what it is about this theme that you are drawn to? That last title is particularly telling, because one of the key themes that seems to run through your work is transformation. To date, your published books include the novellas Starving Ghosts in Every Thread and Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke, as well as the short story collection The Strange Thing We Become and Other Dark Tales.

That’s exactly how I consider myself when I’m writing fiction-I write about the unpleasantness in the world, and I try to present it in such a way that it’s palatable and entertaining to read. A mortician’s responsibility is to preserve the human body and render the deceased as presentable, as graceful as possible so that loved ones can recognize the beauty, the peacefulness of death and decay. I suppose to succinctly and deftly introduce myself to readers unfamiliar with my work I would say that I’m the literary equivalent of a mortician.

I have been a devoted reader of Nightmare for several years now, so this is truly such an honor. For more information, please on Twitter or visit .įirst of all, Eric, thanks for joining us here! We’re going to dive into your work soon, but for our readers who haven’t yet had the pleasure of encountering you on the page, could you introduce yourself and tell them a little about what kind of fiction you write? He is an active member of the Horror Writers Association and currently resides in New England with his partner. Eric LaRocca (he/they) is the author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and The Strange Thing We Become and Other Dark Tales.
