Books Around the Corner Q&A: Brian McAuley, author of Curse of the Reaper
"The bond between author and reader has always fascinated me. Without the reader's imagination, an author's words are dead in the dark. Only when you open their book do you make them come alive. It's like a spell. And you spread that magic because you talk about the book, post about it, or give it away to someone." - Thomas Olde Heuvelt, Hex & Echo.
Our next author featured in our series is Brian McAuley. I thought I'd leave it to a writer to explain why I am doing this series of author interviews and I couldn't have said it better than Thomas Olde Heuvelt above.
You can order Curse of the Reaper on our website HERE (support indies). I hope you all enjoy this interview as much as I did. I am always pleasantly surprised by the Lightning Round. Our Virtual Horror Book Club will be discussing Curse of the Reaper Thursday January 26th at 7pm PST on Zoom. Details HERE.
Stephanie: What is the best piece of life advice that you've received?
Stephanie: Can you tell us about your upcoming horror projects? Any other adaptations in the works?
Stephanie: Any recent books, films, shows, or podcasts you want to recommend to our readers?
Brian: Red X by David Demchuk is an excellent example of deeply personal meta-horror that shattered my heart in the most beautiful way. I also just watched The Menu, which was my favorite kind of film. Pitch-black comedic horror with a satirical edge and some truly gasp-inspiring set pieces.
Lightning Round | Altered and Borrowed from James Lipton
Stephanie: What is your least favorite word?
Stephanie: What is your favorite slasher movie?
Stephanie: What is your favorite fictional killer?
Stephanie: What sound or noise do you hate?
Stephanie: What is your favorite curse word?
Stephanie: What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Stephanie: What profession would you not like to do?
Stephanie: What is your favorite fall/spooky activity to do?
Stephanie: If you knew you were going to die and only had a chance to read one more book what would it be?
Stephanie: You plan a movie night and can watch one movie with any one writer. What writer and what movie do you choose?
Stephanie: What author dead or alive would you want to spend the night in a haunted house with?
About Brian McAuley
BRIAN MCAULEY is a WGA screenwriter and HWA author living and dying in LA. Brian grew up in Weird NJ on a steady diet of Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark? episodes. He received his BA in Creative Writing and Horror Theory from NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study before getting his MFA in Film from Columbia University.
As a WGA screenwriter, Brian has written five films for the Lifetime Network in addition to writing and producing the award-winning thriller Dismissed for BoulderLight Pictures. He sold his TV series pitch Affliction to Syfy Network in a pilot development deal and penned an episode of Fuller House for Netflix.
Brian’s debut novel Curse of the Reaper was published by Talos Press and named one of the Best Horror Books of 2022 by Esquire. His short fiction and non-fiction have appeared in Dark Matter Magazine, Nightmare Magazine, and Shortwave Magazine.