Positively Horror recently got the chance to chat with the brilliant up and coming horror author Felix I.D. Dimaro during the lead up to the release of his new novel Bugspray on eighth of August. (Pre order link at the bottom of interview). Please enjoy the full interview below.
Please tell us a bit about yourself and your relationship with the genre?
I was born in Nigeria and raised in Toronto, Canada in a couple of ‘at risk’ neighbourhoods. Rough places that helped to shape my outlook on the world as well as what I include in my stories. From there I went to the University of Toronto and graduated with a BA in Psychology. The combination of my upbringing and interest in psychology both play into the horror that I write. I write mostly about human monsters and issues of morality.
What was your introduction to horror, and at what age?
I feel like I’ve been watching horror for as long as I can remember. I am the youngest of four boys, and I had to watch what they watched. Most of that was horror. I distinctly remember being terrified of the Cenobites from Hell Raiser at like seven years old. In terms of books, it was Goosebumps by R.L. Stine.
Your debut book, How to Make a Monster, a collection of short stories is pretty hard hitting, where does your inspiration come from and how do you get into a headspace for your writing?
My inspiration comes from what I’ve seen and experienced in my life. I was dealing with death, discrimination and other hardships pretty early on. On top of that I have known good people who have had to do bad things (sometimes for good reasons). So, I write about the thin line between humanity and monstrosity that we all struggle not to cross. Sometimes it’s hard to get into the right headspace for the really dark stories, but that’s what vodka’s for :P
Your upcoming novel Bug Spray is available for pre-order now, could you tell us a bit about it?
Thanks for asking. Bug Spray is a hard one to talk about without spoiling. I’ll just say it’s a story that centers around a power-hungry man, the suicide of his employee, love, and vengeance. I’m calling it a Romance of Horrors, and I think it’s a fun but scary story that touches on a lot of what’s going on in society, particularly in terms of sex and power dynamics.
Who are some of your favourite people working in the genre at the moment?
Like a lot of horror readers, I was stuck on mainly Stephen King for most of my adult life. Over the last few years, I’ve realized that I’ve been cheating myself out of a lot of great stories by not branching out. So, that’s what I’ve been doing, particularly with Indie horror writers. There are some great ones out there, and I’m looking forward to figuring out a favourite as I explore them more.
And are there any other projects you’re involved with that you’d like to talk about?
I’ve actually just finished up the rough draft to a novel called “Blue Lips” that centers around addiction, gang violence, and things that exist inside and outside of this world that may influence us more than we know. I’m excited about it because it ties into some of the other stories I’ve written, including “Bug Spray.”
Thanks again to felix for the great interview. You can pre order Bugspray by following the link below, and buy How to Make a Monster which is out now:
You can find Felix on his social media accounts by following the links below:
How to Make a Monster was excellent, I'm counting the days until Bug Spray!!!
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