Interview - Kathleen Greer

An accomplished author with her latest work just being released, author Kathleen Greer has given her career a great boost with her latest book, "The Wendigo Hunter," being released by Crystal Lake Publishing imprint Crystal Cove Press. Now, in honor of the book's release, I talk with her about her early interest in writing, her process for getting her writing together, and the book itself.

Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, when did you get into horror in general? What films or books specifically got you into watching horror movies?

Kathleen Greer: Well, I’m an army brat and spent most of my early years living overseas. I was born in Kyoto, Japan, but was too young to remember much about it when we left. I do have fond memories of Germany, in particular Augsburg and Munich. We did not have a TV at that time, and only went to a movie if it was playing on a Saturday afternoon at the army base where we were stationed. When my dad was home, he often read scary fairy tales to my older sisters and me. Who can forget “Rapunzel, Rapunzel. Let down your hair!” The Brothers Grimm were indeed quite grim, and I loved their stories. I think that is what hooked me. Also, near the Army Base, there was a shepherd and his flock of sheep and his pack of dogs. Many of us Army kids would join the local kids and sit in the grass where the sheep were grazing, and the shepherd would tell us scary German stories in German. I don’t know if he made them up as he went, or if they were actual stories from his childhood, but they scared all of us. Unfortunately, I forgot all the German I knew when we came stateside. But parts of his stories stuck with me.

Me: Who were some of your favorite writers growing up? Do you try to take influences from their style with your own voice in your work?

KG: I was a precocious child and by age 8 or 9 was reading adult novels that my mother had, like “Gone With the Wind” and “Forever Amber”. Mom gave librarians her permission for me to check out adult books. My Dad was much more pragmatic, so I also absorbed “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” I don’t think I am influenced by anyone else’s voice but the ones in my head.

Me: What was the starting point of becoming a writer? Were you always into writing growing up? Is there any specific genre you prefer to write? Is there a style or format that you find easier to get into, even if you don’t have a preference?

KG: Humm! This interview is getting more difficult. I remember writing a 4 to 5-page single-space poem: “The Saga of Jimmy Osage” around age 7. I believe I had learned about American Indians in a western movie playing at the army base, and came up with the idea of having an Indian gunslinger.

Me: What is your writing process? How do you stay focused on writing?

KG: Well, first of all, I don’t force myself to write. I tried that years ago, and everything that came out was garbage. But I do try to set aside a couple of hours daily dedicated to writing. Which often includes research, which I find to be one of the best parts of writing – learning new stuff, particularly based on the past. I love the Regency period in England, and the taming of the Wild West in the U.S., and I’m fascinated by the occult world. I was introduced to the writings of Aleister Crowley by my botany professor, Mike Worth, in college. Occasionally, my mother would tell me about my father’s mother, with whom my mother spent time during WWII. She told me stories about “Grammy Greer” and how, after church on Sundays, local women would gather in the Greer parlor, and Grammy would “tip the table,” a sort of Ouija board type of divination, where the table would levitate, and one leg would tap once for yes, and twice for no in answer to questions posed by those present. I don’t know if I inherited some of this woman’s skills, but I have seen ghosts in several old houses that my husband and I owned in the past. And he saw a couple himself, which made him “a believer.” But he’s also Irish. Big smile there!

Me: That brings us to your latest project, “The Wendigo Hunter.” What can you tell us about the book? How did you settle on the plots for your writing?

KG: I’m a pantser. The stories I write come from the characters who, at times, really live in my head. I take long walks or ride my Trek bike for 8-10 miles and throw situations at them to see how they might react. It helps me learn what motivates them; what they are afraid of; what they THINK of themselves. From the characters comes the story.

Me: With the story employing a period setting for its main action, what type of prep-work goes into making sure it fits into the appropriate time period?

KG: So once again, lots of research, as I mentioned before. Out of that research, I learned things I didn’t know about or had forgotten. And ideas immediately come to mind about how I might incorporate some of it into whatever book I’m working on at the time. Sometimes they work, sometimes not. But the story grows, the more I learn about the characters and their flaws. So far, everything I’ve written is either set in the far past, like a million years ago, or during the Victorian time period, either in England or the US. Writing in the far past is pure imagination. What if….

Me: Is there anything while writing the characters that you were surprised by in telling their stories?

KG: I think learning about Jo’s weaknesses, her fear that she isn’t strong enough emotionally to save everyone, surprised me the most. I hadn’t expected it.

Me: What made the wendigo the perfect creature antagonist for this story? Was there any special significance to this being the creature for the book?

KG: That’s an interesting question. There are so many books about vampires and ghosts and other deadly but common creatures. I wanted to write about something less known, and therefore, more open to interpretation. I must add that after I finished the first draft of the book, I did a search on Amazon and was astonished that there were about ten or more books with the Wendigo name on them. So much for uniqueness! And no, I didn’t read any of them!

Me: What do you do to keep your creative energy flowing?

KG: The research helps. And I spend an hour or so a day, at least 5 days a week, getting exercise. Either I ride my Trek bicycle around town for 8 miles or so - OR I take one of our dogs, Kimba, for a long walk. She weighs about 85 lbs., and she’s half Great Pyrenees, so that can be a workout all its own. But I live in a very rural town in SC, so as I walk or ride, whatever part of the story I’m working on, which might be creating a problem, I sort of mull it over in my head, and quite often a solution just pops into my mind.

Me: Lastly, what else are you working on that you’d like to share with our readers?

KG: It’s funny you asked me that. I just finished the first draft of the second book in the series that The Wendigo Hunter started. When I first conceived of the Wendigo book, this second book wasn’t in the picture. But as the first book started to draw to a conclusion, another was already forming in the back of my brain.

I do need help with the title, though. Maybe some of the readers of your interviews can make a suggestion on which of these 2 titles they prefer. The Skin Walker Hunter OR The Jackalope Hunters. Both creatures exist in Book 2. You can never have TOO many scary things going on!