Seven Questions with Pedro Iniguez

Question 1: What was the initial catalyst—whether that be a short story, a novel, a film, a video game, an event—that made you want to be a writer?

I can’t recall a single thing that sparked my desire to be a writer. It was more a gradual thing. Comic books, Goosebumps books, making up stories when I’d play with my action figures, stuff like that. Things that get a child’s imagination going. It wasn’t until I was 17 and bored out of my mind in college that I started writing little paragraph-long stories during lectures that the real possibility of writing opened up to me.

Question 2: An aspiring author has written a 70,000- to 100,000-word debut horror novel and doesn’t know what to do next; what advice would you give them? Should querying literary agents be the first choice of action, or is self-publishing becoming a viable option?

It all depends on your goal. An agent is probably going to want to know your long-term goals and ask if you have other books waiting to go. They want to know if you’re worth their time. You’d better be ready. Also, acquiring an agent can be a long, difficult process and not everyone ultimately will land one. And if you do, there’s no guarantee that they’ll be able to sell your book.

You can also familiarize yourself with the markets. Some publishers don’t require you to have an agent to submit your novel. Then, there’s self-publishing, which anyone can do, but be prepared to spend money to acquire cover art and editing services if you want to present your work in the best way possible.

Question 3: With massively successful video game franchises like Resident Evil and The Last of Us, horror films consistently performing well at the box office (not to mention carving out their places in mainstream culture), and the sheer cultural popularity of iconic horror figures such as Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula, and the works of Edgar Allan Poe and Stephen King—why do you think that horror literature, from local bookstores to big 5 publishers, isn’t taken as seriously as other genres? Horror, as mentioned above, thrives in other mediums, so why not in literature? And is there anything writers and readers can do to change this? If so, then what?

I think there are certain attitudes toward horror that may be elitist. The genre may not be seen as literary enough for the mainstream. Oftentimes, I feel horror literature is seen as modern-day pulp or shlock, though that is certainly not true. Sure, there’s lots of horror fiction that is solely concerned with entertaining its audience, and that’s awesome, but there are many wonderful authors that bring important discussions and themes to the table and do so with beautiful technique, worthy of any discerning reader out there.

Question 4: What are your general (or extensive) thoughts on AI in literature? 

I’m not a fan of AI being used to generate ideas or writing. First, the arts are meaningless, in my opinion, if they weren’t created by people. There has to be a process of idea and craft and labor. There’s no point in having something automatically generated for you. That’s not art. I think when we as humans create art, we also find a bit of ourselves in the process. There is a sense of discovery and joy in what we create, whether we ultimately like our creation or not. Second, AI scours multiple sources to regurgitate what you ask it to generate. This process winds up scraping and stealing, in effect, art that other creators have made. This I find to be highly immoral, unethical, and illegal.

Question 5: What are some novels or collections that deserve more exposure?

I find that the work of Dennis Etchison needs a shoutout. His short stories are some of the finest in horror, specifically psychological, quiet horror. Collections like The Dark Country, Talking in the Dark, and Red Dreams, are superb. Stephen Woodworth also has a beautiful collection called A Carnival of Chimeras which I highly recommend.

Regarding novels, I really enjoyed Legion by Willam Peter Blatty. Such fine writing and a thrilling plot.

Question 6: What is one book that every aspiring horror writer should read?

For fiction, I’d say I Am Legend by Richard Matheson. Poetic, fluid language and a taut story. This would be a great example of how to write horror fiction.

Non-fiction, I’d recommend Stephen King’s On Writing. It delves into craft, yes, but also discusses his life and you’ll come out of it feeling inspired.

Question 7: What’s next for you?

Currently, I’m working on a horror novel. My SF poetry collection Mexicans on the Moon: Speculative Poetry from a Possible Future will be out sometime in 2024 from Space Cowboy Books, and my horror fiction collection Fever Dreams of a Parasite, will be published sometime in 2025 from Raw Dog Screaming Press. I’m also working on a horror anthology comic book for Chispa Comics, called Catrina’s Caravan, which has featured writers like V. Castro and Cynthia Pelayo.

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Pedro Iniguez is a horror and science-fiction writer from Los Angeles, California. He is a Rhysling Award finalist and a Best of the Net and Pushcart Prize nominee.

His fiction and poetry has appeared in Nightmare Magazine, Never Wake: An Anthology of Dream Horror, Shadows Over Main Street Volume 3, and Qualia Nous Vol. 2, among others.

Forthcoming, his SF poetry collection MEXICANS ON THE MOON: SPECULATIVE POETRY FROM A POSSIBLE FUTURE, is slated for publication in 2024 from Space Cowboy Books. Additionally, his horror fiction collection, FEVER DREAMS OF A PARASITE, is slated for a 2025 release from publisher Raw Dog Screaming Press. He can be found online at www.pedroiniguezauthor.com.