SLASH-HER celebration – it’s Vivian Kasley Day!

Tell us a little about your story.

Firstly, thank you for asking these questions and giving me a chance to talk about why I wrote the story, “Pro-Knife.” Many years ago, I went with someone who was going to have an abortion. She was scared and sad for reasons that are her own, but also, she was determined and knew that it was the right choice for herself. Without going into specifics, there was an incident outside of the clinic that prompted her to go into a deep depression after her procedure. While the incident wasn’t like the one portrayed in Pro-Knife, it was still upsetting enough that it left a permanent bad taste in both of our mouths and what I’d say is similar to a scar on our brains. Memories are scars after all aren’t they? They’re there to remind us of the good, the bad and the ugly.

Why did you want to write a slasher story and do you feel you brought something different to the table?

I wanted to write a slasher, because they give you the opportunity to play around in a horrific make-believe world filled with revenge, regrets, and best of all, loads of blood and guts! But also, slashers allow us to create all kinds of characters to root for and/or despise. Sometimes we find ourselves even siding with the slasher, and that’s always interesting.

I do believe Pro-Knife brings something new to the table, absolutely. Abortion is a difficult subject matter for a lot of people, but IT IS an important subject. No matter your opinion on it, I hope people can enjoy the story and maybe come out of it wondering what they’d do if they were in the same shoes.

Do you have a favourite slasher story/movie?

Oh, man! Well, I wanna say it’s Evil Dead, but since some might argue that it’s not exactly a slasher—it kinda is—I’ll go with another first love, which is, A Nightmare on Elm Street. Freddy used to haunt my dreams, and in those dreams, I’d team up with him, and wear his glove. I wonder what that says about me? Aaaanyway, then there’s the obvious classic goodies like Halloween, Chopping Mall, Friday The 13^th, Black Christmas, Scream, and of course, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which is so gritty and gross—I LOVES it! But so many that’ve come out over the past several years have been so damn great. Films like, Murder Party, Haunt, Hatchet, Terrifier, Tucker and Dale vs. Evil, You’re Next, Hush, and most recently Freaky, have all been fucking fantastic! I probably missed a few, but you get the idea. When it comes to story-telling and new ideas, I’d say the slasher has a…cutting edge(I wish you could’ve seen my eyebrows wiggle just then). Looks like there’s no end for the slasher in sight, and I hope one never comes.

Why is it important to you to have a woman led press like Kandisha?

Kandisha is important, because I think a lot of times, horror written by women might be overlooked in a male dominant field. Not to say that’s always the case, but I do think it happens. In my opinion, it is important to empathize and understand one another to truly see the roots and meanings in someone’s stories and words. I believe the women of Kandisha can understand these roots and meanings, along with all the struggles of other women, and those who identify as women. And that is really important.

What’s next for you?

I am in love with writing short fiction, so, more short stories. I keep writing them, so eventually they’ll find a place to lay their ugly little heads. Poetry, too. And if I can ever learn how to do it, (or if, ya know, someone wants to take me on), I’d love to release a collection. That’d be all kinds of cool.