GREETINGS, BOOKWORMS! I’m Aisha Kandisha, Head Librarian at Kandisha Press. Join me in the dusty stacks of the library I will never leave again as I chat with some of my favorite Women in Horror. Today we feature author Naching T. Kassa!
Naching T. Kassa is a wife, mother, horror writer and Talent Relations Manager at Crystal Lake Entertainment. She is a proud member of the Horror Writers Association, Mystery Writers of America and The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association. She’s also a 2022 HWA Diversity Grant recipient. You can find her work on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Naching-T-Kassa/e/B005ZGHTI0
What made you want to become an author? Did you have an “Aha!” moment when you knew you were born to write? Or perhaps a beloved book inspired you?
Ever since I learned to read, I’ve wanted to tell stories. I wrote stories before attending first grade, during my years in school and after I graduated, but I never really took it seriously. It wasn’t until my Mom passed away that I decided to become a writer. Just before she passed, she asked me what I would do with my life. I told her I would be a wife, a mother and a writer. This simple statement became a promise. One I keep to this day.
What do you believe are your strengths in writing? And when you feel you need to improve on a particular writing skill, how do you go about it?
There are so many things I still need to work on, but I think my greatest strength is telling a good story. I want to entertain my readers, give them an interesting and exciting tale that they’ll remember. And to improve, I read—as much as I can—and I subscribe to Masterclass. I’ve learned so much from online classes by R. L. Stine, Neil Gaiman and many others. I also enjoy learning from Horror University, the HWA University classes which are also offered online.
What are your thoughts on the book industry today, or more importantly, about the book community? Do you feel it is getting harder or easier to make it as an independent author these days?
I can’t say whether it’s easier or harder to make it these days, but I can speak to the fact that independent authors and publishers are more popular than ever before, especially in the horror genre. I’m thrilled when I visit my local Barnes and Noble and see books by independent authors standing next to those from the Big Five. This has never happened before—not in my neck of the woods.
As to community, I think it’s wonderful that Facebook groups like Books of Horror are connecting readers to their favorite independent authors. It’s a great time to be one. And, as Talent Relations Manager for Crystal Lake Entertainment, I think it’s a great time to work with them.
Tell us about your work. What story are you most proud of?
I think the best story I’ve written, so far, is “The Darker Side of Grief,” which appears in the anthology, Arterial Bloom. It’s a bittersweet story about a boy, his babysitter and the monster which threatens him.
What are your upcoming works and plans for the future?
I have a story coming up in the anthology, To Hell and Back edited by Joe Mynhardt and published by Hellbound Books. And several of my Sherlock Holmes stories will be published in the next year.
As for the future, I plan to keep writing and helping other authors as much as I can.
KANDISHA PRESS 