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 Trish Wilson, also known as Elizabeth Black!
Trish Wilson is the Media Director for The Horror Zine. She has written short horror fiction with her real name (Trish Wilson) and with the pen names E. A. Black and Elizabeth Black. She has interviewed many well-known horror writers including Ramsey Campbell, Kathe Koja, Jonathan Maberry, and more. Wilson lives on the Massachusetts coast in Lovecraft country. The ocean calls to her, but she has yet to hear from Cthulhu.
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?
I don’t remember not wanting to be an author. I wrote short stories as far back as elementary school. One of my parish priests was a poet who saw his poems published by The New Yorker. This guy was insane. Us kids loved him. He was a riot. He had an invisible dog named Frederick. He used to go around talking to this dog no one could see or hear for fun. Once he even bought one of those fake leads that made it look like he was walking an invisible dog. He learned I liked to write and encouraged me to try poetry. He even sent one of my poems to The New Yorker for me, but I was rejected. It didn’t bother me. Just trying was enough. Mom had stationery with “Glitters From Ginny” written on it. This is in the 1970s when personalized stationery was a big thing. He had stationery made that said “Baloney from Bobby”. He later was sent to Florida to a home for alcoholic priests to dry out. I still miss Father Robert Menthe.
When I was in junior high school, I took a creative writing class through a gifted and talented program, and I enjoyed the hell out of it. I didn’t write seriously until about two decades ago.
Before that, I was heavily into theatre and other forms of entertainment. I was a member of IATSE Local 22, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, and I worked as a gaffer (lighting), scenic artist, and makeup artist including FX. I did lighting for the movies “12 Monkeys” and “Die Hard With A Vengeance”. I also did FX makeup for two episodes of “Homicide: Life On The Street”. I lucked out with the concert season as general crew (mostly lighting) since I worked classic rock – The Eagles, Phil Collins, Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, and more. It wasn’t until I moved to Massachusetts from Maryland after giving up the theatrical life that I put my energy into writing fiction.
I started out writing erotic fiction, romance, and later horror. I use the pen name Elizabeth Black for erotic fiction and romance. I used to use E. A. Black for horror fiction, but now I use my real name, Trish Wilson.
My first published story was a bit of a fluke. I saw a submission call for short sexy stories, and I had already written a funny and smutty retelling of Cinderella. Suffice to say Cinderella’s Happily Ever After ending wasn’t. Scarlet Magazine in the U. K. published it much to my surprise. And they paid me! I also wrote sex toys descriptions and web site copy for Bondara, a sex toys company also in the U. K. In addition to sex writing, I wrote non-fiction articles about sex and relationships. While working on erotic fiction, I came up with the idea for “The Oily”, my first published horror story. I dove into horror writing and I haven’t looked back. While I haven’t written a horror novel as of yet, I have written scads of short horror stories.
Jeani Rector from The Horror Zine found me, and she asked if I’d be interested in being the Media Director for The Horror Zine. I jumped at the chance. I’ve interviewed many famous horror authors including Ramsey Campbell, Billy Martin (aka Poppy Z. Brite), John Skipp, Josh Malerman, Kathe Koja, Paul Tremblay, and many more. 2024 promises to be exciting since I’m writing again after a period of burnout and I plan on conducting many more author interviews.
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?
My main strength is perseverance. I’m a prolific writer, and I don’t let writer’s block get in my way. I don’t often have writer’s block. To be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever had it. I do burn out, though, so I make sure to take time for myself that has nothing to do with writing. I’m a movie and TV buff which isn’t a surprise considering my stage union background. Another strength is that I am a font of weird news and stories that inspire my fiction. I get ideas from everywhere, and then I take those ideas and put a twist on them.
Another strength is that I have a great deal of confidence about my writing. When I put my mind to it, I can belt out a short story in a week, including editing and revisions.
My favorite way to deal with problems with my writing is to go for a walk on the beaches by my home and brainstorm. I walk with my husband. We live on the Massachusetts coast near Lovecraft country. If Innsmouth were a real place, it would be a five to ten minute drive from our house. My favorite beaches are Good Harbor Beach in Gloucester, and Cape Hedge Beach and Long Beach in Rockport. Walking amid the salty air clears my head, and I can work through plot bunnies and difficulties with ease.
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?
It’s much harder to make it as an independent author today than it was even five years ago. Kindle Direct Publishing has opened up the floodgates, and scads of indie writers poured out. The good thing about this is that now anyone can be a writer. On the other hand, the bad thing about this is that now anyone can be a writer. The gatekeeping you see with the major publishers and some small presses you don’t see with some indie books, especially self-published books. There are a great deal of unedited, poor quality books with plenty of typos and grammatical mistakes out there. Sometimes the cover art is hideous. It is sometimes hard to cut through the chaff to get to the wheat. Despite the drawbacks, indie book publishing has made it easier for writers to see their works out in the world that otherwise would not have been published. There are some gems out there, both self-published and with small presses.
That said, I’ve found the book community to be friendly and supportive. I was a member of a local writer’s group that disbanned shortly before Covid hit, and I made some great friends. Writers online have been easy for me to meet. I’ve learned a great deal from these connections. Facebook and other social media have made it easier for book readers and writers to reach their favorite authors and tell them how much they enjoy their work. I’ve seen this happen in Facebook horror book groups. It’s so much easier today to write and be published than it was when I first started. I reach well-known horror writers easily today through their web sites, e-mail, or on social media so that I may ask them for interviews. Now, submissions are via email for the most part and you hear back quickly. It’s easier to search for information about finding a good agent and a good publisher. Everything today is at our fingertips, and I’m grateful for that. When I first started, my stories were being published in the U. K., and I was sent a check in British Pounds Sterling every month. Everything was done via e-mail except payment. I don’t believe PayPal was around yet. The Fed took a chunk of my earnings in converting the payment from Pounds Sterling to American dollars. PayPal may take a small fee, but it’s nothing compared to converting a check.
Tell us about your work. What story are you most proud of?
I’m definitely proud of the story I had written for “From The Depths”. I wrote this one with my pen name, Elizabeth Black. My story is “Weeds”, which Master of Horror Ramsey Campbell described as follows:
Elizabeth Black’s pests must plague many a gardener and indeed any of us who relish a weedless garden, but given the book we’re in, greater monstrousness is guaranteed. Mutation is an everyday threat these days; perhaps it always was and we didn’t notice, but now we can hardly ignore how we have to fight the world. Vegetation could be the creeper that does us in, with symptoms like those E. A. Black’s tale gathers with oppressively convincing vividness, but the defense might be worse than the threat. At the end of her relentless nightmare we may welcome a hint of hope as much as her luckless protagonist does.
Jill Girardi and Lydia Prime had asked me if I would ask Ramsey Campbell (yes, THAT Ramsey Campbell) if he would be interested in writing a foreword for “From The Depths”. He said “yes” and wrote a fantastic one. I already had his contact information since I had interviewed him for The Horror Zine and Sirens Call eZine. It was a pleasure talking to him. I’m an avid gardener who grows her own herbs for cooking so “Weeds” was a natural for me.
Another story I’m proud of is “The Oily”. I wrote that one with the pen name E. A. Black. It’s a very unsettling ghost story that appears in “It Calls From The Veil”, published by Eerie River Publishing. Eerie River published my story using my real name, Trish Wilson. This was the first horror story I had ever published. It originally appeared in the November 2011 issue of “Stupefying Stories” magazine. That story was influenced by “The Haunting of Hill House” by Shirley Jackson and “The Elementals” by Michael McDowell. The editor in chief of Stupefying Stories described my story as “one of the most disturbing horror stories we’ve ever published.”
What are your upcoming works and plans for the future?
Last year, I spent most of my time on Kindle Vella. I did well, but I burned out. I had published three short spicy romances, a mystery, and a collection of romantic comedies. I’ve since cut back my time on Vella. Now, I’m working on more short horror stories and author interviews. So far, I’ve only written short stories. I’d like to write a horror novel or a thriller. I have an idea percolating in my head right now, and it’s a good one. I need to flesh it out.
I’m planning many more famous horror author interviews for The Horror Zine. If you’d like to read my interviews thus far, go here:
https://trishwilsonauthor.blogspot.com/p/author-interviews.html
My short story “The Terror of Swede Town” appears in “The Horror Zine’s Book of Monster Stories”. It’s available at Amazon. This book includes spine-chilling tales from Bentley Little, Elizabeth Massie, Tim Waggoner, and more.
https://www.amazon.com/Horror-Zines-Book-Monster-Stories-ebook/dp/B0CRK7XFHN/
If you’d like to read more of my works, please visit my website:
https://trishwilsonauthor.blogspot.com
I’m very active on Facebook. Friend me!
https://www.facebook.com/elizabethablack
Visit The Horror Zine:
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