Lisa Vasquez, or the Unsaintly Queen, as some folks, myself included, call her, is no stranger in the indie horror world with a vast array of accomplishments including publisher, editor, author, and currently editor-in-chief of Memento Mori Ink Magazine. I also call her mentor and friend.
Lisa will be joining the authors of Uncomfortably Dark's Full Throttle: an extreme horror anthology, set to release in late March 2025. Check out her interview below and be sure to check out some of her other work at the links below.
Lisa Vasquez
If you had three sentences to pitch your most recent book to a new reader, what is your pitch?
When faith isn’t enough to quench the drought in your heart and soul, who do you turn to? Who do you pray to? . . . Who answers back?
Do you have a favorite book or story of your own that you talk about more than others? What makes it your favorite?
Deviants and Decadents is one of my favorites because I came back from such a long hiatus and had to rebuild myself. I am proud of that book and the range of stories within the pages.
Have you ever experienced a natural disaster? If so, what was the scariest moment for you?
I live in Houston, Texas. Every month is a new disaster. We have tropical storms, hurricanes and the craziest weather. The scariest moments are actually winter because our electricity is on an unstable grid. Many residents went weeks with no power or heat for weeks. We personally went a week without and we were miserable.
Has there been a disaster-based movie or book that has stuck with you since you first watched/read it? What was it and why did it stick?
I love all of the natural disaster movies, honestly. There’s no control. Nature is a hormonal bitch. You just have to hope you’re not in the way.
What’s the one thing that scares you the most in this world and have you ever written about it?
Humans scare the shit out of me. I write about them all the time.
Is there an author that you would like to work with that would be a dream partnership for you?
Writing with someone is difficult. Schedules and commitment are the biggest obstacles. I’d write with anyone. I love the challenge and I love bouncing ideas off one another. The whole process is a thrill. It’s the process that kills the vibe. I think if I had to choose one person as a bucket list? I’d choose Chuck Palahniuk
If you had one hour to speak to any living author, who would it be and why?
Chuck Palahnuik is one of my favorite authors so I’d want an hour with him to really pick his brain, bounce ideas off, and get advice from him.
What has been one of the proudest moments of your writing journey?
Hitting “publish” on my first book.
Who are you outside of being an author, meaning do you have other hobbies or interests that are your methods of relaxing or for refreshing creative inspiration?
First and foremost, I’m a woman. Women are beautiful and complex creatures forged under pressure like a diamond. I’m proud of every accomplishment I have made as a Hispanic female in the horror and dark fiction industry. I am also a mentor and artist. Partner, mother, “Yia-Yia” and much more. Just depends on what side of the bed I wake up on.
Do you think the horror industry is having a surge of new authors and new readers and if so, do you see this as a good thing?
I think there’s more of a blur in genres so you’ll see more readers and authors. Horror is also becoming more mainstream so you’re seeing more because it’s less “taboo.”
Where do you see the industry in ten years with regards to the evolution of tropes, diversity and inclusion, and readers, flourishing or floundering? Explain why.
I think it’ll ebb and flow just like every other genre. I hope to see more diversity and inclusion but most importantly, I’d like to see more education about the genres and more mentoring from our veteran authors to pass on the knowledge of each genre and sub-genre.
What is a piece of advice that you WISH someone had given you early in your career?
Be uncomfortable. Believe in yourself. Put yourself first more often.
BIO for Lisa Vasquez
The Mother of Monsters, Lisa Vasquez creates vivid, twisted horror with the precision of a scalpel, cutting into the reader's psyche with fleshed out characters. Her writing style has been compared to the works of Mary Shelley, Baz Luhrman, and Grand Guignol by John Palisano the Bram Stoker-winning author of Nerves and hailed as, "A writer of nightmarish vision and a new poetic voice in today's horror genre," by Peter Molnar, author of The Clockwork Lazarus."
The editor-in-chief of Memento Mori Ink Magazine, she has led her team to Amazon's Best Seller list with its debut, August 2024, issue. Lisa is not only an advocate for mental health, Women in Horror (Vixens of Horror series), LGBTQ+ awareness, and the Indie dark fiction community as a whole, she is frequently commended for her mentorship programs, and has designed covers for some of the most recognizable authors of horror and splatter punk, today.
When she's not nursing a cup of beans or leaves and flipping people off, Lisa can be found hunched in front of the glowing magic square bringing new monsters to life. She is deathly allergic to bullshit.
Check out Lisa's website here:
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