Sarah Budd
Sarah Budd grew up in Cornwall surrounded by myths and legends. She has always been fascinated by anything out of the ordinary. Her work has appeared in over twenty magazines including NoSleep Podcast, Diabolica Britannica, Tales to Terrify, Aphotic Realm, Sanitarium Magazine, Dark Fire Fiction, Mystic Blue Review, Siren’s Call Publications, Deadman’s Tome, Innersins, Aphelion, Bewildering Stories and Blood Moon Rising Magazine.
Marina Raydun: Your bio says you grew up surround by myths and legends. Can you give us some examples?
Sarah Budd: Cornwall is home to Tintagel Castle, home to King Arthur the legendary warrior king who aided by Merlin, a powerful sorcerer fought giants, witches, monsters, and dragons whilst on his daring adventures. Legend says that today he sleeps under Glastonbury Tor waiting to called upon once again.
MR: Enter the Darkness sounds deliciously creepy and intriguing. What inspired you to write this one?
SB: One day I visited Chislehurst Caves and I immediately fell in love with the place. The caves are so eerie and subject to so many ghosts and hauntings, it’s the perfect setting for a horror novel and really compelled me to write about it. I wanted to create a fast action-packed ride through the dark caves.
MR: What is your favorite underappreciated novel within the horror genre?
SB: Ooh this is a tricky question as I’m a huge fan of indie horror and I think there’s hundreds of indie horror books that deserve way more praise and attention. My favourite horror author of all time is Adam Neville and I think he deserves to be as famous as Stephen King.
I recently read A Different Darkness and Other Abominations by Luigi Musolino from Valancourt Books which really blew me away. I also recently read The Devil’s Pocket Book by Ross Jeffery which is folk horror at its finest. Catherine McCarthy has two new books coming out soon, Mosaic, and A Moonlight Path of Madness which I’m really excited about.
MR: Do real life people inspire your characters?
SB: It would be terrifying if they did as I love to write about people that are very unhinged! All my characters are plucked out of thin air. I like my characters to be deeply flawed and complicated, I don’t believe in the concept of goodies vs baddies. We’re all people at the end of the day and we’re all capable of doing good and bad things. A good person can do something bad and vice versa.
MR: What was the hardest scene to write?
SB: In Enter the Darkness writing the final chapter was the hardest scene as it was hard saying goodbye to the book, and I also wanted to make sure it was impactful. I also found the White Lady hard to write as I wanted to make her terrifying for my readers.
MR: What is your favorite genre to read?
SB: My favourite genre is horror, but I love to read all genres. I love anything from classics to contemporary. I’m a big fan of Daphne Du Maurier, Gwendoline Riley, Gwendoline Kiste, Emma Forrest, the Bronte Sister’s and Kirsty Logan.
MR: What are you currently reading?
SB: I have just started reading Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield, Death in Her Hands by Ottessa Mosfegh, Slow Days, Fast Company by Eve Babitz. I can’t just read one book at a time, and I always have to be reading a book!
MR: How did publishing your first book change your writing process?
SB: I think having a book published made me realise that I have an audience, in a way it has inspired me to write more but also now I feel a little self-conscious!
MR: Is there a thing you’ve written that makes you cringe now?
SB: There are so many short stories I have written that make me cringe, but I think that’s a good thing as it shows how my writing has progressed through the years.
MR: Is there a book you wish you’d written?
SB: The one that springs to mind was Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough. I watched it first on Netflix and when it all fits together I literally lay awake that night thinking how genius it was. So simple yet so effective. I absolutely love that book!
For more information, please visit:
Twitter: @SjbuddJ
Website: http://www.sjbudd.co.uk/