If you're a regular Fear Zone reader, you may recognize Gabrielle Faust as one of our more frequent contributors; she's reviewed movies and books for the site and has interviewed a number of authors. Now the shoe is on the other foot! Gabrielle's first novel, Eternal Vigilance, is now available, so it's her turn to be bound to a Petri dish and slid beneath the FZ Author Microscope. Let's peel back some scalp and probe the cerebral tissue of this up and coming writer and artist...

Let's start with your interest in horror. How old were you when you caught the infection?

My earliest memories of the horror world begin around the age of 6 when my dear mother used her very poor judgment to allow me to stay up and watch Poltergeist in tiny motel in the middle of East Texas. While I didn't sleep for about a week afterwards (and still to this day have a morbid fear of clowns), I was instantly hooked. Luckily my mother had no qualms about dragging me to every horror film she could. Around the age of nine is when she handed me my first horror novel, Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice. After gobbling up Interview and The Vampire Lestat it was on to Stephen King, Dean Koontz, etc. I think I was the only kid on the playground reading such heavy material, much to my teachers' disapproval.

How did other people around you react to "a girl" being fascinated by such subject matter?

Well, I was always considered the "odd art girl" so nothing really surprised my friends or family when I was growing up. In fact, I was very lucky to be surrounded by a large group of kids that shared the same interests as I did from horror to heavy metal and the occult. People on the outside of our bizarre group of friends, referred affectionately to in high school as "The People Under the Stairs", for the most part simply looked at me with confusion, tiptoeing around me like I would turn into a bat or cast a spell on them. I remember distinctly one group of Hispanic gang members who were convinced we were vampires and would cross themselves when they passed us in the hallways. Teachers were also a bit hesitant when they found out some of my interests, treating me with a strange mixture of respect and fear like I would pull out a machete if pushed too far. My principal actually said to my mother on graduating day, "Well, I was a little afraid of her for a while there, but I think she'll be just fine." He then smiled and laughed and walked away. I still get that reaction at times from people who do not know enough about the genre to realize that we are not all Satan worshipers and most of us are goofy, down-to-earth, intelligent beings. As for being a "girl" interested in horror, people have generally expressed a sort of bewildered shock that usually instantly turns into a barrage of curious questions. It's hard for them to wrap their minds around the idea of a female being a part of such a brutal industry. For the most part, however, I have found that it actually, now, raises their respect for me, as if I just returned from the front lines of a war or a dangerous exploration mission through the Amazon, though what I do is not nearly as hard or dangerous as either example...

When did you start writing, who inspired you, and what were your original goals?

I have, for as far back as I can remember, had an affinity for storytelling. In elementary school my friends and I began writing "novels" in spiral notebooks, which, many times, would fill two or three binders when we were done. We were quite the prolific little geeks back then, creating entire worlds with multitudes of characters and storylines that were, in many ways, far too mature for our 6th grade minds. Since my childhood was less than ideal (actually, a massive understatement) writing gave me the perfect escape and still does to this day...

As for my early inspirations my grandparents, on my father's side, were both play writes and poets. Starting around the age of eight or so, I began sending them my poetry to critique. They took this very seriously and would write me back with comments and advice, which I, in turn, also took very seriously. They constantly encouraged me to keep writing and reading, instilling in me a faith that anything is possible if you work hard enough at it. They also encouraged me to explore as many types of writing as possible in order to broaden my horizons in literature. Because of this encouragement, asides from my mother's enthusiastic indoctrination of her child into the horror world, I found myself gaining inspiration from a multitude of genres from non-fiction novels on quantum physics to the Beats such as Leonard Cohen, Kerouac, Bukowski and Buroughs. I still do my best to keep my eyes open for inspiration in the most unusual places.

It wasn't until about five years ago that I truly began to set goals for myself as a writer. At that point I decided to set my goals for becoming a published novelist and poet, both of which I have, I am happy to say, accomplished. Up until that point it was for pure pleasure, writing for the sake of writing and if someone read it and loved, that was only a plus.

Tell me about your poetry collection, BEFORE ICARUS, AFTER ACHILLES.

BEFORE ICARUS, AFTER ACHILLES is a collection of 78 free-verse poems accumulated over the course of about six years and was released in 2005. They are intensely personal, dealing with some of my darker demons, my struggles and experienced tragedies. The title comes from the nicknames I gave to my first great love and last great love, so far, Icarus and Achilles. This collection was my first venture into the world as a published poet and so far, it has done quite well.

Publish America is a pretty notorious outfit. How were your dealings with them?

Honestly, the only beef I have had with PA so far has been the fact that they talked me into editing my own work. I was new to the publishing world and naieve so I accepted the task. Luckily it was poetry and so there are only a couple of small typos in the book, but I can't imagine if it were an actual full-length novel. Asides from that, I haven't had any adverse dealings with them, though they lent absolutely no support to the marketing of the book. It's a good thing that I have a background in marketing and design and that's probably why the book has done as well as it has. For the most part, I've tried to just forget about it. If PA is the terrible company I've heard them to be, what's done is done. They have the right to publish BEFORE ICARUS, AFTER ACHILLES until 2012 and then the rights will be mine once again at which point I will find a new publisher for the collection. Would I recommend an author go with PA? Probably not. There is too much controversy surrounding the company and authors deserve more honesty and stability than that. The publishing world is nerve-wrecking enough as it is without the added stress of wondering whether or not your publisher is corrupt.

I'm not familiar with Immanion Press. What can you tell me about them?

Immanion Press is an independent publisher in Stafford, UK specializing in horror, fantasy and science fiction by both new and established authors. IP was founded in 2003 by author Storm Constantine. Originally she began the company solely to reprint the back catalog of her work (she has published somewhere near 37 books so far since the 1980's), but soon opened the press up to other established authors such as Michael Moorcock and Ian Watson. Shortly after, IP began accepting submissions from upcoming authors, such as myself. Today Immanion Press is growing rapidly, adding several new titles each season.

Why did you decide to tackle the beginning of a trilogy with your first novel?


I know. It's crazy, right? I couldn't possibly have just started my career as an author is one single novel. Oh, no! I had to go and think up a trilogy! I suppose it is simply the way my brain works. I think in big concepts and epic tales so as the concept of the novel solidified in the beginning, I realized that this was a tale that simply could not be told in one single novel. That is, unless the novel was around 900 pages and then what sane publisher would take a chance on a first-time novelist with a manuscript like that? Not many, that's for sure. I wanted to build a world that was tangible, believable, one that had a intricate, bloody history and a dismal future; I wanted the characters to be multifaceted and complicated so that people would relate to them on more than a superficial level. This is not to say that the pace of each book is slow. By all means, I feel that each book builds quickly and keeps the reader engaged. There is simply a lot to cover in the epic saga of ETERNAL VIGILANCE.

ETERNAL VIGILANCE is a post apocalyptic vampire novel. What else can you tell Fear Zone about it?

The premise of ETERNAL VIGILANCE is as follows... After a century-long Sleep, Tynan Llywelyn has awoken to find the world he once knew utterly obliterated by a brutal war of epic proportions. In a new apocalyptic society bitterly divided by magic and technology, the Tyst Empire has found that a hundred years of global domination is not enough to sate their thirst for power. They have discovered the secret of the vampire race and have designed a plan to seize their own sinister form of immortality with the help of an ancient vampiric god. The Phuree, a rebel uprising that has been engaged in a bloody war with the Tyst since the beginning of the new regime, have obtained the knowledge of Lord Cardone's plans and have allied themselves with the remaining Immortal clan. Cast in violence and conspiracy into the midst of a global war between magic and technology, mortals and vampires, in a new world he is still struggling to define, Tynan must make the harrowing decision to save the world he so bitterly detests or stand and watch as humanity is destroyed by a primordial evil beyond all imagining...

ETERNAL VIGILANCE is definitely a unique vampire tale in that it combines horror, science fiction and metaphysical philosophy. From the first-person perspective of Tynan, a delusional, socially exiled former philio-religious vampiric leader, the reader is taken into a world where a complete division of global societal power has occurred. Tynan is forced to revisit all of the old demons that have haunted him for centuries in order to take a side in a war to end all wars. I'd like to think that this book is more than merely another vampire novel, but a societal, political and philosophical statement about the current state of the world and where we, the human race, are heading. It is also a pondering on how, no matter our circumstances, we can never escape what we are and where we have come from. We can pretend the past never happened, but it will always come back to haunt us. Despite the extremity of our power, we are always, unfortunately, human...

You're a graphic designer as well as a writer. Did you create the cover for ETERNAL VIGILANCE?

The cover of ETERNAL VIGILANCE was a collaborative effort between myself and Polish photographer Wojciech Zwoli?ski, a current student at the University of Warsaw. I came across Zwoli?ski's work about a year and half ago and fell in love with a particular self-portrait he had up on his Deviant Art page. The said image was too low res to use for print so I commissioned him to recreate the self-portrait for the cover of EV. From there I did the final layout with the title design, etc. Zwoli?ski will also be the cover photographer for the second and third novels, which I am absolutely thrilled about!

As a female horror novelist, do you feel any pressure to break through into what has sometimes been called a "boy's club"?

Yes and no. Growing up I was raised around bikers and musicians so I got pretty used to being one of only a few girls in a guy-dominated group. It seems like everything I've ever been interested in, or industry I have worked in from advertising to Harley Davidson, has been one "boy's club" or another so I suppose I don't even notice it much anymore as a female-male issue. Of course, I'm a strong personality and definitely not a shrinking violet of any sorts. I recognize that horror is still a male-dominated field, but I've always approached it as simply proving myself as an author as opposed to a woman. And since a large majority of my work is done via the internet with the submission of articles and stories, etc., my gender rarely even comes up. Every once in a while I get a surprised response of "Oh, I thought you were a guy for some reason," when I correct them in an email that it is "Miss" and not "Mr", which I simply find amusing. I suppose there are still those individuals out there in the field who look down their noses at the women that are trying to make a name in horror, but luckily I haven't had the pleasure of meeting any of them. On the whole, the "boys club" has been really receptive to my work and supportive of my endeavors, but then again, while I'm blond, I definitely do not uphold that stereotype.

What goals have you set for yourself for the next year or so?

The next year is going to be a busy one! Asides from a major promotion of the first ETERNAL VIGILANCE novel, there are two major projects I would like to see reach completion between now and the end of the year: Book 2 of the ETERNAL VIGILANCE series, which is presently about two-thirds written, and a second collection of free-verse poetry. I also have several other projects in the works including a collaborative horror novel concept about the Faustian legend with author Eric Enck, a couple of short stories to be included in the Ladies of Horror 2008 journal and a series of illustrations for Michael Marano's upcoming collection of short stories. I also plan to continue producing articles both for Fear Zone and Fatally Yours Reviews. This is quite a bit to undertake in a single year but, gods willing and java bean providing, I will meet my goals.

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If you live in Austin, Texas vicinity, Gabrielle will be one of MANY authors participating in a mass book signing next Friday, April 25th, from 5:30 PM - 8:00 PM at the Longhorn conference room in the Omi Hotel Downtown.