Interview - Author Matthew Mercier

An upcoming author and poet working in multiple genres, Matthew Mercier is working to create his name in the industry with poetry and other stories published in multiple formats. Now, in honor of the release of his debut novel "Poe and I," I talk with him about his early interest in writing, his process for creating new work, and the novel itself.

Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, when did you get into horror in general?

Matthew Mercier: I’m pretty sure it started with the Wicked Witch of the West in ‘The Wizard of Oz.” I’m part of the generation that came of age watching it on a yearly basis, as it was beamed into our TV sets for one magical night. We had no ability to record it, so you had to be home. Honestly, all I cared about was Maragret Hamilton in that lime-green makeup and pointy black hat—she was my whole world, and her army of flying monkeys, too. I can’t say why I was so drawn to her character, but she is most certainly the gateway.

Me: Were you into genre films growing up? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?

MM: My mother loved Hitchcock, and sometime around middle school, when libraries began to offer VHS tapes to borrow, she brought home ‘Strangers on A Train’ and I loved it. It was the first time I was aware that something sophisticated was going on with the camera placement, the story, and the characters. I laughed so hard when Robert Walker popped the kid’s balloon. From there it was a quick jump to 'Rear Window,' 'Psycho,' and 'The Birds.' Those last two are flat-out horror, and it’s safe to say they were my entry into adult horror. That brilliant series of silent cuts in 'The Birds,' when she discovers her father in the house with his eyes poked out. That screwed me up. But from there it was on to 'Texas Chainsaw,' 'The Thing,' Freddy, and Michael Myers.

Me: Who were some of your favorite writers growing up? Do you try to take influences from their style with your own voice in your work?

MM: Stephen King and Jack London were my two favorites, an odd couple if ever there was one, but I was in love with nature and horror. Our mother shoved us outside on weekends and didn’t allow us to get sucked into Saturday morning cartoons. So I’d play in the woods and pretend I was in Alaska. As for King, I started with his short stories, but then it was off to the races: Carrie, Cujo, Salem’s Lot. I’m not sure if his style influences me, but he does—the man himself. He's a working-class guy who broke into publishing, and that’s the dream.

Me: What was the starting point of becoming a writer? Were you always into writing growing up?

MM: I’ve always wanted to be one. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t trying to write. I “wrote” a “novel” in 5th grade, and I remember hooking the whole class and the teacher, so that was my first taste of being an entertainer, but it ruins your life, to be honest. You keep chasing that high your whole life.

Me: What is your writing process? How do you stay focused on writing?

MM: I try to write every day, but I can only sit down for a few hours. So I focus on writing for a few hours, then I need to get up, clean the kitchen, walk outside, go back, and do another few hours. I’ll write for maybe five hours total. I might edit at night if I have the time. But I find that taking periodic breaks frees up my mind to get back to the desk and keep going.

Me: How did you settle on the plot for your novel Poe and I?

MM: By floundering around in the first draft! But once I realized it had to be in first person, everything stemmed from that. I knew my narrator had to be unreliable and voice-driven, the way Poe’s narrators are, and once it became clear what he was hiding and why, the rest of the story fell into place.

Me: Was there any special significance to making the characters interact with the history of Edgar Allen Poe as they do? Is there any special significance to his legacy that helped shape the story?

MM: Given that Jonah’s job is to be a docent for the last home of Poe, interacting with the history was always going to be part of the book, but I also wanted his character to feel a kinship with Poe’s personal history. They’ve both lost their mothers, and they are both broke and lonely and in need of help. So that tragic upbringing informed much of Jonah’s character.

Me: How much prep work went into adding the traits of the creatures into this type of story?

MM: Well, if you mean the ghosts, I had to make sure they each had a different relationship to Jonah. They each had to want something different, and Jonah’s psychic battle with both is what drives him over the edge, but also drives the story forward. Living in Poe’s Basement is all about confronting your ghosts, and the worst parts of yourself.

Me: Was there any part of your real self injected into the human characters?

MM: There is a piece of me in every character, but Jonah Peabody is not me. I may have created confusion since I’ve told true stories about my time with Poe with a group called THE MOTH, a live storytelling group that started in New York City. My life at the cottage was a bit crazy and some of those events have been related in the book, but for the most part, it’s all fiction. My family is not as dark as Jonah’s, and the relationship he has with his father and mother is far worse than mine.

Me: What was the most surprising thing about the arc of the story that emerged as you were writing it?

MM: I was surprised at how dark it did get, and how much I could empathize with that darkness. It doesn’t take much for life to go sideways, and as my mother always said, “There but for the grace of God go I.” I can imagine the worst and I have lived through some of the worst, so imagining a dark life for my protagonist was not difficult.

Me: Once it was finally written, what was the process for having it published?

MM: How long do you have? (laughs long and hard) This book was “finished” a long, long time ago before COVID hit our shores, but finding a publisher proved tricky. I had an agent for a while, the Big Five took a few nibbles, but it was ultimately rejected all around town. So, when I saw that Crystal Lake had an open call, I figured I had nothing left to lose. I sent them the first three chapters and fully expected to be rejected again, so I was shocked and surprised when the acceptance came in from Joe & his team.

Me: How do you do to keep your creative energy flowing?

MM: I’m a bit of a madman in that I work on numerous projects. If one stalls out, I jump to another. It sounds unhinged, and not at all disciplined, but I’ve found that if I’m focused too hard on one project, then I get creatively blocked on everything. So better to jump all over the place and then when I’m done I have to work on something else. For example, I’m working on a new novel, but it’s complex with multiple characters, so when I get blocked I jump to a few short stories and outline the novel. I’m also editing a radio drama that I wrote and that is fantastic, working in a different medium.

Me: Lastly, what else are you working on that you'd like to share with our readers? Thank you again for your time!

MM: I’ve got a story collection in the works that centers around Artificial Intelligence, the current techno panic at the moment, and I’m also working on a new novel which is a satire about race in America. It’s a marriage of Percival Everett & H.P. Lovecraft if that makes any sense. And God help me I’ve also got an idea for a YA novel that I’m sketching out—so, as I said, I’m a madman.