A genealogist with forty years’ experience and a practicing psychic medium, Susan E. Rogers has crafted a legacy not just for her spiritual work but also turning to writing about her experiences over the years. Now, in honor of Women in Horror Month, I talk with her about her early interest in the genre, her work as an author, and other upcoming projects.
Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, when did you get into horror in general? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
Susan Rogers: As far back as I can remember, everyone read to me or told me stories, my parents, grandparents, great-grandfather, aunts. Most of the stories were fairy tale style, where there’s always a big bad wolf, a mean old witch, a monster who’ll get you if you’re not good, banshees, and other terrible beings. When I learned to read and could do it myself, I became a voracious reader immediately. I was always attracted to these horror fairy stories, mysteries, and suspense, even as a young child.
I started watching horror movies on TV when I was about 6 or 7. Every Saturday afternoon, Creature Double Feature showed the hokey B movies. Lots of Godzilla and his buddies, along with some of the cheesier American movies. My favorites were Creature from the Black Lagoon and The Fly. Saturday night had Tales from the Crypt, which made me fall in love with Vincent Price.
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?
SR: I always read way beyond my age level. I started with Nancy Drew but quickly moved on to Edgar Allen Poe, Wilkie Collins, and Robert Louis Stevenson. As a teen, I discovered more current writers, and my favorites were Stephen King, Peter Straub, Ramsey Campbell, Clive Barker, and Anne Rice. I think my own style is a mix of bits and pieces I’ve taken from all these writers and more, but I don’t think I did so deliberately. Their voices kept me reading their work, and it was only natural that I absorbed those styles and blended them to develop my own.
Me: What was the starting point of becoming a writer? Were you always into writing growing up?
SR: I actually started about the time I was five years old, before I started school, making up stories and telling them to my dolls and imaginary friends. My mother was busy with my two baby sisters, and this was how I entertained myself since I couldn’t read on my own yet. I didn’t write anything down on paper until I was in high school, and then I started with poetry. I tried short stories, but I had no grasp whatsoever on dialogue, so I gave that up for a long while. I did very little creative writing while working in my career of Social Worker. A few passages here and there, but nothing complete.
Me: Is there any specific genre you prefer to write? Is there a style or format that you find easier to get into, even if you don't have a preference?
SR: I prefer to write atmospheric, slow-burning, suspenseful horror. Lots of historical and Gothic. Most of the time, my themes are about psychological fear or dread, and there’s often a sense of mystery. I use supernatural and occult themes, like ghosts, possession, shapeshifting, and witchcraft. I don’t write gore or extreme horror, though there can be a bit of blood spilled, and I don’t write about demons in the religious sense. However, a writer has to be aware of what the popular trends are and what readers want to believe or read, if they want to sell their books.
Me: Having contributed to various anthologies early in your career, what tools and skills do you acquire working on those that transferred to future projects?
SR: Anthologies are an interesting type of work. On the surface, they are merely a collection of stories written by different authors. Of course, it’s not that simple. There’s always a theme or at least a common thread that connects all the stories together. That theme or thread is like a writing prompt, sometimes a very general one, sometimes quite specific. Writing to the prompt is a lesson in discipline and strategy. Discipline to adhere to the idea or theme, when the editor is relying on you as a contributing author to offer a cohesive story that complements and works well with the others. Strategy to work my own creative force and ideas into a form that does the same. Although my own or other writing projects may not require the focus on “fitting in,” both discipline and strategy are necessary for keeping the narrative on point with my own narrative goals.
There are two types of anthology projects. One in which the writer submits a story to an open call for submissions, and the other where an invitation to contribute a story is extended by the anthology editor. In most cases, success in the first eventually leads to the second. I started submitting to anthologies early in my writing career as I believed it was an opportunity to get exposure and recognition for my work. I’ve now had a few invitations as well.
Me: What is the general process for getting involved in these projects?
SR: Usually, I know what my next writing project will be long before I’m actually ready to start writing it. An idea or thought settles in the creative part of my brain and starts to germinate, even while I’m still finishing another writing project. I let it weave its own meandering course. Sometimes I write brief notes, but mostly I just let the thoughts and ideas percolate until the first story is complete and I’m ready to start writing the new one. Sometimes I’ll overlap, but usually I like to keep the process pure for one book at a time.
Also, I’m not an outliner. I write the stories linearly and let them take me where they will. I keep an annotated chapter list with a brief summary of each scene and important issues, but I write these after the chapter is complete. The list helps me keep track of where in the book I can find certain scenes or actions, in case I need to go back and reference or edit some point to be consistent with the story’s flow.
Me: How do you settle on the plots for these books? Is there any special significance to the variety of stories infused with experiences from your past?
SR: I keep a journal where I jot down all kinds of ephemera and observations: sentences or phrases I’ve read and liked, dream segments, a strange building, things in nature, interesting people I’ve met or seen, quotes, TV segments, etc. Anything can give me the idea for a story. For example, my boyfriend used to work with a friend cleaning out abandoned houses. One day, he found a noose in the attic of an empty house and brought it home to me because he knew I would find it fascinating. I did, of course, and it became the basis of my book The One-in-the Noose. When I’m ready to start writing, especially short stories, I flip through the journal pages for inspiration. The plot and themes of my stories often include references to my paranormal experiences or are loosely interpreted from supernatural experiences I’ve had. My novels have been about Tarot Card readings, the house with the noose, and being haunted by an ex-husband’s ghost.
Me: Is there anything while writing the characters that you were surprised by in telling their stories?
SR: Characters surprise me all the time. When I start writing a book or short story, I have a superficial acquaintance with my characters. As I continue writing, I get to know them better, and eventually they reveal a rich and full personality that I may never have anticipated when I started. I’ve had characters display some unexpected behavior or trait as I write, outside of the storyline I have in mind, and I have to accommodate that. Sharon Coady, my protagonist in Haunted in Paradise, ended up showing a lot more gumption and spunk than I initially intended when she was tracking down and then facing her adversary.
Me: What is your writing process? How do you stay focused on writing?
SR: I wake up very early, and, with coffee at hand, use the morning quiet to do concentrated writing and editing. This is my routine just about every day. My office can be separate from the rest of the house, so I can work uninterrupted as long as I like. And I leave my manuscript open on my laptop all day so I can work in spurts or longer sessions when I get inspiration at any time. I love to write, so it’s not a chore for me to do it a lot or all the time. Having this kind of open and flexible approach allows me to work at my own pace, whatever that means at a particular time. I don’t have to set goals like minimum word count or number of pages to complete daily. It just happens naturally.
Me: Outside of this, you also read tarot cards and tea leaves as well as other forms of spiritual readings. How did you come to learn these particular skills?
SR: Remember those imaginary friends I told my stories to when I was little? Yeah, that. I’ve always been aware that I had some kind of connection to the spirit world. I explored it a little as a teen, but then my husband was a total non-believer, completely against any kind of paranormal or supernatural activity. So, I suppressed my natural abilities – until I got divorced and decided to make up for lost time.
I’ve always had the psychic ability to communicate with ghosts and other spirit entities, but after my divorce, I decided to study and understand that ability. I learned to read tarot cards and tea leaves, and other methods of divination, then became certified as a Reiki Master Teacher, an Akashic Records Master Practitioner, and a healer using aromatherapy and crystals. All of this helped in my life and in my writing by understanding my connections to the universe and everything in it. Of course, I use all of this in my books and stories, adding in more horror from the real world than really exists in the supernatural realm.
Me: What has been the most memorable experience you’ve encountered?
SR: I will never forget when a ghost made contact with me and wanted to be my friend. This was shortly after my divorce, at a local bar with some friends, when I was feeling a little lonely and down. That was Norman, the main character in my paranormal memoir Uncovering Norman: Proving the Former Life of a Ghost. The book relates how we two became fast friends with a purpose. Norman was really the catalyst for launching my writing career by giving me the story of the two of us together and the support to get started. It’s become a bit of a low-key cult classic for people who have had paranormal experiences but are wary of believing or having others find out, by helping them understand and accept the experience.
Me: What do you do to keep your creative energy flowing?
SR: Mostly I read. Other books and other authors are inspirational for my writing. I also do a lot of research for book ideas I have, because I always want the most authentic, immersive, and evocative writing for my readers.
Me: What else are you working on that you'd like to share with our readers?
SR: I have two working novel manuscripts on standby at the moment, though I have several chapters of each one written. One is a second in series to Haunted in Paradise, called Cursed in Paradise. My current work in progress has demanded all my attention since July. Its title is Melinoë, which is the name of a chthonic Greek goddess of ghosts, nightmares, and funerary rites. Originally written as a 10,000-word short story, I decided to make it a novel when I found limited markets to sell it in short form. The story has been greatly expanded in an effort to make it as historically authentic as I can, and I’ve spent hours and hours on research. It’s the story of an 1850 whaling ship named Melinoë that, in the words of some of the sailors on board, is “possessed by a demon-lady.” Here’s the pitch: If Herman Melville invited H.P. Lovecraft and Homer for a sail on the whaleship Essex, just imagine what an epic story collaboration they could concoct! I am nearing the end of the story and hope to have the full draft completed by mid-March.
Me: Lastly, being that this is our Women in Horror Movement, what special message do you have for any women out there looking to join in the industry in any capacity as you are one yourself?
SR: There are far more opportunities these days for women writers, editors, publishers, artists, and designers in genre fiction, especially horror, than ever before. The challenge for women is to take advantage of them. Be assertive, be proactive. Do everything you can to make yourself a better artist every day. Study and learn everything you can find about your craft and make it a part of your own style. Don’t rely on someone else to bring your work to life; give it your very best all the time. Most of all, believe in yourself as an artist. That has to be true before anyone else will believe in you. Then, just fly!
Me: Thank you again for your time!
SR: Thank you!
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