AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Stephanie Ellis

Stephanie Ellis writes short story and novella length dark speculative fiction which has found success in a variety of magazines and anthologies.
She is co-editor and contributor to The Infernal Clock, a fledgling press which has produced two anthologies to-date. She is also co-editor of Trembling With Fear, HorrorTree.com’s online magazine.
The Fiends in the Furrows: An Anthology of Folk Horror
“The Way of the Mother”
What is your favorite season and why?
What drew you to Folk Horror?
Folk horror has always been part of my life. The nature of those nine years meant an exposure to the rural calendar and the trials to which human and animal were subjected. In one bar of the pub, animal traps decorated the walls, there was a crossbow (traps and crossbow were rendered harmless by the way), a fox’s brush; in the cellar, my dad would hang pheasants gifted by farmers and I would often walk into them unawares, walking home I would also see rows of crows caught by the farmers hung up along fences to deter other birds. All of these are small aspects of death in a very real situation, folk horror was part of my childhood and I never really realized it until I started writing.
What does Folk Horror mean to you? How would you describe it to someone?
What is the most Folk Horror thing you’ve seen/encountered in your community?
The most Folk Horror thing? That would be a few years back when I went to the Beltane Festival at Butser Hill in Hampshire. A fan of the original Wicker Man film, I discovered Butser put on a similar burning—without the sacrifice! Just watching that giant figure blaze up and then disintegrate was pretty amazing. People had been eating and drinking as the sun went down, dancing and listening to music and then we all gathered to watch the burning, voices were quieter, there was no shrieking and shouting, just everyone being part of something, it felt special. I wanted to return this year but sadly prices have become extortionate and I think it is suffering from a growing commercialism.
What writing projects do you have next?
