AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Elizabeth Twist
Elizabeth Twist writes speculative fiction, some of it dark, some of it dreamy. She loves the wobbly line that separates the known from the unknown. Sometimes what she writes is funny, sometimes on purpose. Her work has appeared in NonBinary Review, AE: The Canadian Science Fiction Review, Daily Science Fiction, and elsewhere. Find her on Twitter @elizabethtwist.
The Fiends in the Furrows II: More Tales of Folk Horror
“The Complete Compleat Gardener”
My favourite folk horror element is the theme of (preter)natural forces beyond our reckoning. I also love that thing that happens when people get so involved with those forces that their relationship to human moral structures is totally upended, inverted, perverted.
Where did the inspiration for your FIENDS II short story come from?
Feminism, environmentalism, and Scottish country dancing.
What is your favorite kind of tree, and why?
Any kind where the roots have formed one of those little arches that looks as if a slightly naughty, very small creature lives in it. Why are they always so dark? I like daring people to stick their hands in there
How has the Coronavirus pandemic impacted your writing?
Focus and concentration are always a challenge for me, and more so now that so much mental real estate is taken up with pandemic consequences, but it’s getting better. I’m also trying to sort out how I’ll reflect the current crisis in my work: now that normal’s been totally redefined, what does daily life look like in a story set in the present, or the future, for that matter? I’m starting to get excited about these possibilities now, but initially found them daunting.
What’s next for you, in terms of writing projects?
I’m working on two novel projects. One is about a woman seeking a home despite her knowledge of a disturbing truth: without exception, all human dwellings are haunted. The other is set in a near-future in which a few people discover that they can change how they move through time, with powerful consequences for human consciousness and space exploration.
THE FIENDS IN THE FURROWS II
THE FIENDS IN THE FURROWS II: MORE TALES OF FOLK HORROR is a collection of short stories of Folk Horror, honoring its rich and atmospheric traditions.
Fans of Folk Horror will find herein more terrifying tales of rural isolation, urban alienation, suburban superstition, pastoral paranoia, as well as mindless and monstrous ritual that epitomize the atmospheric dread of this fascinating and developing subgenre.
FOREWORD BY ANDREW MICHAEL HURLEY