Carson Winter is about to blow up in a big way.
And yeah, sure, we’re biased, for reasons you’ll read below; but also, the proof is pretty undeniable. Carson has popped up seemingly everywhere the last couple years.
From his novelette, “The Guts of Myth”, which shared space with the equally-going-places Scott J. Moses in Dread Stone Press’ Split Scream Vol. One ; to appearances in Vastarien, the No Sleep Podcast, and Apex Magazine—where his Brave New Weird story, “In Haskins”, originally appeared—if you read contemporary Weird fiction, odds are good you’ve read Carson Winter.
We live about fifteen minutes away from each other, so Carson is the rare collaborator I’ve actually met in person. It might give him an advantage in terms of accessibility, but his devotion to, and zealotry of, all things Weird, is 100% on him.
These responses have been edited for clarity.
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On the Tenebrous Discord, we ask everyone to introduce themselves as a Film-meets-Music Artist. It doesn’t have to be your favorite, and don’t spend too much time overthinking it; now GO.
The Killing of a Sacred Deer x Against Me!
Transgressive, funny Weird Horror meets scream-till-your-throat-bleeds punk rock. Fuck yeah.
That segues nicely into what I wanted to ask next. In addition to your fiction writing, you’ve been a punk journalist on and off over the years, chronicling the scene. What was your most impactful interaction there? Whether it’s an amazing show, the biggest asshole you’ve interviewed, or both?
I think what left the most impact on me was seeing the realities of working artists. You spend all this time on the internet—listening, reading, writing about your favorite new indie punk band—and you get hyped to see them and have that “[Henry] ROLLINS TALKING HEAD IN 80s HARDCORE DOCUMENTARY” experience; and then you go and realize that your favorite band in the world is playing to twelve people on a Tuesday night.
It’s not glamorous, but that’s punk to me. Seeing the DIY nature of bands truly doing it without any hope for anything resembling a profit is a bummer, but it’s also inspiring.
There’s a joke in punk circles that metal bands go on tour to make money and punk bands save up money to go on tour—from what I’ve seen, it certainly rings true.
One of the coolest experiences I’ve had was seeing Bomb the Music Industry!, which is a really cool anti-capitalist maximalist ska-punk band, spray painting fan’s blank T-shirts outside the venue with a stencil for free. I love that attitude. DIY and punk rock continues to inform how I think and feel about the arts, and it provides an undying motor for me to continue creating—even when no one gives a shit.
“In Haskins”, your contribution to Brave New Weird, deals with themes of identity, and the public-facing persona we sculpt over time, vs the one we show to ourselves and maybe our loved ones. How much of a struggle do you face reconciling the different aspects of your own personality: public writer, punk journalist, day job?
When I wrote “In Haskins,” I was feeling the burden of identity pretty heavily. I was working at a grocery store during the pandemic and couldn’t help but internalize a sense of self-loathing about myself projected from others.
I remember introducing myself to cool, hip folks in Portland and feeling like they were swallowing their bile when I told them what I did for a living. Being working class—in a city of educated, urbane people—is simply not cool; that feeling definitely informed the story. It made me think a lot about who I was and how I appeared to others. Was I just some loser to everyone? Was that the mask I was forced to wear?
Of course, everyone who thought I was less-than is a total dipshit, but the seeds of “In Haskins" were planted amidst that identity crisis. And these days, I still struggle! I think the weight capitalism puts on [us] is more than enough to crush us. I went to school since then; now I work as a marketer. Have I given up my punk roots? Am I white collar? Why do I have worse insurance than when I worked at a grocery store while doing half the work? Why do I live in the same ancient two-bedroom? Why am I afraid to tell people I’m a writer?
So many of the questions revolve around work and money, and all of them inform our social identity. “In Haskins” is about chafing under the burden of appearances and pushing back.
And yet, you manage to stay remarkably prolific despite life’s obvious obligations. What does your writing routine look like?
The writing routine is a personal thing and it means a lot of different things to different people. I always stress when talk about writing, that there’s no right way to do it—you just do what works for you.
For me, what works is to always be moving forward. I have a home office where I write; and I do write most days, but I don’t aim for big word count goals or anything too extravagant.
Sometimes I have those big days and I pat myself on the back—as one should—but I’m content to just have some sort of consistency.
Also: I make failure part of the process. Sometimes, you just gotta miss a day—or a week or a month—and be able to accept that. I strive for consistency, but I don’t always make it. And that’s okay.
What does “Weird” mean to you, in the context of storytelling? And what creators/experiences helped sculpt that definition?
To me, it is a specific mode of storytelling rooted in the likes of Kafka, Blackwood, Lovecraft, and others. For me, what defines it is characters bouncing off the unknowable.
Think of fairy tales—which, in my opinion, have the same dream logic of the Weird. Little Red Riding Hood never gets bogged down in the specifics of a talking wolf. The wolf talks! It’s not about why the wolf talks—it’s about how our young traveler reacts and interacts with this unknowable force.
Similarly, think of The Metamorphosis. Why does Samsa turn into a bug? No fucking clue. The story isn’t about that—it’s just the conceit that gets us to see the underlying absurdity of the world we already live in.
My Big Weird Heroes are those that play in this absurd sandbox. Thomas Ligotti, Brian Evenson, Nicole Cushing, and Jon Padgett are all extremely inspiring figures for me. Each of them spins the absurdity inherent in the Weird into interesting and personal directions. As with any story, it’s about the author as much as the narrative. What truly fascinates me is how the author displays themselves on the page through their choices.
You’re in a rare position, in that you have multiple projects coming out with Tenebrous Press in the next year…and more after that. What can you tease about them, **knowing damn well I’ll edit the shit out of you if you give away too much**?
My excitement is immeasurable for all of these projects. Working with Tenebrous has been a legit dream so far and I am so stoked that I was able to throw out my chips and you guys decided to go all in (ed. note: we are pretty awesome).
My first project is called Soft Targets (due March 2023), and if you like transgression and unlikable people—you will love this one. It’s a Weird Horror novella about two office drones that kill time by talking endlessly about mass shootings. When one of them discovers some days are more real than others, they suddenly have a playground to consummate their fantasies. This is a gnarly [book], I won’t lie. It’s about violence as escapism; power fantasies; toxic masculinity; capitalism; class; all that good stuff. Despite all that, it’s also pretty entertaining. Imagine something between Thomas Ligotti and J.G. Ballard’s Crash and you have the vibe.
After that, we have Posthaste Manor (due October 2023)—a collaborative shared collection between Jolie Toomajan and myself. Jolie is a tremendous writer: Gothic, feminist, lyrical, and witty as hell. This project was literally borne out of me wanting to work with her. We ended up letting our hair down and [just] went wild! It was a blast from start to finish. A gonzo romp through the rise and fall of a very Weird haunted house. It’s a New Weird version of The Dozens, where Jolie and I go back and forth trying to one-up each other in the strange. We hope folks have as much fun reading this as we did writing it.
Finally (and this is for sure where I’m going to get edited!), in 2024 I have a [redacted] coming out called [redacted]. This is without a doubt my [redacted] project—it’s about [redacted] running amok on a [redacted] filled with [redacted] (yes, I know—it’s a pet theme). It also is a story about [redacted] struggling to [redacted] from [redacted]—a theme I think a lot of us can relate to in the modern world. It’s [redacted], [redacted], and also features some [redacted]. What’s not to [redacted]?
All of these projects are super dear to me and I am so excited to work with a press that puts so much obvious [redacted] into their books.
[redacted] you for your time, Carson.
Brave New Weird: The Best New Weird Horror, Vol. One, is out February 6, 2023; preorder information coming soon!